'Monk' scores by scrubbing away at character

The mystery that is never solved on "Monk" is how USA Network determines what is the current season of the series. New episodes always appear at the beginning of the year, sometimes in the summer, and usually in the fall.

So when does the new season of "Monk" begin?

It doesn't really matter that "Monk" is "continuing" season five when it returns with a new episode Friday. Whether it's season five, season six or whatever, "Monk" is always worth watching. And apparently it's worth guest starring on the show for various actors, because this season of "Monk" features performances by Steven Weber ("Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip"), Sean Astin ("Lord of the Rings"), Ricardo Chavira ("Desperate Housewives") and David Eigenberg ("Sex and the City").

Friday's episode features Andy Richter as Hal, a guy who becomes Adrian Monk's friend. Having friends is not unusual, but it is for Monk, who turns this relationship with a new pal into a frenzied effort to solidify their commitment. He even leaves five crumbs on his kitchen counter to show he's not a neat freak and talks to his psychiatrist about how to "pop the question" and ask Hal to be his best friend.

Monk is forever vulnerable, and while we're rooting for Monk to actually have a friend, we know it's probably not meant to be. The second new episode, airing Jan. 26, features Astin as a wealthy heir who mistakenly hires Monk as his butler. Again Monk is vulnerable because he's been slighted by the San Francisco police in his effort to be rehired, and so he takes his new house managing duties very seriously.

If there is a better job for Monk than being a butler, with his acute obsessive-compulsive disorder, it would be hard to find. He measures place settings to the millimeter and does a white glove inspection that would put a Marine drill instructor to shame. You may take Monk out of his detective duties, but they'll never take the detective out of Monk, and he manages to put down his butler tray in time to solve a murder.

The creators of "Monk," which include star and Emmy-winner Tony Shalhoub, who serves as one of the producers, have kept this unusual character fresh because they've adapted how his OCD is used. In the early seasons, Monk couldn't shake hands or walk along a sidewalk without it taking too long as he hop-scotched over every crack. It was his freakish behavior in everyday life that made the character interesting and amusing.

In these later seasons, especially with the addition of Natalie (Traylor Howard) as his assistant, who has suffered her own emotional losses, they've focused more on the vulnerabilities that emerge in Monk because of his obsessions. In that process, they've made Monk a character we love to root for.

"Monk" airs at 9 p.m. Fridays on USA.

I've been known to eat crow before and here I go again. "Psych" is a better show than I gave it credit for last year. In the first go-round, James Roday's performance as fake psychic Shawn Spencer struck me as anything but charming and interesting -- it seemed cruel to trick people into thinking he was speaking with their dead loved ones -- and Dule Hill's casting as Shawn's partner seemed a waste of his talents following "The West Wing." But I was wrong. Roday and Hill have melded into a strong working partnership and "Psych" is fun to watch.


