Frasier’s back. Why not Monk? Tony Shalhoub returns in “Mr. Monk’s Last Case: A Monk Movie,” streaming today on Peacock. It reunites most of the major players who appeared in the USA series (2002-2009) about a master detective crippled by anxiety and agoraphobia after the death of his beloved wife, Trudy (Melora Hardin).
The USA series concluded with Monk finally solving the mystery of Trudy’s murder, and viewers had to assume that Adrian Monk might have finally achieved some serenity.
“Last Case” resumes in the present day with the impending wedding of Trudy’s daughter, Molly (Caitlin McGee).
But don’t go looking for a “Very Brady Wedding” kind of cast reunion. This one includes the sudden death of Molly’s fiance. He had been an intrepid reporter doggedly pursuing clues that a tech entrepreneur and the world’s richest man (James Purefoy) had murdered his business partner.
The expansion of this “Monk” effort to movie length does not do the franchise any favors. There are some goofy flashbacks and asides about Adrian’s behavior during the COVID lockdown, but for the first half-hour, there’s too much emphasis on Monk’s impossibly demanding neurosis and no sleuthing whatsoever. You can easily forget why you liked Monk or “Monk” in the first place.
Purefoy has some fun as the Musklike space-obsessed tycoon, but the overall tone here is a little desperate and sad — before (spoiler alert) descending into the mawkish and supernatural.
Look for Richard Kind in a fun performance as twin funeral directors. This arrives scant weeks after David Hyde Pierce played his own twin on “Julia.” It looks like the supporting actors of the 1990s are beside themselves.
“Monk” was a cable hit in the decade before the streaming revolution. And its lighthearted and even silly hourlong mystery plots provided a contrast to the era of “difficult men” dramas. It didn’t have the prestige of “Mad Men,” “The Shield,” “The Wire” or “The Sopranos,” but it had loyal viewers and marked the launch of the USA network’s slate of “Blue Skies” programming, amiable hourlong series like “Psych,” “Royal Pains” and “Suits.”
One of the more telling developments of 2023 is the emergence of “Suits” as one of the most-streamed TV series of the year. It may have ended in 2019, but right now it’s more popular than “Yellowstone.” Who knew?
— Just in case you missed it, all eight seasons of the comedy “Who’s the Boss?” (1984-1992), starring Tony Danza, Judith Light and Alyssa Milano, are now streaming on Hulu, joining “L.A. Law” and “Moonlighting” as the streamer’s retro fare.
Light has been quite busy of late, appearing in the Starz series “Shining Vale” and Max’s delightful period series “Julia,” where she plays the indomitable editor Blanche Knopf.
— Hulu also imports the U.K. series “Culprits.” Nathan Stewart-Jarrett stars as the seemingly normal dad and husband Joe Petrus. But his past participation in a heist robbery comes to light when shadowy forces begin pursuing the thieves and killing them off one by one.
— Prime Video streams the 2023 animated holiday feature “Merry Little Batman,” featuring the voices of Yonas Ascunsion, Luke Wilson, James Cromwell and David Hornsby.
TONIGHT’S OTHER HIGHLIGHTS
— The 2017 comedy sequel “Despicable Me 3” (8 p.m., NBC, TV-PG).
— A publicist lures a reclusive author out of his shell in the 2023 romance “Magic in Mistletoe” (8 p.m., Hallmark, TV-G).
— “Christmas at Belmont” (9 p.m., PBS, r, TV-PG, check local listings) presents a musical holiday performance from Nashville, Tennessee.
— Danny’s nephew goes undercover with the ATF on “Blue Bloods” (10 p.m., CBS, r, TV-14).
CULT CHOICE
A trendy new drug leaves users in an altered state and totally unprepared for the alien invasion that awaits them in the 2012 horror comedy film “John Dies at the End” (7:20 p.m., MoMax). It was met with decidedly mixed reviews. Even some of the positive critics used words like “incoherence.”
SERIES NOTES
“The Price Is Right At Night” (8 p.m., CBS, TV-PG) … “WWE Friday Night SmackDown” (8 p.m., Fox, TV-PG) … Innovation takes no break for the holidays on “Shark Tank” (8 p.m., ABC, TV-PG).
“Raid the Cage” (9 p.m., CBS, TV-PG) … “20/20” (9 p.m., ABC) … “Dateline” (10 p.m., NBC).
LATE NIGHT
The Talking Heads and Mae Martin appear on “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” (11:35 p.m., CBS) … Jimmy Fallon welcomes Anne Hathaway, Peter Sarsgaard, Daniel Humm and Fumi Abe on “The Tonight Show” (11:35 p.m., NBC).
Gayle King, Brian Cox, Da’Vine Joy Randolph and Bryan Carter visit “Late Night With Seth Meyers” (12:35 a.m., NBC, r) … Rudy Moreno, Noe Gonzalez, Sandra Valls and Manny Maldonado appear on “Comics Unleashed With Byron Allen” (12:35 a.m., CBS).
