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Monk - General Discussion

Meredith Quill

By Meredith Quill
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Bastet

Bastet

12 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

While I applaud your upbeat enthusiasm, maybe we can just agree to use spoiler tags before a certain date? Like maybe a week or 2 after it drops?

Or, like on the rest of the site, those of us who haven't watched yet just don't come here until we do unless we're okay with being spoiled.  I don't care about being spoiled, but if I did I'd just stay away -- and I'd hate to come in here once I'd watched it and have to click on tags in every post to be able to see what people had written.

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christie
christie

Count me in with everyone who didn't like the resolution of Trudy's murder. It was compltely out of the blue. I find that whn tv series have arcs that extent over a few seasons the results are usually

Annber03
Annber03

And I have officially worked my way through the entire series :)! Woo! What an entertaining ride-it's been a fun couple months discovering this show. I can see where some of you here had a few quibble

joanne3482
joanne3482

With Monk & The Red Headed Stranger, we do get that really nice scene at the very end with Monk and Willie playing "Blue Eyes Crying In the Rain" at Trudy's grave. I really, really liked that part

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Door County Cherry

Door County Cherry

Since there's some discussion about it, I'd like to clarify how Primetimer's position on spoiler tags.  Even though we understand the desire to protect those who can't watch something right away,  spoiler tags should not be used once the movie drops on Peacock.  The only time you should use them is if you get an early preview of the movie. 

If you have any questions about this, please PM me (I'm this thread's mod.)

 

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chessiegal

chessiegal

I've taken to watching the credits at the end of the show. One credit is for a "set medic". Considering how physical some of the show is, I'm not surprised. I'm also not surprised to see Promotional Consideration by SC Johnson. 

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bluegirl147

bluegirl147

I have no problem with a show or movie being discussed on a board about the show or movie.  But I remember looking at someone's FB early one morning before I had watched the previous night's Scandal episode and finding out someone died.  I was not expecting that person to be talking about an episode that aired less than eight hours earlier.  I think people forget not everyone watches things at the same time.

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shapeshifter

shapeshifter

2 hours ago, bluegirl147 said:

I have no problem with a show or movie being discussed on a board about the show or movie.  But I remember looking at someone's FB early one morning before I had watched the previous night's Scandal episode and finding out someone died.  I was not expecting that person to be talking about an episode that aired less than eight hours earlier.  I think people forget not everyone watches things at the same time.

FB is kind of a spoiler waiting to happen since people will feel free to post their thoughts about anything on their own pages, and their friends will feel like the posts are meant for them to read.

Anyway, given:

On 11/9/2023 at 4:44 PM, Door County Cherry said:

Primetimer's position on spoiler tags.  Even though we understand the desire to protect those who can't watch something right away,  spoiler tags should not be used once the movie drops on Peacock.  The only time you should use them is if you get an early preview of the movie. 

If you have any questions about this, please PM me (I'm this thread's mod.)

"Mr. Monk's Last Case: A Monk Movie" 
on Peacock —
Will drop at:
5 a.m. ET🕔 and 2 a.m. PT 🕑
on Friday, December 8
Right?

At least 5am in NY is 2am in California.

For some reason, Wordle has several different time drops around the globe, which might as well be an evil scheme to promote insomnia.😵‍💫🥱
And which could work well for another Monk movie plot point if they decide it’s not really his “Last Case.”

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fishcakes

fishcakes

On 11/10/2023 at 2:37 PM, shapeshifter said:

And which could work well for another Monk movie plot point if they decide it’s not really his “Last Case.”

I can't remember where I read it, but Breckman said that while John Turturro isn't in this movie, he hoped to have another Monk movie at some point where Ambrose will appear. No idea if that's wishful thinking or if he's really planning future installments.

