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Sep 23, 2008 7:18 pm US/Eastern
Simon Baker Back On TV In CBS' The Mentalist
Series Premiere Tuesday At 9:00 P.M. On CBS4
MIAMI (CBS4) ―
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Simon Baker stars as police specialist Patrick Jane in the CBS show "The Mentalist."
CBS
It's a big night on CBS primetime Tuesday. It starts at 8:00 with the season premiere of "NCIS" followed by the series premiere of "The Mentalist."
It stars Simon Baker as a glib, former fake psychic who uses his strong powers of observation to help solve crimes.
In the premiere, someone says to his character Patrick Jane, "You're a psychic."
"No," he replies. "Just paying attention."
Later in the premiere of "The Mentalist," he goes a step further: "There's no such things as real psychics."
Used to be, Jane marketed his skill for observation by masquerading as a psychic, making good money by "speaking with the dead" and other parlor tricks.
Now he's trying to redeem himself as a consultant with the California Bureau of Investigation. He wants to nab the serial murderer dubbed Red John, who leaves a shocking signature in blood at the scene of each crime and killed Jane's family while Jane was winning fame with his hoaxes.
He's already cracked a couple of cases, so his effectiveness is acknowledged, albeit grudgingly, by the cops he works with. Meanwhile, he can be hard to handle. He's flighty, cheeky, charming but sometimes insultingly blunt, a bit mysterious, and altogether disinclined to follow rules.
A character like that provides a great showcase for an actor, and Simon Baker ("Smith," "The Guardian") is terrific in the role. Just watch him looking at things, sifting through clues, the wheels in his brain almost visibly whirring.
No wonder by-the-book senior agent Teresa Lisbon is torn between letting him into her unit, or giving him the boot, or (maybe) sleeping with him. She's played by Robin Tunney ("Prison Break"). Tim Kang, Owain Yeoman and Amanda Righetti play other members of the unit.
"The Mentalist" premieres Tuesday night at 9:00 p.m. on CBS4.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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