The Mentalist: Red John's Footsteps (season finale) - open thread

waiting for the new season. i love it!

I have read the previous thread of comments and they prove to be very thought provoking... and I have to say after watching the entire season, I still don't have a definitive clue to whom Red John is(maybe I'm just that slow... LOL!).

I speculate that Jane is not RJ just for the simple fact that he spends most of his time with the CBI. He could have that Ed Norton/Fight Club-ish personality, but I think the writers would have explored that a little more during the season with a few hints in that direction... besides that would be a big disappointment and a lazy move by less than creative writers to go that particular route...

The blind woman scenario is very plausible... the red hair, the face on the bedroom wall, the tea cup near the monitors are all hints, and being blind does garner compassion and not suspicion... it's very reminiscent of the movie Usual Suspects... I just feel that a women(call me a neanderthal if you like)could not overpower all of those people that were killed, especially with no apparent permanent signs of scuffling ie. scarring... she does however seem more like an accomplice and I honestly believe that she isn't blind... she was able to move throughout her house with little difficulty, serve tea without any spillage, and even run up a flight of stairs like a track star...

In any case, speculation is speculation and it is way to early in the series to pinpoint the real RJ. At this point the writers can explore a plethora of avenues in developing the intelligent yet ruthless killer... besides, ratings would probably drop severely if RJ was outed during the first season... it would not be a smart move for the writers to give up the strong foundation to continue on to the next season and believe me. I would not sit and watch a complete and utter cat and mouse chase for 13 to 24 episodes, I get enough of that with Heroes...

Although all of the actors on the show perform well in each episode, I do have one minor criticism, I believe Lisbon's character is not needed. Jane does most of the crime solving in his whimsical way and she comes off as his handler(Dollhouse reference). You could argue that in some cases Lisbon keeps Jane's sanity in regards to RJ, but if Jane was in charge, any other character(like Cho) could do that.

Overall, The Mentalist is a promising show and I hope that the excellent writing continues.

Does anyone think that Grace Van Pelt has something to do with Red John? I'm going to go through Season 1 again because it seems to me that she is missing quite a bit in Red John episodes.

I just sat down and watched it (almost a week late I know) and overall thought it was a decent season ender. Some things that bothered me about "Red John" and the woman, how would she have 'found his business card in the sofa'? She 'read' the ink? Most pianists I know have some pretty tough fingers. The teacup of course, but an interesting thing I noticed was when you see the figure leaving the house, there are actually two people, one leading another one.

I only caught it because for some reason I hit slow rewind and for just a second you see the two shadows. So that redhead is mixed up in it somehow (My wife's theory is Red John is the convenience store owners son, the techno wiz who hooked up the security cameras).

Its all fair and well saying that its the red head blind girl who is red john, but you have to remember mid season there was the episode based around red john, and the guy in prison who knew how to get to him. In the end red john got one up again, and at the very end jayne picked up the phone to red john cackling on the other end. It certainly was male and definately implied to be red john, so i very much doubt its going to be a female. Although it could be some kind of twist to do with voice modulation or using someone else to make the call but i dont see it.

The issue regarding Jane's obsession regarding Red John, for me anyways, is not a question of sanity, but rather of his priorities ...

Jane declared that he'd choose (his own or even other people's) dying if it meant catching Red John, which is why the scene where Jane shot the sheriff (just after Lisbon's whole speech/talk about the importance of life)
was so poignant. The sheriff (after rewatching it) was most likely aiming for Lisbon (I say this based on where the sheriff was pointing, plus the fact that it would be unlikely for him to shoot the twin that he's obsessed with having and protecting) - in shooting the sheriff, without even thinking, given that there wasn't time to think, Jane's actions showed how much he cared for Lisbon.
In previous episodes Jane always emphasized that he'd do whatever it takes to catch Red John, but when push came to shove, he chose to SAVE Lisbon even if it meant losing the opportunity to catch Red John.

Whether out of friendship or a possible future romance thing (ick, I hope not), his choice made me love his character even more. Jane's charm and mannerisms (plus Simon Baker's looks of course) hooked me from the very beginning, but this character development is something that I really appreciate. This felt like the first time that Jane was able to step out of his "capture RJ" cage. He may say and truly believe all the crap he says, but finally, he proved himself wrong. In fact, based on his expression, he surprised himself. Plus, all season long, Jane does what he does best - think, analyze, and figure things out; hence a finale that ends on an innate and immediate reaction (minus the thinking) is brilliant. It revealed Jane's true character. Any questions I had about his sanity and all that disappeared at that moment.

...

As for the theories that the blind redhead, it does seem quite plausible, taking into account the whole "things are never what they seem" trend going on (eg. the episode where the culprit was the guy whom everyone thought was on the slow side but in fact was intelligent; the episode where the baddie was the wheel chair guy who actually could walk). So the whole blind thing could just be a farce. Haha, but I do agree with the post that if Red John were in fact the blind redhead, it would be very very disappointing.

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Anyway, i hope they give more time and attention on Rigsby and Van Pelt's brewing romance. They are just the cutest un-couple (yeees, I know that isn't a real word). Plus I love the little "Cho-bits" strewn thoughout the season (pardon the pun, for those who watch anime) that involve him and women. I hope there's more of that as well. Oh! I also hope they develop Lisbon's character/personality a bit more because she seems a bit dry.

Seriously? Jane as Red John? I really don't see the show gonig there, simply because there seems to be -- especially after the finale -- much evidence to the contrary.

As for when all will be revealed about Red John, Bruno Heller has said that will be a series ender, not a season ender.

And I like that this show isn't a big, complex, heavy drama. I get enough of that with "Lost", thank you. ;-) But to each his/her own!

When I watch this show, I can't believe NBC cancelled Life. Granted, I have no idea where the Life writers were taking the show at the end of this season, but I can't believe the network cancelled Life.

Now, onto The Mentalist (whose producers should grab the superior Life writers since they're now unemployed). WHY is it that these producers/writers/"Bosses" wait until the LAST episode to unleash Red John?

All season long, we're treated to the lamest plots while getting away from the reason why Jane is working with the CBI (duh... Red John). Why, even an episode ago we saw Jane wrack his collective braincells to reveal... a teenage killer at a summer-camp for troubled teens.

Oh, this show is not clever.

Having said that, it was interesting to see Jane lose control while investigating Red John. I agree with the original poster above that it seems that Alicia Witt could be Red John, but I'd always thought that the writers would pull some "schizo" card and have Jane realize that HE was actually Red John. Probably as he's about to deliver the death blow to Lisbon...

Just like the show Life got the death blow... argh!

(But seriously, it was a good episode)

I actually like how the season finale played out. Colour me clueless, but I didn't catch on that the sheriff was the guilty party -- I guess I was too caught up in finding out exactly how far Jane would go in his quest for revenge. And even he has his limits, it would appear, after shooting the suspect who was aiming to kill Lisbon and/or Mya (sp?).

While I liked the reveal the fact Jane and Lisbon had a plan all along, it would have interesting to see how the plan came about. They also did a good job of adding a bit more to Cho's character. Too funny how the woman was trying to fix him up!

All in all, I thought was a good way to end the season and leave us waiting for more come season 2. :)

I hope they catch Red John soon. I don't want this show to end up like "The Profiler" where the spend the whole series trying to catch "Jack of all trades" that killed Sam's husband.