Television Series Review: The Mentalist

 TheMentalist is a television police procedural and crime-drama series with a unique premise and lots of violence. But, then again, what TV crime-drama series today doesn’t have its share of violence. At least The Mentalist has less gory violence than, say, CSI or The Following.

 TheMentalist focuses on Patrick Jane, played by Simon Baker, as a self-proclaimed medium turned crime consultant helping a team of agents from a fictitious police unit, the California Bureau of Investigation to solve crimes. Baker is an Australian actor and director who also starred in the TV drama series, The Guardian. He also starred in several films including The Devil Wears Prada and Red Planet.

What makes Patrick Jane unique in The Mentalist is his keen observation skills of people’s physical reactions, body language, and strong understanding of human behavior. The TV crime show also stars Robin Tunney as Senior Agent Teresa Lisbon, with agents Kimball Cho (Tim Kang), Wayne Rigsby (Owain Yeoman), and Grace Van Pelt (Amanda Righetti). Patrick has a tendency on the show to find evidence using his charms and theatrical abilities to help solve high profile cases. His unorthodox and self-absorbed manner however, often borders on reckless disregard that almost gets him killed in some episodes.

TheMentalist has its share of scenes of bloody violence, shooting, being bludgeoned to death, serial killers, violent behavior, and plenty of strong language, strong sexual discussion, and some liquor drinking. But, then again, this is a crime show series, so don’t expect anything less.

Like normal crime dramas, The Mentalist spends time discussing crime case details. Many don’t consider it the best written show, with often flat dialogue, but the show’s unique premise comes from the interesting cases and Jane’s trademark humor punctuated with intelligent dialogue about human behavior. The show admittedly can be quite violent with generally mature content, certainly not a show for younger viewers below 15 years of age.

Download all four seasons now, from season one, which started in September 2008, up to season four, which started in September 2011. Season five is ongoing that began in September 2012 and will end on May 5, 2013.