Mr. Monk Gets Jury Duty

Monk's OCD is off the wall. He ends up being the odd man in the jury room, a parody on 12 Angry Men. It is wonderful to watch him invade the psyches of the other eleven jurors. He really shows his analytical skills and only stubbornness keeps him from being immediately successful. I loved his fixation on the crooked Venetian blinds.

'Monk' has always been one of my most watched shows when needing comfort, to relax after a hard day, a good laugh or a way to spend a lazy weekend.

Season 4 to me was a reasonably solid season, most of them being decent-very good and some were great and there was one particularly special one ("Mr Monk Goes Home Again"). From personal opinion, the only average or less one of the season was "Mr Monk and the Big Reward", which didn't really feel like 'Monk'. "Mr Monk Gets Jury Duty" is a great season finale and one of the season's better episodes, almost a classic. Sure a few aspects are not that hard to figure out, like Monk being against the other jurors in the deliberating, and a couple of others don't quite add up like with the gun.

"Mr Monk Gets Jury Duty's" biggest disappointment is how it uses Disher and Stottlemeyer. After two previous Season 4 episodes, "Mr Monk and the Captain's Marriage" for Stottlemeyer and "Mr Monk Goes to the Dentist" for Disher, did wonderfully in making them more interesting and bringing different sides to them (also giving Jason Gray-Stanford and Ted Levine opportunities to stretch their acting chops as the characters), it was a pity that they were reduced to little screen time and stock cop stereotypes (somewhat).

However, the mystery is a lot of fun and is intriguing. Even more so are the scenes within the courtroom and with the jurors, written in a way reminiscent of the classic '12 Angry Men'. How the jurors deliberated on the evidence and seeing how frustrated they get at Monk makes the episode one of the most entertaining of Season 4. The final solution was a surprise to me, suspected aspects of it admittedly (i.e. one of the jurors not being what they seemed) but didn't expect to be proved right.

As said many times, one of the best things about 'Monk' has always been the acting of Tony Shalhoub in the title role. It was essential for him to work and be the glue of the show, and Shalhoub not only is that but also at his very best he IS the show. Have always loved the balance of the humour, which is often hilarious, and pathos, which is sincere and touching.

Natalie is down to earth, sympathetic and sassy, also being sensitive to Monk's needs and quirks which Traylor Howard does well bringing out. Ted Levine is suitably amusing and gruff and Jason Gray-Stanford doesn't make the comic relief annoying thankfully. The jurors, judge and Escobar are also acted very well and compellingly written.

It's not just the cast or story though. Another star is the writing, which is also essential to whether the show would be successful or not and succeed it does here. The mix of wry humour, lovable quirkiness and tender easy-to-relate-to drama is delicately done, particularly the last one. The quirks are sympathetically done and never exploited or overdone.

Visually, the episode is shot in a slick and stylish way, and the music is both understated and quirky. While there is a preference for the theme music for Season 1, Randy Newman's "It's a Jungle Out There" has grown on me overtime, found it annoying at first but appreciate its meaning and what it's trying to say much more now. Oh and a good job is done with the different opening credits sequence to accommodate the changes made.

Overall, great episode despite a couple of misgivings, a very worthy finale to a solid season. 9/10 Bethany Cox

Monk's ticks are more infuriating than ever in this episode, usually the writing uses these OCD habits to further the plot but now they're just unnecessary acting tropes.

No idea, yelled by Monk, way too many times. He acted like an irritating idiot when he is usually portrayed highly intuitive and intelligent.

A dangerous South American drug lord is captured by Stottlemeyer and Discher. But the feds drop by after the arrest and claim jurisdiction, setting the appointed date for the transfer to federal custody. The drug lord vows he will escape.

In a separate story, Monk gets called and selected for jury duty in a stabbing case. The judge just thinks all of his weird proclivities are an elaborate attempt to get out of jury service. The case seems straightforward and goes to the jury quickly. On the first ballot there are eleven guilty verdicts and one not-guilty vote - Monk's. He spends all of that day and part of the next convincing the jury of the man's innocence. At the same time, he just looks out the window and sees things that lead him to believe there is a body in the dumpster nearby. He's right.

Do all of these things join forces at any point - the drug dealer, the jury deliberations, and the body in the dumpster? Watch and find out.

It is ridiculous to think that Monk would end up on the jury of any criminal case given his profile as a great detective, but then this is a comedy show with the plot points just held together by a mystery, so just go with it. The real point is that Monk can work with a team - even a team of total strangers - if circumstances force him to do so. He is not a lone wolf by necessity.