As disappointed as I am in the way the ending played out, it does make some sense who RJ ended up being, and how pathetic he turns out to be.
At no point in this show has RJ been supremely intelligent. Just think about it. He got away with everything he did because of his friends. As fans we created this persona in our minds of some supremely intelligent bloke, but in reality he didn't have to be so, nor did he have to have Jane's insight and abilities. He could have had anyone hypnotize Kristina Frye.
However, with that in mind, the way that he was portrayed in this final episode was comically poor and a bit of an insult to fans. Why would he attempt to convince Jane not to kill him on the basis of Jane being a good man and that it would haunt him. Jane has killed before and RJ knows this. Hell, he's the one person Jane would absolutely kill. Why would someone as risk-centric as RJ be so afraid to die? There is inherent risk in what he does, so much so that death must be something that you're comfortable with. One's own mortality is something you'd be acutely accepting of. Why would he call 911? What a ridiculous thing to do. Why would he meet Jane with such little protection? He knows Jane's conviction and will. And why on earth would he possibly try to convince Jane that he has true psychic abilities, as he does right before he dies? WTF Heller?
Jane's planting of the gun was not ingenious. It was moronic. He clearly knew that Bertram was not RJ so how on earth could he be sure that RJ would reveal himself, and specifically in the church? How could he possibly sneak a pigeon in through a pat-down by someone in law enforcement?
There are so many more unanswered questions relating to past episodes that don't match up at all. On that note, the woman in the graveyard who screamed when RJ ran near her then calmly and very intentionally walked away from the police/FBI when they arrived. She even put her head down and the camera panned on her. Why? Only reason I can think of is that she was planted there by someone else in case something went wrong. Are we about to have a Timothy Carter 2.0? That would be lazy and insulting to fans as well. And if RJ is not RJ then why did he not use that info to save himself? He's clearly afraid to die.
I don't mind McAllister as RJ, but the way it played out was as if Heller wrote this episode specifically for CBS's children demographic. There was no battle of wits. No intellectual dialogue. Atrocious filler scenes that served no purpose to the RJ arc nor any possible subsequent arc. A horribly forced CBI 's FBI showdown. Some awful acting by guests and regulars alike. A Red John confrontation so bland that throwing salt at my TV seemed a reasonable action. Action akin to something Angela Lansbury is still capable of without a stunt double. And really lazy writing with some incredibly cheesy lines and scenes.
Overall one is left with so many questions and valid reasons to find this episode more of a parody of everything they're done, rather than a fitting end to 7 years of fan loyalty and appreciation. I'm almost left feeling like I no longer care what direction the show decides to take. I've lost faith in the creative team's ability to keep me entertained and I certainly have no interest in watching some new cast do the same thing day in, day out without a central protagonist.
Bruno Heller, you really weren't kidding when you said that we'd be disappointed. I thought you were kidding. Little did I know that you were understating the fact...
