One of the biggest surprises in the past few years from the USA Network has been the series, “Psych.” Following in the footsteps of the continuously popular “Monk”, “Psych” follows the misadventures of a fake psychic. We’re not talking “The Mentalist” here… oh no. This one came first… and is far more entertaining. Meet Shawn Spencer, the son of a retired cop and a bit of a loafer. He’s bounced around just about every job he can get away with not working and still hangs around with his boyhood pal, Gus. His father always had dreams of following in his footsteps, training him in every aspect of police work… but knows that he will never really amount to anything. Until he realizes his powers of hyper-observation (brought on by years of torturous training by his dad) allow him to convince the local police that he is a psychic who can help solve cases. When the 1st season hit DVD a couple of years ago, I was curious to check it out. I had no idea it would be the side-splittingly funny show that it was.

Every episode of that 1st season caused me to laugh uncontrollably… out loud. And it wasn’t so much because the show is so smartly written (it is). It was more because lead actors James Roday and Dule Hill were not only adept and quick-witted actors who delivered their lines with rapid fire assuredness, but worked so well together that you really believed they were friends from childhood. Watching them work together, I really had to wonder if they were in real life.

Now the series is heading into its 4th successful season, and I recently had the opportunity to watch the 3rd season DVD release and suffice to say. It continues to be one of the funniest shows on TV. Watching Roday go head to head with his father (wonderfully played by Corbin Bernsen), his partners at the police station (Timothy Omundson and Maggie Lawson) and continue to get his friend Gus in all kinds of trouble still sends my wife and I into gales of laughter.

Part of what also makes this series so fresh is the free-wheeling attitude of Roday and the uptight nature of Gus… not to mention their overall cowardice in the face of danger. When danger pops up, these guys are the first to run screaming like little girls, despite their show of confidence. Even better, the series really doesn’t make you think much when it comes to the mysteries. Clues pop up throughout the episodes, usually highlighted to the audience in order to show Shawn’s ‘powers’… but in the end it doesn’t really matter ‘whodunit.’ The show is created for entertainment value alone, and entertain it does.

All of the antics that come in the first 3 seasons perfectly set the stage for this season’s finale however when we are hit with the first semi-serious episode of the series. Shawn is forced to go up against a serial killer who means business. And when it gets personal, he pulls out all the stops to solve the case… forcing himself to keep up his ‘lassez faire’ front. It’s an awesome episode, made stronger by what the series was up until that point.

The 16 episodes delivered in this set are joined by a slew of special features including video and audio commentaries (all of which are worth watching and listening to) as well as some hysterical deleted scenes and an equally hysterical gag reel.

If you are only going to start collecting one TV series this year… “Psych” is the one to get!

Episodes:
Ghosts
Murder?... Anyone?...Anyone?... Bueller?
Daredevils!
The Greatest Adventure in the History of Basic Cable
Disco Didn’t Die. It was Murdered!
There Might Be Blood
Talk Derby to Me
Gus Walks Into a Bank
Christmas Joy
Six Feet Under the Sea
Lassie Did a Bad, Bad Thing
Earth, Wind and… Wait for It!
Any Given Friday Night at 10pm, 9pm Central
Truer Lies
Tuesday the 17th
An Evening with Mr. Yang

Starring: James Roday, Dule Hill
Extras: Video Commentaries, Audio Commentaries, Podcast Commentaries, Deleted Scenes, Gag Reel, Montages
Specifications: Widescreen (1:78.1), English Dolby Digital 2.0
Studio: Universal
Release Date: 7/21/2009
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
http://www.great-tv-shows.com

We'll give Psych: Season 3 an A.