It’s So Hard To Say Goodbye. Review: Psych - “1967: A Psych Odyssey”

Season 8, Episode 6

Air Date: Wednesday, February 26, 2014, 9/8c on USA

Rating: ★★★★★

Maggie Lawson, James Roday and Dule Hill

With interim Chief Trout (Anthony Michael Hall) gone, Lassiter (Timothy Omundson in a dual role) sets his sights on the job. Mayor Swagerty (John Kapelos), however, sees this as an opportunity for Lassiter to prove himself worthy by solving the murder of his uncle Archie Baxter (Omundson), an investigative reporter killed back in the 60s. Will Lassiter be able to solve the case thereby winning the job he’s dreamed of? More important, will it be worth it?

I really enjoyed “1967: A Psych Odyssey” but, much like the title, I wonder if parts of this episode should have aired at another time. It felt like the writers had an idea for a goodbye episode and a 60s episode and decided to sandwich the 60s episode into the middle of the good bye episode instead of letting each shine on its own. Because of that, scenes feel rushed—especially Chief Vick’s (Kirsten Nelson) departure. She has been absent all season and now comes back for two minutes to say goodbye. As a fan, I felt it was Chief Vick’s night so I felt somewhat cheated she wasn’t in more of the episode. Apparently, so did Juliet (Maggie Lawson) and Shawn (James Roday).

Juliet: “Chief, you can’t leave.”

Shawn: “You’re not even back yet.”

Maggie Lawson and James Roday

I enjoyed seeing the cast go back to 1967 and thought the writers and cast did a wonderful job with the whole look and feel of things. However, it was like hearing bad news and then quickly moving onto something else. Some of the characters who departed left me disinterested in what was going on in the 60s.

This season has really lacked focus as the series winds down. Instead of building toward the end of its run, the eighth season of Psych feels more like a patchwork of episodes strung together. I wonder how much Maggie Lawson’s decision to leave the show to do her short-lived series Back in the Game plays into how discombobulated this season feels.

Dule Hill

In many ways, “1967: A Psych Odyssey” feels like a series finale because it gave me the emotional closure and good-byes from various cast members I wanted to see. I thought the way the goodbyes were written and acted are beautifully done. The problem is with the remaining cast. I’m not sure the final episodes can match the level of emotion I felt while watching “1967: A Psych Odyssey.”

When a series ends on its own terms, it’s often emotional but with four episodes left, I wonder how much of that emotion was used up in “1967: A Psych Odyssey.” For a show not known for being serious, the writers and cast sure stepped it up. Chief Vick’s departure was bad enough but then Juliet leaves at the end and it’s almost too much to take. Never in a million years would I have thought I would use the words “touching,” “emotional,” and “heartbreaking” to describe a scene between Lassiter and Juliet but even I started to tear up as I watched one of Psych’s most heart rendering scenes ever. It’s no surprise “1967: A Psych Odyssey” was written, in part, by James Roday and directed by Kirsten Nelson because you feel the heart that they put into the episode.

Random thoughts

Where has Henry (Corbin Bernsen) been this season? Other than a brief appearance here and there, he’s been absent and, may I say, missed.

Once again, we get to see Gus (Dule Hill) sing. I doubt I am the only one who wishes the writers had found a way to incorporate his singing talent into the show more. Maybe after Psych ends, the writers can work on creating a series about the Jamaican inspector starring Dule Hill.

Do you think what Juliet does to Shawn is cold-hearted? Is this a goodbye? What do you think about what she does?

Is Shawn still a psychic? It seems like he is just tagging along on cases but his whole fake psychic bit seems to be missing.

How fun would it be for Chief Vick and Juliet to show up in San Francisco and run into Adrian Monk (Tony Shalhoub) from the show Monk, which also ran on USA Network for eight seasons and ended its run in 2009?

Hard to believe there are only four episodes to go. With much of the emotion already used up, I am very curious to see how Psych ends.

Tweet me @staffaroadtrip or leave a comment below to let me know what you think about “1967: A Psych Odyssey.”

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Greg Staffa

I provide testosterone to the site. You won’t be reading about how nice a actress looks in a dress or how much of a hunk Matt Bomer is in my reviews. I describe colors using words like brown, not taupe. My twitter name is @staffaroadtrip because I love road trips and have done two different 48-state road trips since 2008. My favorite show is White Collar.