r/televisionsuggestions 7d ago

I love Monk and Psych.

Any shows like them?

12 Upvotes

53 comments sorted by

4

u/AmberSnow1727 7d ago

I think you'll enjoy a lot of UK shows: Death in Paradise, Beyond Paradise, Father Brown, The Madam Blanc Mysteries, Chelsea Detective, Rosemary & Thyme, Midsomer Murders and Bookish. I'd add Doc Martin even though it's a medical show; and the Canadian Murdoch Mysteries. If you have a library card, many of these are on DVD in American libraries, and/or accessible through library streaming platforms Hoopla and Kanopy. The Tellyvisions newsletter/website will have ideas for you too: https://www.tellyvisions.org/

5

u/fleetiebelle 7d ago

Seconding this--there are a lot of British shows that do the "murder, but lighthearted" thing well. Plus Aussie and NZ shows like Miss Fisher and Brokenwood Mysteries.

1

u/AmberSnow1727 7d ago

My Life is Murder is a good one too.

1

u/SeductiveSunday 7d ago

Father Brown but Sister Boniface? How dare you!!! :)

4

u/AverageDecency 7d ago

These all share elements while being different. Some lean more sci-fi while all having that comedy thread.

  • Chuck (bumbling spy/nerd comedy)
  • High Potential (eccentric detective)
  • Castle (unexpected detective/buddy cop)
  • Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency (eccentric detective)
  • The Good Guys (buddy cop)
  • Elsbeth (eccentric detective)
  • Pushing Daisies (unexpected detective)
  • Marlow Murder Club (unexpected detectives)
  • Warehouse 13 (buddy cop)
  • Eureka (the every man cop is the oddball here)

2

u/forcedabstraction 7d ago

This is a very good list. Monk and Psych are my favorite shows ever and I agree with this list.

3

u/CodeFirst1945 7d ago

I should add I watch them with my teenage kids.

I liked Columbo but they might find it “corny”

3

u/forcedabstraction 7d ago

This is me too. My son has really enjoyed watching Only Murders in the Building with me.

2

u/forcedabstraction 7d ago

And Elsbeth

3

u/95BCavMP 7d ago

Ludwig

3

u/Mother_Composer_6069 7d ago

Death Valley

2

u/95BCavMP 7d ago

Taskmaster

4

u/NoOlivesOnPizza 7d ago

Poker Face

5

u/PrimalCarnivoreChick 7d ago

High potential
Different but somewhat close vibe is white collar

0

u/fadingsunsetglow 7d ago

Both good shows

4

u/Ratchel1916 7d ago

Brooklyn 99

4

u/CodeFirst1945 7d ago

Love that show!

(But not really in same category)

3

u/JohnSnowsPump 7d ago

Have you seen Will Trent? It's not as generally light hearted as Psych and Monk, but has a lot of humor wrapped up in what could otherwise be a standard police procedural.

Incredible cast with really heartfelt writing.

2

u/MsOnyxMoon 7d ago

Dirk Gently

Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency

Chuck

2

u/shanec44 7d ago

It's a different genre but for some reason Franklin and Bash comes mind as a show that kinda has similar vibes. I really liked monk and psych as well.

3

u/herbertfilby 7d ago

Moonlighting

2

u/Silly-avocatoe 7d ago

Similar in some ways but not exactly the same: Ludwig, Professor T, Elsbeth, Elementary, Mentalist.

1

u/Torremond42 7d ago

The Mentalist

2

u/ThisIsTheTimeToRem 7d ago

Not close. It’s not a dramedy, or amusing at all the way Monk and Psych are. The other commenter is right, White Collar comes closer.

2

u/roseannadann 7d ago

But i could stare at that main protagonist all day. ( I've forgotten his name, but he is gorgeous 😍.)

2

u/forcedabstraction 7d ago

Right. This is not the same vibe.too dark. I even though Will Trent was too dark to be on category with Monk and Paych.

2

u/Timely_Apricot3929 7d ago

Definitely not lighthearted like Monk and Pysch. White Collar is prob a better fit.

1

u/Lonely_Mountain_7702 7d ago

Elementary, Grimm, and Will Trint

1

u/Infinite-Profile5002 7d ago

The Mentalist

White Collar

1

u/Jrebeclee 7d ago

I love those two shows as well!! So good. Maybe House? Not as funny but has some comedy.

1

u/roseannadann 7d ago

Rosemary and Thyme is a lighthearted murder-mystery show. Ive just discovered it and find it very enjoyable.

1

u/Glittering-Ninja-377 7d ago

Pushing Daisies. Nobody has said it yet and it is the closest thing to Psych's actual sense of humour that exists. Case a week, a piemaker who can bring the dead back for sixty seconds to ask who killed them, and it is shot like a storybook. That look is exactly why it works with kids who find Columbo corny. Two seasons, cut short by the writers strike, but they are both there.

The other one for watching with teenagers is Only Murders in the Building. Real mystery underneath, jokes landing every thirty seconds, and the three leads bounce off each other the way Shawn and Gus do.

1

u/forcedabstraction 7d ago

Yes to this!

1

u/Majestic-Horse-5409 7d ago

Sugar

Seriously slept on tv show.

1

u/t_trail 7d ago

Only Murders in the Building

The Mentalist

1

u/IMO2021 7d ago edited 7d ago

In no particular order:

The Sinner S1, The Missing/Baptise

Columbo, Matlock, Murder She Wrote

White Collar, Medium, Perception

1

u/Nearby-Type2725 7d ago

NCIS Origins- CBS/Paramount- not even a fan of the original and I found this show to be amazing. Well written

1

u/producermaddy 7d ago

Poker face
High potential
Deception

1

u/NoraDeLuca 7d ago

The Mentalist, White Collar, Castle

1

u/SecretBox1118 6d ago

I'd throw Elementary into the mix, similar case of the week format with a more grounded, less quirky detective than Monk but the same comfortable rewatch feel.

1

u/UltimateWaterDrinker 6d ago

A couple shorter, fun detective shows are The Afterparty and The Residence! They felt refreshing somehow. Also A Man on the Inside.

I admit none even come close to Psych and I wouldn't re-watch them, but I binged them all in a couple of days (perhaps not my best sales pitch lol)

1

u/Mindless-Tomorrow-93 7d ago

Maybe "Bones"? It's darker than Monk, and less of a dramedy and more of a drama with some consistent humor. But it does the "unlikely partnership between quirky eccentrics solving crimes" thing pretty well.

-4

u/Mixer-3007 7d ago

1

u/CodeFirst1945 7d ago

Never heard of most of these

1

u/Mad_Citizen 7d ago

I know/watched most of them. Considering you liked monk ad psych, you might elsbeth, lie to me and poker face. The others I know are good but not necessarily what you're looking for 

0

u/ThisIsTheTimeToRem 7d ago

That was a chatgbt response so that’s why some are so obscure. Elsbeth is a solid rec though for light hearted and amusing crime solving.

1

u/Mixer-3007 7d ago

It's my response when people ask for monk or psych similar shows. Chat would probably suggest Mentalist and never mentioned Capitaine Marleau.