Monk

[amishparadise]

What is your opinion of this show? Do you find it funny? Offensive? Can you relate to it, or no?

 

[gracealone]

What is your opinion of this show? Do you find it funny? Offensive? Can you relate to it, or no?

Hi AmishP.
I've only watched it about about 10 times. I could somewhat relate to it in reference to the health/germ obsessions but I don't think it really demonstrates the real misery that a person with OCD experiences and therefore makes light of a disorder which creates untold suffering in many people. I think it makes people with OCD out to be amusing, quirky, or eccentric individuals when a lot people with OCD are able to hide their OCD from others quite well. On the other hand the show does demonstrate that people with OCD are high functioning individuals who can contribute to society in the same way any one else can.
I guess that at times I can find humor in my OCD too - but the humor only comes after I've been able to get past a specific obsession not usually during it.
So I guess I'd have to say that my feelings about the show are mixed. Also, perhaps I've not seen some episodes which might have demonstrated the pain and suffering of OCD and therefore have misjudged the show based on my limited exposure to it.
God Bless,
Mitzi

 

[amishparadise]

Hi AmishP.
I've only watched it about about 10 times. I could somewhat relate to it in reference to the health/germ obsessions but I don't think it really demonstrates the real misery that a person with OCD experiences and therefore makes light of a disorder which creates untold suffering in many people. I think it makes people with OCD out to be amusing, quirky, or eccentric individuals when a lot people with OCD are able to hide their OCD from others quite well. On the other hand the show does demonstrate that people with OCD are high functioning individuals who can contribute to society in the same way any one else can.
I guess that at times I can find humor in my OCD too - but the humor only comes after I've been able to get past a specific obsession not usually during it.
So I guess I'd have to say that my feelings about the show are mixed. Also, perhaps I've not seen some episodes which might have demonstrated the pain and suffering of OCD and therefore have misjudged the show based on my limited exposure to it.
God Bless,
Mitzi

What a relief to read this! I was beginning to think it was just me. I find the show mildly offensive (although I admit that it is a well-written mystery show), and its advertisements on the USA channel extremely offensive. ("Characters Wanted", "Defective Detective", "You Down Wit' OCD?", etc., not to mention the DVDs that come packaged with a hand wipe as a gimmick, and the cleaning products that target us by sponsoring the show). I thought I was the only one out there who didn't think it was just the cutest, most adorably quirky laugh riot in the world.

If this show made fun of autism or epilepsy, there'd be a national campaign to get it pulled off the air. But, apparently, OCD is fair game...

 

[wiggsfly]

I can also relate some of the ticks, but it portrays those ticks as inconviences with no real consequenses such as the depression and other problems they cause many of us (including myself).

 

[DruryGirl]

Truthfully, it is my favorite show, not because of the "cutesy OCD" aspect, but because I can really relate to it. My OCD is mostly scrupulosity and virtually *no* cleanliness obsession, but I really feel for Monk. Yes, some of it pokes some fun ("defective detective," etc.) and I don't condone that.

But I also love Tony Shalhoub's portrayal of Monk as a vulnerable, troubled, and highly gifted character. Monk is known as a brilliant detective with an amazing memory and is respected as such. His grief for Trudy (his late wife whose murder remains unsolved) is palpable and raw. And being a lonely and isolated person myself, episodes that focus on Monk's loneliness really hit home for me.

The show isn't perfectly respectful, yet Monk isn't portrayed as a strictly laughable goofball. He's not a two-dimensional character.

 

[marcb]

If this show made fun of autism or epilepsy, there'd be a national campaign to get it pulled off the air. But, apparently, OCD is fair game...

You are so right here.

On the other hand, I don't mind at all. Our faith is mocked in entertainment venues. I find this far more troubling than making fun of ocd. That being said, I agree with what many of you have said, that it only points to the "quirkiness" of ocd, the visible behaviors that we painfully know to be the "tip of the iceberg." Therefore, many people think "how cute, or how funny." I have to admit, many of my quirks make me and others laugh. What lies beneath those is no laughing matter for many of us.

When I first told my parents about my ocd when it became debilitating, my mother kept saying, "I don't see it." I told her that's the point, and that's the reason why it can be covered up so well. Heck, it was hidden from me for nearly a lifetime. I used to joke about having ocd because of my checking and handwashing, but those were a mere inconvenience. Anyways, I've rambled.

The bottom line is I could see how any of us could be offended by the show, especially when almost any other topic is regulated by the PC police. It is almost for that reason, that I'm really just neutral. I'll have to watch it and see.