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Wednesday 4 September 2013

The Mentalist: Red John Seven Suspects Reviewed

                                                    
At the end of season 5 we were left with a list of seven suspects which Patrick Jane (Simon Baker) had narrowed down and coincidentally or not, these seven were also the ones on Red John's list he presented to Patrick too.  Have you made up your mind yet?  There's quite a lot to go on, maybe some of the following might help you, then again it might not.  It's an area any fan will and does get bogged down in!

Patrick Jane's list of seven suspects who all seem to sport the Red John cap/mantle in some form or another.

1 Bret Stiles: (Malcolm McDowell)                  
                                                              
Charismatic cult leader of the Visualize cult.  He can get anything done and get anyone to do it too.  Patrick and he have a kind of uneasy truce since they first met and Bret has been a suspect in some CBI investigations.  A lot of law enforcement agencies are after his head.  He was instrumental in the 'release' or re-appearance at least of Kristina Frye (Leslie Hope) when she was kidnapped, allegedly by Red John after she mentioned him on TV in the same way that Patty did and his family was killed by him. (The Blood on His Hands).

Kristina was a suspected Red John for many but seems this direction wasn't pursued and writer and producer Bruno Heller chose to keep Red John firmly a man.  Anyway, Bret has intimated on numerous occasions that he does have knowledge of Red John and whether that extends to being true or not has never really been proved conclusively.  He does seem to have the 'inside' on him and could be one of his accomplices.  Then again as in the past we've seen how most of Red John's accomplices/acolytes etc all end up, usually being killed, so the question is if he's really so close to Red John why was he never taken care of? Some may answer that with the reply cos Bret is Red John.

In which case why would he be so helpful towards Patrick even telling him he couldn't help when he wanted to get Lorelei (Emmanuelle Chiriqui) out of prison, trying to ensure Patrick didn't do the same.  Did he have insider knowledge that if she got out, she would, either, a) reveal something about Red John and overplay her hand, which she did when she told Patty he has shaken hands with Red John.  Or b) Patrick having feelings for her may get her to reveal other things about RJ.  However in His Thoughts Were Red Thoughts, Patrick did sort of play Bret when he was accused of murder and Patrick pursued the line of enquiry which would clear him of any wrongdoing.  (He has gotten away with other crimes in the past).  With Patrick admitting he did that so Bret would owe him a favour.

Suppose it could boil down to Brett just being a criminal mastermind.

2 Gale Bertram: (Michael Gaston) 
                                                      
He insisted on keeping Patrick around when the entire team were suspended.  Patrick even had Bertram wrapped around his little finger when he got the entire team reinstated in 4.2 Little Red Book.   Gale really doesn't know how to handle Patrick and so needs Lisbon around. Patrick also helped him to win at poker, so does he really not have much of a poker face, or was that all just for show.

There are many facets to Bertram.  He is Director of the CBI and what more powerful position can there be. He doesn't get on that well with Patrick, seeing as it was Virgil Minnelli (Gregory Itzin) who really wanted Patrick around as he could be so helpful to them.  In the third season he was also seen as the possible CBI mole which again Patrick proved to be Craig O'Laughlin (Eric Winter) Van Pelt's (Amanda Righetti) fiance. (Still want to know what happened with Van Pelt's necklace O'Laughlin gave her, considering we thought there was a bug inside it.)

It seems the media and media pressure is the only controlling factor that Patrick and Lisbon have against him since he's interested in protecting his image and that of the CBI.  In Red Sky At Night, Patrick tells Lisbon he has a feeling about Betram, whether or not this is related to RJ or just cos he's a stickler for maintaining a public image is hard to say.  He is one for quoting poems and specifically William Blake as in 3.16 Red Queen he quotes, "and when thy little heart doth wake, then the dreadful night shall break" from 'Cradle Song.'  Although LaRoche (Pruitt Taylor Vince) is the one who actually claims this as being by Blake.  RJ of course was into the The Tyger poem.  Todd Johnson (Josh Braaten) also said the title of the poem when he was dying.

SO appears it's not the poem, but apparently the poet who appears to have a significance to Red John for some reason. Anyway RJ must be as adept in reading people, or cold reading as Patrick is.

3 Ray Haffner  (Reed Diamond)
                                                    
hasn't been around that much on our screens at least, though he has been behind the scenes so wonder how much of an RJ suspect he could be.  He has admitted he is a member of Visualize to Lisbon (Robin Tunney) and to my knowledge she hasn't told Patrick about this.  To stick my neck out, for some reason he seems to be my number one suspect.  Okay now I've said that, or worst still written it down in writing, it probably won't be him.  Ray is a supervisory agent at CBI so is/was in a good position to know everything that's going on there and even to follow Patrick in his RJ investigation.  He also was Patrick's 'boss' in season 4.2 ep  and Patrick 'used' him to get the team back together  and we were first introduced to Ray in Little Red Book.

Patrick chose to 'mock' him frequently when he took him along for questioning at the gym, making Ray get Cho (Tim Kang) to spy on Patrick.  Was this a ruse to show he was unable to deal with Patrick himself, or did he just think Patrick would open up to Cho more since they've been together for four years.  A display of cunning on the part of RJ.  Then again it makes you wonder if he does have the intelligence to remotely come close to being Red John.

