By Averi Halbert and Marina Halbert
Two of the best murder mystery shows to ever exist: Psych and The Mentalist. Blessing the world with their existence on Amazon Prime, the shows are easily accessible, comical, and entertaining to watch. Each boasts an all-star cast and juxtaposing plots; in The Mentalist, a man once caught pretending to be psychic dedicates his life to solving crimes the “right” way, and calls out all the phony mind-readers he can – Psych, meanwhile, features a pretend psychic, who relies on the title to disguise his out-of-character genius and not-so-legal methods of getting information. Despite their differences, these shows have one thing in common: they are some of the best content on Amazon Prime.
Psych leans towards comedy and funny moments more than The Mentalist, ensuring that every episode makes you laugh ‘till you cry. All the characters are well-rounded and essential to the television show as a whole. A very creative, heart-warming show, Psych is our go-to when we have nothing to watch. The characters are all extremely likable, the acting is superb, and the crimes are fun to try and solve on your own. One of the best parts of the show, by far, is the Shawn-Gus dynamic, as the main character and his “side-kick” (although Gus is arguably the main character) have hilarious banter and natural chemistry — the fact that most of their acting is improvised makes the hilarity much more impressive. Psych also likes to lean into special episodes, changing the theme song (very catchy) slightly to fit the theme of some episodes, especially Christmas specials. There are a total of 8 seasons, plus some musicals and movies which aren’t as good, but still worth watching. Some warnings if you’re going to watch this show: don’t let the first episode scare you (it’s never that gory) and… skip the seventh season.
On the other hand, The Mentalist is a bit more serious. The show features insanely creative plotlines and still manages to maintain a high level of (slightly more sophisticated) humor. The shining star of this show is, by far, the main character. A reformed con man, Jane tries to make up for his old habits by helping the California Bureau of Investigation solve “unsolvable” murders and crimes. Jane is one of the most well-developed, funny, and charismatic individuals we have ever seen on a TV show. The Mentalist is worth watching soley for Jane. Unfortunately, Jane’s biggest motivation, revenge on the man who killed his wife and exposed him as a fraud, is somewhat weak and underdeveloped throughout the show. Don’t get too attached to that plotline because, honestly, it’s boring and mostly irrelevant (and consistently makes for the worst episodes). However, it does provide a lot of insight into the characters of the show, especially Jane, and helps develop their characters in a way that the normal, comical message of the show can’t. One of our favorite Mentalist easter eggs is the fact that, if you look closely at the episode titles, you’ll notice something very special. Let us know if you figure it out. There are 7 seasons of The Mentalist, but the episodes are pretty long with a running time of over 45 minutes. We wholeheartedly recommend this show, it is one of the best cop-comedies out there. Both The Mentalist and Psych are incredible in their own ways, and you will not regret watching either one. They are both hilarious, engaging, and, at times, mind-boggling (the best part, in our opinion). Even more than this, they are both family-friendly and great shows to watch together with your parents and siblings (like we do!).