It’s a jungle out there…

After disappearing after the pilot episode, the Randy Newman theme tune is back to herald the second series of Monk. As you may recall, I’ve been revisiting this series as it’s appeared on Netflix in the UK, and it is ideal TV for me. Funny, moving and with a mystery to boot. What more could I ask for?

So it’s basically continuing the themes of series one with no significant tweaks. Trudy still isn’t Melora Hardin, Monk’s desire for reinstatement only appears significantly in one episode but this is a series with some extremely strong episodes. So let’s take a look at them.

Mr Monk Goes Back To School

Monk takes on a job as a substitute teacher at Trudy’s old high school when an English teacher falls from the clock tower. Monk knows who did it – there’s just the slight problem that he was invigilating an exam at the time she fell. After Mr Monk And The Marathon Man, the only real impossible alibi episode from the first series, this is the first of many such plots in this season. And it’s a pretty good one.

Mr Monk Goes To Mexico

Monk is persuaded to go to Mexico to investigate the strange case of the skydiver who apparently drowned in mid-air. I like this episode a lot, a proper whodunit with a really clever central idea.

Mr Monk Goes To The Ballgame

A tech CEO and his wife are both shot in a parking lot, but Monk is convinced that she was the real target due to the affair she was having with a baseball player. Some nice character stuff with Monk, Sharona and Benjy and an interesting motive – shame the actor playing the murderer is so recognisable…

Mr Monk Goes To The Circus

A ringmaster is killed by a masked acrobat, and Monk heads to the circus to work out how his ex-wife murdered him with a broken leg. Hardly the trickiest “how did she do it” episode, and Sharona’s fear of elephants is a bit odd…

Mr Monk And The Very, Very Old Man

The world’s oldest man dies the day before his birthday and Stottlemeyer’s wife, Karen, asks Monk to show that It was murder. Decent stuff with Monk and Stottlemeyer living together, but I found this one a bit forgettable.

Mr Monk Goes To The Theater

Sharona’s sister, Gail, stabs her co-star on stage in the full view of the audience and Monk. Apparently… Interesting that Gail seems to be much less of an extreme character in this one, and Betty Buckley is fun as Sharona’s mother. All in all, a very good episode.

Mr Monk And The Sleeping Suspect

A family is being targeted by a series of mail bombs and Monk is convinced he knows who sent them – a shame that he’s been in a coma for two months… One of the very best “impossible alibi” episodes, a real classic.

Mr Monk Meets The Playboy

The Chief Financial Officer of a gentleman’s magazine is found dead in his gym, locked from the inside. Monk is convinced that the owner of the magazine did it… Perfectly fine episode but the how is obvious and it’s hard to believe that something wasn’t checked.

Mr Monk And The 12^th Man

A serial killer is striking across the city, seemingly at random. Ah, so many problems with this one – it takes too long to spot a connection that the title all but gives away and what are the chances that it would be the twelfth one?

Mr Monk And The Paperboy

Monk’s paperboy is killed outside his front door and the papers were stolen. What was in it that Monk shouldn’t see? Some nice stuff with Monk solving unrelated cases from things in the paper and the first appearance of his neighbour Kevin, but he does need to be rather stupid for this to work.

Mr Monk And The Three Pies

Monk’s brother, Ambrose, is convinced that his neighbour killed his wife. But why is the neighbour obsessed with winning pies at the local fair? John Turturro is wonderful as Ambrose and we find out a lot about Monk’s background. The plot’s pretty good too – a rather special episode.

Mr Monk And The TV Star

A TV star’s wife is killed while he is standing on the drive outside of the house. Monk knows that he’s the guy – but how could he have done it? Another good impossible alibi episode, with a few good behind the scenes pokes at TV crime shows.

Mr Monk And The Missing Granny

A law student’s grandmother is kidnapped but returned when a token ransom demand is met. Monk is offered help to get reinstated if he finds the kidnappers… Some good stuff with the reinstatement, and another clever plot. Also, no murder!

Mr Monk And The Captain’s Wife

Stottlemeyer finds himself in Monk’s shoes when his wife is nearly killed by a sniper. The mystery’s not up to much but the character work is very good, especially between Monk and Stottlemeyer. There’s a lovely bit at the end – just a small touch – that is still a little stuck in my head.

Mr Monk Gets Married

Monk and Sharona pretend to be married to infiltrate a couples retreat while investigating the young man who’s married Randy’s mother – who just happens to be a killer. The secret of the treasure is just weird – presumably it’s possible chemically – but it’s just too odd.

Mr Monk Goes To Jail

A death row inmate is poisoned by his last meal – why kill a man who is about to die? Dale the Whale persuades Monk to investigate in exchange for information on Trudy. But the only way to do it is to go undercover as an inmate. Tim Curry is wasted in his few scenes as Dale, but the bits with Danny Trejo as Monk’s cellmate are great and the motive is clever.

Let’s pause a moment for a thought – was there ever an intent for a Sharona/Disher relationship at this point? There’s this sort of flirting banter that appears at times (when the writers remember to do it) and there’s an almost-nice bit in Mr Monk And The Playboy when he retrieves her photos… Obviously Bitty Schram leaves before this can be developed but given that episode in the final season, was this always the plan? But if it was, surely there would have been a little bit more done with it… Anyone have any insight?

Like last time, here’s a top three and a weakest episode. This is tricky as I’m pretty sure this is one of the strongest series in the run.

Top Three (In Order)

• Mr Monk And The Sleeping Suspect
• Mr Monk And The Three Pies
• Mr Monk Goes Back To School

Weakest Episode

• Mr Monk Gets Married