Ray however returned in Red Barn where he tries to recruit Lisbon into a private security company and lets her know he is a member of Visualize since he was a teen and how he was problematic as a teen and the Cult helped him.  He isn't pleased the killer of the Visualize member, Holly, isn't charged with murder but manslaughter.  Lisbon comes out and asks him if he was at Ellison Farm and she thinks he's guilty of the other two murders.  Ray doesn't reply which makes us even more suspicious of him.  Doesn't this reinforce how Visualize must have a connection to Red John, either through its members, some of them or Bret Stiles. But we haven't seen how much he's in favour with Bret, yet if he is Red John then it would show how Bret is so knowledgeable and how Visualize and Bret would have come to RJ, I mean, Ray's help as a teen.  Thus holding them in high regard and why Bret hasn't been silenced by him.

I agree with Lisbon that he was around at the time the Smiley face was drawn on the barn and clearly he could have been responsible for those two murders showing he had 'teen' troubles at that time. For a cult to be the only one to have been able to help him must show how disturbed he really was.  Also Ray is the only one who has been so closely associated with the red barn and the appearance of the Smiley face at such an early time.  As for his timing with asking Lisbon to come into the security firm with him, that was kind of, well, off.  I mean he could have asked her that when she was suspended and he was 'temporarily' in charge. She would have been more conducive to the idea of it.  Maybe he saw it as a chance to get her away from Patrick now when he asks her, or the fact Red John was on the hunt for a new lover.  Trying to entice Lisbon away from Patty cos it's something Red John would do.  If he can keep an eye on her, she's less likely to be trouble for him.  Would RJ really want to rid himself of Lisbon?  Though he wanted her head in the season 4 finale when Patrick went rogue. (The Crimson Hat).

4 Reede Smith: (Drew Powell)
                                                  
Don't know how much of a suspect Reede Smith could be since he only has made a guest appearance and hasn't been shown to be involved in much.  He is an FBI agent and is Gabe Mancini's (Ivan Sergei) partner.  We first saw him in 5.1 The Crimson Ticket.  The spotlight probably falls on him cos his name is an anagram for "red is me and theme is red."  Though this seems to be highly convoluted, since we haven't seen much involvement with him and Patrick.  A suitable case for a red herring perhaps.

5  Robert Kirkland: (Kevin Corrigan)
                                                           
first graced our screens in Red Dawn.  Having FBI connections with Alexa Schultz but that's only to be expected if he's Homeland Security (mentioned in If It Bleeds It Leads when he tells this to Lisbon.)  However his first meeting with Patrick wasn't in the normal sense as he shook hands with him in the corridor, with Patty asking, "do I know you."
Kirkland: "No, but I know you."  Which Patrick didn't deem strange or unusual, infact (I know it came towards the end of the ep) but Patrick didn't even give a second thought to it.  Suppose he would have after Lorelei's revelation of the handshake.  Usually Patrick isn't so complacent about such things.

Kirkland is interested in Red John and also Lorelei but he doesn't admit why he's here, seeing as Homeland Security wouldn't be involved in such cases.  We're meant to be suspicious of him for many reasons, including how he was with Alexa in the limo whilst she was on the phone to Minelli.  (Wonder why he wasn't listed as a suspect since I know many thought of him as a possible RJ - especially with his being so high up in the CBI.)

Kirkland's on the case in Red Sails in the Sunset and believes Patrick helped Lorelei escape, until they find his abandoned car.  In There Will be Blood, he makes another appearance, once again honing in on Lorelei but again we don't know why he's so interested in her.  Is it that RJ was unable to keep her in check like he was bale to with his other acolytes, but more importantly Homeland Security and specifically Kirkland is given carte blanche in the investigation.  Allowing him to get as much info as possible. Declaring Jason Lennon's house to be under his jurisdiction, again why?

Behind the Red Curtain is where Kirkland is meant to have shown his true colours (is that the colour red?) well he killed Lennon and lied to Patrick that he didn't say anything, but even if he asked Lennon if he knew him, that could be for any other purpose or case he's investigating.  Remember Homeland Security's remit are terrorist and national security cases.  Lennon's reply he doesn't know Kirkland and him asking that question was similar to Patrick asking if he knows Kirkland when they first shook hands.  SO there could be nothing in it.  Where would either one of them have known Kirkland from?

I personally don't think Kirkland is Red John, firstly he wouldn't need to go through the trouble of finding out what Patrick was hiding in his attic and wouldn't have sent his agents around to break in (Red Letter Day). Secondly with the revelation he was aware Lorelei told him about the handshake and that Patrick had narrowed down his list of suspects, he had the same information Patrick did.  Surely Kirkland couldn't have been so instrumental in narrowing down and compiling this same list.  I think Kirkland was put there for another purpose which we have yet to learn and is an ally for Patrick.

