{"id":9725,"date":"2013-12-22T12:44:15","date_gmt":"2013-12-22T10:44:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/pinartarhan.com\/blog\/?p=9725"},"modified":"2013-12-22T12:44:16","modified_gmt":"2013-12-22T10:44:16","slug":"the-mentalist-end-of-an-era-disappointed-by-red-john-happy-to-see-him-go","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pinartarhan.com\/blog\/the-mentalist-end-of-an-era-disappointed-by-red-john-happy-to-see-him-go\/","title":{"rendered":"The Mentalist: End of an Era \u2013 Disappointed by Red John, Happy to See Him \u201cGo\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Image<\/a>
Image via fanpop.com.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I wrote this post after episode 6.8, where Patrick finally caught Red John. And even though I was disappointed by his identity, I\u2019m glad that storyline is behind us. Episodes 6.9 and 10 have been different, in a really good way. Lighter, smart and fun- just the way we like our Patrick. Or let\u2019s say we had enough of the depressed\/darker Patrick. Since we are on a break, let\u2019s say goodbye to RJ and celebrate the end of an era\u2026<\/p>\n

Warning: This post includes spoilers for The Mentalist pilot, finale and movies Fight Club and Identity<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

Ah, the good old days when we met Patrick Jane (Simon Baker) for the first time: the former psychic who joined CBI (the fictional California Bureau of Investigation) after a serial killer known as Red John killed his wife and daughter.<\/p>\n

Remember that shocking and highly impressive first episode where he just figured the killer out from the mother\u2019s expressions, her style and taste?<\/p>\n

Remember that adorable, slightly cocky guy who asked all the controversial questions, made himself tea in the victim\u2019s home and got the killer shot by his own wife after she found out what he did?<\/p>\n

Good times. Gritty, complicated plots; sense of humor and lightness combined with repressed depression, grief and anger; a guy who made you laugh, smile and scratch your head while he solved cases fast so he and his team could have more time to figure out Red John\u2019s identity and well, Patrick could kill him.<\/p>\n

Interesting premise, awesome leading character, fun supporting characters, some terrific lines…<\/p>\n

But then something happened along the way. Because after a while, nothing Jane did surprised us anymore. So it lost the shocking, or at least impossibly captivating effect. I used to want to watch 4-5 episodes in a row and that didn\u2019t feel enough, until one a week seemed all right.<\/p>\n

Still, like many fans, I held on. I wanted to know who Red John is. I also wanted to see a RJ-free Patrick.<\/p>\n

But then something else happened. The show made too much of a big deal about Red John. They made him impossibly charismatic, manipulative, smart, dangerous, cunning, resourceful…You see where I\u2019m going with this? Red John was like that killer in Se7en and more, always a couple of steps ahead.<\/p>\n

He was so super influential that he had disciples. He had men and women willing to die & kill for him. So after a while, the cult leader Brett Stiles (Malcolm McDowell) seemed like a man who could pull it off. He had the resources. And while I didn\u2019t see the charm and charisma, he already had a cult to do anything for him. So if the writers hadn\u2019t given us a younger Red John, Stiles could have worked.<\/p>\n

The longer the show lasted, the longer Red John story line got. He\/she became more powerful, more influential. He got too big, dangerous and super-powerful for the show\u2019s own good. And it came to the point where I just wanted them to get it over with. End of season 3 could have been the place to say goodbye\u2026<\/p>\n

One popular theory among fans was that PJ was Red John. Now, it would be spectacularly disappointing in many ways as we had come to accept and know Patrick as a decent, loving guy who, despite his faults, would do anything to protect his loved ones. A loving husband\/father avenging the death of his loved ones revealed to be the killer? Nope, thanks.<\/p>\n

A Dissociative Identity Disorder (aka Multiple Personality Disorder) \u201ctwist\u201d would destroy the Patrick we grew to love, and would give us a not-welcome d\u00e9j\u00e0 vu feeling. It was once a great twist ending for books and movies. But even with Identity, I was disappointed. But now that I know who RJ is, PJ could be the better choice.<\/p>\n

