I remember my first time watching Monk. I'm not going to lie to you, I was skeptical at first. I had seen the advertisements for years and never thought it looked like anything special. The day came, however, when three of my closest friends forced me to join them for a Monk marathon while on a road trip, and upon returning home I promptly went out and purchased the entire series on DVD. My life has never been the same. The show is without a doubt one of my all-time favorites, but I am shocked by how many people have never seen or even heard of it. I would argue that Monk is vastly underrated, and here are just a few reasons why.
1. It is completely unique.
Seriously. Whose idea was it to create a show about a detective who has OCD? This is a completely unique concept. Monk is not a realistically likable character. If you met him on the street or struck up a conversation with him in line at the grocery store you would likely find him frustrating to be around and difficult to talk to. You would probably walk away as fast as you could. You would probably tell your friends about the strange man you met the other day, and thank your lucky stars you would never have to see him again. That is what separates him from most other fictional characters. Most characters are loveable and relatable - we enjoy loving characters that are easy to understand or who we strive to be like. We love seeing pieces of ourselves in other people. This is not the case with Monk - quite the opposite actually. We enjoy watching him because we could not possibly imagine what it is like to be him. We love him because we don't understand him, but we want to try. That is something rarely seen in fictional characters, but it is the brilliance of the show.
2. It appeals to a variety of audiences.
Monk is intriguing, thought provoking, suspenseful, hilarious and tragic. What a combination. People of all different ages and personalities can find something they enjoy about the show.
3. The plot is unpredictable.
It is often easy to begin seeing patterns if you watch a crime show enough. The more you expose yourself to the writers' style, the easier it becomes to guess who did it. This is yet another unique feat of Monk - it keeps you guessing until the very end. Even after eight seasons I was frequently shocked about who the killer was.
4. The storyline is complex.
Sure, there are lots of other crime shows out there, but Monk stands apart from all of them because it is about more than a detective solving a mystery. It is just as much about understanding what makes a person tick. While each episode focuses on a specific murder case Monk is working to solve, the show is ultimately about the murder of Monk's own wife and the psychological effect it had on him.
5. It had one of the most brilliant endings in television history.
I don't care who you are, you're lying if you say the last episode was predictable. There is absolutely no way you could have guessed who murdered Trudy until about halfway through the finale. What is even more impressive is that all of the clues given throughout the series as to who did it lined up perfectly, and there were no holes in the plotline (take notes, Pretty Little Liars). Plus, despite the ending being sad, the writers incorporated an unexpected way to give Monk a non-cheesy happy ending that did not include getting remarried.
