The Mentalist Review: Daddy Dearest

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As Jane said at the end of "Blood Feud," he'd rather regret taking action than regret taking no action at all. Did The Mentalist make the right call when he put Rigsby in the position to take his revenge and is that actually what Rigsby did?

I was thrilled to see Agent LaRoche back. His contentious relationship with Jane and the CBI team has always been entertaining. This time there seemed to be an added edge of intensity to their exchanges.

I've never felt much sympathy for Rigsby when it came to his violent criminal of a father. Perhaps I was too harsh but I've always believed that Wayne didn't know when to walk away and let Daddy fend for himself, especially when covering for him put Cho's career in danger. For once this storyline made me feel the pull of family ties.

William Forsythe on The Mentalist

Although his father's reasoning was warped, in his own way he loved and respected his son and took some pride in the man he'd become. Of course when things even hinted at getting emotional he quipped that he could have drowned him at birth. 

Surprisingly, the entire exchange had Rigsby showing his father pictures of Ben. It made me sad to think how little family Wayne had to share his son with. And as horrible as the man's death was on his child, in the end it may have been for the best. Daddy was only ever going to bring Rigsby pain and trouble and the thought of him getting close to little Ben was frightening.

Speaking of Ben, that baby was adorable but it was the scene at the end that got to me. Rigsby sitting alone in a room, rocking his son as he grieved for his father was simply sad. He'd killed his father's murderer, whether out of intent or sheer circumstance we may never truly know. And more importantly, he had no one to share any of it with. 

Jane's set up of the town drug runners was mildly amusing. Not the best The Mentalist has to offer but it's always fun to watch Jane spin a tale and move those around him into position like pawns on a chess board.

A a fan of the long cancelled show The Unit, it was great to see both Max Martini as Moss and Michael Irby share the screen once again. By the time we saw Moss in his second scene with Grace I had pegged him as the killer.

The final conversation between LaRoche and Jane was definitely the highlight of the episode. These two have such a love/hate relationship, yet there appears to be a grudging respect there, even when they fall on opposite sides. Only LaRoche would be smart enough to figure out exactly what Jane had done and why. 

I also loved that Teresa's first instinct was to protect Patrick from LaRoche and that his response was not to let her do it. These two will always have one another's backs.

So was Jane right to give Rigsby the opportunity for the closure he himself may never have? Should there be a Rigsby/Grace reconciliation? Are you glad the story of Rigsby's dad is finally over?

Blood Feud Review

Editor Rating: 4.3 / 5.0
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C. Orlando was a TV Fanatic Staff Writer. Follow her on Twitter.

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The Mentalist Season 5 Episode 4 Quotes

It's the man who watches the watchman.

Jane

Repeat after me, little man. I will not throw food at Tina again.

Rigsby