Psych (Season 7)

As I mentioned earlier on, the peak of Psych for me has always been Seasons 3-6. Every show that goes on this long has to start dropping off in quality eventually, and for Psych, Season 7 is sadly that season.

Season 7 of Psych suffers from forced drama, something the show never really had a problem with until now. Psych definitely had its dramatic storylines and moments (Shawn's mom, Yang, Juliet's PTSD), but all of it felt fairly natural, if a bit too light-hearted at times. Oddly enough, Season 7 starts off on a great note, with the followup of Henry getting shot being a genuinely compelling episode. However, later on in this season, Juliet learns Shawn isn't actually a psychic. This should have been one of the best storylines in the whole series, something that could be built up to from the very start. However, it was handled pretty poorly, with the two rarely getting a chance to actually talk things out. The couple breaks up for a few episodes, but they end up getting back together off-screen, as a result this storyline doesn't feel satisfying. We don't see Juliet accept Shawn for who he is, we don't see them talk things out, and we don't see their relationship heal. The finale also introduces a pretty bad new character as another cheap source of drama, but I'll discuss that in Season 8.

Thankfully, the standalone episodes and comedy fare a bit better, and the season is generally still entertaining with its more light-hearted storylines. Shawn and Juliet moving in together, Lassiter and Marlowe getting married, that all still works really well. The dialogue is still really sharp and funny, and the cast seems to have the same energy and enthusiasm for the show even with some of the shaky story decisions. As a matter of fact, some of the more comedic episodes rank as some of the best in the whole show, with Office Space being the biggest example. However, and this pains me to say, Psych's parody episodes are starting to feel more gimmicky and less creative. Lassie Jerky is the biggest example, it's a hilarious parody of Blair Witch at first, but it ends up devolving into this story about fighting Serbians that feels more bizarre than biting. And then there's 100 Clues, a parody of Clue that could have been cool, even trying out the multiple ending concept, but the ending you got depended on where you live, with a third being limited to DVD extra only. 

Despite my criticisms, there were some pretty great episodes this season:

Santabarbaratown 2: This was a really good premiere that kind of gave me unreasonably high expectations for the rest of the season. I love revenge tales, so seeing Shawn go full "psychic" in trying to catch the man who shot Henry was really compelling.

Deez Nups: While I don't love the Shawn/Juliet stuff this season, seeing Juliet piece together that Shawn isn't a psychic was a really shocking twist. The main storyline about Lassiter and Marlowe's wedding was also really fun and sweet, and seeing it devolve into a gun fight in the end just felt perfect for them.

Santabarbarian Candidate: Shawn should not run for any political position, I think that's pretty clear from watching a single episode of the show, so an episode about him campaigning for mayor to solve a case was expectedly nonstop hilarity throughout. The best part is easily Lassiter, who spends the episode struggling with the sheer horror that Shawn as mayor could bring.

Office Space: This episode has easily my favorite scene in the series, and is probably one of my favorite episodes in general. The opening where Gus messes up the crime scene is a masterpiece of physical comedy, and the duo floundering around trying to cover it up makes for an absolute riot from start to finish. I don't even care about the Juliet/Shawn reunion being done off-screen, it doesn't detract from how much of a comedic gem this episode is.

Overall, Season 7 is a rough one. It has a strong start and some really stellar episodes, but its attempts at drama are shaky and not all of its parodies end up working as well as they should. No season with Office Space in it should rank any lower than a 3/5, but I can't deny that this season was a big drop in quality for Psych.

3/5 Stars