Early Monk

I'm rewatching Monk... because I can! Only season one so far, but it's interesting how much the character is different from later seasons. I can't say I'm that surprised, as time goes on loading more problems on Monk gives more opportunity for humour, but this first season gets by with only a few quirks.

Watch the opening:


Just in that we can see differences. In his wardrobe, he has two cop suits, and gets his usual suit out from between them... Monk would never put it in there like that in the first place. And tellingly, when he's leaving the house, he turns the third umbrella around... and yet, in later seasons, Monk hates odd numbers. There would be no way he would have just three umbrellas, let alone a three prong hanger. Two or four, he would throw away a three one.

Also he only have a few phobias, heights, germs, milk... not the whole volume he gets saddled with later. He can ride in elevators, so that will only be done under duress later. And he seems to be quite capable of getting around with Sharona, and yet later on he seems reluctant to even get in a cab.

If anything, Monk gets worse over the show, not better. So much for that therapy then!

[END]