In
my previous theory, I looked at pertinent points surrounding the mystery:
http://www.whoisredjohn.com/See-a-theory-Red-John/6218
I
intend to do a similar thing here.
I
urge that this is judged on the merit of the points, as opposed to my chosen
suspect – I feel too many theories on this website are disregarded based solely
on who they accuse, regardless of the content offered.
Although
I can’t conclusively accuse anyone, my gut instinct says McAllister, and I’ve
noticed a number of theories stating that ‘Bertram/Haffner/Stiles’ and ‘the
sheriff’ are the only plausible suspects – clearly a number of people think he’s
a dodgy guy.
If
we are being McAllister-specific, I would suggest – though it hasn’t been
touted before – that perhaps ‘rock-paper-scissors’ could be construed as a form
of fearful symmetry, but that is tenuous at best.
The Red Tattoo
– we must consider when the PI actually saw the tattoo – an answer, though not
a realistic one, is that it was visible when the murder was committed, although
I find it unlikely. More plausible is that it was visible when she met the
person who hired her, although I bodes the question of why she would’ve been
able to see it? If – and I haven’t stated conclusively – it was Red John, it
seems such an oversight that it must’ve been intentional, suggesting he wants
Jane to have the clue. A genuine oversight seems a bit of a poor solution. If
it was not Red John, it suggests the client clearly was not that worried.
Another
question is where they met, as the only plausible way for it to have been
visible is if he were in a vest, or his top was off. The vest option suggests a
gym to me. Top off could imply many more places, though if it were Red John,
maybe suggest some intimacy between the two.
Bugging the CBI
– again, we ask why. If it were Visualise, it suggests they have some need to
know what is going on. This suggests a high-ranking member – Stiles or Cooper,
or possibly Haffner. If it were Haffner, people ask why he did not do it
himself as he is an expert in surveillance – a solution is maybe he did, and
the other bug served as a red herring.
If
it were Red John, we ask why as he has been able to hack CBI fairly regularly –
a plausible answer is to suggest that he is someone with no access to CBI, thus
suggesting the guilty party is in the building – Bertram, if the list is
credible. Another solution is to lead Jane to the murder of the PI, which would
suggest the tattoo clue is intentional.
If
it were someone else, it suggests that the bug was what it was – the only way
someone outside of CBI could gain information readily. This, to my mind, covers
the rest of the list.
Lisbon’s arm
– although I have no clever theory to go with it, the fact remains she hurt her
arm doing a mystery thing, and I’m curious as to what. There must be some
relevance, or why bother with it?
Leaking the list
– why tell Lisbon about the list if Jane didn’t want the team to know? Some
possible solutions – it is part of his intricate plot to catch Red John. Red
John has Jane watched, or bugged – it is the action Red John would expect Jane
to do. Red John is one of the team, and the list is a massive red herring.
Phobias
– the theories suggest that Red John has a fear similar sounding to
‘acrophobia’, and that heights, insects and pigeons are all valid solutions. I
say that Sophie Miller said the person – who may or may not have been Red John
– may have had a real phobia – this isn’t conclusive enough evidence.
Michael Kirkland
– I’ve seen theories that suggest Michael Kirkland has been active as his
brother, so he met Jane whilst pretending to be Bob. I find that really
unfeasible – the idea that one twin led a double life in such a high-profile
role without the other knowing seems to be ludicrous. All Bob would need is a
conversation he hadn’t taken part in, a meeting he didn’t know, etc.
The mall, and Timothy Carter
– this bothered me for ages after I watched ‘Strawberries and Cream’ but I put
it to one side. The assassin’s plan to climb down for the room above implies
knowledge that the room above would be unoccupied – how could the assassin
guarantee this? I suspected Bertram for ages above this – also, how could
Timothy Carter have known to be at the mall where Bertram and Jane would be? A
suggestion is Jane was followed, as I don’t believe we see Carter or Jane
arrive, although Red John had a security guard – Ron Deutsch – in his power
too, so clearly some plan was in motion here that needed inside info in order
to succeed and, indeed, occur.
(Robin Tunney interview – I don’t like to consider the real world,
as I feel it defeats the deductive element of the show, but I will note this.
Robin Tunney said she was surprised when she found out who Red John was. This
implies – a) it was not someone on the list, which is possible, b) that it was
someone on the list whom she didn’t consider plausible, or c) she had her own
suspect, and it was someone else, hence she was surprised. At the moment, this
fact tells us nothing and it would be unwise to draw conclusions from it.)
