Spoilers abound.
I came with an expectation about the season based on what I saw and what I read from Bruno Heller, the creator of the show, after the Season 3 finale.
I thought that Season 4 wouild be a very different show. Red John was dead. Patrick Jane was on trial. The season would be about his court trial. Heller had said that this time Jane would have to face consequences.
So we watched the show last night. The trial was over in one show. Jane was up to his usual tricks. Apparently in the world of The Mentalist, if you and your investigative team are on suspension, you can still openly work on a case, and if someone rightfully asks you for a warrant, you can have Cho explain the situation in a few terse, charismatic sentences, and you will have complete access. In the world of The Mentalist, you can be a first time participant in a prison poker game, win two million dollars, be paid off, and not be seriously injured. In the world of The Mentalist, you can represent yourself and be found not guilty even though you killed a man in front of five hundred witnesses. You can originally tell your viewers that Red John is dead. This was our stirring conclusion to Season 3. Red John is dead. And then the first episode of Season 4 ends with Patrick Jane saying that Red John is not dead.
It is exasperating. Are the writers held hostage by network notes? Are they just not planning where they want to go and then, once they make a decision, panicking and making a U-turn? This is the kind of show that you really have to not analyse, because once you do, things unravel quickly. i find the characters charming. I wonder why Tim Kang (Cho) is not yet a major movie star. I still enjoy it, although sometimes the interest is akin to hearing about a horrible accident. Despite your best intentions, you are interested in the wreckage.
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