Chuyện phim xoay quanh cuộc hành trình tìm kiếm hung thủ đã sát hại vợ và con gái mình của Patrick Jane. Trước khi thảm kịch xảy đến với gia đình mình, Jane có một sự nghiệp thành công. Nhờ khả năng thôi miên, nắm bắt tâm lý và nhất là khả năng quan sát kỳ tài, anh đã trở nên nổi tiếng bằng việc giả làm một nhà tâm linh. Để khẳng định tài năng của mình, Jane đã xuất hiện trên truyền hình và tuyên bố mình đã giúp cảnh sát phác họa tiểu sử của tên giết người hàng loạt Red John. Tức giận vì bị xem thường, Red John đã giết vợ và con gái Jane để trả thù. Ngay sau thảm kịch, Jane bỏ nghề, trở thành là một cố vấn viên độc lập của phòng điều tra tội phạm bang California (CBI) với hy vọng tìm ra kẻ thủ ác.
Jane và Lisbon biết rằng vụ án Red John đã được giao lại cho một nhóm CBI khác do sĩ quan bắn thẳng Sam Bosco dẫn đầu.
"Chữ A màu đỏ tươi" (dấu hiệu phạm tội ngoại tình của người đàn bà xưa)
Lisbon và nhóm làm việc trong trường hợp một thực tập sinh bị sát hại của Thượng nghị sĩ bang, trong khi Jane đồng thời cố gắng tìm hiểu những thông tin mới mà Bosco đã phát hiện ra về vụ án Red John.
3. Huy hiệu đỏ
Jane, Cho, Rigsby và Van Pelt quyết định tiến hành cuộc điều tra riêng của họ khi Lisbon bị buộc tội giết một kẻ quấy rối trẻ em mà cô đã bắt giữ, người gần đây đã được tạm tha.
4. Mối đe dọa đỏ
Jane và CBI điều tra vụ giết Gordon Hodge, một luật sư quyền lực, người chịu trách nhiệm cho phép một kẻ giết người độc ác, Van McBride, bỏ đi một người đàn ông tự do.
5. Sợ Đỏ
Jane và nhóm CBI được gọi đến để điều tra cái chết của một kiến trúc sư nổi tiếng được tìm thấy bị sát hại trong một biệt thự cũ đổ nát, và dường như có một số nghi phạm.
6. Vàng đen và máu đỏ
Ngay cả sau khi Bosco bắt giữ Jane và tống anh ta vào tù vì tội gián điệp anh ta, Jane vẫn có thể giúp nhóm CBI từ phòng giam của anh ta giải quyết vụ giết một thanh niên.
7. Red Bulls
Minelli orders Patrick Jane and Lisbon and company to play nice and work together with Bosco and his team to locate a kidnapped woman being held for ransom.
8. His Red Right Hand
The CBI team is faced with a violent and shocking crime in their own office, but must work the case in spite of their alarm of who may be behind it. Meanwhile, Rigsby and Van Pelt are definitely an "item".
9. A Price Above Rubies
Patrick Jane and the team are called to investigate the robbery and murder of a wealthy jeweler while attending a black tie fundraiser for the CBI.
10. Throwing Fire
While Jane and the team examine the crime scene where a baseball scout is found murdered, Jane is clocked in the head by a ball and flashes back to his childhood with his overbearing father.
11. Rose-Colored Glasses
Jane and company investigate the murder of a man and his wife, on her way to his fifteen year high school reunion where, clearly, the attendees haven't changed all that much.
12. Bleeding Heart
Patrick Jane and the team investigate the murder of a mayor's aide, and Rigsby and Van Pelt make a big announcement.
13. Redline
Patrick Jane and the CBI team investigate when the body of a high-end luxury car sales woman is found in the trunk of a Bentley in the dealership's showroom.
14. Blood In, Blood Out
When a member of Cho's former gang, the Avon Park Playboys, is found murdered, Patrick Jane insists on helping Cho with his off-the-books investigation.
15. Red Herring
Jane and the team investigate the murder of an arrogant chef during a cooking competition in Napa Valley.
16. Code Red
When Dr. Alicia Seberg, a government research scientist, is exposed to a deadly toxin while at work and has only hours to live, she calls Patrick Jane and the CBI to find her murderer.
17. The Red Box
Patrick and the CBI team investigate the murder of a tutor, and find a mysterious little red box near the body, starting a chain of events that turns the murder into the search for a priceless ring stolen from the British Museum. Meanwhile, Lisbon is worried when a new boss, Madeleine Hightower, takes command of the CBI, as well as mysteriously learning about Rigsby and Van Pelt's relationship.
