Blue Bird
- Episode aired May 18, 2014
- TV-14
- 43m
A new lead in a old case prompts Lisbon to postpone her plans to relocate to D.C. The delay allows Jane to examine his feelings for her and decide on a course of action.A new lead in a old case prompts Lisbon to postpone her plans to relocate to D.C. The delay allows Jane to examine his feelings for her and decide on a course of action.A new lead in a old case prompts Lisbon to postpone her plans to relocate to D.C. The delay allows Jane to examine his feelings for her and decide on a course of action.
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaWhen Jane and Lisbon arrive at the DeJorio house they pass by a light blue car. It's an Aston Martin DB 9.
- GoofsIn the opening scene in which Jane and Cho first see the body face down in the pool, the square board that supports the knife can be seen through the victim's shirt.
- Quotes
Teresa Lisbon: This is another fine pickle you've gotten yourself in, huh?
Patrick Jane: Eh, I've seen worse, pickle-wise.
Teresa Lisbon: Yes, you have... How's the ankle?
Patrick Jane: Oh, it's fine... You didn't go to D.C.
Teresa Lisbon: No. Did you mean what you said?
Patrick Jane: Yes, I did.
Teresa Lisbon: Good.
Patrick Jane: Just to be clear, we're talking about pickles, right?
Teresa Lisbon: No. No. The other thing.
Patrick Jane: Oh, that.
Teresa Lisbon: This is no joking matter.
Patrick Jane: Yes, I meant what I said, every word of it.
Teresa Lisbon: Good. Because I feel the same way.
Patrick Jane: [smiles] Well, that's lucky. What about Pike?
Teresa Lisbon: He'll understand. Say it again.
Patrick Jane: Say what again?
Teresa Lisbon: [arches brow meaningfully]
Patrick Jane: [he leans across the table and kisses Teresa]
TSA Agent: [knocks on window] Hey, quit that!
In Season 6 "The mentalist" takes some of its sharpest genre turns and zigzags. It sheds its heavily-serialised jokey police procedural skin bit by bit to reveal the layer underneath, which has always been visible through the translucent covering, but now becomes vibrant, which is the dramatic, tantalising overarching plot. Then it briefly crosses the shore of romcomy implications to jump into the river of unfunny comedy where the heavily-serialised police procedural crystallises right back onto its skin, except worse in quality, as its waters can't draw out the crystallised dramatic gold by interplay with the overarching plot and themes. Its overarching skin cracks into tiny, poorly-done, pathetic arcs. But then "Blue Bird" comes about. The river of unfunny comedy leads into a wondrous, shiny sea of actually reasonably funny comedy.
And then the show beaches itself in the desert of romcom mawkishness, tearing its flesh against rocks of cliché. I don't know whether the 7th Season is its being taken for taxidermy to be proudly displayed in a museum for posterity, or an inglorious end as fertiliser, and I don't care. I can't take any more of it. S6 killed "The mentalist" for me.
To address specifically this episode: Jane's too wimpy and too much of an open book emotionally; his manipulativeness is in-character but everything else isn't. The comedic interlude in his room is really great and hilarious - it makes next to no sense logically, but the pure comedic value is worth it. It's been an almost forgotten feeling for me to feel something other than cringe while watching "The mentalist". I don't love this bit, but it gives an interesting counterfactual: if "The mentalist" was a pure comedy, which it wasn't and shouldn't seek to be, this is what it would hopefully look like - and it's glorious, but just not the genre I tuned in for.
And then everybody drowns in sap, and is crushed by the cliches. The usual "The mentalist" flaws and the bizarre stock footage insert in the middle don't help, but any flaw looks good against the backdrop that is the plane scene, and Lisbon's decision.
- yavermbizi
- Feb 15, 2022