Did the USA Network decide not to buy the Simon Baker series The Mentalist for syndication because it would conflict with their own psychic detective show Psych?
You have to wonder, because The Mentalist has been snatched up by TNT in a lush syndication deal. How lush? About $2 million per episode, a broadcast series record. (The overall record is HBO's The Sopranos going to A&E for $2.5 per episode.)
(S02E06) "No takebacks!" - Jane, to the killer, about her confession
So this episode had two things that scare the hell out of me: prison and mice. I think we all view prison as a place that would freak us out if we ever found ourselves in one. I hate the very thought of being in that situation. I think I'd try to escape like Jane did tonight. What's the worst that could happen, they'd send you to prison?
As for mice, I have a few every winter in my apartment. They come in through the wall behind the fridge looking for warmth and food. Really irritating and gross.
As soon as the introduction sequence played out, I was excited at the thought of seeing how Patrick Jane and more down-to-earth Lisbon would deal with a spooky case.
I knew Lisbon would not believe in ghosts but what about Jane? Would he believe in them for real or would he fake believing in them for the case or would he not believe in them at all?
This spooky episode, perfect for Halloween time, also finally (!) gave us some relationship advancement between Rigsby and Van Pelt.
Rules are meant to be broken... especially for these ten television characters. For them, the rest of the world has one standard to live by and they have another. It makes them interesting and fun to watch... you just wouldn't necessarily want to be the person having to deal with them because they could drive you to distraction. Here's my ten pack of characters who live in a world of their own, according to no rules except their own. From the not-too-bad to the really bad.
10. Patrick Jane, The Mentalist
You would think that as a consultant to the CBI -- California Bureau of Investigation -- Patrick Jane would be compelled to uphold the rules and regulations of the department. However, Jane is a free spirit when it comes to office protocol. He does his own thing. For instance, bugging the office of a CBI higher-up is definitely not kosher. Jane doesn't care; he did it anyway and will probably get away with it.
(S02E04) "Everybody is. I am." - Jane, on people who are geeks
Is Patrick Jane really, really brave or just clueless?
I've been wondering that the entire series. He's not a fighter. He's not even one of these "strong, silent" types who acts wimpy but is secretly a karate master or former Navy Seal or whatever. He honestly doesn't have any physical skills but he insists on interrogating people who could turn his bones into mulch. Like tonight's confrontation with bikers in a dive bar. Or maybe he was comfortable because Lisbon was there with a badge and a gun. I think he's done it in the past with no backup though, so I'm not sure if he's brave or just oblivious or doesn't care.
After last season's success of The Mentalist, I made a point of watching the show this season. I wanted to see if vox populi was right and this was must-see TV. Well, now that I've tuned in for a few episodes, my opinion of the show remains the same as when I previewed the pilot in 2008. It's a star vehicle for Simon Baker. He's wonderful in the role and commands the screen.
However, since watching this season, there's one major thing about The Mentalist that's ticking me off. Aretha Franklin sang about it: R-E-S-P-E-C-T.
(S02E03) "I didn't lie ... he made risotto." Lisbon, to Jane, about a certain cooking show with "the angry man" she watched on Tuesday
Hypnotism is a lame shortcut in TV shows and movies. Hypnotists seem to do it so easily, and the subjects seem to be put under so quickly and then remember just enough to solve the puzzle or at least advance the plot to another point.
That's why tonight's hypnotism of Lisbon by Jane was so satisfying. I groaned when it started, but I like the fact that he hypnotized her without her knowing it, how she made a comment about Rigsby and Van Pelt while under, and how the hypnotism didn't really work in the end.
(S02E02) Tonight's episode of The Mentalist was an incisive look at how the ... HEY THAT WAS STARSKY!
Yes, Paul Michael Glaser made an appearance in this episode, and it's good to see him in something else besides those fix-your-credit commercials.
This season seems to be about the personal lives of Jane and Lisbon a lot more than the first season was, how the search for Red John is affecting both of them (Jane is on the outside of the investigation; Jane is seeing a psychiatrist because of what happened in the season finale). Last season I didn't want every other episode to be about Red John, and I still don't, but I'm more intrigued by the Red John investigation than the murder-of-the-week. Where last season the tension in the CBI regarding cases and who was in charge was scattered here and there; that tension seems to be a theme this second season.
