Psych - Seasons 1-8

If you haven’t seen at least one episode of Psych in your lifetime, you’ve wasted your life. With a unique blend of murder, romance, childish comedy, non-childish comedy, and every other kind of comedy, Psych is a show quite unlike any other. The first time you watch an episode, you’ll probably think it’s one of the most weirdly intriguing shows you’ve ever seen. By the time you watch the last episode, you’ll probably melt into a puddle of pathetic nothingness, like I do every other day for no reason at all.

Season one really manages to establish what to expect from the other seven. There’s a murder, Shawn and Gus show up, find a couple of leads that fail to pan out, spend most of their time screwing everything up and wasting their lives, and then save the day at the end thanks to Shawn’s observational skills. There’s usually a scene or two of Shawn arguing with his dad about something, and of course a couple scenes of him pursuing the (presumably) only female detective in the police department, Juliet O’Hara, whose brother is literally John Cena. I’m not joking, you can’t make this stuff up. But back to the actual review. Season one’s biggest shortcoming is its failure to be as consistently funny as later seasons, or really ever shake things up, as (again) later seasons do. Still, it works as a great debut season and it’s not even the worst season of the show. So, overall, I’m giving season one 3.85/5 stars. Solid season, just not the best.

Season two is, for me, possibly the second weakest of the entire show. Is it bad? Not in the least. It just doesn’t really do anything that season one didn’t. It’s more of the same, and if you like the Psych formula, there’s nothing wrong with that. It just stands in the shadow of later seasons and doesn’t manage to take the show to the next level, which really could have been fatal for the show in its second season. Still, there are a few stand-out episodes here, mainly “American Duos” and “Shawn (and Gus) of the Dead”, and the show begins to discover itself a bit. It’s still better-than-average TV, but only slightly. Season two gets 3.75/5 stars from me. Certainly not skip-worthy, but still just not the best this show has to offer.

Season three is where the show finally gets taken to the next level. This season churned out one unique episode after the other, really shaking up the formula a bit while still managing to feel like the same show. From the very first episode, it’s apparent that things are going to be different now, with Shawn finally moving on from Juliet, finally having a genuine moment with his dad, and praising Gus for all he’s done. Psych returned with a vengeance, and it was a brilliant season. The highlight of the entire season, though, is the season finale. This episode was unlike any before it, mainly due to the complete lack of humor and its dark and serious nature. It still managed to work though, because the audience had become so attached to the characters at this point that we felt genuine concern for them. Plus, one additional, major shake-up to the formula was a great way to end the season with a bang. I’m giving season three 3.95/5 stars. Probably the best season of the entire show.

Season four continues to shake things up, feeling similar to season three, but still managing to feel like a different season. It doesn’t manage to be as consistently good or as consistently funny as season three, but still feels fresh and a sign of even better things to come. It can’t help but feel like a slight disappointment, however, when compared to the amazingness that was season three. Its biggest problem is, arguably, its lack of standout episodes. It’s never bad, it’s just never as unique as we’ve come to expect by this point. Thankfully, though, I can’t complain too much about it, as it contains, in my opinion, the best episode of the entire show, namely “Mr. Yin Presents”. This episode follows the story of the last season finale, but manages to make it even darker and raise the stakes even higher. By the time the episode is over, it seems clear that things are never going to be the same for the show. I’m giving season four 3.85/5 stars.

Season five ends what I would call the glory days of Psych, by which I mean seasons three through five. This season manages to keep the fresh and unique feeling, constantly changing the formula of the show while managing to maintain a consistent tone. The humor of the show also begins to focus a bit more on physical humor, so for anyone who dislikes physical humor, this is when the show will begin to go downhill for you. I’m a child at heart, however, and found the physical humor not overdone (like it is in later seasons) and a nice shift in the humor. The season is, overall, far more consistently funny than season four. By far, the best episode of this season is “Dual Spires”. I’ve never seen Twin Peaks, but this is still one of the funniest episodes of any show I’ve seen in my life. It’s very possibly the most delightfully strange episode of the entire show. I also have to mention the season finale, which continued the story from the finales of seasons three and four. After the heights the season four finale reached, anything would have been a bit of a disappointment, but this episode feels like a real let-down. It’s not bad, it just doesn’t seem like the best way the Yin/Yang trilogy could have been concluded. But I digress. I’m giving season five 3.9/5 stars.

Season six starts out on a high note, continuing the series’ fresh feel, but falls in quality in the last third of the season. Overall, this season is pretty much on par with the last 3, but the shift in tone and quality toward the end of this season is ultimately the turning point for the show, and, for me, when it really began to go downhill. For that reason, its flaws are hard to overlook. Despite my mixed feelings for this season, however, it’s hard to find any faults in the first 2/3 of the season. There are more movie parodies, and some old, fan-favorite characters return, and though the formula might be starting to feel a little tired, the fresh feel is still there. Perhaps the funniest episode of the season is “The Amazing Psych-Man & Tap Man, Issue No. 2”. This is more of exactly what made the show great, with its parodies and overall ridiculousness. Later seasons overdid the ridiculousness though, and ultimately I think that was the undoing of the show. I’m giving season six 3.85/5 stars.

Season seven is where the drop in quality becomes noticeable. The finale of season six tried to change up the formula of the show yet again, but it just doesn’t work this time. The humor falls flat far more than usual, the show starts to feel tired, and the plots really aren’t anything special anymore. It’s not quite the worst season of the show, but it comes close. The increased focus on drama and lame humor make for a terrible combination, and it’s difficult to love this season as much as the last six. Still, it has two or three stand-out episodes, and a couple of the new elements introduced work well. Overall, though, I have to give season seven 3.7/5 stars. At the time it aired, it was by far the weakest season of the show.

Ah, season eight. The conclusion of the show we’d all come to know and love. The first episode of this season sees a bit of a return to the classic formula, with the return of a favorite character, and it manages to be consistently funny. This return to form wouldn’t last for more than two episodes, sadly. Season eight quickly descends into mediocrity, which is truly heartbreaking for such an original and unique show. Everything feels tired and lazy and yet somehow urgent, and you can sense that the show is in its final moments. Something has to be said for the season finale, however. It was a glorious, final return to form, and in my opinion the second best episode of the whole show. The emotions are real, nothing comes off as forced, it feels genuine, and while the sense of urgency is still there, it’s more than anything an urgency to see how it will all end. In the final minutes of the episode, despite the mediocrity of the rest of season eight, I found myself wishing it could have been renewed for just one more season. It wasn’t, however, and this was the perfect send-off. As a season, however, I have to give the finale season of Psych 3.7/5 stars. The last episode saves it from being the lowest-rated, but it is, in my mind, without a doubt, the worst season of the show.

As a show, however, I have to give Psych 4.5/5 stars. It took the buddy cop concept, shook it up, and gave us one of the funniest and most genuinely moving shows to come along in a long time. I hear a follow-up movie is coming, so here’s to hoping it’ll be fabulous. But until then, may we all have heard it both ways and feast on pineapple.