There was also the theory of one Patrick\u2019s team members could be working for Red John. That wouldn\u2019t work, as it would undermine Patrick\u2019s intelligence and ability to read people.<\/p>\n

When the 7 suspects were revealed, I didn\u2019t like any of them for RJ. I wished that it would turn out to be a fake. That there would be a surprise.<\/p>\n

There wasn\u2019t. Now, of all the ones on the list, FBI agent Reede and Gale Bertrum are in deed worse candidates than the revealed Red John. They lack the charisma, IQ and the manipulative skills promised. They are also not eerie or scary one bit. Creepy, yes. Red John-level charisma? No way.<\/p>\n

McAllister aka Red John showed up in season 1, as a sheriff of a town where one of the crimes was committed. He then showed up a couple of more times after the list, but that\u2019s it.<\/p>\n

McAllister being Red John feels like writers put the names in a box and then pulled with eyes closed and went ahead with the choice, no further questions asked.<\/p>\n

Now, I\u2019m not claiming I could have written a better show. But had I been on the writing\/producing team, I\u2019d have definitely voted for a different Red John. I\u2019d also have a different list of suspects, if there absolutely had to be one. I\u2019m not a big fan of the Blake association either.<\/p>\n

Now that RJ is gone, I\u2019m happy we moved on. Of course if this was a trick, they have this awesome Red John hidden somewhere that wasn\u2019t on the list, I hope they won\u2019t dedicate many episodes to it.<\/p>\n

*<\/p>\n

The Mentalist suffered from the serialized show curse. They made the big bad really big and bad, and in the end, we got a disappointing reveal and showdown.<\/p>\n

\"Red<\/a>
Red John aka Sheriff McAllister. Image via wikpedia.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I\u2019m loving the happy Patrick. I hope RJ storyline died with the Blake Association storyline. Looking forward to the return of the show on January 5th.<\/p>\n

*<\/p>\n

How about you? How happy are you with the seasons, the identity of Red John and how he was revealed and taken out? Are you enjoying the post-RJ era?<\/p>\n

\u00a0Other Posts on The Mentalist<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0The Mentalist Season 3: Patrick Jane is back with episodes 1 & 2<\/a><\/p>\n

The Mentalist Review<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

The Mentalist vs . Castle \u2013 fun characters and plots comparison<\/a><\/p>\n

Other Posts on Simon Baker\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/strong>Book of Love starring Simon Baker, Frances O\u2019Connor & Gregory Smith<\/a><\/p>\n

The Guardian TV Show starring Simon Baker<\/a><\/p>\n

Not Forgotten starring Simon Baker<\/a><\/p>\n

Something New starring Simon Baker<\/a><\/p>\n

The Lodger starring Simon Baker, Shane West, Alfred Molina and Hope Davis<\/a><\/p>\n

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 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I wrote this post after episode 6.8, where Patrick finally caught Red John. And even though I was disappointed by his identity, I\u2019m glad that storyline is behind us. Episodes 6.9 and 10 have been different, in a really good way. Lighter, smart and fun- just the way we like our Patrick. Or let\u2019s say […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[781],"tags":[3027,2177,4524,433,1382,4525],"class_list":{"0":"post-9725","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-tv-series","7":"tag-malcolm-mcdowell","8":"tag-patrick-jane","9":"tag-red-john","10":"tag-simon-baker","11":"tag-the-mentalist","12":"tag-the-mentalist-red-john-reveal","13":"entry"},"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pI4PB-2wR","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pinartarhan.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9725","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pinartarhan.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pinartarhan.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pinartarhan.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pinartarhan.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9725"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/pinartarhan.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9725\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9741,"href":"https:\/\/pinartarhan.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9725\/revisions\/9741"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pinartarhan.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9725"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pinartarhan.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9725"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pinartarhan.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9725"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}