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fishcakes

fishcakes

(edited)

I liked it (Tony Shalhoub could sit on a bare stage reading old Manimal scripts aloud and I would like it), but it wasn't what I expected. I don't want to talk about it in detail until more people have had a chance to see it, but it was darker than the original series, although there were a lot of funny moments. The death of Molly's fiance wasn't the main storyline; it was just the crime that he was solving. The main plot was about Adrian, and it was heartbreaking. 

One specific nit I'll pick now, though: the apartment was not the same. They tried to pass it off as the same and hide it with no wide shots (like, how am I supposed to count the lamps, Breckman???), but no.

Edited by fishcakes
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shapeshifter

shapeshifter

5 minutes ago, Magnumfangirl said:

I thought it was too dark.  It was ok, but not what I wanted on a Friday night near Christmas.  

And yet, it depicted a very common state of mind around this dark (in the northern hemisphere) time of year. 
I like to think some struggling viewers would be inspired by the movie to at least take a walk in the park.
 

Watching on a ginormous TV, I couldn't help noticing during Randy's Lego demonstration that both Tony Shalhoub and Ted Levine were having trouble hiding smiles and not bursting out laughing. I wondered if Jason Gray-Stanford ad libbed the number of times the bridge went up and down in an attempt to get them to break character — perhaps in part because they were all enjoying acting together again and wouldn't mind another take.

Having read of Jason Gray-Stanford's serious health problems, it was good to see him portraying the same Randy, albeit a bit older.

Did Randy say that was a new baby Sharona just had??? Bitty Schram is 55. 
How old are Randy and Sharona supposed to be?

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fishcakes

fishcakes

1 minute ago, shapeshifter said:

Did Randy say that was a new baby Sharona just had??? Bitty Schram is 55. 

No, he said it was Benji's baby. Sharona stayed home to help with the new grandchild. Later, Leland calls him "grandpa."

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Annber03

Annber03

38 minutes ago, fishcakes said:

No, he said it was Benji's baby. Sharona stayed home to help with the new grandchild. Later, Leland calls him "grandpa."

Between this and the recent episode of the "Frasier" reboot that mentions Roz's daughter Alice dating a man for a number of years, this...is not helping my, "Damn, I'm old" feelings right now :p. 

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DoctorAtomic

DoctorAtomic

I agree that I didn't think the show would go down that path as well. I bought-in though. Everyone basically left Monk, and then the pandemic happened. All that alone, you're going to be looking inward. 

I liked the scene with Bell where he's saying, look, you solved 120 (140) cases, and then Monk picks up the paper and points out that nothing changed. Except he missed that he did make change. Seeing the article about the shelter did crack the case. 

I wish we got just a little more with the new captain. She was really invested in welcoming Monk to return. I think a little more there would have tied in with the end with some more impact. Minor nit.

I didn't guess that the tape measure got switched. I thought the guy broke in and just cut the cord. But then if Griffin measured in the morning, he would have known. 

With Leland out of a job, I would suggest he take a crack at writing Monk's book. Having his pov with Monk explaining how he solved the cases might work a lot better. 

I did like the end because all of that is in Monk's head and he's gaining some insight that he did make a difference and he still can. That's a good message to end on. 

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DoctorAtomic

DoctorAtomic

(edited)

I agree that I didn't think the show would go down that path as well. I bought-in though. Everyone basically left Monk, and then the pandemic happened. All that alone, you're going to be looking inward. 

I liked the scene with Bell where he's saying, look, you solved 120 (140) cases, and then Monk picks up the paper and points out that nothing changed. Except he missed that he did make change. Seeing the article about the shelter did crack the case. 

I wish we got just a little more with the new captain. She was really invested in welcoming Monk to return. I think a little more there would have tied in with the end with some more impact. Minor nit.

I didn't guess that the tape measure got switched. I thought the guy broke in and just cut the cord. But then if Griffin measured in the morning, he would have known. 

With Leland out of a job, I would suggest he take a crack at writing Monk's book. Having his pov with Monk explaining how he solved the cases might work a lot better. 

It might be helpful for Monk to share those letters too. 

