The Mentalist, Part II
In the previous post about The Mentalist,
I described how the 'team,' collectively, was the body character in one
layer of mind, body and spirit. In this post, I will discuss how the
'team,' individually, make up a second layer of mind, body, and spirit.
This form of layering is fairly common in depictions of families in film and fiction. Shows like Family Ties or Joan of Arcadia have the same kind of construct, with the mother and father as mind and spirit and the children as the body in the first layer. The children, individually, then make up the second layer of mind, body, and spirit.
One of the classic cop mind characters is Joe Friday. His famous line, 'Just the facts, ma'am,' defines the mind character mentality. Kimball Cho is Joe Friday with a comic twist, but even then, the comic lines are delivered with an air of seriousness.
Cho doesn't like to get involved in side issues when he's on a case and of the three team members, he is the most likely to volunteer to help Jane. He knows Jane is usually right. Cho also shows very little emotion during an investigation. Everything he experiences comes across as just another part of the job.
In one episode, Cho describes his job as catching bad guys and putting them behind bars.
Van Pelt believes in psychic powers, even though Jane admits to being a fraud. Even if he was a fraud, there are others out there who might not be, in her opinion. She also believes in ghosts and in the spirit world.
In one episode, Jane actually calls her a very spiritual person. In the episode where Cho talks about catching bad guys and putting them behind bars, she describes her job as bringing justice to the world. Cho's view is more descriptive, but Van Pelt's is all about a noble cause.
Wayne is the biggest guy on the team, a common characteristic of body characters. He is also always eating. In one episode, he eats hors d'oeuvres and then is disturbed to learn the murder victim was poisoned. To emphasize this aspect of his character, Wayne is also repulsed by food that would be considered 'nutritious.'
Rigsby has a crush on Van Pelt, and later starts a relationship with her, despite the rules against such. He is violently jealous when it looks like Van Pelt is dating someone else (before they begin their relationship), but has no problem dating an older women who comes on to him during the course of an investigation.
Note: Since the first post on The Mentalist, I have begun watching season two, so the examples I use in this post are from either season one or season two.
This form of layering is fairly common in depictions of families in film and fiction. Shows like Family Ties or Joan of Arcadia have the same kind of construct, with the mother and father as mind and spirit and the children as the body in the first layer. The children, individually, then make up the second layer of mind, body, and spirit.
The Mind Character: Kimball Cho (Tim Kang)
One of the classic cop mind characters is Joe Friday. His famous line, 'Just the facts, ma'am,' defines the mind character mentality. Kimball Cho is Joe Friday with a comic twist, but even then, the comic lines are delivered with an air of seriousness.
Cho doesn't like to get involved in side issues when he's on a case and of the three team members, he is the most likely to volunteer to help Jane. He knows Jane is usually right. Cho also shows very little emotion during an investigation. Everything he experiences comes across as just another part of the job.
In one episode, Cho describes his job as catching bad guys and putting them behind bars.
The Spirit Character: Grace Van Pelt (Amanda Righetti)
Van Pelt believes in psychic powers, even though Jane admits to being a fraud. Even if he was a fraud, there are others out there who might not be, in her opinion. She also believes in ghosts and in the spirit world.
In one episode, Jane actually calls her a very spiritual person. In the episode where Cho talks about catching bad guys and putting them behind bars, she describes her job as bringing justice to the world. Cho's view is more descriptive, but Van Pelt's is all about a noble cause.
The Body Character: Wayne Rigsby (Owain Yeoman)
Wayne is the biggest guy on the team, a common characteristic of body characters. He is also always eating. In one episode, he eats hors d'oeuvres and then is disturbed to learn the murder victim was poisoned. To emphasize this aspect of his character, Wayne is also repulsed by food that would be considered 'nutritious.'
Rigsby has a crush on Van Pelt, and later starts a relationship with her, despite the rules against such. He is violently jealous when it looks like Van Pelt is dating someone else (before they begin their relationship), but has no problem dating an older women who comes on to him during the course of an investigation.
Note: Since the first post on The Mentalist, I have begun watching season two, so the examples I use in this post are from either season one or season two.
Comments
Post a Comment