Binge Worthy Criminal Justice

“So, when do I get my money?” Shawn Spencer asks the police. Why? Because he calls in tips to the station and offers them crime tips for reward money-that is, until he is suspected of being one of the criminals in question. As a result, he resorts to lying to the police- telling them that he is in fact, a psychic. “Psych” is a show surrounding the life of Shawn Spencer and his partner Gus. Gus and Shawn couldn’t be more different, and that’s what makes this show hilarious. Gus is a cautious yet curious, reasonable, level-headed pharmaceutical salesman whereas Shawn is a cunning, ambitious (yet highly impulsive) and ironically unemployed son of a former police officer. The problem with Shawn is that he hasn’t kept a job for more than 6 months and has had about 57 since high school. Shawn and Gus butt heads about nearly everything. Gus, neurotic, is always worried that Shawn is going to blow his cover and show everyone that he is a fraud. Shawn discovers his intel through cognition and stuns all who meet him with his intense visions and accuracy. I have watched this show over and over again, all 8 seasons. The sarcasm, the hilarity, the way Gus overreacts and “screams like a girl” or cries and throws up at the discovery of a dead body or crucial evidence, it makes me laugh every single time.

In the beginning you hear that if he is lying to the police and hindering their investigations, they’ll prosecute him, so he knows he’s got everything to lose- but he’s good at this and has never been better at anything else in his life, so he needs this. The relationship between Shawn and his father also is one to watch for. His father was a good cop and a smart man, he just wants the best for Shawn and wants him to be better than this. One of the only things that gets me every time is “why doesn’t he just become a cop? Why doesn’t he just come clean or even ditch the act?” Maybe I like the show so much because I relate to the both of them-or rather should I say that I feel like I have a little bit of “Shawn and Gus” in my head. Every little thing they do, they butt heads on. At the end of each case they take on, they get the job done well and they go on about their day. I feel like with every decision that I make for myself, I have a little “Shawn” telling me to go for it, overconfidently, while the “Gus” in me tries to warn me about what could go wrong, screaming in my ear and talking at 100 words per minute so matter-of-fact. I also aspire to be just like Shawn, starting his own business from nothing and being the best at what I do, even if that “something” is something as preposterous as calling myself a private psychic detective when I’m not actually a psychic.

“You named your fake detective agency Psych? Why didn’t you just call it ‘hey, we’re fooling you AND the police department’.” Gus says to Shawn. And it makes sense, that’s the plot. Appropriately named and ironically hilarious in the same sense, Psych has great characters- like the hostile detective (who will stop at nothing to disprove Shawn), the lady love detective that Shawn is infatuated with, the stern and strict father, the loyal voice-of-reason best friend- the list goes on. It really is a guilty pleasure. I’m a crime show fanatic, but sometimes they become too intense and gruesome. This show really captures the best and worst of everyone. Being a lighthearted comedy crime-solving show, it really satisfies everything that you want to binge on. Being that there are 8 seasons, a movie and a musical to boot, the show really will hook you from the start. This show really gives me good vibes and as much as I may remember what happens in the end as I’m re-watching the episodes, the details in between make me laugh out loud every time. I love that Shawn is so overdramatic about his “psychic visions” and how Detective Lassiter (the detective who has no patience for Shawn) really cannot stand the theatrics and doubts him despite the evidence Shawn presents to them. Shawn is undoubtedly a great detective, even though he isn’t one.

Despite the obstacles presented to Shawn and Gus, he really proves himself time and time again- and with the utmost positivity. We really need things like that at times like these. There may be occasional tension, but this show really proves itself to be a classic. Every single episode never ceases to satisfy me. With every case solved, Detective Lassiter is duped by Shawn in the end and the on-lookers (and whole police department) are truly shocked with the way he seamlessly solves the mysteries. I would’ve said effortlessly, but that would’ve been a lie- as Shawn never ceases to take advantage of the opportunity to put on a whole song and dance (so to speak) about how he has come to his conclusions. The show not only puts me in a good mood when I’m having a bad day, it keeps me motivated and even helps me with my own creative writing. There are so many good things about this show. Further into the series, a relationship blossoms between Shawn Spencer and Detective Juliet O’Hara. Isn’t it also crazy how the series was loosely based on events that occurred during the childhood of the series creator? Because of this writing prompt, I’ve started a whole subscription to Peacock TV and started rewatching the series all over again. Let me tell you, I’m laughing out loud. My husband never thinks I have good taste in shows and he tends to shoot down my suggestions, however, when it came to this show (and “The Good Place”) he was definitely WAY into it. He too loves the sarcastic humor theme that is present in both shows. And that show is great too, but has such short episodes and leaves me craving more- being that there are half as many seasons. I’m currently watching Psych and I seriously can’t explain how funny I find this show. Burton “Gus” Guster is cautious about the cases they take on, but extremely curious about the details- like cracking safes, the pharmaceuticals in the victim’s medicine cabinets, the steamy details about the backstory. Not only that, but Gus acts like he isn’t with the dramatics but when it comes down to it, he really is supportive of his friend and he even joins in on the theatrics come case-solving time.

Shawn sits in the police station trying to provide the case details while Burton Guster waves a pocket watch back and forth in front of Shawn’s face, almost in a hypnotic motion. Shawn clenches his chest and screams “AH! I SEE IT NOW, I FEEL IT! ITS HERE IN THIS ROOM!” And Gus makes a point to warn everyone around because they may get in the way of the show Shawn’s about to put on. Shawn walks into the police station and mentions vaguely something regarding a current case they’re working on- a name, a setting, a smell, anything- and the detectives say “how did you know about that?” while Shawn and Gus gesture to Shawn’s head, implying his psychic abilities are responsible for his knowledge about the cases. I know, a bachelor “ladies man” loner psychic, a strict cop dad, a neurotic pharmaceutical salesman sidekick, a love interest lady detective, a bloodhound of a lead detective- sounds like a bad joke about people who walk into a bar. Well it really is worth the watch-the binge watch. I really can’t stress it enough. There really are a ton of layers to these characters and it’s a really well done show. Don’t make me give you my Peacock login just so you can watch it, too! I’m shocked that it has yet to become such a pop culture icon as “Cobra Kai” and “Schitt’s Creek” have. Only time will tell. If it pops off, you. Can bet your bottom dollar that I probably started the movement right after this writing. I could be sitting around doing nothing and if I have to think “what can. I possibly throw on the TV?” I reach for this show. I find myself quoting his show on some days and I find myself referencing it on others. Are you squeamish about blood and maybe not too excited to throw on a dark tv drama right before bed? Because I am. I don’t want to hear the dramatic dark music as I close my eyes. I don’t enjoy the victims begging and pleading to be spared just to hear their screams and the revving of a chainsaw directly after. I like the plucky up-beat whimsical background music that Psych has and the fun theme song about the deception that is Shawn’s ability. It’s so funny and lighthearted I almost forget it’s a show full of crime and drama, murder mysteries. Some shows make me hungry, some motivate me to clean up even though I don’t do it. This show really just puts me in a good mood and makes me laugh, as well as satisfying and filling any TV voids I may have had. I’m getting sidetracked, this show really does that to me. Yeah, I’m currently watching it. Won’t you be joining me? I know you will be, I’m a psychic.