The most plausible Red John Theory to date.
I've probably read a thousand of these Red John theories, all very different. Some seem very convincing, others far-fetched. Some seem to add up until you take other things into consideration. After batting around many theories and suspects in my head, this is the only theory that holds up.
1. Red John is and is not on the list. (I will explain in 1A below.)
2. Red John is not a complicit member of Tiger, Tiger. (See 2A below)
3. Tiger, Tiger is about power (remember Bob Kirkland's and Reede Smith's convo on the park bench and later before Smith shoots Kirkland).
4. Bruno Heller and the writers intentionally created the "Brett Partridge" character to be the "favorite" suspect, so that even when he dies, people would believe he was Red John.
5. You cannot believe ALL the press clippings, as we get closer to the reveal, bc you can bet that media quotes by actors and writers, and Heller himself, are being used as misinformation. When Heller said that we would see Red John's face in the season 3 finale, he wanted you to believe that Bradley Whitford was Red John only bc Jane believed that it was in that moment (hence why he shot him). Jane realized his mistake at the start of the following season.
1A. Bruno Heller has been quoted as saying that we can "trust" the list of 7. He also said that in the season 5 finale, Red John's identity would be "revealed." Here's the problem with taking that at face value without reading more into it. If Jane indeed was able to narrow his list of possible Red John suspects down to 7, don't you think he'd be able to quickly deduce exactly who Red John is? The fact that he hasn't narrowed it down to 1 or 2 means that there is something about each of 7 suspects that doesn't add up. I believe therefore, that Red John was "revealed" but not necessarily "named" in that list of 7. I've seen other theories to this end, and I think it's likely.
2A. Red John and Tiger, Tiger do not work together. Tiger, Tiger uses the notoriety and killing style of Red John in order to carry out their killings. Throughout all 6 seasons of The Mentalist, Red John has been referred to consistently as a "serial killer." This is someone who kills because they can't resist the impulse. On the other hand Tiger, Tiger (who has carried out killings in the style of Red John) does so as a means of assassination and execution. I believe it was Tiger, Tiger that killed James Panzer in season 4, because they really didn't want him getting away with his crimes as SJK, and bc Jane provided the opening when he goaded "Red John" into committing the murder on TV.
3A. It is not to Tiger, Tiger's benefit that Red John be (publicly) caught. They like to use the legend of Red John to cover up their own doings. That's why Bertram, a confirmed member of Tiger, Tiger, keeps saying he wants to "be there" when Jane and company catch Red John. Maybe he wants to gum up the works and let Red John go. The members of Tiger, Tiger probably think they're doing something good with their deeds.
4A. It's impossible to watch almost any scene with Brett Partridge (except for the one in the desert where Jane glares at him) and not think "That's him!." His creepiness factor is just too good. I think Heller planned to have a character such as that in the pilot in order to divert everyone's attention from what was really going on. Heller was also quoted as saying that it was important that Brett die in episode 1 and that there was a big clue (in addition to him saying "Tiger, Tiger) in that final scene. Notice that Heller said "scene" and not "shot." The final scene, time-wise, was a very long one, maybe even interrupted by a commercial (which you obviously don't account for when filming). People are saying the big clue is "666" or the way the killer was wiping off the blade while talking to Jane on the phone or some trick involving the pigeons in the house. It's none of those. It's much simpler and a lot less symbolic than that.
5A. I think THE biggest clue (the one Heller refers to in a clandestine manner in the interview has to do with the GPS tracking devices that Lisbon is working on when she gets the call about the incident at the house on Wilson Street. As soon as we see that Partridge is there, we all say, "See, I KNEW he was Red John." Until Partidge winds up the victim instead. Please note that I do believe that it was Red john and not Tiger, Tiger that killed Partridge for two reasons. Heller said when asked, "Why did YOU kill Partridge?" "Actually Red John killed him." And Partridge said "Tiger, Tiger" to Lisbon as a way to warn the rest of his Tiger, Tiger group. Brett being a part of Tiger, Tiger is what got him killed. Heller did say that the list was "not a good list to be on." This must be why Red John seemed perfectly comfortable with Jane having this list of 7.
Other things:
Many people have stated that PJ has known this whole time who RJ is, or that the list of 7 is fake. Because that is like every other mentalist episode where Jane doesn't let the audience of members of Lisbon's team know what he's up to. I don't think that's the case here bc Jane is never emotionally involved in any of these other cases. The RJ case however, is deeply personal for him, and he's not likely to keep his cool, as we've seen in the episode 3 finale and 6.06. Jane is too close to the case to see what's really going on.
As far as who is in the credits of each show, that is also unreliable as again, the producers would have taken such assaults on secrecy into consideration when releasing the credits of future shows to the public.
THE APPLE DOESN'T FALL FAR FROM THE TREE.
Of all the suspects on the list of 7, only 1 has proved to be a ruthless killer (Bob Kirkland). While we do see Smith shooting Kirkland, his killing didn't have any of the sadism attached to it such as the way that Kirkland tortured and killed others. He tortured and killed Jane's list of fake suspects. When he couldn't be so open (like in a hospital) he poisoned. Kirkland has no qualms about killing. But we know from his end, that he was in pursuit of Red John. Notice that he asks everyone he's about to kill or torture. "Do you recognize me? Have you seen me before?" He even tells from of his victims that the question is important. This is because he isn't just pursuing Red John, he's trying to find his brother. He's either lost or dead. If someone recognizes Kirkland, they may know where his brother is. This is why he doesn't hesitate to kill them after they've said no.
I also believe that the reason Tiger, Tiger (Smith in this case) shot and killed Kirkland is because they do not know who Red John is.
The "Tyger tyger" and the fearful symmetry are one set of clues. But the biggest clue is this one. Partridge was the only cell phone (bugged) that showed up in the vicinity the night he was killed. So, either Partridge is Red John (and faked his death) or someone whose cell phone was not bugged is Red John. All of the named candidates had tracking on their cell phones that night. But there was one "pictured" candidate whose phone they didn't know or think to track.
Michael Kirkland.
On the season 5 finale, Red John was "revealed" but not named.
It was important, according to Heller, for Partridge to die in that first episode. Why? Because Lisbon still had the GPS tracking turned on.
In fact, it's possible that Smith killed Kirkland (in the fashion he did, on a lonely road, under the cover of night, with a fellow Tiger, Tiger conspirator) because the group thought that Bob Kirkland might have been Red John, and didn't want him confessing while in custody, thus ruining their plan to continue to use the Red John legend to carry out their work.
The constant scrutiny on Visualize and its influence in California and law enforcement, I think, is just a veiled reference--even metaphor-- to the real life influence of Scientology on Hollywood and the entertainment profession.
Red John has been hard to catch, but Tiger, Tiger will be harder to bring down.
