Psych

Psych is an American detective comedy-drama television series created by Steve Franks for USA Network. The series stars James Roday Rodriguez as Shawn Spencer, a young crime consultant for the Santa Barbara Police Department whose "heightened observational skills" and impressive eidetic memory allow him to convince people that he solves cases with psychic abilities. The program also stars Dulé Hill as Shawn's intelligent best friend and reluctant partner Burton "Gus" Guster, as well as Corbin Bernsen as Shawn's father, Henry, a former detective with the Santa Barbara Police Department.
Psych premiered on July 7, 2006, following the fifth-season premiere of Monk, and continued to be paired with the series until Monk's conclusion on December 4, 2009. During the second season, an animated segment titled "The Big Adventures of Little Shawn and Gus" was added to the series. Psych was the highest-rated US basic cable television premiere of 2006. USA Network renewed the series for an eighth season on December 19, 2012, to include eight episodes, and ordered two more episodes on June 25, 2013, bringing the episode order to ten. On February 5, 2014, USA Network confirmed that the eighth season of Psych would be its last, with the series finale airing on March 26, 2014.
Psych: The Movie, a two-hour television film, aired on USA Network on December 7, 2017, launching the Psych film series, with Franks' hope being to make five more Psych movies following Psych: The Movie. On February 14, 2019, it was announced Psych: The Movie 2 was greenlit and set to premiere in late 2019, for which the main cast would return, but the premiere thereof was subsequently delayed to 2020, with the film renamed Psych 2: Lassie Come Home, and released on NBCUniversal's streaming service, Peacock, July 15, 2020, the day the service officially launched. On May 13, 2021, Peacock announced a third film, Psych 3: This Is Gus, which premiered on November 18, 2021. Three further Psych films are in development.
Overview
Most episodes begin with a cold open in the form of a flashback to Shawn and Gus' childhoods. The flashbacks usually involve Shawn and Gus being taught a lesson by a young Henry Spencer (Shawn's father) (Corbin Bernsen), who wishes that his son would follow in his footsteps and become a law enforcement officer. These lessons often play a role for the climax of the episode. As a child, Shawn was taught by Henry to hone his powers of observation and deduction, often using games and challenges to test him. Each flashback also sets the theme for the episode.
Shawn originally becomes known as a psychic when, after calling in tips on dozens of crimes covered on the news which help the police to close the case, the police become suspicious of his knowledge, theorizing that such knowledge could only come from the "inside" and unwilling to believe that it is merely Shawn having honed his observational skills. To avoid being sent to jail, Shawn uses those skills to convince the police that he is psychic; though the interim police chief warns Shawn that if his "powers" are fake, he will be prosecuted. With no choice but to keep up the act, and having proven himself an effective aid to the police in solving crimes, he establishes a psychic detective agency, Psych, and becomes an outside consultant to the police. Pretending to have psychic powers allows him to engage in strange and comic behavior as he turns real clues into hunches and otherworldly visitations. He enjoys teasing lifelong friend Burton Guster (Gus), a pharmaceutical sales representative, about Gus' eclectic interests as they drive around in a blue Toyota Echo nicknamed "The Blueberry" solving crimes.
Head detective Carlton Lassiter (Timothy Omundson), playfully nicknamed "Lassie" by Shawn and Gus, quietly comes to respect Shawn's crime-solving skills despite doubting his psychic abilities; Lassiter is constantly exasperated by Shawn keeping investigations ongoing and/or infuriated by Shawn's antics. However, junior detective Juliet "Jules" O'Hara (Maggie Lawson) and Chief Vick (Kirsten Nelson) are far less antagonistic – with O'Hara expressing belief in Shawn's abilities while Vick is mum on the subject – and usually willing to give Shawn the leeway he needs to solve cases. Henry and Shawn have a difficult relationship, but despite this, Henry reluctantly helps Shawn on various occasions.
Characters
Main
Shawn Spencer (James Roday) is a freelance consultant with the Santa Barbara Police Department who pretends to be a psychic.
Burton "Gus" Guster (Dulé Hill) is Shawn's best friend and business partner.
Carlton "Lassie" Lassiter (Timothy Omundson) is the head detective for the Santa Barbara Police Department.
Juliet "Jules" O'Hara (Maggie Lawson) is a junior detective for the Santa Barbara Police Department partnered with Lassiter.
Henry Spencer (Corbin Bernsen) is Shawn's uptight and precise father and a former police sergeant.
Karen Vick (Kirsten Nelson) is the SBPD Interim Chief and is later named Chief in "Shawn (and Gus) of the Dead" (main seasons 2–8, recurring season 1).
Lucinda Barry (Anne Dudek) is Lassiter's original partner and love interest in the pilot, she is transferred after Shawn tips off her relationship with Lassiter to the Santa Barbara Police Department (season 1).
Recurring
Young Shawn (seasons 1–5: Liam James; seasons 5–6: Skyler Gisondo) is the younger version of Shawn Spencer.
Young Gus (Carlos McCullers II) is the younger version of Burton "Gus" Guster.
Buzz McNab (Sage Brocklebank) is a naive but lovable cop who often provides Shawn and Gus with clues.
Madeleine Spencer (Cybill Shepherd) is a police psychologist who is Shawn's mother and Henry's ex-wife.
Abigail Lytar (Rachael Leigh Cook) is Shawn's high-school crush.
Winnie Guster (Phylicia Rashad) is Gus' mother.
Bill Guster (season 2: Ernie Hudson; season 3: Keith David) is Gus' father.
Mr. Yang (Ally Sheedy) is a serial killer.
Mary Lightly (Jimmi Simpson) is a department psychologist who is an expert on Mr. Yang.
