Robert N EmersonMy Thoughts on CBS's The Mentalist
October 30th 2008 08:38
CBS' The Mentalist follows the exploits of Patrick Jane, played by Simon Baker, a reformed charlatan psychic who assists the California Bureau of Investigation after the tragic murder of his wife and child following his "psychic" insight into a serial killer known as Red John. Jane is partnered, nay under the supervision of Senion Agent Teresa Lisbon, played by the lovely Robin Tunney, and her team of Agents Cho, Rigsby, and Van Pelt, who are played, respectively, by Tim Kang, Owain Yoeman, and Amanda Righetti.
It is the ensemble cast that I feel will be the strength of this show, which garnered a full season buy from CBS on the 15th of October, and the inkling of a metaplot involving Jane's desire to catch Red John, the killer of his wife and child, while working his uncanny powers of observation and deduction to help the CBI solve cases. While it would be easy for some to draw a parallel between Jane and other detectives with astounding perception and reasoning skills, it should be noted that unlike many of the others, Jane is actually most balanced mentally, socially well adjusted, and, thus far, seems to be coping with his loss in a reasonable manner.
Unlike shows like Life, Psych, Monk, the defunct Rayne, or even Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Jane doesn't appear to suffer from mental illness, social anxiety, or crippling dysfunctional interactions with other people, be they civilians or law enforcement. However, that's not to say that Jane doesn't have his issues, because he's obviously use to doing things his way, as a former celebrity psychic, and this often leads to friction or trouble with his team and their superiors. Yet, this group of issues also marks the show in an interesting light.
It is obvious that the tragedy of losing his wife and child has drastically changed Jane from the person he previously was, as he not only seems to care more about helping people, truly helping them, but he is very adamant about their being no such thing as psychics. So vehement are these denials that I'd almost think he's channeling Harry Houdini, except that would be a mark of the psychic medium. Perhaps him and Cris Angel twitter each other, often, about psychics ticking them off.
Either way, The Mentalist is definitely an enjoyable show that should be a hit for sometime to come and a show that you don't wanna miss if you'd like to see the procedural drama with a twist.
It is the ensemble cast that I feel will be the strength of this show, which garnered a full season buy from CBS on the 15th of October, and the inkling of a metaplot involving Jane's desire to catch Red John, the killer of his wife and child, while working his uncanny powers of observation and deduction to help the CBI solve cases. While it would be easy for some to draw a parallel between Jane and other detectives with astounding perception and reasoning skills, it should be noted that unlike many of the others, Jane is actually most balanced mentally, socially well adjusted, and, thus far, seems to be coping with his loss in a reasonable manner.
Unlike shows like Life, Psych, Monk, the defunct Rayne, or even Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Jane doesn't appear to suffer from mental illness, social anxiety, or crippling dysfunctional interactions with other people, be they civilians or law enforcement. However, that's not to say that Jane doesn't have his issues, because he's obviously use to doing things his way, as a former celebrity psychic, and this often leads to friction or trouble with his team and their superiors. Yet, this group of issues also marks the show in an interesting light.
It is obvious that the tragedy of losing his wife and child has drastically changed Jane from the person he previously was, as he not only seems to care more about helping people, truly helping them, but he is very adamant about their being no such thing as psychics. So vehement are these denials that I'd almost think he's channeling Harry Houdini, except that would be a mark of the psychic medium. Perhaps him and Cris Angel twitter each other, often, about psychics ticking them off.
Either way, The Mentalist is definitely an enjoyable show that should be a hit for sometime to come and a show that you don't wanna miss if you'd like to see the procedural drama with a twist.
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