How many episodes of Monk are there? …and other questions

By Alex Wiggan

If you’re a fan of crime and detective shows, there is a very good chance you have heard of the television series, Monk. The show – created by Andy Breckman – focuses on a brilliant yet troubled Private Detective, known for his keen mind, as well as his battle with obsessive-compulsive disorder and multiple phobias.

When the series originally aired, Monk was a huge hit, and even though the show is no longer being produced, it still attracts a legion of fans. And if you consider yourself a new fan, then you probably have one or two questions as you begin to navigate your way through the series.

In this post, I am taking a look at some of the big questions about the series, which you may wish to know. The Q&As below cover the number of episodes that are in the series, provide a list of the major cast members, and answer an all-important question regarding a key plot thread that is very significant to the overall series.

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When did Monk originally air?

Monk originally aired in the US from 2002 until 2009. The show was initially broadcast on the USA Network.

How many episodes of Monk are there?

Monk ran for eight seasons, and a total of 125 episodes. The episode/season ratio broke down as follows:

Season 1 – 13 episodes
Season 2 – 16 episodes
Season 3 – 16 episodes
Season 4 – 16 episodes
Season 5 – 16 episodes
Season 6 – 16 episodes
Season 7 – 16 episodes
Season 8 – 16 episodes

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Who were the main cast of Monk?

Tony Shalhoub was the main star of the show, playing the title character, Adrian Monk. He was joined by Bitty Schram as Sharona Fleming, Traylor Howard as Natalie Teeger, Jason Gray-Stanford as Lieutenant Randy Disher, and Ted Levine as Captain Leland Stottlemeyer.

Stellina Rusich played the part of Monk’s late wife, Trudy Monk for the first two seasons, while Melora Hardin took over the role for Seasons Three to Eight.

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Did Monk feature any cameos or famous actors?

During the course of the show’s run, a number of well-known actors popped up in the series including John Turturro, Sarah Silverman, Héctor Elizondo, Snoop Dogg, Casper Van Dien, Virginia Madsen, Tim Curry, Howie Mandel, Scott Glenn, Craig T. Nelson, Ed Begley Jr., Danny Trejo, Virginia Madsen and D. B. Woodside, amongst others. Tony Shalhoub’s brother, Michael Shalhoub also appeared in the series, cropping up in multiple roles.

Did Monk ever solve his wife’s murder?

One of the main story threads throughout the show is the death of Monk’s wife, Trudy, who was killed prior to the events of the series. Trudy’s death was not only tragic, it had a huge impact on Monk’s health, and lead him to develop depression and multiple disorders, as well as exacerbate his OCD – key elements of his character that would become the focus of the series.

Throughout the series, Monk was unaware of who killed Trudy. To ensure he was given the correct closure before the show bid its farewell, Trudy’s death became the focus of Monk’s final episodes: Mr. Monk and the End – Part 1 & 2.

In these episodes, Monk discovers the identity of the person who murdered his wife. He also learns more about Trudy’s past, and makes a decision about where his future lies.

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Who killed Trudy Monk?

If you are working your way through Monk, you may want to scroll to the next question…

As revealed in Mr. Monk and the End – Part 2, Trudy Monk was killed by Judge Ethan Rickover, as played by Craig T. Nelson.

What are all the episodes of Monk?

Below is a list of all 125 episodes of Monk. As you will see, with the exception of just one episode (ep 118 ‘Happy Birthday, Mr. Monk’), every episode begins with the words ‘Mr. Monk…’.

Season One

1) Mr. Monk and the Candidate – Part 1
2) Mr. Monk and the Candidate – Part 2
3) Mr. Monk and the Psychic
4) Mr. Monk Meets Dale the Whale
5) Mr. Monk Goes to the Carnival
6) Mr. Monk Goes to the Asylum
7) Mr. Monk and the Billionaire Mugger
8) Mr. Monk and the Other Woman
9) Mr. Monk and the Marathon Man
10) Mr. Monk Takes a Vacation
11) Mr. Monk and the Earthquake
12) Mr. Monk and the Red-Headed Stranger
13) Mr. Monk and the Airplane

Season Two

14) Mr. Monk Goes Back to School
15) Mr. Monk Goes to Mexico
16) Mr. Monk Goes to the Ballgame
17) Mr. Monk Goes to the Circus
18) Mr. Monk and the Very, Very Old Man
19) Mr. Monk Goes to the Theater
20) Mr. Monk and the Sleeping Suspect
21) Mr. Monk Meets the Playboy
22) Mr. Monk and the 12^th Man
23) Mr. Monk and the Paperboy
24) Mr. Monk and the Three Pies
25) Mr. Monk and the TV Star
26) Mr. Monk and the Missing Granny
27) Mr. Monk and the Captain’s Wife
28) Mr. Monk Gets Married
29) Mr. Monk Goes to Jail

Season Three

30) Mr. Monk Takes Manhattan
31) Mr. Monk and the Panic Room
32) Mr. Monk and the Blackout
33) Mr. Monk Gets Fired
34) Mr. Monk Meets the Godfather
35) Mr. Monk and the Girl Who Cried Wolf
36) Mr. Monk and the Employee of the Month
37) Mr. Monk and the Game Show
38) Mr. Monk Takes His Medicine
39) Mr. Monk and the Red Herring
40) Mr. Monk vs. the Cobra
41) Mr. Monk Gets Cabin Fever
42) Mr. Monk Gets Stuck in Traffic
43) Mr. Monk Goes to Vegas
44) Mr. Monk and the Election
45) Mr. Monk and the Kid