(S02E01) "If you sit by the river bank long enough you'll see the bodies of your enemies float by." - Patrick Jane
Where will the second season of The Mentalist go? Will we focus on Red John the whole time or will we get cases of the week until we have a Red John episode? It looks like it's going to be more of the latter (though there's a big plot development concerning the Red John case in this season opener), and that's just fine.
I do wish the cases were more Columbo or Murder, She Wrote-ish, though.
Patrick Jane came very close to catching Red John on The Mentalist last season, but it wasn't to be (not yet anyway). In this clip from the season opener this Thursday at 10 (new night and time), Jane and Lisbon are taken off the case because they are too close to it and we're introduced to the new guy in charge of it.
(Side note: it's funny that this clip is sponsored by - at least when I watched it - Red Robin! Is that a coincidence or on purpose?)
CBS has posted a season one recap of The Mentalist, and if you don't watch the show you'd think that every single episode was a hunt for Red John. They're not, of course. This recap doesn't give you a feel for what Jane and company do on the show but it does give you the background on that case and Jane.
I just saw a promo for the new season and the gang is getting a new boss this season. It starts September 24.
The fine art of interrogation may seem lost thanks to suspects lawyering up and the Miranda warning. Whatever happened to the days when a snarling cop could throw a perp against a brick wall to get him to squeal? Or a sly questioner could finagle a confession by laying on a guilt trip? Still, there are some very clever, brilliant interrogators plying their trade on these days. In fact, when you look at these eight interrogators, you'll probably agree that they know just how to get to the truth. Here are the eight top interrogators on TV today:
8. Captain James Brass, CSI Brass is the most "old school" of all these interrogators. He's like Andy Sipowicz from NYPD Blue, only without the violence. Brass talks to suspects with a modicum of respect, but a healthy cynicism. He's seen it all and knows the truth is in there somewhere. He asks questions and waits for them to trip themselves up. When they do, he has them write it down. Despite the laconic attitude, Brass has the brass to get the job done.
Sometimes when I'm watching USA Network, I'm as tickled with the promotions for the shows as I am the shows themselves. That's saying a lot, because as a rule, networks are not very clever about commercials hawking their shows. However, USA is the exception to the rule. Just yesterday, Kona wrote about the Psych promo that took a shot at The Mentalist -- completely justified, too -- and here's another that caught my eye. It's a tribute to Monk.
This is the last season for Monk, so USA gathered some of the stars -- in character -- from its other programs to give a little tribute to Adrian Monk. What a stroke of genius!
I've been hearing about this for a couple of days, but today USA just posted Psych's new promo on the show's official Twitter feed. In it, they make the not-so-subtle point that The Mentalist kind of ripped them off.
To be fair, when I first heard of The Mentalist, the exact way it was described to me was, "It's like Psych, but a drama." So I can see where The Mentalist's ridiculously high ratings and Emmy noms may rub some people associated with Psych the wrong way.
However, Psych's assertion is kind of like Scrubs saying that Grey's Anatomy ripped them off because they're both shows that follow hospital interns who transition into residents. Granted, the "fake psychic" genre is slightly more specific, but other than that, Psych and The Mentalist don't have a whole lot in common. Regardless, the promo is pretty funny, and I've helpfully embedded it below.
I was happy with the way The Mentalist ended its first season. It didn't go overboard with a season finale cliffhanger scenario with someone in a coma, an explostion, or someone vanishing, it just had a case end and the characters learn something from it. Sure, the episode focused on Jane's nemesis Red John, so there was more urgency and importance to the plot. But he was never caught (though we did learn some facts about him, which will lead nicely into next season). What did everyone else think?
Did the USA Network decide not to buy the Simon Baker series The Mentalist for syndication because it would conflict with their own psychic detective show Psych? 
(S02E03) "I didn't lie ... he made risotto." Lisbon, to Jane, about a certain cooking show with "the angry man" she watched on Tuesday
(S02E01) "If you sit by the river bank long enough you'll see the bodies of your enemies float by." - Patrick Jane
Sometimes when I'm watching USA Network, I'm as tickled with the promotions for the shows as I am the shows themselves. That's saying a lot, because as a rule, networks are not very clever about commercials hawking their shows. However, USA is the exception to the rule. Just yesterday, Kona wrote about the Psych promo that took a shot at The Mentalist -- completely justified, too -- and here's another that caught my eye. It's a tribute to Monk.
I've been hearing about this for a couple of days, but today USA just posted Psych's new promo on the show's official Twitter feed. In it, they make the not-so-subtle point that The Mentalist kind of ripped them off. 
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