by Luke Dearden

Created on: May 22, 2009

Adrian Monk, capital A, small d, small r, small i, small a, small n, space, may be the best detective on TV. His wit mixed with his fear set him above the rest. Tony Shalhoub is truly a top-notch actor.

Here's the thing. In season 8, Monk had a list of nearly 300 fears. Among them are milk, needles, germs, heights, mushrooms, enclosed spaces, harmonicas, tunnels, and bullies. Although Monk wants to free himself from his phobias, he never quite can... until he really needs to. One episode comes to mind. When Mr. Monk is falsely accused of murder and goes on the run, he allows the captain to shoot him off a high pier into the ocean below. Of course Monk was wearing a bullet proof vest and goes on to solve the case - it was part of the plan. Public speaking, another fear, was temporarily struck down when Monk came to career day at Julie's school. He did it so he could gather evidence against the famous astronaut. The kids started pointing lasers at Monk, and anyone who has seen the episode could tell the rest. Unless I'm wrong, which you know, I'm not, Adrian Monk has an abnormal amount of fears, but is not as far gone as one would think.

The compulsion for organization and cleanliness that Monk possesses complements his fears. It's a gift... and a curse. Because Monk notices every small detail, he has to have a spotless, organized environment to work his magic. Although it seems out-of-bounds to the viewers, it really is not odd at all. Think about it, everyone gets distracted. Monk sees more than what an average person would see, and naturally gets more distracted than an average person would. Nevertheless, trouble comes with Monk's compulsion when he risks is own life to keep order. Some examples occur when Monk attempts to secure a ticking grenade in the fridge but stops to organize the food first or when Monk stops to screw on a cap to an air force missile. Without these types of instances, Adrian Monk really could not exist.

Mr. Monk's need for perfection makes him an even more entertaining character. Or does it? I, a huge fan, can say that a few scenes in this show are absolute torture to watch. I remember the episode where Monk gets jury duty. I cannot stand it when he is writing out his initial vote onto the small piece of paper. Every other juror hands their votes in while Monk is left making sure his," Not Guilty" vote is completely perfect. In the mean time I am screaming at the TV to get on with the show. The episode where Mr. Monk paints his masterpiece has a similar scene. Before Monk starts to paint, he runs back and forth between the banana and his canvas to make sure that everything is perfect. Natalie waits. Even though I hate this, it is brilliant. These types of scenes enable the viewer to feel exactly how Monk's observer feels in the scene.

He's the guy. Yes Monk IS the guy - the guy who knows how to lock up killers, the guy who is afraid of pretty much everything, the guy who has to be completely organized and clean, and the guy who could be ranked number one on a list of best TV detectives. He has solved every case but one, and the last season will be starting up in the summer. Don't worry, Monk will pull through and solve his wife's murder. No doubt.

In Monk's honor, this is exactly 600 words.

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