Season Four

46) Mr. Monk and the Other Detective
47) Mr. Monk Goes Home Again
48) Mr. Monk Stays in Bed
49) Mr. Monk Goes to the Office
50) Mr. Monk Gets Drunk
51) Mr. Monk and Mrs. Monk
52) Mr. Monk Goes to a Wedding
53) Mr. Monk and Little Monk
54) Mr. Monk and the Secret Santa
55) Mr. Monk Goes to a Fashion Show
56) Mr. Monk Bumps His Head
57) Mr. Monk and the Captain’s Marriage
58) Mr. Monk and the Big Reward
59) Mr. Monk and the Astronaut
60) Mr. Monk Goes to the Dentist
61) Mr. Monk Gets Jury Duty

Season Five

62) Mr. Monk and the Actor
63) Mr. Monk and the Garbage Strike
64) Mr. Monk and the Big Game
65) Mr. Monk Can’t See a Thing
66) Mr. Monk, Private Eye
67) Mr. Monk and the Class Reunion
68) Mr. Monk Gets a New Shrink
69) Mr. Monk Goes to a Rock Concert
70) Mr. Monk Meets His Dad
71) Mr. Monk and the Leper
72) Mr. Monk Makes a Friend
73) Mr. Monk Is At Your Service
74) Mr. Monk Is On the Air
75) Mr. Monk Visits a Farm
76) Mr. Monk and the Really, Really Dead Guy
77) Mr. Monk Goes to the Hospital

Season Six

78) Mr. Monk and His Biggest Fan
79) Mr. Monk and the Rapper
80) Mr. Monk and the Naked Man
81) Mr. Monk and the Bad Girlfriend
82) Mr. Monk and the Birds and the Bees
83) Mr. Monk and the Buried Treasure
84) Mr. Monk and the Daredevil
85) Mr. Monk and the Wrong Man
86) Mr. Monk Is Up All Night
87) Mr. Monk and the Man Who Shot Santa Claus
88) Mr. Monk Joins a Cult
89) Mr. Monk Goes to the Bank
90) Mr. Monk and the Three Julies
91) Mr. Monk Paints His Masterpiece
92) Mr. Monk Is on the Run – Part 1
93) Mr. Monk Is on the Run – Part 2

Season Seven

94) Mr. Monk Buys a House
95) Mr. Monk and the Genius
96) Mr. Monk Gets Lotto Fever
97) Mr. Monk Takes a Punch
98) Mr. Monk Is Underwater
99) Mr. Monk Falls in Love
100) Mr. Monk’s 100^th Case
101) Mr. Monk Gets Hypnotized
102) Mr. Monk and the Miracle
103) Mr. Monk’s Other Brother
104) Mr. Monk on Wheels
105) Mr. Monk and the Lady Next Door
106) Mr. Monk Makes the Playoffs
107) Mr. Monk and the Bully
108) Mr. Monk and the Magician
109) Mr. Monk Fights City Hall

Season Eight

110) Mr. Monk’s Favourite Show
111) Mr. Monk and the Foreign Man
112) Mr. Monk and the UFO
113) Mr. Monk Is Someone Else
114) Mr. Monk Takes the Stand
115) Mr. Monk and the Critic
116) Mr. Monk and the Voodoo Curse
117) Mr. Monk Goes to Group Therapy
118) Happy Birthday, Mr. Monk
119) Mr. Monk and Sharona
120) Mr. Monk and the Dog
121) Mr. Monk Goes Camping
122) Mr. Monk Is the Best Man
123) Mr. Monk and the Badge
124) Mr. Monk and the End – Part 1
125) Mr. Monk and the End – Part 2

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Are these all of the episodes of Monk?

In addition to the 125 episodes listed above, Monk also featured in four short ‘webisodes’. The webisodes were initially made available online, but were later included on the DVD release of the show’s fifth season.

The webisodes include:

Mr. Monk and Dr. Kroger
Mr. Monk and the Computer
Mr. Monk and the Blood Test
Mr. Monk Goes to the Gym

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Are there any Monk TV movies?

Yes. In 2023, Peacock announced a Monk revival via a television/streaming movie called Mr. Monk’s Last Case: A Monk Movie. The film features all the original cast members, including Tony Shalhoub.

And finally, was Monk a stand-alone show or was it ever joined by any spin-offs?

While Monk largely existed as a stand-alone series, a short-lived spin-off webseries made its debut in 2009. The series was called Little Monk, and was a prequel set during Monk’s youth.

Little Monk ran for one season, composed of ten episodes. The episodes are as follows:

1 Little Monk and the Missing Bracelet
2 Little Monk and the Business Boys
3 Little Monk and the New Kid
4 Little Monk and the Rubber Ball
5 Little Monk and the Monk Cousin
6 Little Monk and the Geography Bee
7 Little Monk and the Saturday Rehearsal
8 Little Monk and the Balloon
9 Little Monk and the Talent Show
10 Little Monk and the Little Trophy

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If you are a fan of Monk, or you are just getting into Monk, then you may wish to know that all of the episodes of are currently available to buy on DVD.

The Monk: Complete Series boxset includes all eight seasons of the show in one handy collection.

The Monk: Complete Series DVD boxset is available from all good entertainment stockists, including Amazon US and Amazon UK.

Thank you for stopping by It’s A Stampede! to read this post about Monk – I hope this information has proved useful. For more useful posts, be sure to check out the recommended reads below.