I certainly would be on board for another movie, but I don't think they would have to do a 'reunion' movie. He could solve a case with the new SFPD, or maybe he goes to visit Natalie or Randy and solves a case with their PD. 

I did like the end because all of that is in Monk's head and he's gaining some insight that he did make a difference and he still can. That's a good message to end on. 

Edited by DoctorAtomic
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shapeshifter

shapeshifter

2 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Watching on a ginormous TV,

1 hour ago, chessiegal said:

I have a 65" ultra hi def smart TV, and poking around I gather I can watch the movie on it, but I have no idea how. I think I'll watch it on my iPad.

If we were neighbors I'd give you this Roku stick I bought for my old not-smart TV (the one I tripped over in the night 2 years ago that still needs to get recycled).

It lets you put apps on you TV home screen, including Peacock. 

But you can just get a dongle for your iPad and plug it into your TV to watch it bigger.
I used to do that with my 1st generation 2010 iPad.

 

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chessiegal

chessiegal

6 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

If we were neighbors I'd give you this Roku stick I bought for my old not-smart TV (the one I tripped over in the night 2 years ago that still needs to get recycled).

It lets you put apps on you TV home screen, including Peacock. 

But you can just get a dongle for your iPad and plug it into your TV to watch it bigger.
I used to do that with my 1st generation 2010 iPad.

 

Oh, I did find a way to project my computer onto the tv once.  I don't care enough to try again. 😅

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aghst

aghst

1 hour ago, chessiegal said:

I have a 65" ultra hi def smart TV, and poking around I gather I can watch the movie on it, but I have no idea how. I think I'll watch it on my iPad.

Your TV, if it's not too old, may be able to download apps and Peacock may be available for it.

Google your brand and model number and Peacock app and see if it hits anything.

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Bastet

Bastet

3 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Did Randy say that was a new baby Sharona just had??? Bitty Schram is 55. 
How old are Randy and Sharona supposed to be?

3 hours ago, fishcakes said:

No, he said it was Benji's baby. Sharona stayed home to help with the new grandchild. Later, Leland calls him "grandpa."

Jesus fuck, seriously -- those two are still together?!  Ugh.

I haven't checked to see if this is available on the free version of Peacock (it not only has ads, it doesn't give access to everything on the paid versions), but I'm figuring no.  A friend of mine recently signed up for Peacock, though, so I can watch through her account.  Maybe next week some time, but pre-holiday craziness is already creeping in.

Dark is my kind of Christmas fare, so I'll probably like it.

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fishcakes

fishcakes

3 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

I couldn't help noticing during Randy's Lego demonstration that both Tony Shalhoub and Ted Levine were having trouble hiding smiles and not bursting out laughing.

I was so hoping there would be one of Randy's nutty theories, and that one didn't disappoint.

3 hours ago, Annber03 said:

Between this and the recent episode of the "Frasier" reboot that mentions Roz's daughter Alice dating a man for a number of years, this...is not helping my, "Damn, I'm old" feelings right now :p. 

People on twitter like to wish celebrities a happy birthday and post how old they are now, and I die a little every time. As for this movie, it was Ted Levine who seemed to have aged the most, although he's not the oldest. And even though I've seen Tony Shalhoub in projects he's done recently so I know how he looks, it was strange to see Monk as so much older. Hector Elizondo, OTOH, looks pretty much the same to me.

2 hours ago, DoctorAtomic said:

I agree that I didn't think the show would go down that path as well. I bought-in though. Everyone basically left Monk, and then the pandemic happened. All that alone, you're going to be looking inward

I agree; it was really true to where Monk would see his place in the world, especially with Molly getting married. It makes me so sad for this character who I love so much.

2 hours ago, DoctorAtomic said:

I certainly would be on board for another movie, but I don't think they would have to do a 'reunion' movie. He could solve a case with the new SFPD, or maybe he goes to visit Natalie or Randy and solves a case with their PD. 

