Psych
| Psych | |
|---|---|
| File:Psych - intertitle.jpg Psych's intertitle | |
| Created by | Steve Franks |
| Starring | James Roday Dulé Hill Corbin Bernsen Kirsten Nelson Timothy Omundson Maggie Lawson |
| Country of origin | United States |
| No. of episodes | 24 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Running time | approx. 43 minutes |
| Original release | |
| Network | USA Network |
| Release | July 7, 2006 – present |
Psych is an American comedy-drama television series. The show stars James Roday as Shawn Spencer, a young police consultant whose "heightened observational skills" and impressive detective instincts allow him to convince people that he is psychic. The program also stars Dulé Hill as Shawn's best friend, straight man and reluctant partner Gus, as well as Corbin Bernsen as Shawn's captious father, Henry.
In flashbacks, we see that Henry Spencer assumed his son would follow in his footsteps, and become a law officer. In preparation, Henry helps Shawn hone his powers of observation and deduction, often using games and challenges to test him.
Shawn originally becomes known as a psychic when, after calling in a tip on a crime covered on the news, the police become suspicious of his knowledge. Theorizing that such knowledge could only come from the inside, they are about to arrest him when he uses his observations to convince all present that he is psychic. 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, he makes the most of it. 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 Gus, a socially awkward pharmaceutical representative, over his eclectic interests (including a love for comic books and superheroes, spelling bees, and astronomy).
The show is well known for frequent pop-culture references, mostly from the 80s and 90s.
The series airs in the US on Friday nights at 10PM ET/PT on the USA Network. It debuted July 7, 2006, immediately following the fifth season premiere of Monk. The show was the highest-rated basic cable television premiere of 2006.[1]
On June 26, 2007, Universal Studios Home Entertainment released the first season of Psych on DVD for Region 1.[2]
Characters
Main Characters
| Name | Portrayed by | Occupation/Status |
|---|---|---|
| Shawn Spencer | James Roday | A fake psychic who works with the SBPD |
| Burton 'Gus' Guster | Dulé Hill | Shawn's best friend and partner; works in pharmaceuticals |
| Carlton Lassiter | Timothy Omundson | Head detective for the SBPD |
| Juliet O'Hara | Maggie Lawson | Junior detective for the SBPD; Lassiter's partner |
| Karen Vick | Kirsten Nelson | Interim chief for the SBPD |
| Henry Spencer | Corbin Bernsen | Shawn's father; a former police detective |
| Young Shawn | Liam James | Shawn as a child |
| Young Gus | Issah Brown (Season 1), Carlos McCullers II (Season 2) | Gus as a child |
Recurring Characters
Former Characters
Episodes
Season 1
The first season comprises fifteen episodes and ran on USA Network from July 7, 2006 to March 2, 2007.
Season 2
Psych was renewed for a second season of sixteen episodes which began airing July 13, 2007.[3]
Season 3
Psych was renewed for a third season of sixteen episodes on September 16, 2007[1]
Production information
The show uses White Rock, British Columbia, Canada for its arid Santa Barbara, California setting. Psych also incorporates Vancouver and various locations around the Lower Mainland of British Columbia as a backdrop. The terrain portrayed in the series is very green and marked by bays and islands. Santa Barbara is on a mountainous coastline without bays and just has the few Channel Islands miles offshore. Many of the overlooking helicopter shots and set up shots (in which they show the outside of the Santa Barbara Courthouse) are actually filmed in Santa Barbara.[citation needed]
Response
Critical reaction and 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.[4]
From The Mercury News:
- James Roday (Miss Match) is utterly charming and delightfully funny as Shawn Spencer (who may not be psychic but who does have wonderful powers of observation), and he gets fine support from Corbin Bernsen (L.A. Law) as his cop father and Dulé Hill (The West Wing) as his Dr. Watson-esque sidekick.[5]
From the Seattle Post-Intelligencer:
- "Psych" is one of those happy collisions of an intelligent script and an appealing cast. Roday's a charmer, nice looking but more charismatic than pretty, and ably paired with West Wing alumnus Dulé Hill, who plays Shawn's ultra-responsible childhood friend Gus.[6]
From Entertainment Weekly:
- It's nonsensical, relies heavily on the likability of its leads to distract from thin plots, and won't leave much of a lasting impression. So why bother with a show that's the detective-series equivalent of Cannonball Run? Because as the CSIs and 24 go ever more gory, watching people who are clearly having a good time solve light mysteries makes a nice change.[7]
Nominations and awards
The following list shows the awards the show has been nominated for and won:
- Satellite Awards
- James Roday nominated for Best Actor in a Series, Comedy or Musical (2006)[8]
- Independent Investigations Group Annual Awards
- Psych winner of an IIG Award for Excellence in Entertainment for advancing the cause of science, and exposing superstition (2006)[9] [10]
DVD releases
| Title | Box art | Region 1 | Region 2 | Region 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season One | June 26 2007 |
International broadcasters
References
- ^ "PSYCH DEBUTS AS THIS YEAR'S MOST WATCHED NEW SHOW IN BASIC CABLE". The Futon Critic.
- ^ "Psych - 1st Season of Psych Available Either Alone or with Monk - S5". TVShowsOnDVD.com.
- ^ "USA NETWORK 'PSYCHED' FOR SECOND SEASON OF "PSYCH"". The Futon Critic.
- ^ http://www.thefutoncritic.com/pr.aspx?id=20060711usa01
- ^ http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/entertainment/columnists/charlie_mccollum/14976592.htm
- ^ http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/tv/276520_tv06.html
- ^ http://www.ew.com/ew/home/0,11146,~0~~,00.html
- ^ http://www.pressacademy.com/satawards/forms/pdf/2006-IPA-Nom-Announce.pdf
- ^ http://www.iigwest.com/investigations/2007/20070809_pressrelease.html
- ^ http://iigwest.com/iigawards
External links
