The Mentalist at Midseason: Grade It!

at .  Updated at .

After five seasons of hunting the notorious serial killer, The Mentalist Season 6 saw Patrick Jane not only find Red John but do exactly what he said he'd do when he found him.

He killed the man with his bare hands. 

Since we have to wait until January 5 for The Mentalist Season 6 Episode 11, we thought we'd recap some of our favorite - and not so favorite moments - of the season so far in the following TV Fanatic Report Card.

Scroll down and jump in to the debate now...

Green Thumb Scene

Best Episode: Surprisingly, The Mentalist Season 6 Episode 10 ("Green Thumb") turned out to be our favorite of the season so far. Patrick Jane was back to his antics and the FBI scrambled in their attempts to wrangle him. But best of all was when Lisbon told Jane off for taking her for granted and not consulting her before demanding she work for the FBI. It was the beginning of a new chapter in their relationship and we look forward to seeing where it leads.

Worst Episode: "Red Listed" Bob Kirkland was certainly creepy enough to be on the final list of Red John suspects but it was no real surprise to learn the rogue agent had his own agenda. But having him torture and kill others on the list in order to find the serial killer himself seemed over the top. And the story about his twin brother deserved some follow up. Unfortunately, when Reede Smith shot him in the back at the end of The Mentalist Season 6 Episode 4 that probably ended this story line for good. 

Happiest Moment: Jane walking into the FBI and finding Teresa Lisbon waiting for him. After two years without her, Jane's smile shone as bright as we've ever seen…and it was completely infectious. 

Most Pivotal Episode: A decade after his wife and child were brutally murdered, Patrick Jane not only found Red John, but put an end to his terror when he killed him.  "Red John" left some fans thrilled with the closure while others were dissatisfied that several plot threads were left dangling. Still others debated whether Jane had the right to murder his arch nemesis at all. No matter how you feel, no one can argue that The Mentalist Season 6 Episode 8 may very well be the most pivotal of the entire series. 

Biggest Dangling Thread: What was the trick? Red John knew Jane's list of seven suspects before Jane ever wrote it. How? Jane swore it was some kind of a trick. Red John claimed it was his psychic abilities. Now that Red John is dead, it appears we'll never know.

Most Intriguing New Twist:  A whole new world for The Mentalist.  The angst and darkness of hunting Red John is over. There's a lightness to Patrick Jane that we've never seen before and thankfully he can now look at the the people close to him and not worry about finding them dead with a bloody red smiley face painted over their bodies. It opens up a world of possibilities. 

Hopes for 2014:  

  • Patrick Jane reassessing his relationships. Without having to play cat and mouse with a serial killer, we look forward to watching Jane look at the people closest to him with new eyes.
  • As Teresa told him herself, she's tired of playing sidekick to Patrick Jane. We can't wait to see how Teresa Lisbon fits in at the FBI and what her new life is like in Texas.
  • More of Kimball Cho. As much as we've always liked Cho, We think his deadpan humor works even better at the FBI.
  • A Jane / Lisbon romance. Yes, we're shippers here at TV Fanatic and although we want them to take their time, we'd like to see Teresa and Patrick get to know one another in a whole new way this season. 

Overall Grade:  A+

Okay, TV Fanatics. What grade would you give The Mentalist Season 6 so far?

And if you need to catch up, you can always watch The Mentalist online right here.

C. Orlando was a TV Fanatic Staff Writer. Follow her on Twitter.

Show Comments
Tags: ,

The Mentalist Quotes

Lisbon: How are the kids?
Rigsby: Sticky mostly.

Jane: You look marginally rested.
Lisbon: I was hoping to actually get to REM sleep tonight.