The Mentalist is an American drama television series that ran from September 23, 2008, until February 18, 2015, broadcasting 151 episodes over seven seasons, on CBS.
The show was created by Bruno Heller, who is also its executive producer. The show follows former "psychic" Patrick Jane (Simon Baker), who is a consultant to the California Bureau of Investigation (CBI), using the highly developed observational skills he previously employed to "read" people's minds.
The series follows Patrick Jane, an independent consultant for the California Bureau of Investigation (CBI) based in Sacramento, California. Although not an officer of the law, he uses his skills from his former career as a successful, yet admittedly fraudulent, psychic medium to help a team of CBI agents solve murders. The real reason for Jane's involvement with law enforcement is to track down the serial killer known as Red John, who was responsible for the brutal murders of his wife, Angela Ruskin Jane, and his daughter, Charlotte Anne Jane.
Found these TV-series on IMDB. Since the rating was 8.0, decided to give a try, and no regrets. Have finished to watch already the first season.
The first season of The Mentalist received mostly positive reviews, with critics being divided on the procedural format, but praising the performance of Simon Baker. On Rotten Tomatoes, season one had an overall rating of 53% from 19 critics, with the consensus saying, "The setup and episodic storytelling is far from original, but The Mentalist distinguishes itself from other procedurals mostly due to the talents of Simon Baker."
On Metacritic, season one has a score of 65/100, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
Robert Bianco of USA Today felt the pilot episode lacked in originality, but praised Baker, saying, "The Mentalist may be a copy, but it's a well-done copy sparked by an actor who has come into his own as a TV star."
Matthew Gilbert of The Boston Globe said, "the CBS show has very little dramatic heft or distinction, but it's wily and brisk enough to engage you for an hour." Gilbert also praised the chemistry between Baker and Tunney, but criticized the crime cases, feeling they were predictable and at times uninteresting.
Mary McNamara of The Los Angeles Times praised Baker as "virtually irresistible" and said, "...psychological sleight of hand can't fill an hour every week. For that you need complicated, interesting crimes and complicated, interesting characters solving them. The Mentalist seems prepared to deliver just that."