Psych: Fake Psychics, Real Detectives

The eclectic Shawn Spencer(James Roday) of the t.v. show Psych proves to be a great detective time and time again. Using a heightened sense of observation, he is able to pose as a psychic investigator who always gets his man. Along with the aid of Shawn's partner and childhood friend Burton "Gus" Guster(Dulé Hill), and a few helpful hints from his father, the phony psychic is capable of solving even the most outlandish of cases.

Of all the cops in Santa Barbara, Shawn Spencer interfered with the investigation led by Carlton Lassiter, or Lassie to a select few. It all began one night with a news story of a robbery on the television. Shawn deduced that the manager was in on the robbery and called in the tip to the police. When he stopped by the police department the next day for an accommodation for his tip, he was detained and questioned by Lassie. According to that old-hound-dog, it was impossible for anyone to have figured that out just by watching the news. Due to some quick thinking, Shawn told everyone he was psychic and used his brilliant deductive skills in order to walk away from the situation and make some money on the side doing what he does best. Ever since that faithful day, Lassie has always suspected that Spencer was lying but could never prove it. He holds a grudge against Shawn mainly because he's found a way of solving cases without all of the difficult police work that goes with it that Lassiter deals with on a regular basis. There have been times when Carlton does admit that he enjoys working with Spencer on certain occasions, but only after having a few beers before hand.

Lassister, of course, doesn't work alone. He is partnered with the lovely Juliet O'Hara. She, unlike Lassie, enjoys Shawn's assistance and even goes out of her way to help him on many cases without the chief's permission. The two have always had a little spark between them that Shawn has been trying to ignite for some time. Unfortunately for the both of them, when Jules finally came around and was willing to admit her feelings, Shawn had already reconnected with his old high school flame Abigail, who had reluctantly given Shawn a second chance after they reunited at their high school reunion. Most fans would love to see Shawn and Jules finally get together, but that could be a season or two from now if it ever does happen.

At the top of the precinct is Chief Vick, who is both new to motherhood and new to her job as chief. She gives out the assignments and is the one who chooses when to officially call in Shawn and Gus, even though they tend to take whatever job they want to. She was the first to admit that Spencer had some talent and is always willing to throw him a bone when he deserves one.

Finally, the key to Shawn's success comes from the training he received as a child from his father. At the start of each episode, we get a glimpse into the wonderful family that is the Spencers. Shawn usually makes some kind of mistake or gets into trouble and his dad teaches him a lesson to overcome said error. All of the lessons that Henry Spencer, his father, relayed to him were the key things he learned from his many years on the police force. Because of his constant pushing to make Shawn a great cop, a rift formed between the two as Shawn grew up and they still don't get along too well, but Henry is always there when Shawn needs him, even if it means flying to Canada to bail him out of prison.

Shawn's job wouldn't be possible without his right-hand man Gus. The two do almost everything together and Shawn would be sunk without the plentiful knowledge stored in Gus' mind. With his day job as a pharmaceutical salesman, Gus is certainly a very busy man, but he always makes room for Shawn, after a little persuasion of course. In their friendship, Gus provides the car, the spending money, the brains, and, on occasion, a distraction to provide Shawn with an opportunity to swipe some well needed information.

Gus provides a few smart alec remarks here and there that add to the comedic atmosphere of the show. He and Shawn, like many friends, have their fair share of bickering, always humorous sight. These two have managed to find a job where they can act like a couple of immature kids while solving a couple mysteries and still get paid to do it.