Monk

[rondetto]

Is anyone into Monk? This is another good import, unfortunately it's on it's final series now, a pity I've enjoyed it.

[Lucy]

I like to watch Monk occasionally. It's ashame it finished!... I loved it because of it being set in San Francisco and I've been there, such a beautiful place

[susie]

Yes, I watch Monk too, though not quite as dedicatedly as Murdoch. I like the character of Monk, how his problems actually help him to solve the mysteries. I also really like the core team that surround him, a little like in MM.

[Lucy]

Aha yes Stottlemeyer(sp?) could be seen as being similar to Brackenreid

[wildhorseannie]

I'm glad I found this!! I was just about to start a thread about the similarities between Monk and MM! Does anyone else see them?  You think a quirky, oft-misunderstood detective (Monk/Murdoch), give him an old school, hard-boiled supervisor (Stottlemeyer/Brackenreid), add an eager, well-meaning assistant (Randy/George) and a plethora of unusual, complicated crimes and you get two of the best shows ever!  

[snacky]

Apr 15, 2014 2:50:20 GMT wildhorseannie said:

I'm glad I found this!! I was just about to start a thread about the similarities between Monk and MM! Does anyone else see them?  You think a quirky, oft-misunderstood detective (Monk/Murdoch), give him an old school, hard-boiled supervisor (Stottlemeyer/Brackenreid), add an eager, well-meaning assistant (Randy/George) and a plethora of unusual, complicated crimes and you get two of the best shows ever!  

I could never watch Monk - I just didn't find his germ-o-phobe quirk all that appealing. And he's nowhere as fetching as Yannick.

[wildhorseannie]

That's too bad, snacky! Monk's character is actually very deep, similar to Murdoch's.  Even though he struggled with obsessive disorders on the surface, there was a much deeper development of character throughout the series, especially related to the death of his wife and how he comes to cope with his acceptance of it.  I thought the series finale was one of the best I've ever seen!

[snacky]

Apr 15, 2014 3:06:47 GMT wildhorseannie said:

That's too bad, snacky! Monk's character is actually very deep, similar to Murdoch's.  Even though he struggled with obsessive disorders on the surface, there was a much deeper development of character throughout the series, especially related to the death of his wife and how he comes to cope with his acceptance of it.  I thought the series finale was one of the best I've ever seen!

IMHO, Bones is more similar, though the voice of the main character (female Murdoch with Julia's skills) grates on me.

[wildhorseannie]

Oh dear! I can't stand Bones! The main character started out on my last nerve and kept grating it the longer I watched! Thankfully my sister doesn't watch it anymore, and thus neither do I. 

[snacky]

Apr 15, 2014 3:13:31 GMT wildhorseannie said:

Oh dear! I can't stand Bones! The main character started out on my last nerve and kept grating it the longer I watched! Thankfully my sister doesn't watch it anymore, and thus neither do I. 

I agree: that's the main reason I can't get into that show. Though a secondary reason is the cast gave me a sort of "WB network" vibe from the beginning.

However, lately I caught some episodes of it and realized it's very similar to MM: forensic geekiness, police procedural, ensemble cast, and a light/humorous tone (the "dark" episodes are about the same level of darkness as MM). Also the main characters just got married after 8 seasons of tease (they actually held out longer than MM, but the marriage might indicate that the show is ending soon).

Anyway, it's strange that the same formula works better for me in a period setting than in a modern one.

One advantage Bones has over MM is the ensemble cast has more potential for mix-and-match shipping. On MM, so much of the focus is on William's arc that his ship is more or less the only one that matters.