Cheap Burgundy

Synopsis

When the FBI requests to borrow CBI consultant Patrick Jane (Baker) to help out on a homicide in Santa Carla, CBI head Luther Wainwright( Michael Rady) is only too happy to oblige.  Agent Teresa Lisbon (Tunney) warns Jane that FBI Agent Susan Darcy (Catherine Dent) is probably using the case to investigate him. Namely, that Darcy will try to get Jane into revealing that serial killer Red John is still alive. Unconcerned, Jane goes off to help the FBI solve the murder of a young married mother. Meanwhile, Lisbon and her team are left to close their own case by trying to get a rich suspect to admit killing one of his female employees.

Concise Verdict

Jane getting punched, Lisbon getting ticked off, I was sold on this episode less than ten minutes in.

Cheap Burgundy was fantastic from start to finish. I especially loved how organic all the character moments were. I don’t know what it is, but Jane was just more Jane in this episode. And Lisbon was just more Lisbon. Baker and Tunney were simply sparking with good humor and familiarity even as they were arguing. The episode also had plenty of serious moments. In that sense, it was very reminiscent of some of the best episodes season one Mentalist had to offer. This has always been what sets Heller (and his show) apart from others; the perfect balance of comedy and darkness. I love this balance. I’ve missed this balance.

The episode was thankfully very straightforward. It had to be as it finally deals with issues that have remained obscure for the better part of the season. The direction was also very creative and I can’t wait to get the DVD’s so I can better study all the nuances this one had to offer (speaking of which, who do I have to suck up to to get a director’s commentary on this one?).

Written and directed by Heller, Cheap Burgundy shines in what is becoming a stellar season. 10/10.

Detailed AKA Humongous Review (spoilers galore)

We’ve been waiting for the reveal, and I think it totally paid off. I love surprises. Nice surprises mind you. I never suspected the twist at the end. I mean, I suspected part of it, but I never believed it would happen. And as it completely makes sense, it was a great surprise.

Best Scenes

2^nd Runner up: Rigsby trying to Hypnotize the Suspect

The scene with Wayne trying to hypnotize the perp, ending with his embarrassed denial when he calls him out on it, and Lisbon letting her head fall on the two way glass was so funny.

Note: This is one of the scenes where the directing stood out.

1^st runner up: Jane and Darcy Have it Out

Jane tries to get Darcy to make an arrest to lull the real killer into a trap. She declines before he has a chance to explain his plan telling him she’s tired of his antics. Jane replies:

“Don’t talk to me about to me about games and you don’t care a damn about Katie Bauer nor is your job in jeopardy.”

Here, Jane is calling out Darcy on lying to him earlier, trying to manipulate him into helping her by playing the damsel in distress routine, telling him that she needs him to help her win her case or her job would be over. He adds:

“Quit your play acting you’re not very good at it.”

Darcy gives it to Jane straight up: “Red John is alive and you know it. And the only question is why you would deny it. Why try to throw me off the trail. I realize something you’re not hunting red John you’re protecting him. That’s why you claim he’s dead.”

-This is where I was shocked. I thought Darcy would accuse Jane of killing Panzer. I never thought she’d suspect him of working with RJ. Jane seemed genuinely disturbed by Darcy’s statement. I expect his being in cahoots with RJ over killing Panzer makes Darcy’s statement hit too close for comfort even if she is wrong about him protecting RJ.

Jane tells her as much: “That’s absurd.” Darcy replies: “What other conclusion could I come to. If you’re enemies why hasn’t he killed you? Why hasn’t he killed the people you work with?”

Jane (honestly?) answers that he doesn’t know.

-VIEWERS REJOICE!! OUR CONCERNS HAVE ONCE AGAIN BEEN VOICED!

Ahem. I don’t know if Jane honestly has no theories here (I do believe him though) but I’m going to state my theory. I’ve said this before but I think RJ really does want Jane to move on; he said as much through Timothy Carter. RJ likes Jane and it’s highly possible that it’s true that he doesn’t want to cause him any more pain.

Darcy then reasonably asks Jane “If Red John is dead, why are the people who cross him still dying?”

Jane tries to brush off that RJ has disciples, but that he’s not one of them. Darcy refuses to believe him, understandably, since he won’t even admit RJ is alive. Jane finally does and when she asks him why he would deny it Jane says “It was a mistake. But I’m not his friend nor am I one of his disciples.”

-I wonder if Jane’s protests here stem from fear that he is becoming like RJ (as hinted in the last episode by Stile’s “You’re coming along”). I do wish we could see more evidence on whether Jane at least recognizes the grim potential there.

Darcy states that she hopes Jane can prove it to which Jane replies “I don’t have to prove anything. You do.”

-Perfectly written, perfectly acted scene.

The winner: Jane and Lisbon Catch Up

I’m not even ashamed of this choice. Notwithstanding how adorable our leading man and woman are, the scene was very important.

Jane is sleeping on a bench waiting for Lisbon to come pick him up. She wakes him up by honking the horn. He gets in the car and she asks him what happened with Darcy. Jane deflects first by asking Lisbon if she’s not interested in the case, then by telling her that he missed her. Lisbon *gasp* actually *GASP* replies that she missed him too!

