When Natalie gets shot at while running for the school board, Monk must figure out who's behind it. One of the suspects? His therapy frenemy Harold Krenshaw.
This Episode contains examples of the following tropes:
- Arms Dealer: Jack Whitman had gotten into the illegal weapons racket, and was in the process of destroying evidence that tied him to it before he was arrested. In fact, the reason for him pulling this stunt was so he could get into the copy machine (which was sold to the campaign headquarters at auction) and retrieve the one shred of evidence he couldn't get to because it had gotten stuck inside.
- Artistic License – Explosives: In addition to the Bombproof Appliance myth (see below), the grenade tossed into Natalie's kitchen takes around thirty seconds - even accounting for the distortion caused by the slow motion - to explode. It lands, Monk scoops it up, tosses it into the fridge, slams the fridge, and then opens the fridge to neatly arrange it in the empty socket of an egg carton, before slamming the fridge again and running away.
- Art Shift: A very subtle one but this episode involves more action shots and two separate slow-motion scenes, something not typical of the show.
- Bittersweet Ending: Monk solved the case, and ended up revealing a whole bunch of the killer's contacts who'll now be arrested for illegal arms trading themselves. Unfortunately, Natalie's campaign, despite her best efforts, results in her losing badly to Krenshaw, which in turn presumably means that Julie's school will now be getting closed down.
- Bombproof Appliance: An example that the MythBusters would later analyze, in fact. In this episode, Monk throws a live grenade into Natalie's refrigerator, slams the door shut, and dives for cover. The resulting explosion destroys the fridge and makes a terrible mess of the kitchen, but no one is hurt. In reality, the force of the blast would have generated enough shrapnel to blow holes in the walls and put anyone nearby at risk of severe injury or death.
- Chekhov's Gun:
- When the camera pans to outside Natalie's campaign headquarters, a poster clearly shows the R in Natalie Teeger's name fell off.
- The printer Natalie buys at the police auction turns out to be the key to the whole case.
- The strange way the sniper's note is folded.
- Chekhov's Skill: Monk's "talent" for keep-away comes in handy when they need to take Natalie's car-keys from the two jerks in the parking space.
- Decided by One Vote: Subverted; Monk takes a ridiculously long time in his attempts to cast his vote for Natalie, and when he works out who the killer is, he runs out without bothering to finish casting his vote, causing him and Natalie to both worry that he might have cost her the election. In the end, it turns out that he didn't...because Natalie gets completely and utterly curb-stomped by Krenshaw.
- Hollywood Spelling: Monk realizes that the misspelling of Natalie Teeger's name must mean the shooter doesn't know her.
- Honor Before Reason: Monk is baffled as to why Natalie keeps insisting on running the election, even if it could cost her life and potentially orphan Julie. In secret, Natalie confides that her husband allegedly died running away from a warzone before he was killed. Although it could indeed orphan her daughter, Natalie wants to go through with the campaign so Julie can have at least one courageous parent to speak of.
- Murder Is the Best Solution: Played with; when shooting up Natalie's campaign HQ, Whitman specifically avoids hitting anyone, knowing that the police won't dedicate as many resources to such an attack as they would if someone had been killed. Unfortunately for Whitman, he ends up being surprised by and killing a security guard, meaning that he ends up bringing the full force of the police down on the case anyway, presumably explaining why he later decides to just try blowing up Natalie and Monk with a grenade.
- "Not So Different" Remark: Monk reluctantly admits there's no way his nemesis Harold is the shooter because Harold never would have misspelled Natalie's name. How does Monk know that? "Because I wouldn't have." The irony is lost on Monk.
- Obsessively Organized: After tossing a live grenade into the refrigerator, Monk can't stop himself from opening the fridge again and neatly placing it into the empty compartment of an egg carton. Stottlemeyer says he plans to give Monk a medal for saving Natalie and Disher's lives, then take it away for endangering his own.
- Outrun the Fireball: After neatly placing the grenade into the empty compartment of an egg carton, Monk slams the door and runs in slow motion out of the kitchen, before it explodes.
- Rewatch Bonus: The first shot of the episode show's the sign Natalie's daughter Julie made for her, with the R missing.
- Smokescreen Crime: Natalie is shot at by a sniper who leaves a threat in the form of a note demanding she drop out of her race to be elected for the school board. Monk discovers that the sniper's real goal isn't to make Natalie drop out of the race but rather to get his hands on a copying machine she is using which contains a paper tying him to illegal arms deals.
