PSYCH

PSYCH
Now Streaming on Netflix
5/5 Stars

Television has a long history of eccentric detectives: Columbo, Jessica Fletcher, one of the Simons. But the funniest and oddest so far is Shawn Spencer, the hero of USA Network’s PSYCH. For the uninitiated, a brief explanation of the show. Shawn pretends to be psychic because despite his remarkable detection skills, he is too lazy to go through police training or do paperwork. His best friend and unwilling business partner Gus joins Shawn as he out-thinks criminals, outmaneuvers the cops, and drops more pop culture references than the writers’ room on Family Guy.
The show is usually pretty light fare, retaining its silliness despite the ever-increasing body count (seriously, do they live in Santa Barbara or Santa Carla?). However, the show does have its moments of intensity, in which the audience feels the danger mostly due to their pure love they have for the characters. The supporting cast is top notch, the guest stars are classic, and the writing remains as quick and funny in season 5 as it was in the pilot. If all procedurals were this lovable, the success of CBS’ primetime lineup would make a lot more sense to me.