Yes, there's no way they could realistically get the gang back together on a permanent basis, but having him work with the new captain would be good, maybe also teaming up with a now (really) retired Stottlemeyer. I don't know that I'm actively hoping there are more movies, but I would certainly watch if there were.

2 hours ago, DoctorAtomic said:

I did like the end because all of that is in Monk's head and he's gaining some insight that he did make a difference and he still can. That's a good message to end on.

I had mixed feelings about the ending. When the series ended, he wanted to retire and spend all his time with Molly. She convinced him that he was needed by all the other victims whose cases would otherwise go unsolved. This was a repeat of that; he wants to quit (I assume; otherwise he would have gone back to work earlier) and be with Trudy, but she convinced him otherwise. (I confess to a moment of panic when Trudy said, "Adrian, I'm not alone," because I had the brief but wildly stupid thought that she had an afterlife boyfriend 😬.) He's tired of life, but he feels obligated. It killed me when Molly asked him to come to New York with her and he said he wouldn't because he loved her. He knows he has to settle for being alone. Well, except he has Watson now. And a second bowl!

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Cress

Cress

I was disappointed in the movie because Sharona was only in the flashback to the pilot. I know she was mentioned being with Benji's baby, but I still wanted to see her or hear her on a phone call at least.

Also I figured out that the guy switched the tape measure early on, and I was astonished that Monk didn't even mention it until the end of the movie. I even started to doubt myself, thinking, "he's jumped this bridge before; even if he trusted his tape measure, he'd notice that the rope is much longer than previous jumps. Six feet is long enough for an extra loop around him." But no, apparently the movie has no explanation for why he couldn't notice that his rope is longer than every other jumper's rope at the bridge.

The dog was cute, though, and Adrian figuring out the delivery driver's bomb was better than the bungee mystery. I also liked Caitlin Mcgee as Molly. I recognized her from Home Economics. If they do a sequel, the main mystery better not be full of holes.

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aghst

aghst

Finally saw the movie.

The case was more cut and dried than I recall Monk being.

It was clear what happened but Monk just had to find the evidence.

Seems like they were setting up more movies, by showing Monk how much impact he had with all the cases he solved.

But instead of the victims, it would have been more effective to show him how much peace and sense of justice the survivors of those victims felt when Monk solved those cases.

So Monk could go back to solving cases and Natalie said how she missed this feeling, solving cases with the old gang.  But then it seemed like she was going to go back to FL anyways and left Monk the dog.

Maybe they could do more movies now and then.  Seems like only Shalhoub is the only one getting regular roles these days so you'd think the other cast would be interested in doing more.

Did they mention Julie at all?  Seemed like she and Monk had more of a relationship than Molly and Monk during the series.

Traylor Howard is a year older than Melora Hardin but she seems younger.

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shapeshifter

shapeshifter

2 hours ago, aghst said:

Traylor Howard is a year older than Melora Hardin but she seems younger.

Yes.
In the stills before the movie aired, I though Traylor's gray hair made her look older,* but she had terrific youthful energy in the movie and did not seem old.
If they do more movies, maybe they will be spaced at least a year apart in both real and fictional time, and Natalie will come to SF to help.
Maybe Bitty Schram will come to SF for a case too. She could be visiting her sister Gail (Amy Sedaris!).

____________________

* Note: I've never colored my hair, so I'm not of the opinion that gray hair should be colored.

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zoey1996

zoey1996

On 12/12/2023 at 2:45 PM, aghst said:

Did they mention Julie at all?

Yes, Natalie mentioned that she lived a short distance (10 miles or 10 minutes?) from her.

On 12/12/2023 at 5:03 PM, shapeshifter said:

In the stills before the movie aired, I though Traylor's gray hair made her look older,

I thought Natalie still looked blond-ish, but I didn't see the stills referenced.