When Kirkland and Patrick met and shook hands, Lorelei was in prison, how would she then know of their meeting?  I know it sounds moot point. To bring Kirkland into play now as Red John would be an interesting theory since we are going to get the reveal in season 6 and another suspect for us, but he probably has other reasons for taking an interest. My gut feeling is it's not him.  Patrick wanted her out of prison so turned to Bret to break her out, who was the one arranging everything since he owed Patty.  She didn't suspect Patrick wanted her out and was the one behind her prison break.

What about Rosalind Harker (Alicia Witt) the blind woman and lover of Red John, she was left alive also and the one person who can recognize him by touch, even if she hasn't seen his face, it's as good as, and wasn't killed, but Lorelei was, even if what she told Patrick was seen as a betrayal by RJ.  It appears she would no longer be in his control particularly since she found out Red John killed her sister.


6. Sheriff Thomas McAllister:  (Xander Berkeley)
                                                       

His only appearance was in Red Tape and Silver Hair, though don't know if that title was meant to be some sort of RJ connection, McAllister having silver hair. He did seem to portray one of those 'homely' sheriffs without much nouse, or anything 'upstairs' since he didn't understand what Patrick did at the CBI.  Patrick also proceeded to win him six times in their game of Rock, paper scissors.  He also hasn't featured much in the show if at all, his next appearance will be in 6.3 Wedding In Red, which many have said will be when Van Pelt and Rigsby (Owain Yeoman) tie the knot.

Question to ask is whether someone who hasn't been on the show aside from one or two episodes is someone who would comfortably fit the profile of Red John.  Unless we are to think he has been around all the time watching Patrick, or getting others to do this for him.  A sheriff is able to slip away undetected and has the means to carry out nefarious actions, but what are his connections to the CBI?
Oh hang the profiling, need the BAU (Criminal Minds) to profile Red John! ha.

7 Brett Partridge: (Jack Plotnick)
                                                  
is forensics guy for the CBI and is meant to be a veritable expert on Red John crime scenes, yet he hasn't been shown at every single one of RJ's CS.  We first met him in the Pilot. Not much info on him, characterwise or otherwise and it's been said he has a mother somewhere.  Surely Red John couldn't have a 'mother complex' which makes him who and what he is?  That'd be too unoriginal, but could explain plenty in terms of why he kills and leaves behind his trademark Smiley faces.  Infact in the Pilot he says how he's impressed at the Smiley face at a CS which turns out not to have been left there by the real Red John.  So forensics guy why couldn't you work that out?  Strange in that he compliments RJ when he hasn't been involved in the case, trying to throw Patrick off the scent, or testing his mettle?

So if he's an expert how come he doesn't tell the difference between the real RJ scenes and those which were the work of a copycat.  Patrick hates him and he doesn't seem to have much time for Patrick either. There's an underlying animosity between them.  He's shifty and creepy, always wearing that white shirt and in Red Sky in the Morning is perturbed Patrick wants him to leave so he can get his job done. Analyzing the scene.  This was also where Brett fobs Patrick off when he tells him it's the work of a copycat and not RJ.

Patrick sees him as a "ghoul" and he's right about that.  He's a bit like those fiendish types from Scooby Doo and looks like someone who would be revealed under the mask by Valma as being the killer.   In Patrick's notes of RJ suspects in Black Cherry, Patrick notes: "CBI Forensics Department - Totally Macabre - handles Red John cases."  (Don't recall Patty shaking hands with him, but will have to watch that ep over.)

Showed up again in Red Lacquer Nail Polish and again had an altercation with Patrick when he spoke of spontaneous human combustion.  He's into books, Moby Dick, just as RJ is into William Blake and the Tyger poem. Patrick of course looked at the books on the table of the Vic.  One possible basis why he's considered to be RJ is his voice which we heard in season 2 finale Red Sky in the Morning when Patrick was tied up and he appeared to him wearing that stocking.  He could of course use a voice distorter as many of RJ's accomplices have done so.

Funnily enough and I don't think Bruno Heller was giving away any clues but in an interview on season 6 and Red John, he said, "up until now if you're comparing it to Moby Dick, which is one of the analogies I used to describe the length of the chase, next season [6] the whale has been sighted and they're in the small boats and chasing the whale."  Brett Partridge's book he mentioned.

He appears in Red John's Rules when Lorelei is found murdered, but does turn out to be revealed as one of the suspects on the list. Here he said that Lorelei's murder appears to be personal.  He is directly involved with the CBI and is in a position to know what's going on here.  Then again is he the right age to be Red John and does he really have the intelligence? Other than just showing up to annoy us and Patty further.

Brett shares his name with Bret Stiles albeit with a second 't'.  You can of course get some sort of a 'red' in Partridge as far as anagrams go.  Also in Red is the New Black,  Red John left behind the DB of a morgue attendant at Rosalind's house aft r he listened to her playing the piano. Considering Partridge is the forensics guy he could easily get away with killing him.

I would have loved Red John to have been a woman, nothing to do with equal rights and all that, but just cos Patrick's nemesis should have been a woman.  Then again some would argue he wouldn't be as effective or have all those lovers (well two that we know of.)

Anyway time for you to pick your suspect and firmly place down your bets (not really) as to the identity of Red John...


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