;__;

I’m so proud of these two kids!

Even Jane looks a bit in awe at Lisbon’s uninhibited heartfelt statement.

I’m also very proud of Lisbon here. She doesn’t let the let the warm and fuzzies distract her from her goal in finding out about Susan (which I suspect was part of the reason Jane said he missed her). Lisbon quickly turns the subject back onto Darcy. Jane asks her to drive, appeasing her with a: “You think I won’t tell you?” Lisbon sighs and relents.

-What’s interesting is that Jane’s question sounded rhetorical. As if Lisbon should now trust him enough to be reassured that he’d always keep her in on the loop.

Seriously? SERIOUSLY?

;________________;

But, wait, if it’s true that they are that open with each other now, then how do we explain Jane brushing Lisbon off at the end of episode War of the Roses? Was it the exception to the new rule? It must be so because in this episode, although it took Jane  time (hours it seems) to steel himself, and Lisbon pushing him further, he does eventually tell Lisbon that Darcy suspects him of being in cahoots with RJ.

I love how he says it:

“I admitted that Red John is still alive just like you wanted me too and she accused me of working for him.”

-Typical Jane leaves out the fact that he only admitted RJ was alive to Darcy because she already had him cornered with her accusation that he was protecting the serial killer. I wonder if he did this intentionally, or unconsciously. If it was intentional, I don’t think he did it to throw any blame on Lisbon. More likely, he didn’t want to reveal how very little control he had in the situation that led to the admission. Another reason could be to appease Lisbon into thinking he finally took her advice.

Lisbon understandably starts panicking over Darcy’s ominous suspicions. I love how when Jane tries to shift the subject, telling her he can’t believe they still didn’t solve their case, Lisbon snaps “Don’t try to distract me with insults.”

-What I find astonishing is how flabbergasted both Jane and Lisbon seem at this development. I guess it’s only natural, they’ve got all the lies and cover up of Panzer and RJ’s involvement that it never crossed their minds that Jane would be considered guilty of working with RJ. Kind of ironic, since, on some level, that’s exactly what he did.

Karma’s a b&*$h.

Icings on the cake

-I very much appreciated Lisbon not being at CBI when the Serious Crimes unit had to let Filo walk. Her being busy helping Jane out on his case excuses her not being able to crack her own- she wasn’t there to do it- and keeps her from seeming inadequate. I’m so grateful for how Heller took care of her character like that.

-Jane being nice to Lila (Melissa Marsala) after she fainted was wonderful. I love nice Jane. I miss nice Jane.

-Speaking of Lila, her family’s situation was very touching and relevant. Her older brother Manny (Marcos A. Ferraez) is steadfast in defending his brother James (Gino Anthony Pesi) from killing Kati Baur. Lila on the other hand says that she loves her brother James so much but fears he is in fact capable of murder. The torture the siblings face, wanting to believe in James while doubting him might be an indirect method to convey what Lisbon must face every time she feels doubt towards Jane. She wants to believe the best of him but at the same time knows him enough to question him. Until now, loyalty has always trumped doubt.

–  Jane’s cold read of Darcy really humanized her and allowed viewers to see her for more than just the hard-nosed detective that she is.  I’m very impressed with how the recurring characters have been developed this season; first Sarah, and now Darcy.

-Little Miss Fierce is back! In a leather jacket! I loved everything about Lisbon in this episode. I’m even glad she seems to be growing out her bangs and going back to her season one hair. If the bangs aren’t going to be as perfect as they were in season two, then I’d rather her be without them so we can see more of her gorgeous face.

-James Barca glomping Jane, and Jane awkwardly patting him on the back repeating “yup” every time the man thanked him for proving his innocence was awesome. As was Lisbon hiding her smile in the background. It’s nice to see Jane as shy as he ever is at accepting gratitude.

-Continuity that Jane is very well read. He mentioned in Fugue in Red knowing all of Shakespeare’s work. I felt it clever that this tidbit was used to solve the case.

Speaking of which…

Image by Chizuru-chibi. Copyright Reviewbrain March, 2012. Not to be used without permission.

 

Honorable Mentions

Yeoman for his hilarious portrayal of Rigsby trying his hands at hypnosis.

Tunney for making Lisbon as badass as we love her to be and as adorable as we know her to be. The contrast between her hard tone with the perp and her high pitched pleas to Jane to tell her what’s going on is adorable, and in character for Lisbon’s.

Baker’s character always gives him a wide range of emotions to play but he was somehow even more irresistible here. I think it was this episode’s mixture of some of Jane’s more likable facets: nice, playful, somber, and vulnerable.

Catherine Dent makes Susan Darcy a very worthy adversary for Jane. I don’t think I’ve said this before but I really like her honest acting. She makes Darcy sympathetic.

Blake Neely for his eerie foreboding tunes as well as for his playful ones.

Best for last, Mr. Bruno Heller. I hope we get more of his writing this season as he has been missed greatly. And if he could include director commentary on this season’s DVD’s so we can learn from his genius I’d be forever grateful.

