Monk (USA Network) is now entering its final season and to me it is one of the most underrated shows of this generation . For those who don’t know, Monk is a show about a former San Francisco police detective whose wife was killed and he reverted into a catatonic state after her death. With the help of his nurse Sharona, he started freelancing with the SFPD again but has extreme OCD. I realize Tony Shaloub has received plenty of Emmy nods but the show itself was at the forefront of the cable revolution. Long before Mad Men, Breaking Bad and The Closer, Monk elevated the quality of basic cable programming to a whole new level. For eight seasons the show has not lacked in quality and continues to be a smartly written, well acted show that balances comedy with some incredibly heartfelt moments.

The first three seasons featured Bitty Schram as his nurse/assistant Sharona. The chemistry was terrific and the contrast between a typical “Jersey girl” and the obsessive compulsive Monk led to some great comedy. I was afraid when Schram left the show that it would suffer but after some transition, I feel the show was just as strong with Traylor Howard playing Natalie allowing for a new bi-play between Monk and his new assistant. Some of my favorite moments on Monk are when he realizes how much Natalie or Sharona truly mean to him. While Sharona was a strong personality from the start, Natalie has evolved over the years into a more assertive character and is a great asset to the show.

Captain Stottlemeyer, played by Ted Levine (Jame Gumb in Silence of the Lambs), was very skeptical of Monk in the first season but has subsequently become a willing co-worker and great friend to Adrian Monk. Originally Stottlemeyer had Monk forced on him by higher ups and didn’t think he was capable of being any help in his homicide investigations. After proving himself and helping Captain Stottlemeyer through personal failings, Monk becomes much more of a friend and respected co-worker.

My favorite character on the show, however, is Lt. Randy Disher. Disher works under Capt. Stottlemeyer and is often the comic relief for his odd behavior and naivete. One of my favorite moments in the shows history was Randy trying to speak spanish to a witness to a murder. It was like trying to find a bathroom in spain with a French-English dictionary. Also there was the Randy Disher Project - his band that also had a music video. Disher is absolutely one of the funniest characters on TV and it is a shame that Jason Gray-Stanford has not been recognized with an Emmy nod for his comedic work.

So for those of you who have not seen Monk, I implore you go out and rent the early seasons or start watching this season. This is a show you can pick up with little back-story needed and enjoy. For Lost fans check out the episode from this season “Mr. Monk and the Foreign Man” and enjoy Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje’s work once again but most of all enjoy one of the best shows of the last ten years, Monk.

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