Many of Germans their last name is " Haffner " or " Häffner " , so I guess " Haffner " is originally a German name . And we remember that Red John when he went to Dr Sophie Meller he faked his name to " Jay Ruth " and Ruth is a German name !!
Many of Germans their last name is " Haffner " or " Häffner " , so I guess " Haffner " is originally a German name . And we remember that Red John when he went to Dr Sophie Meller he faked his name to " Jay Ruth " and Ruth is a German name !!
Stay with me, folks. I firmly believe that someone else that we've already met is his twin. I believe this for one simple reason- from the first episode and all the way through- drinking tea in America with a proper tea plate and cup as a highly unusual trait (it's not England people). We know that Patrick really never knew his mother (possible split up at birth kind of thing) and the fact that both of them are ardent tea drinkers is a HUGE clue that has been laid out from the beginning. Whether it ends up being a listee or not, it will be someone that has a deep connection to Patrick, even a jealousy, which requires him/her to HAVE to outsmart Patrick therefore keeping him alive. That is why Bruno says we'll be let down when he unmasks RJ- the audience has already guessed that it could be Jane's twin. Maybe that person is on the list and maybe not, but follow the tea where it leads...follow the tea.....and Jane's genetically blue eyes. Whoever they are, they have blue eyes.
Some observations on my part:
for starters, I think the idea of the list as a plot element is very good, it helps build suspense and anticipation of the final reveal. But for me, the list is poorly done. From what I saw in the show, right off the bat I eliminated Kirkland, Stiles and Smith, then Partridge was killed off in the season premiere so really 45 minutes into the list of seven and we're down to three. I thought the list should have consisted of more exciting names, or basically just characters that don't make you write them off immediately. This format of going from one suspect to the next in each episode is wrong because it takes away a lot of the suspense, and in my opinion ordinary murder investigations just get in the way of the main story arc.
Also, I think Red John is on the list. I like what someone said in one of the theories, that we shouldn't overthink and overanalyze. Heller said we could trust the list so assuming he isn't blatantly lying to his own audience (he could have just kept quiet), we can expect RJ to be one of Bertram, McAllister and Haffner. And I don't understand why people assume the list is fake, or a trap of some kind. Unlike the list that Kirkland had stolen, this one was in Jane's head, and Red John somehow managed to come up with the same names.
As for the way Jane narrowed it down, I think it was weak and far-fetched. Out of more than a thousand people whom he had shaken hands with, he eliminated all those who couldn't have commited the Red John attributed murders. I find some things very shaky with this line of thinking. For one, the assumption is that RJ actually did commit all of the murders he's suspected of, Note here that getting only one murder scene wrong would be enough to leave RJ off the list, not to mention the fact he could have had a disciple do some of the killing. But now comes the really incredible part - Jane was somehow able to remember the whereabouts and alibis of dozens of people for the RJ murders. This begs the question how Jane would even go about finding all of this out, particularly considering Lorelei told him about the handshake fairly late in the game. Just doesn't seem plausible at all.
I noticed that quite a bit of theories here focus on the fact that a certain actor is listed in the episodes revolving around Red John, and so they have to be the primary suspect. I disagree with this because it should be easy to leave a name out of the cast list. Imagine you are Bruno Heller, you and your writers invested time and energy into closing the RJ story arc, only to have it all blown wide open by the simple fact that IMDb lists some actor for the Red John episode. Something as simple and irrelevant as a cast list should not play a part in one of the bigger reveals in recent television. If Heller really allowed such a blunder and it turned out you can actually guess Red John's identity simply by looking at the cast list for 608, then I will have no words.
I thought the show was rather poorly written and I haven't changed my mind watching the current season. There are, as always, tons of clues spread around randomly, only to thow us off, and the problem is that some of them are forced and completely implausible. For instance, Haffner and his whistling in Lisbon's hospital room. Your colleague, whom you supposedly like, was injured in the line of duty and left at the mercy of a ruthless murderer, you visit them in the hospital and afterwards almost go out of your way to whistle as you casually stroll out of the room. Give us some credit, Bruno. It's so out of place and unnecessary. Then there's McAllister's supposed fear of heights and pigeons and whatever. I just hate it when the show stoops to these lows.
There are some very nice theories here and I enjoy reading the site, but sadly The Mentalist is mostly in The Killing mould, meaning we can't really draw any strong conclusions based on known info, we have to wait for them to show us who did what. And I seem to be in the minority here as I consider the Tyger Tyger organization to be a nice plot point, it adds to the dynamic of the show if done properly.
Looking forward to new theories and finally closing the Red John case.
I know the true identity of Red John, because I'm Bruno Heller's cat and he confides in me everyday.
Michael Kirkland is Red John, and Bret Stiles is the Kirkland twins' true father. Brett Partridge is their mother, Reede Smith is their evil sister, Bertram is a poor uncle of this crazy family (must be Stile's brother because you have 'Bret' in 'Bertram'), McAllister is the loyal guard dog and... well, let's say Haffner is the goldfish.
Ah, family business...
I also have some ideas too:
First, I don't think RJ is not on the list. If Jane has a vogue list in his mind, I will be ok with the 7 suspects. Here he listed them down in black and white, everyone knows their names. They know RJ is there, sooner or later they can catch them. Nah, that's not a good approach for such a big fish like RJ, whom they have been searching for years. Moreover, the real murder is usually the least suspect in the big picture, I reckon the most plausible suspects in this site aren't RJ.
Second, all the 7 suspects are creepy somehow. If they let the bad guys play the bad guys, that's old school. We will have no feelings for "the one", if RJ is really on the list, except for the happy feelings when justice prevails.
Finally, for the sake of a detective show, I think the more shocking the result, the better, which means RJ'd better be the one we never suspect or even the one we adore - one of the main characters.
The most shocking truth could ever be is that PJ is RJ himself, but it seems to be eliminated. So, the rest share the chance: Lisbon, Rigsby, Van Pelt and Cho. If you read other theories about them, you will find out all of them are good candidates for the RJ role somehow. My bet is on Rigsby. Here is why:
-All the strange posters about him being isolated from the group or creepy.
-He will leave the show soon.
-This truth will fire a lot of question: how can't anyone ever notice this? how can't PJ miss this? what will happen to poor Van Pelt? how does RJ feel when working so close to PJ and playing him around. That's what I would love to watch.
No need to explain, I just know it's him.
Too clever to be on the list, probably had Jane's office bugged before he even moved in there.
He had the ugliest workout face I've ever seen.
- When lifting weights during a black and white montage.