I enjoyed the movie a lot. Until Adrian figured it out, I thought a lengthier bungee cord had been substituted, not that Gabriel's measuring tape had been switched out. It was fun figuring out some of the actors not from the original, like Richard Kind as the undertakers. And great to see so many of the actors from the original as well. 

Loved the ending, with so many of the cases Monk had solved expressing their gratitude to him, and a reminder of the deep freeze cases that still needed solving.

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chessiegal

chessiegal

My local paper picked up an AP article on the movie. It said that reboot ideas and scripts had been floated over the years, but Tony didn't think they had enough to them to bring Monk back. Then with the pandemic, it gave them an opportunity to bring it back.

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fishcakes

fishcakes

3 hours ago, chessiegal said:

My local paper picked up an AP article on the movie. It said that reboot ideas and scripts had been floated over the years, but Tony didn't think they had enough to them to bring Monk back. Then with the pandemic, it gave them an opportunity to bring it back.

I wish they had set the movie earlier in the pandemic and mined the "everyone is Monk now" angle rather than the way they went with him so desolate.

I saw this article the other day, and it seems like if they do make more movies, they feel like they have to figure out new ways for Monk to be miserable. I don't know that I like that too much; what I loved about the series finale was that he seemed to finally find some happiness. Not sure what the fans want is for him to feel utterly hopeless for the rest of his life. The other interesting thing is that Tony's wife Brooke didn't want him to do the movie. The article doesn't elaborate on why, but it does seem like he's had a lot of other work, especially in the last few years, and I know when Mrs. Maisel ended, he said there were still new things he wanted to accomplish in his career, so I can see why both of them might not necessarily want to revisit this character.

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andromeda331

andromeda331

I liked the movie. I was surprised that it was the measuring tape. But it did remind me of Monk explaining to Natalie and Julie in an episode how has two levels to make sure everything's straight and takes them to be recalibrated. 

I liked seeing what Natalie and Leland were up to. I'm glad Natalie's doing so well and living near Julie. I'm surprised to hear Benji's a dad. I like that Leland and TK are still together. I also like how Leland came around to help Monk. He had a job he loved. He really didn't want to see any problems but he couldn't ignore it when he saw his boss talking to the murderer. 

I do agree that the movie should have been longer in the pandemic. I wasn't upset that Monk was planning to take his life. As he said to Trudy, he's waited long enough. He's been waiting so long to be with her again. It's something I've heard from my older relatives. Really, she was the only one who could convinced him to not to. 

I also liked him thinking that he hasn't made a differene at all. Yeah, watching the news or reading the paper with endless murders and crime but Trudy was able to show him that he did. With all the people he got justice for. And the woman who was waiting for him to solve her murder.

I liked Molly a lot more then I thought I would. Since she was only in the last episode she was a real unknown. I wasn't sure how I would feel about her relationship with Monk. But it was really great. They sincerely cared for each other. It does stink that her birth mother and her fiancee were both murdered. 

I loved Richard Kinds characters.  

I loved Randy's bridge theory. It was so...Randy. 

The only thing I really didn't like was Randy still with Sharona. I still can't see the two of them together. 

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shapeshifter

shapeshifter

7 hours ago, aghst said:

Is it really consistent with Monk's character that he would believe in an afterlife, that he'd be reunited with Trudy after his death?

He doesn't seem particularly religious either.  

It is inconsistent, but I guess it's also common. 

Putting this in spoiler tags because it's a disturbing description of my un-religious mother's unexpected expressions about the afterlife:
 

Spoiler

Mom essentially told me: "When you die, that's it. They put your body in the ground. You're gone." 
We attended less than a handful of religious services growing up; I think for cultural exposure. 
And yet, for over a year after Dad died, mom wept and wailed "Don't leave me!" and "Take me with you!" only stopping when Parkinson's robbed her of her ability to speak.

 

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aghst

aghst

45 minutes ago, chessiegal said:

I don't think you have to be religious to believe in an afterlife. Monk and Natalie talked about reuniting with their spouse after they died more than once during the regular series.

