Ethan Alter of "Media Life" stated "here is one funny scene in the pilot", while criticizing the writing and direction. He also said the plot is unveiled in a "plodding, visually dull" way, especially when Shalhoub is not present. However, Alter wrote "Monk" is "far from a bad show", calling Shalhoub "the best thing" about it. David Zurawik, in a review for "The Baltimore Sun", said the major problem of it is trying to combine comedy and drama with detective fiction. Zurawik, however, praised Breckman and Shaulhoub who "combine to deliver one of the most weirdly appealing television sleuths since Richard Belzer's Detective John Munch of ""." Anita Gates from "The New York Times" declared, "There is a breakthrough of sorts in this episode, and it's disappointing in its predictability". Shalhoub "is not the only reason to watch" "Monk", according to Gates who praised the series for a joke "that even "Six Feet Under" might hesitate to do." Although he said "Story-wise, there's nothing in "Monk" that makes the show terribly different" from other shows of the genre, Rob Owen of "Pittsburgh Post-Gazette" praised Shalhoub's portrayal of Monk as well as Monk itself, calling him a "welcome addition to TV's eccentric sleuths".