There have been many fantastic TV shows since the invention of television, but, of all the ones I’ve watched, one of them stands out as the best. I’ve watched and re-watched this show dozens of times now, and it’s still funny every single time. That show is “Psych.”
“Psych” is the story of Shawn Spencer, the son of a police detective who used everything his father taught him to become a very good private investigator. The show starts after Shawn gave too many tips to the police in exchange for the reward money. When they start to get suspicious about how he can possibly know as much as he does, he is forced to pretend that the information was revealed to him psychically. To Shawn’s surprise, the police believe him, and he is hired to help solve a recent kidnapping. As the show goes on, he solves many cases with the police department, all while trying to hide the fact that he’s not really a psychic.
Shawn brings along his best friend Burton “Gus” Guster to help with the case. Gus is the perfect character foil for Shawn, played by the amazing Dulé Hill. Shawn and Gus turn the “serious main, silly sidekick” dynamic on its head, with Gus being the more mature one of the pair. Unlike Shawn, Gus has a full-time job as a pharmaceutical salesman, which he is forced to balance with his time solving cases. With several storylines focused around Gus throughout the series, he is one of the most complete sidekick characters of any show.
The show would not be the same without the characters in the Santa Barbara Police Department, often working cases with Shawn and Gus. To start, there’s Head Detective Carlton Lassiter, often referred to as Lassie. Lassie is the person most skeptical of Shawn’s psychic abilities. He seems to have a kind of love-hate relationship with Shawn and Gus, which makes for an interesting dynamic between the three. He’s a great detective himself, although Shawn is better, which makes Lassie a little bit bitter.
Joining the cast in the second episode, Maggie Lawson plays Detective Juliet O’Hara. Juliet is Lassie’s partner. She also has some great chemistry with Shawn that makes their relationship interesting and exciting. Out of all the characters, she’s the one that believes in Shawn’s psychicness the most.
Leading the SBPD is Chief Karen Vick. Chief Vick starts as the interim police chief and is looking to make the job permanent. She is an effective leader of the police department. She also has some of the best lines in the show, which she manages to deliver perfectly. The best example of this comes in season five. Shawn says “We won’t let you down, chief” and Chief Vick responds “Yes, you will.” Delivered poorly, this line could easily sound sarcastic or just stupid. The way that actress Kirsten Nelson delivers this line makes it sound like Chief Vick is truly weary of some of Shawn and Gus’ antics and seriously expects that they will do something that she doesn’t approve of, but is willing to tolerate these antics because they solve cases.
Finishing off the main cast is Shawn’s father, Henry Spencer. Henry is a retired police detective that seems to have retired too early as he often gets involved in several of Shawn’s cases. His relationship with his son is rather complicated. Shawn often turns to his father for advice about his cases, but they tend to argue a lot. In the first episode, Shawn finds out that his father had moved back to Santa Barbara over a year ago without telling him. In another episode, Henry intentionally gets Shawn’s motorcycle towed. The complicated and evolving dynamic between Shawn and his father is interesting to watch.
The cast of characters works together to solve a new and exciting case every week. There are several running jokes throughout the show, including a “hidden pineapple” in every episode. One great thing about “Psych” is that you can watch the episodes in any order. The first episode that I watched was not the pilot, but Season 2 Episode 16, “Shawn and Gus of the Dead,” where Shawn and Gus solve the case of an Egyptian mummy stolen from a local museum. “Psych” is available on Prime Video and NBC Peacock. If you enjoy detective shows and are looking for a funny show to watch, “Psych” may be for you.
