Your Average Obsessive: From the Superhuman to the Simply Human

HowlRound: The first time I remember seeing Obsessive Compulsive Disorder represented in contemporary culture was during a visit to my parents’ home in 2008. They told me about a quirky detective drama they’d grown to like called Monk, where a San Francisco cop, brought to life by veteran stage and screen actor Tony Shalhoub, comes down with a mean case of OCD that helps him solve seemingly unsolvable crimes with panache and brilliance.