You know that feeling when a show finally stops playing it safe? That's The Mentalist series 4. Honestly, if you look back at the first three seasons, there was always this light, procedural hum to everything. Sure, Patrick Jane’s family was murdered by a smiley-face-painting psychopath, but the episodes usually felt like a sunny California afternoon.
Then came the Season 3 finale. Jane shoots a man in a crowded mall. He thinks it’s Red John. He sits down, sips his tea, and waits for the cops. It was cold. It was brilliant.
But series 4 starts with a massive gut-punch: the man he killed, Timothy Carter, wasn't Red John. He was just another "operative." A pawn.
The Trial and the Fallacy of "The End"
The season kicks off with "Scarlet Ribbons," and it’s a masterclass in how to reset a status quo without making the audience feel cheated. Jane is in prison. He’s facing a murder charge. Most shows would have spent six episodes on a legal drama, but Jane? He just wins a poker game against his cellmates to pay his bail.
The trial itself is a bit of a circus. He defends himself, which is peak Patrick Jane arrogance. He convinces a jury that he was justified in killing a monster, and he walks free. But the victory is hollow. He knows he’s back at zero.
Red John isn't dead. He’s just watching.
Why the Tone Shifted (and Why People Missed It)
A lot of fans complain that The Mentalist series 4 felt too "formulaic" in the middle. I get it. We went back to the "case of the week" structure pretty quickly. But there’s a subtle rot beneath the surface of these episodes that wasn't there before.
Take the episode "Blinking Red Light." We meet James Panzer, a blogger who claims to be an expert on a serial killer called the "San Joaquin Killer." Jane realizes Panzer is the killer.
In earlier seasons, Jane might have set a clever trap to get a confession. Here? He manipulates Panzer into insulting Red John on national television.
Red John kills Panzer that same night.
Basically, Jane used a serial killer as a hitman. It’s dark. It’s ethically messy. And it shows that Jane is starting to lose his grip on the "good guy" persona. He’s becoming the thing he’s hunting.
The New Boss and the FBI Headache
We also got some fresh blood this season. Enter Luther Wainwright, played by Michael Rady. He’s young, he’s smart, and he’s clearly out of his depth with Jane. Unlike Hightower or Minelli, Wainwright tries to understand Jane’s "psychopathology."
It doesn't end well for him.
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Then there’s Susan Darcy from the FBI. She’s the one who starts sniffing around the Timothy Carter shooting. She’s the first person to really challenge the CBI’s narrative that Red John is dead. Her presence adds this layer of "the walls are closing in" that makes the season feel claustrophobic even when they’re out in the beautiful California wine country.
The Breakdown (Or Was It?)
The finale, "The Crimson Hat," is probably one of the top three episodes in the entire series. Jane "snaps." He insults the CBI, gets fired, and ends up in Las Vegas, six months later, looking like a total wreck. He’s drinking. He’s conning people. He’s hit rock bottom.
Or so we thought.
The introduction of Lorelei Martins (Emmanuelle Chriqui) changed everything. She’s the first Red John follower who feels like a peer to Jane—charming, dangerous, and completely devoted. When she tells him she’s a "gift" from Red John after they spend the night together, it’s one of the few times Jane looks genuinely rattled.
The twist? The breakdown was a long con. Jane was trying to lure Red John out by appearing "broken."
What Most People Get Wrong About Season 4
People often say this season "dragged its feet" on the Red John reveal. I disagree.
This season wasn't about finding Red John; it was about the scope of the conspiracy. We started to see the "Blake Association" hints, though we didn't have the name yet. We saw that Red John had friends in the FBI, the CBI, and the court system.
It wasn't a cat-and-mouse game anymore. It was a war.
Key Moments You Might Have Forgotten
- The Rigsby/Van Pelt Drama: They’re still trying to figure out their lives after the O’Laughlin betrayal. Rigsby ends up having a kid with Sarah Harrigan. It felt a bit rushed, but it grounded the show.
- Cho and Summer: This was arguably the best subplot. Seeing the stoic Kimball Cho fall for a messy, vulnerable informant like Summer Edgecombe was great writing. It showed a side of Cho we never saw again.
- The San Felix Island Trip: A rare "locked room" mystery that utilized the California coast beautifully.
How to Re-watch Like an Expert
If you're going back to The Mentalist series 4, don't just watch for the Red John episodes. Watch Jane’s eyes during the "filler" cases.
He’s more tired. He’s less patient.
Pay attention to how he treats Lisbon. He tells her he loves her in the finale—though he plays it off as part of the "act." Honestly, that’s the moment the "Jisbon" ship really set sail for most fans.
Actionable Next Steps for Fans
If you've just finished series 4 or are planning a re-watch, here’s how to get the most out of it:
- Watch "Blinking Red Light" and "The Crimson Hat" back-to-back. It highlights the transition from Jane being a consultant to Jane being a predator.
- Look for the "Tyger, Tyger" references. They’re buried in the dialogue of guest stars and random officers.
- Track the color red. The show’s cinematography uses red sparingly until a Red John moment is imminent. In Season 4, the palette shifts toward more muted earth tones to make the "red" moments pop more violently.
The season ends on a tragic note with Wainwright’s accidental death—shot by the FBI because Red John used him as a decoy. It’s a reminder that Jane’s games have a body count. And usually, it’s the innocent people who pay the price.