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Spoiler-Free Advance Review: <i>Psych 2: Lassie Come Home.</i> Perhaps the Third Time Will Be the Charm

Air Date: Wednesday, July 15, 2020, on Peacock

“Gus, we’re home.” – Shawn

Rating: ★★★★★

Psychic detective Shawn Spencer (James Roday Rodriguez) and best friend and partner Burton “Gus” Guster (Dule Hill) return to Santa Barbara to investigate the ambush shooting of Police Chief Carlton Lassiter (Timothy Omundson). They quickly realize their former stomping grounds have changed and are a lot less friendly. Can the duo figure out the shooter’s identity before they return to finish the job?

Sometimes you have to forgo what’s expected to do what’s right. Omundson’s stroke in 2017 sent shockwaves through the Psych cast and fans. With the first Psych film gearing up for production, series creator Steve Franks and Roday scrambled to rewrite the script as Omundson began the long road to recovery. Despite briefly appearing in the movie, Omundson’s overall absence left a noticeable void. When the sequel was announced it was clear the story would revolve around Lassiter.

In the beginning, Psych 2: Lassie Come Home serves as a tribute to the character and Omundson’s recovery. Instead of the usual opening with young Shawn and his dad Henry (Corbin Bernsen), we see a young Lassiter (uncredited) and his father (Joel McHale). Lassiter’s fictional stroke and recovery mirror Omundson’s real life recovery making you realize the severity of what happened. This isn’t an actor playing a part; it’s a raw look at life after a major stroke. As Lassiter conveys what he’s going through, you can’t help but wonder how much of the dialogue is Omundson’s own words.

While the somber tone is warranted, it might feel out of place for fans looking for a full-fledged Psych movie. Making matters worse is the first half of the film feels like a reboot of the “Heeeeere’s Lassie” episode from season six where Lassiter hires Shawn and Gus to investigate the strange events happening where he’s living.  

As much as I appreciated the heartfelt moments, I quickly found myself bored. Tribute aside, while the title shares the name and cast of the beloved show, Psych 2: Lassie Come Home is quite different from the original series. I’m not sure if the show used different writers but something was off. I was even especially surprised by the adult nature of some of the jokes.

There are too many missed opportunities, especially with having Shawn and Gus return to Santa Barbara. It would have been fun to see random characters from various seasons encounter Shaun and Gus for absolutely no reason whatsoever. Scenes you would expect to be hilarious, like returning to the old Psych office, fall flat with the exception of one unexpected twist. Instead of moving on afterwards, the writers make it a running joke that never lands. As eager as I was to check out the film, I had to admit this wasn’t the Psych I had come to love.

Thankfully, things change for the better upon the return of a familiar face midway through. It’s as if a light switch were suddenly turned on making the flick feel like the Psych of old. The scene symbolizes the quintessential Psych humor to its core and represents everything I had come to expect from the show. This was classic Psych and I quickly found myself back on board and enjoying the remainder of the ride.

One of the things that surprised me about the movie is while almost every episode of the original series involved Shawn verbally getting into it with his father, their heated exchanges never had an impact on me until now. Words have consequences and their verbal blows connect with a powerful punch. Despite Psych airing for eight seasons and a movie, Psych 2 has some of the strongest character development for Shawn and Henry and I enjoyed how their storyline plays out. 

Despite picking up during the second half, Psych 2: Lassie Come Home comes across as a hodgepodge of recycled bits from past episodes of Psych. Between the frantic rewrites of the first film and the second one serving as a moving tribute I still find myself craving an all-encompassing Psych film that reminds me how much I miss the series. While acknowledging everything Omundson went through is important and I’m thankful for his recovery, with nothing on the Psych horizon to look forward to, I found myself wanting more.

Psych 2: Lassie Come Home isn’t without its moments. The film gets better as it progresses and each character has grown since we last saw them, and continues to grow. As a fan, it’s fascinating to be able to check in on the gang every few years and see how far they’ve come. Frankly, I wish Franks would bring the show back as a limited series consisting of five to six episodes every few years rather than putting all his eggs in one movie basket.

Tweet me @Staffaroadtrip or leave a comment below to let me know what you think about Psych 2: Lassie Come Home.

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Source: ©2020 NBCUniversal. All Rights Reserved.

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.

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.