18. Aingavite Baa
When a "Jane Doe" with amnesia and covered in blood steps in front of Cho and Van Pelt's car, Patrick Jane must use all of his skills to discover who she is, her last location and why she lost her memory
19. Blood Money
When Patrick Jane's sneaky conduct causes the case of a confessed hitman to be tossed out of court, his annoyed CBI team must start the investigation over from scratch.
20. Red All Over
When a media mogul is murdered, Patrick Jane and the CBI team investigate cult leader Bret Stiles, who may have had an axe to grind following the publication of a critical story about his group.
21. 18-5-4
Patrick Jane and the CBI team investigate the death of a mathematical genius by a gun-wielding clown.
22. Red Letter
Romantic sparks begin to fly when Patrick Jane and supposed psychic Kristina Frye cross paths again during the CBI investigation into the murder of a charismatic head of a non-profit organization that fights human trafficking.
23. Red Sky in the Morning
Patrick Jane and Kristina's first date is interrupted by a report of Red John striking again, which is discovered to be a copycat. But when Kristina reaches out to the real Red John, both she and Jane find themselves in grave danger.
This show takes four or five episodes to establish itself but once all the characters find their place and Simon Baker gets comfortable playing Jane you get utterly absorbed in this world. The mind games Jane plays are intriguing, the continuing Red John theme keeps you guessing and the uncertainty of trust in Jane's motives adds perfect tension. Unfortunately, the expansion and revelation of Red John in the last seasons dilute the quality of the show somewhat.
6/10
**Parlor tricks for the Federals**
Originally conceived for traditional network TV before the streaming boom, "The Mentalist" was dreamed up by Bruno Heller as a show with a premise that could easily be written off as absurd. In practice, however, it shrewdly follows the footsteps of Patrick Jane, a former carnival con man with a borderline supernatural knack for perception who now makes a living collaborating with the California Bureau of Investigation and the FBI. Jane carries a tragic backstory: years ago, he made the mistake of mocking the serial killer Red John, who retaliated by murdering his wife and daughter.
Consumed by guilt and a thirst for revenge, our protagonist decides to use his extraordinary gift for observation, psychological deduction, and illusionism to help Agent Teresa Lisbon (Robin Tunney) and her unit crack the most complex crimes. His ultimate goal is crystal clear: hunt down the elusive psychopath who destroyed his life, using unorthodox methods that completely blow up any police protocol.
The show stands out mainly due to its magnetic writing and Simon Baker's brilliant performance (though, let’s be honest, bingeing 7 seasons of over 20 episodes each can be a bit of an uphill battle). The tone masterfully balances the protagonist's profound tragedy with moments of light humor and narrative elegance. In fact, the chemistry between Lisbon's pragmatism and Jane's sheer cheekiness becomes the beating heart of the series, making even the standalone, case-of-the-week episodes highly entertaining.
Mind you, the plot's development treats us to a rather curious narrative paradox: it’s wild to see how elite federal agencies, armed with cutting-edge technology and rigorously trained agents, suddenly throw their methodologies out the window just to accept that everything gets solved with a few parlor tricks, body language readings, or the psychological traps of a civilian consultant. This constant dynamic reduces law enforcement to mere spectators of Jane's vain, one-man show, throwing institutional realism right out the window and bordering on the ridiculous in the more complex cases. But what the hell, maybe it’s exactly that eccentricity that gives the show its unique charm, cementing it as a television classic.
—/10
The show opens with a man insulting a serial killer on live television. That same night his wife and daughter are murdered, and a smiley face is left on the wall in their blood. Patrick Jane is a former celebrity psychic who admits he was always a fraud. He actually relies on close observation of small details like shoes, pulses, and lies told moments earlier. He now consults for the California Bureau of Investigation, though his real focus stays on one particular case.
Jane’s daily routine is consistent. He starts with tea and a nap on the office couch, dresses in a three-piece suit without a tie and the same scuffed brown shoes, and drives an old Citroen. Once on a case he politely insults people until someone confesses. The team around him handles the practical side of the work while managing his behavior. Lisbon keeps things on track officially and unofficially, Cho stays steady and expressionless, Rigsby handles arson investigations and snacks, and Van Pelt begins as the newest member still expecting a normal job.
Each week brings a fresh murder solved through Jane’s unconventional approach. Comedy sits on the surface while the deeper thread of personal loss runs underneath. The series drew millions of weekly viewers from its first season. Bruno Heller had pictured Cary Grant in the lead role, but Simon Baker brought the part to life with the kind of understated presence that fits a man who solves problems yet rarely receives full credit.
Every episode title after the pilot includes the word red or a shade of it. That choice shapes how the story feels week to week. The combination of procedural cases and the central pursuit keeps the tone balanced between light and serious without fully tipping either way.
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