Best Lines

“Uh, that’s assault, Lisbon, arrest him.” Another thing I’ve sorely missed was the amusement of watching Jane talk through a  bruised nose 🙂

“She’s trying to investigate me on the sly, bless her heart.” Jane, on Darcy. It’s interesting that Jane doesn’t see Darcy as a threat. The War of the Roses review  garnered heavy discussion on how Jane seems to have a weakness for women. His underestimating a woman might once again get him in trouble.

“So you get to go off and have fun while we deal with the Filo mess you left us?” Lisbon to Jane.

“That you didn’t kill Red John, that you lied about it, that you did a lot of stupid things to cover up the lies and that now he’s back and you’re very sorry, that truth.” Lisbon, in response to Jane asking her what truth she wants him to tell Darcy. A lot of recap in one line. Plus we get continuity on Jane’s idiocy; always nice. (I love the guy, but a reminder that he’s only human is healthy, I think.)

“Can’t you see that your stubborn arrogance is gonna come back and bite you in the-Agent Darcy!” Lisbon, breaking off her tirade at Jane when Darcy enters her office.

“My pleasure, glad to see the back of him.”-Lisbon to Darcy, after she thanked him for letting her borrow Jane.

“I’m gonna have a great time, there’s my back.” Jane’s hurt response to the above.

“I want this little bitch toasted like a marshmallow.” –Gary Filo. Awesome read of the line. Also love Lisbon’s stunned look here and the hard line she took with Filo afterwards.

“I’m not gonna pay you to hold my hand while this idiotic girl acts out her hatred of powerful father figures, just go.” –Gary Filo to his lawyer, on Lisbon. How hateful can a man be? Good writing people. And acting.

“That creep is a psychopath and he’s guilty and we’re going to make him say so.” -Awesome Lisbon.

“I’m sorry, that’s just me. I like to fiddle.” Jane to victim’s family.

“Yes, Franklin will you smooth things over here? Darcy and I have to go.” -Jane to officer after he insults victim’s family.

“Now, when I have eggs coming?” Love the continuity of Jane and his beloved eggs. He even eats them at night.

“Deep down inside you’re a cruel man aren’t you?” Darcy getting to know Jane, calling him out on using her pain to distract her from asking him about RJ.

“Newsflash, I don’t work for Red John.” Jane to Lisbon, with a little laugh of disbelief.

“I have to go. Jane needs me. You guys are gonna have to handle this yourselves.” -I love Lisbon’s little smile and pleased (smug?) tone when she tells the team that Jane needs her. On the other hand, her being so pleased also has me worried about how much Jane’s opinion of her is starting to matter. Sigh.

Conclusion

Luther Wainwright agreeing to work with Darcy hints that the reason he cooperated with her before (Red is the new Black) is in fact him being a bureaucrat. The fact that she outwardly threatened to take him down with Jane further suggests he was just covering his butt because he was afraid of the big bad FBI lady. Darcy telling him that Jane is sociopath probably also worked towards his decision to help her out, it wasn’t too far from his own conclusion of Jane (Ring Around the Rosie).

On the other hand, is it me or did he seem pleased at the prospect of getting rid of Jane via Darcy? Perhaps that’s why he supplied her the evidence to begin with?

Then there’s always the theory that he himself is an RJ mole. It could be why we still don’t know much about him.

What do you all think?

As to Darcy, I can’t for one second blame her for gunning for Jane more than ever now. Jane’s actions have been suspicious and questionable. But I suspect what cinched the matter in her head was his cold read of her. She had agreed to it, had listened to Jane, even allowed him to reach as far as her painful loss of her sister. But then he stopped and she tried to move onto the subject of RJ, like he promised they would. It was then that Jane upped the ante with the following:

That’s why you’re relentless in your work. Because you are relentlessly hard on yourself. You know you should cut yourself some slack, you’d be a lot happier. You’re sad because you shut down your emotions which accounts for your stilted seduction technique. You’re capable of great passion if you just let yourself go. But you won’t. Not until you redeem yourself. Make the wrong things right. But how can you hope to do that. You can’t bring your sister back. You’re on your own.

Let’s be honest here. Jane might have felt sympathy for Darcy, he might even have felt her a kindred spirit suffering from misplaced guilt, but his major goal was to distract her from discussing RJ. I don’t blame Darcy one bit for telling him that he’s a cruel person, we all know he has a mean self serving streak;  hence her thinking he’s a sociopath.

Now if Jane had just told Darcy everything from the beginning (like Lisbon told him to) instead of waiting until she forced his hand, I think she would have believed him. The fact that he only admitted RJ was alive after she accused him of being his ally just makes Jane look guiltier.

To Patrick’s credit, he did seem a bit sorry, maybe even ashamed of himself after Susan called him cruel. Perhaps he would even do things differently given a second chance.

I suspect he will wish he had once it becomes clear that he’s wrong in his claim that Darcy couldn’t possibly have anything on him. Please see the Always Bet on Red review for more details.

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