In this episode of The Mentalist, Jane ends up in a fugue state after he is drowned in a lake by a murderer and nearly dies. His “Fugue in Red” is apparent the moment Lisbon visits him in the hospital and this new, but definitely not improved, Jane bluntly asks if they are sleeping together.
Convinced by the doctors that the best thing for Jane is to be around familiar places and people, the team somewhat reluctantly allows him to work with them to solve the case that got him attacked. Judging from the preview last week, I knew we were probably going to get a lot of funny moments with Jane acting like the randy con artist he was before the team met him. The show did not disappoint in that department, but I was also happy to see that they didn’t just go with that one note. Underneath Jane’s monkey business, there is still the pain that we’ve all come to recognize from him.
Jane doesn’t remember his family or how they died. In his new state, he’s convinced himself that the wedding ring he wears is all part of a trick and though he knows that his friends are hiding a terrible secret about his life, he wants nothing of it. He asks them to leave him alone so that he can be happy, and in that moment I heard the real Jane talking for a minute there. The guy who goes home (on those rare occasions he actually leaves the police station couch) to an empty house with a mattress on the floor and a symbol of his family’s death hanging on the wall as a constant reminder of his terrible mistake.
In the end, it is those sparse possessions that trigger the memories to return. Though I knew how it must have torn Lisbon apart to force Jane to remember something so horrible, I really don’t think she had a choice. The real Jane would not have wanted to live his days as a lowlife thief and conman, and she had to do whatever it took to pull him out of it.
As I watched that scene, I found myself amazed by how much Simon Baker can convey with just his eyes. In less than 60 seconds we see him go from the new carefree Jane to the heartbroken man who has lost everything; and all of it without him uttering a sound.
My favorite bits….
Jumping about six inches off of my couch when that arm came out and grabbed Jane. I knew from the previews he was going to end up in the water, I just wasn’t expecting THAT.
Lisbon screaming for help. I’ve never heard her voice sound quite like that before.
Lisbon reassuring Cho, and herself, that Jane was going to be fine.
Jane clarifying that if he and Lisbon weren’t sleeping together, they were at least working towards it. Oh boy, here we go.
“I catch bad guys? That sounds like fun.”
Jane calling Lisbon ‘Teresa’ is kinda weirding me out.
“No wonder the guard tried to shoot him. The closest a man should come to a fitted sweater is helping a woman out of one.”
Rigsby using the term “sussing out.”
Jane asking Rigsby for help in “opening up the cookie jar” with VanPelt.
“You said I cause trouble.” – That is an understatement.
Jane mistakenly messing with the paramedic who saved his life. Oops.
Noticing the way that Jane kept absently spinning his wedding ring, even before Lisbon mentioned it.
“So it’s his turn to babysit me now?” “Somebody has too.”
“I almost died yesterday, too.” – Leave it to Jane to make that sound chipper.
Not missing the way Jane was reacting to that little girl, no matter how hard he was trying to hide it.
Jane tricking Cho into thinking he was sad about his family, when he was really breaking into the safe.
“Look, don’t take this the wrong way but the death of Jane’s family made him a better person.” – So sad how true that was.
“I hate him.”
“That’s not him.”
Lisbon calling Jane “Patty.” – Haha!
Jane asking Lisbon to just let him be happy.
Jane telling Lisbon that there was room on the bed with him. LOL.
The entire team figuring out that Jane took the money. Me no likey this new Jane.
Lisbon taking Jane to his home and showing him that room with the mattress on the floor and the Red Jane mark on the wall.
My heart breaking as I watched all of Jane’s memories flood back, and the way he stood there shaking while Lisbon said she was sorry. Such a powerful scene.
What did you think of this episode of The Mentalist? Got any favorite bits or least favorite bits of your own? I’d love to hear from you!
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