What?! How dare they only make eight seasons of Monk! Monk fans should be in a rage! In tribute to Monk, there should be ten seasons! If you can’t figure out why, then you must not be a Monk fan.
After a stressful day of shopping yesterday,¹ I had to relax my nervous system. Before bedtime last night, I pulled out one of my DVDs of Monk from season five. This morning, as my husband happened to be flipping through the channels, Monk was on. That did it. I had to watch that episode. I didn’t realize how long I’d been keeping myself away from watching Monk. I’m not a DVD collector, but I do have a certain select few hidden away for emergency viewing. Monk is the only one I make sure to have in its entirety.
Most people probably tire of watching Monk, if they even like the show at all. It’s not for everyone and it’s not anything spectacularly brilliant either. However, there is something about Adrian Monk that pulled on my heart strings from the first time his character caught my eye. Now that years have passed since then, I realize what it is about him that affects me so deeply. There are many aspects of his life that reflect mine.
Monk is known best as being an obsessive-compulsive detective. What few realize is how well his character portrays an Asperger syndrome person. OCD isn’t something that right from birth strongly interferes with functioning in life. The potential for it to become severe exists. Stressful events magnify OCD behavior. The sudden and horrible death of Monk’s beloved wife, Trudy, was such an example.
It’s funny how something like shopping triggers a craving in me to watch Monk. It acts like my emotional barometer. The more my nervous system gets taxed, the more soothing Monk is. I refer to the characters on that show as being like my extended family. I don’t have an extended family anymore, so it’s possible I’ve unconsciously developed an attachment to the fictitious relationships portrayed between Adrian Monk, Natalie Teeger, Captain Leland Stottlemeyer, Lieutenant Randall Disher, Ambrose Monk, and Monk’s half-brother Jack Jr.
Full (commercialized) episodes can be viewed on usa network’s website devoted to some Monk episodes. Here are some YouTube videos of Monk for those besides me who love Monk:²
Monk – You Had Me From Hello
Anytime You Need A Friend You Can Count On Me
Monk Under Pressure
Mr Monk – Maybe I’m Amazed
Monk: Born To Be Wild
Mr. Monk and the Kid
Monk Falls in Love – Dancing
Monk Is Dreaming With A Broken Heart
That’s a wrap, folks!
¹I only do multi-bag shopping once a month. Once a week single bag shopping done locally isn’t anywhere near as stressful.
²Since I can only embed seven Monk YouTube videos here, I included links to the three other videos I was unable to include here. That way I could devote ten videos to Monk, even though only eight seasons will exist.
