- Title: The Mentalist – Black Market
- wiki: link
“Black Market” feels a bit like a story concept that has struggled to make it to air for several seasons as Jane‘s (Simon Baker) illness forces Lisbon (Robin Tunney) into the role of fake psychic to draw out a killer. I think the idea is more interesting than the final product, but Tunney has fun with the script having Lisbon be the one to unmask a killer through a bit of subterfuge, grandstanding, and keen observation.
Other than Lisbon leading the unmasking, the murder tied to a counterfeit diamond operation is mostly forgettable. Subplots of the week involve Vega (Josie Loren) still struggling to win back Cho‘s (Tim Kang) trust and a storyline seemingly out of nowhere involving some questionable work in Abbott‘s (Rockmond Dunbar) past potentially threatening his wife (Christine Adams) from landing her dream job. The later seems to be laying groundwork for some late season drama, while the former (thankfully) appears to be over.