8 Great TV Shows That Would Have Had Incredible Prequels

5. Patrick Jane's Psychic Life - The Mentalist

The Premise: A cocky young trickster hustles his way to a fortune before coming face-to-face with a man who will change his life. The backstory behind The Mentalist is more fascinating than the actual show. A former psychic - he never had any particular gifts he was a con artist - never goes to school; he just joins a circus to show off his talents for cold reading. He marries another star of the show and together they have a daughter. In a tragic twist he teases a murderer on live television only for that very man to murder the two people he loves. The Mentalist Episode 1 begins at that point when Patrick Jane, living with the guilt of how his wife and child died, joins the California Bureau of Investigation to find this murderer, Red John, and kill him personally. There's so much potential for the story before the show starts, especially considering how brilliant lead actor Simon Baker is as an anti-hero; he was a con artist without any remorse for what he did, charismatic and using his "gifts" for personal gain. The Mentalist has arguably gone on too long and even Red John was brought to justice six seasons into the show: that's a story arc that's more than run its course. The truly fascinating stuff is totally unexplored within the show. It was hinted that Jane used to be a bit of an a-hole: don't we want to see more of that?