Mr. Monk in Outer Space, and Germany.

Another twofer today, folks. I read two of the Monk media tie-in novels by Lee Goldberg: Mr. Monk in Outer Space, and Mr. Monk Goes to Germany. These are original stories--that is, not the same plots as an episode of the show--but read very much like watching the show. (They don't take much longer to read than it takes to watch an episode of the show, either.)

I've heard that Lee Goldberg is kind of an asshole, but I've been avoiding learning more because I do like reading the Monk books (he's the only one that does them--unlike, say, the Star Trek novels, which are farmed out to a team of writers). My vaugue memory of the scandal that I tried not to learn about is that he has some kind of a chip on his shoulder regarding fanfic writers--which, considering he makes his living writing stories based on a TV show, is either ironic or completely understandable. Dunno, maybe he's afraid of someone else getting on the Monk-novel-writing gravy train.

Anyway, in Monk in Outer Space, Monk does not actually go to outer space. Instead, he investigates a murder that happens at a convention for fans of a thinly-veiled Star Trek standin called Beyond Earth. Now, viewers of the Monk show (hi, Sandy!) may remember that they did a fandom shoutout episode, called something like, "Monk and the Biggest Fan" or something like that. (Yes, I'm too lazy to google up the actual episode title.) The episode is a cruel but accurate look at fangirls and their habits. For instance, the biggest fan--played by Sarah Silverman--makes dioramas of Monk episodes, where he is played by a Ken doll, and Natalie by a troll doll, in a cruel but clever gloss on how female characters are always hated in female-dominated fandoms. There are lots of other clever little details that show that whoever wrote the episode has actually observed how online fandoms work--not just the obviously geeky stuff, but also the interpersonal dynamics. This is not a flattering portrait of fandom--there's no "fair and balanced" opposing view; the Silverman character has no redeeming qualities and exists only as an object of mockery. But it goes beyond the cliches of how fandom is portrayed in mainstream culture, to make jokes that would only make sense to someone with inside experience of a fandom (not necesarily Monk fandom--I'm not in that one, so I don't know if there were in-jokes. I really hope the Silverman character isn't based on an actual BNF, though, because wouldn't that be awful?).

The protrayal of fandom in Monk in Outer Space, on the other hand, is at the same time more symapthetic and more shallow. Goldberg points fingers at how Beyond Earth fans wear funny costumes, pay outrageous amounts of money for thrity-year-old boxes of Beyond Earth cereal, learn a fictional language used in the show, live in their parents' basements....you know, the usual. If you've ever watched an episode of any mainstream TV show that used a science fiction convention as a plot point, you know what aspects of fandom are lampooned in this book. Monk, oddly enough, views the Beyond Earth fans as freaks (in other words, just like everyone else), while Natalie provides (also fairly standard) opposing view: fandom gives dysfunctional people a sense of belonging! Something that's further emphasized when we find out that Monk's brother Ambrose (the one who never leaves his house) is a Beyond Earth fan, and has written several books on the subject. There's a murder, of course, and Ambrose's encylopedic knowledge of the show provides a vital clue. Yawn. While the novel, unlike the episode, makes an effort to understand fandom, and to show it in a positive light, it's clear that the novel's audience is mainstream readers, who know little about fandom beyond the same cliches that the book deploys. (Which is a little weird, when you think about it--a non-fannish, mainstream media consumer is more likely to see the episode than to read the book. But it probably comes down to Lee Goldberg being kind of a douche, and contemptuous of fandom to boot.)

Monk Goes to Germany involves Monk's therapist going on vacation to Germany, and Monk stalking him there. (Natalie goes along with it out of revenge for the therapist failing to discourage Monk from trailing her on her vacation to Hawaii, which Goldberg wrote about in--you could probably guess this--Mr. Monk Goes to Hawaii.) Naturally, he discovers a murder there. There's also some stuff thrown in there about Trudy's murder, which we know isn't going to go anywhere because it's a tie in. If Monk was actually going to solve his late wife's murder, it would be on the show.

In closing, I wish I knew how people get tie-in-writing gigs, because it seems like it would be very easy. Just like writing fanfic, except you can't put in any sex. And it can be a little more trite, because anyone who criticizes you must be OMG jealous! (Which I am.)