Welcome Back, Mr. Monk … And Your Other Brother

I hope everybody else is as psyched as I am for the return of Tony Shalhoub and his magnificent crime dramedy Monk.

The place to be at 9pm EST tonight is USA Network, which will air the seventh-midseason premiere of the show, a fun episode called “Mr. Monk and the Other Brother.” And, you betcha — it appears Adrian Monk does indeed have another sibling besides John Turturro’s recovered agoraphobic Ambrose, a half brother named Jack Jr. played by Joy Ride etcetera star Steve Zahn.

The action gets rolling at the very beginning of the episode, when poor Monk, busy whipping himself up a stack of perfectly square pancakes one morning, realizes that someone is breaking into his apartment. That someone is Jack, who has just escaped from prison and soon informs Monk that he needs help bringing the person who framed him for murder to justice.

Monk, in a family frame of mind these days, eventually obliges, which in turn leads to a few investigative escapades before he ultimately gets to the bottom of Jack’s case as expected. Considering that Jack has a criminal past, knowing what happened doesn’t necessarily mean Monk clears Jack’s name like the escapee wants.

Longtime fans are going to love this episode probably about as much they love all of them — it’s why we watch. So, don’t forget to settle down at 9pm tonight for Monk’s latest adventures.

Monk airs Fridays on USA Network at 9pm EST.