You may not practice religion but afterlife is explicitly part of a religious belief system.

Even the vague sense of past lives or Deja vu is part of some general Eastern belief system.

There are many who believe in God, more or less a Christian God but not go to church or read the Bible much or try to lead a life prescribed by any church with the Christian label.

So they have a very vague sense of religious precepts or maybe they pick and choose what they want to believe.

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Jediknight

Jediknight

On 12/15/2023 at 11:16 PM, zoey1996 said:

Yes, Natalie mentioned that she lived a short distance (10 miles or 10 minutes?) from her.

And she was one of the people that Monk wrote a note to.

Wasn't expecting it to get that dark, but to the shock of nobody Shalhoub nailed it.  And I totally didn't cry at the end, nope, you can't prove it.  Monk realized he had 140 victims and their families who love him, because he spoke for them and got justice when nobody else could.

Monk has his Watson now.

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catrice2

catrice2

On 10/11/2023 at 5:12 PM, chessiegal said:

I saw one of my favorite episodes today, "Mr. Monk Goes to Jail". I always thought that Danny Trejo, who plays Spider, was perfect for the role. Turns out he is the role. He was committing crimes and doing drugs until he turned himself around and started acting.

well to add to this story he was working as a sober coach and one of his charges was an actor whom invited him to a set he was working on because he did not feel stable, and it was while he was there for support that he got a chance to act and continued from there.   He also owns a restaurant chain.  I love him in just about everything he has been in. 

I thought everyone knew he had been in prison.  Many actors have such as Buzz Lightyear.  

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catrice2

catrice2

On 12/9/2023 at 10:22 AM, fishcakes said:

I liked it (Tony Shalhoub could sit on a bare stage reading old Manimal scripts aloud and I would like it), but it wasn't what I expected. I don't want to talk about it in detail until more people have had a chance to see it, but it was darker than the original series, although there were a lot of funny moments. The death of Molly's fiance wasn't the main storyline; it was just the crime that he was solving. The main plot was about Adrian, and it was heartbreaking. 

One specific nit I'll pick now, though: the apartment was not the same. They tried to pass it off as the same and hide it with no wide shots (like, how am I supposed to count the lamps, Breckman???), but no.

There were several episodes in the series that were very dark, including the one where the actor who is portraying Monk in a movie becomes unhinged and Monk does too, or the one where Monk is so upset about Harold being the "fly," that they basically have him on suicide watch.  I can think of others but overall I feel like the first seasons were darker in general and then they started writing it as more "light hearted." 

The first few seasons where the captain clearly resented him solving everything in spite of their friendship  and Sharona was there were my favorite ones. 

Maybe I am the only one but I always thought they were headed for Randy and Sharona, like the time they realized he had a personal ad, and the one where he lets here hear the Mobster's nephew bragging about pretending with her.   There were also others. 

 

The movie only made me think of how much I miss the show and others like it, similar to White Collar, Burn Notice, etc. 

 

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chitowngirl

chitowngirl

1 hour ago, catrice2 said:

The movie only made me think of how much I miss the show and others like it, similar to White Collar, Burn Notice, etc. 

The whole USA Network lineup of shows was so magical

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chessiegal

chessiegal

I feel like Tony played Monk darker in the early episodes.

I was looking to see when Hallmark Movies & Mysteries would be bringing Monk in the daytime lineup once they are done with the Christmas movies drivel. It appears they're airing it at 6 and 7 am, possibly since the Christmas movies took over? It didn't occur to me to look for it at other times. I'm glad to see they haven't dropped Monk. Also happy that COZI shows it weekday afternoons. COZI doesn't air them in order, which annoys me, as I'm sure it would Monk. 😄

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andromeda331

andromeda331

7 hours ago, catrice2 said:

The movie only made me think of how much I miss the show and others like it, similar to White Collar, Burn Notice, etc.

Me too. They used to have really good shows. I still rewatch them all.

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