Woody the Coroner (Kurt Fuller) is a police coroner with whom Shawn shares a mutual respect.
Pierre Despereaux (Cary Elwes) is an extremely elusive Canadian art thief.
Declan Rand (Nestor Carbonell) is a rich criminal profiler.
Marlowe Viccellio (Kristy Swanson) is a woman Lassiter meets and later marries.
Curt Smith (himself) is the singer of the band Tears for Fears.
Frank O'Hara (William Shatner) is Juliet's estranged father.
Rachael (Parminder Nagra) is Gus' girlfriend.
Lloyd French (Jeffrey Tambor) is Juliet's stepfather.
Harris Trout (Anthony Michael Hall) is a special consultant hired by the mayor to increase efficiency at the SBPD.
Betsy Brannigan (Mira Sorvino) takes over as the new head detective when Lassiter is promoted to chief.
Father Wesley (Ray Wise) is a Catholic priest and friend of Shawn and Gus.
Episodes
Production
The show uses White Rock, British Columbia, Canada for its Santa Barbara, California setting.
Casting
Anne Dudek's character was written out of the series after the character generated a negative test audience reaction with Lassiter due to their relationship. Maggie Lawson was cast as Juliet O'Hara to serve as a replacement.
Theme song
The theme song for Psych is "I Know You Know" by The Friendly Indians, series creator Steve Franks's band. Some episodes in seasons three through eight use an extended version of "I Know You Know" consisting of the first verse and the chorus, but most episodes use a shortened version consisting of mostly the chorus. In some episodes, the theme song is changed, usually as a tie-in to the theme of the episode to come.
Pineapple
In the "pilot", Roday improvised by picking up a pineapple and saying, "Should I slice this up for the road?" Since then, pineapples have appeared in every episode as a running gag, whether just one in the background or the actual mention of it. It is Shawn's go-to housewarming gift. The pineapple is a major marketing point for items related to the show on the USA website. Fan movements, such as fan-made websites, have also been dedicated to finding a pineapple or pineapple-related object in each episode.
Series finale aftershow
Following the series finale on March 26, 2014, USA Network aired a live aftershow entitled "Psych After Pshow." The hour-long special was hosted by Kevin Pereira and featured series stars and creator/executive producer Steve Franks.
Release
Syndication
In July 2011, Ion Television announced that Psych would become part of its 2012 broadcast in syndication. During 2012, reruns of the show mostly ran on Saturdays as a marathon. In 2013, Ion Television announced the acquisition option pick-up of season seven of Psych. It no longer airs on Ion Television. The deal with NBC Universal Cable & New Media Distribution adds all 16 new episodes of season seven to Ion's existing library of seasons one–six of Psych and includes rights to future seasons. As of January 2023, Psych started airing on Hallmark Movies and Mysteries.
Home media
Reception
Ratings
Psych scored a 4.51 rating and an average of 6.1 million total viewers at its premiere, which made it the highest-rated scripted series premiere on basic cable in 2006 in all key demographics (households, P18-49, P25-54, and total viewers), according to a USA Network press release, quoted from the Futon Critic.
Notes
Nominations and awards
Psych was the winner of the Independent Investigations Group Annual Award for "Excellence in Entertainment" for advancing the cause of science and exposing superstition. Accepting for Psych was staff writer Daniel Hsia. James Roday Rodriguez was nominated for the 2006 Satellite Award for Best Actor – TV Series Musical or Comedy. Rodriguez was also nominated for the 2009 Ewwy Award for Best Actor in a Comedy. Psych was nominated for its first Emmy Award in 2010 in the category Outstanding Music Composition for a Series for the episode "Mr. Yin Presents...". Adam Cohen and John Robert Wood were the composers for this episode. Psych was nominated for its second Emmy Award in 2012 in the category "Outstanding Creative Achievement in Interactive Media" for their interactive game "HashTag Killer". In 2012 and 2013, Psych was nominated for the People's Choice Award for "Best Cable TV Comedy". In 2014, Psych won the People's Choice Award for "Best Cable TV Comedy" in its last nomination.
Other media
Novels
William Rabkin has written and published five novels based on the series. The novels are written in third-person narrative style. Additionally, Chad Gervich (Small Screen, Big Picture) has published a crime-fighting guide based on methods presented in the show.
Film series
Once production on the original series wrapped, series creator Steve Franks had the idea to bring the Psych universe back in film form later on. On May 8, 2017, USA Network announced Psych: The Movie, a two-hour TV film to air December 7, 2017. All the original main cast would return for the film, directed by series creator Steve Franks and co-written by Franks and series star, James Roday Rodriguez. The first sequel, Psych 2: Lassie Come Home, was released on NBCUniversal's new streaming service, Peacock, on July 15, 2020. A third film, Psych 3: This Is Gus, followed on November 18, 2021. Three further Psych films are in development.
Podcast
The Psychologists Are In: A Psych Rewatch
Launched in November 2021, Maggie Lawson and Timothy Omundson have hosted a weekly rewatch podcast of the series and films. Episodes include plot recaps and behind-the-scenes memories from the two hosts. The series also features interviews with cast members, guest stars, and crew members, including writers, directors, and series creator Steve Franks.
References
External links
2006 American television series debuts
2014 American television series endings
2000s American comedy-drama television series
2010s American comedy-drama television series
2000s American crime drama television series
2010s American crime drama television series
2000s American police comedy television series
2010s American police comedy television series
2000s American police procedural television series
2010s American police procedural television series
American crime comedy television series
English-language television shows
Television series by Universal Television
Television shows set in Santa Barbara, California
Television shows filmed in Vancouver
USA Network original programming
American detective television series
Television series by Universal Content Productions