Monkwas one of the best TV shows of its time, yet it was strangely missing something that would have made it even better. One of many TV detectives based on Sherlock Holmes,Tony Shalhoub’s Adrian Monkcharmed audiences for eight seasons as a private consultant struggling with OCD and guilt over having never caught his wife’s killer. Despite its bleak premise,Monkwas a heartwarming show with hilarious moments and fun characters.
Thebest episodes ofMonkwere the ones where both the case and whatever Adrian was going through that week were connected, thus delivering character development and a fun whodunit at the same time. Like a lot of TV procedurals from that era, many of which were also airing on USA Network,Monkfollowed a strict case-of-the-week formula. This allowed to show to have many guest stars and one-off characters. However, despite all the celebrity cameos and rising actors appearing in small roles,Monknever had a crossover episode.
Monk Crossover Episodes Would Have Been Hilarious If Done Right
It’s A Shae There Was Never A Monk Crossover Episode
Adrian Monk lived in his own world and operated under a strict set of rules that only a handful of characters, particularly therecurrentMonkactors, were aware of. This is whyseeing Adrian working with another detective or similar character in aMonkcrossover episode would have been fascinating.While television crossovers had been a thing for decades, the early 2000s saw the inception or consolidation of quite a lot of shared universes on TV, including but not limited toLaw & OrderandCSI.
White Collar & Psych’s Crossover Is A Reminder Of Something That New TV Shows Should Be Doing Way More Often
In the 2000s, shows like White Collar and Psych had fun crossovers to promote their shows, and TV would undoubtedly benefit from doing this more now.
Naturally, the logistics of a crossover episode can be tricky.There were not many similar detective shows airing on USA Network at the same time asMonk, which helps explain why there was never a crossover between Adrian and another crime-solving genius. Something like Adrian Monk working with one of the CSI teams would have certainly been a lot of fun, but given that they were on different networks, it was never a real possibility. Even an Adrian Monk and Gregory House team-up sounds like something that would’ve been hilarious.
Monk & Psych Was An Obvious Crossover That Never Happened
Adrian Monk Only Met Shawn Spencer In TV Spots
There was at least one USA Network show airing at that time that deserved a crossover withMonk, Psych. From the “genius detective with some sort of gimmick” formula to the overall feel-good tone of the shows,PsychandMonkwere similar in a lot of ways.Although there were a couple of references and Easter Eggs here and there, a proper crossover betweenPsychandMonknever happened. Considering thatPsychcontinued with three films andMonkrecently returned with a new movie, maybe not all hope is lost for a team-up.
Psych’s Gus metWhite Collar’s Neal Caffrey in a similar promo.
Adrian Monk and Shawn Spencer did meet, but only in TV promos for the network. Whether those interactions should be considered “canon” is up to viewers, but it is fun to imagine that those shows took place in the same universe. Still, in hindsight, it is quite disappointing that there was never an actualMonkandPsychcrossover episode given how similar they were.
Monk
Cast
Starring Tony Shalhoub as Adrian Monk, Monk follows the titular detective, a private investigator with OCD who helps solve crimes with the San Francisco Police. On the side, he also investigates the death of his wife, who was killed by a car bomb. Bitty Schram, Traylor Howard, Ted Levine, and Jason Gray-Stanford also star.
