Return to Psych

[osprey_archer]

I stopped watching Psych about a year ago because its issues were outweighing the fun factor, but I find that my life is simply not complete without occasional infusions of ridiculous murder mysteries and Shawn Spencer so I've come back to it. Provisionally. There's a lot of Juliet in the Bollywood episode, and she gets to kick some ass, AND she's not mooning over Shawn but instead flirting with the cute Indian fellow she's fake-dating for complicated plot reasons, so I am happy.

But I would be happy anyway because OMG THERE'S A BOLLYWOOD EPISODE OF PSYCH. WHY DID NO ONE TELL ME THERE WAS A BOLLYWOOD EPISODE?????? Jules is SO CUTE in her sari! (Why did they not come up with spurious reasons to put Shawn and Gus in shalwar kameez? Because that would have been amazing.)

Actually, I wouldn't have properly appreciated the Bollywood episode last year. See! This is why putting shows on hiatus is good! You come back to them and you can appreciate them properly because you are older and wiser and marginally familiar with Bollywood.

And. Loosely related to Bollywood, given that Bollywood films are so often sprinkled with delicious song-and-dance routines: Psych should totally do a musical episode. Don't you want to hear Lassiter serenade his gun? See Shawn rope him into a duet? Watch Gus and Jules relax their inhibitions through the medium of SONG?

Actually, I would love to see Gus and Juliet interact with each other without Shawn around, musically or otherwise. It might bring out fascinating new sides to their characters.

Comments

[entwashian.livejournal.com]

The Bollywood episode actually wasn't well received. It broke my heart a little.

Anupam Nigam is one of my very favorite Psych writers. Maybe even my 2nd favorite, after Steve Franks.

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

But but but it was a BOLLYWOOD episode! What didn't people like about it????

Was it because Shawn was slightly more racist than usual? (To Rajesh: "I'll call you Roger.") But I felt like the show was actually aware of that for once.

[entwashian.livejournal.com]

They're ethnocentrist jerks?

I think the party line was that the episode relied too much on the "theme". But of course you didn't see anyone complaining about the theme when there was a cowboy episode, or a horror movie episode, or a football episode.

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

To be charitable, it's hard to appreciate a tribute to something you've never seen. I wasn't a big fan of the horror movie episode, because I haven't seen any of the things it was paying homage too.

To be less charitable: the BOLLYWOOD episode relied to much on the theme???? The Bollywood episode didn't rely nearly as much on the source material as any of the episodes you mentioned. No classic Bollywood plot twists, no Bollywood stock characters, no cameo by Shahrukh Khan...

For goodness sake, there isn't even a random song and dance number! I was SO LOOKING FORWARD to everyone putting on tight colorful clothes and showing off their hip gyrations. Sure, it's pretty much par for the course for Shawn (not that I wouldn't be happy to see more of it...), but we could have seen Lassiter dance!!!

[entwashian.livejournal.com]

I had the opposite reaction to the horror movie episode. I felt like it was gag after gag of stuff I've seen a million times, especially since horror movies are known for being so cliche that there are a lot of self-aware ones now.

[entwashian.livejournal.com]

Also, daaaaaaayum, you quit watching the show because of issues way back then???? :/

S4 finale = NOT your friend.

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

The season 4 finale is the one where they make Jules all damsel in distress on us, right?

...it is many episodes off. I refuse to think about it!

[entwashian.livejournal.com]

Not just Jules (is this too spoilery? XD should I be saying these things?)

As an Alfred Hitchcock tribute, it's pretty damn entertaining. I'll leave it at that.

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

I REMEMBER YOUR POST ABOUT THIS. This is the episode where Shawn has to choose between Jules and Abigail, isn't it? UGH UGH UGH.

I honestly don't get what they're doing with Abigail. They've gone out of their way to make her likable, which is nice and not something that showrunners always do with placeholder love interests (...but probably there's a faction of Psych fandom that hates her anyway. Oh, fandom.) But that's going to make it unpleasant when inevitably she and Shawn break up so the Shawn/Jules train can steam forth.

[entwashian.livejournal.com]

I could never get into Abigail, myself, but the Bollywood episode was the most I ever liked her. Maybe part of it was knowing that she was just shoehorned in as another artifical reason to keep Shawn & Jules apart. I know part of it was the actress -- I don't dislike Rachel Leigh Cook, I just don't "get" her. I've never been able to connect with any of the characters she's played.

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

I'm not super into Abigail, but I like her just enough to find it annoying that she has to suffer the indignity of being nothing but a plot impediment.

[boo.livejournal.com]

omg i LOVED the bollywood episode!!! esp the opening credits :D

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

YES! The names written in Hindi! The song that was almost all in Hindi except for a few key English phrases! So awesome!