The Mentalist: The Great Red Dragon (6x07)

Wow. Okay, I'm impressed. This episode did a great job pushing us forward towards next week's epic Red John episode. And... it's Bertram, right? He's Red John? One of my favorite things about this episode is that we're pretty sure it's Bertram, but there is a tiny bit of wiggle room. All of the other suspects except for Smith are dead, and Smith has confessed everything he knows. But let's slow down for a moment and take a look at the plot.

We jump in right where we left off, with the house exploding and Lisbon running in, frantically looking for Jane. We see that Smith and Bertram are still alive, and so is Jane, although he's unconscious. Lisbon sees the tattoo on Smith's shoulder and thinks he must be Red John. They shoot at each other, and Smith gets hit, though he's still able to get away.

In the hospital, Lisbon is worriedly staying by Jane's bedside. However, Bertram shows up, acting fishy. When Jane awakens, he tells her that Bertram also had the tattoo, and Lisbon figures out that Bertram was probably there to kill Jane. Jane and Lisbon rush back to the CBI to start trying to track down Smith and Bertram.

So, the Tiger Tiger organization is trying to find Smith, in order to dispose of him. I guess they think that Jane is too close to some uncomfortable truths, so they want to take him out. Smith manages to get away, and later calls to surrender. He is almost caught again by some of the organization's men, but Cho manages to pick him up and take him into custody. They interrogate Smith, and we finally get some answers to some long held questions. He reveals the existence of the Blake Association, which is basically a group of people in law enforcement who have the tattoo of three dots on the shoulder, and use the code words "Tiger, Tiger." Smith isn't very high on the totem pole, and he doesn't know if Bertram is involved. He does, however, know that Red John is a member, since he's done a favor for Red John in the past.

Jane publicly announces that Bertram is Red John, thus putting the world on alert, but there's bad news for the CBI. The FBI shows up and shuts down the whole operation. Woah. There were a lot of things I expected to see in this episode, and that was not one of them. Jane's couch was removed, and his coffee mug smashed. The entire scene had a real sense of permanence to it that was actually pretty hard to take. We see Jane leaving, apparently "letting it go" and moving forward, since there's not much left for him to do. Of course, we know he will finally come face to face with Red John next week, so obviously he's not quite as done as he says he is.

So, it looks like Partridge, Stiles, and McAllister are all dead. What's interesting is that a postmortem examination of Partridge reveals that he had skin from his shoulder removed, thus showing us that he too was part of the Blake Association. Smith can safely be ruled out as Red John, and I suppose if Partridge is really dead then he's probably not Red John either. McAllister and Stiles are a little less clear, since we didn't seen their bodies. There's a part of me that wants to believe that it's Bertram, because of course it seems that way... but what if they're twisting it around somehow? It's all so confusing!

Some of my favorite moments, really quick: I loved the conversation between Rigsby, Cho, and Van Pelt. The three of them are tied up in this as much as Lisbon is now, but it must be pretty hard for them to process. Rigsby asks the other two if they're okay with the fact that Jane is going to kill Bertram, and they both reply pretty nonchalantly that they're cool with it. That made me giggle.

Lisbon was really sweet in the hospital. It's obvious that she cares a great deal for Jane, and it was cute to see this protective side come out. It was also very touching, in an odd depressing sort of way, to see the FBI dismantle the CBI. This place has really grown to meet a lot to Jane and through him, the audience. I'm not sure what we'll do without it. It's certainly a big step for the show to take, and I'm all sorts of excited to see them move in a brand new direction.

I suppose I really don't have any major flaws to discuss. The only thing I will say is this: the tattoo thing is a bit strange. I feel like putting a permanent mark on your body is not the smartest thing to do for a secret society. Maybe I'm nitpicking, but I kept thinking about how easily identifiable they all are now that Jane knows about the tattoos. Couldn't they have put them on the bottom of their foot or their armpit or somewhere weirder and harder to find? Whatever. I shouldn't fixate on details like this.

Anyways, I'll wrap up there. Great episode, truly. I cannot wait to find out how it's all going down next week.

9/10