"Talk Derby to Me" is the seventh episode of Season Three. Shawn and Gus help an undercover Juliet solve a string of robberies connected to a roller derby team, which she has recently infiltrated as their newest member.
Plot Summary[]
In 1987, Henry calls Shawn to come down, but Gus appears saying he will be representing his friend. Shawn then comes out after his dad calls him again. Henry asks Shawn to tell him which of his belongings he has taken away from him. Shawn looks around the room and notices his BB gun is missing. Shawn wonders how Henry knows that he was playing with it in the backyard against his orders and Henry throws a telling look at Gus.
In the present, Karen calls Shawn and Gus in after a group of fast-moving and highly organized thieves pull a smash and grab robbery at a department store. It is the third such hit in as many months and the SBPD have no leads. Gus is a little distracted. He's studying for his pharmaceutical rep re-certification exam and is annoyed when some green goo from the store ends up on his study guide. As soon as watchman Stuart Coburn shows the police the CCTV footage of the previous night, Shawn knows that the perpetrators were women. On the way out of the store, he sees scuff marks across the floor and puts it together - the thieves are roller derby athletes.
Shawn suggests Juliet go undercover and join one of the two teams that weren't competing all the nights of the robberies. Shawn sneaks into the locker room, where he discovers a broken watch that matches one he saw broken on the security tapes in the locker of Denise Fox, a bottle of wheel lubricant in the locker of Cynthia Wilde, and a used ticket to a reggae cruise in the locker of Toxic Waste. Shawn also notices that some of Juliet's new teammates have injuries that are more consistent with a robbery than with roller derby. Juliet spots Shawn and Gus and warns them not to blow her cover, but before they can leave, they are approached by two of her new teammates, Wilde and Fox. Juliet is then forced to introduce them as fans of hers.
Back at the Psych office, Juliet tells Shawn that she thinks she has a lead. One of the girls, nicknamed Toxic Waste, called her and said the team was impressed with her and thinks she'd be perfect for a big money making opportunity going down that night. Juliet thinks she's got an in on a robbery but Shawn, remembering seeing the cruise ticket in Toxic Waste's locker, tells her he's already eliminated her as a suspect. She has an alibi for the last robbery. Tonight is not what Juliet thinks it is. But Juliet pulls rank on Shawn and goes anyway, meeting Lassiter and her back up there. The gig turns out to be a music video shoot and Shawn covers for Juliet by telling Karen that it was his idea. While in police station, Shawn sees a list of the merchandise that was stolen during each robbery. Juliet is grateful to Shawn for covering for her with Karen, but in return Shawn insists that he now run point on the investigation. Juliet agrees and leaves for practice.
At the Psych office, Shawn recreates the merchandise lists, noting that the items stolen appear to be chosen at random. He also sees the green goo still on Gus' study guide and realizes that it matches the lubricant he saw in Wilde's locker. He knows for sure now that Wilde, along with Fox, was part of the robbery. Back at the arena, Juliet suspects the involvement of another teammate, Rita Westwood, after she discovers her excuse for cutting practice is a lie. She looks around Westwood's area of the locker room and finds a couple of hand scanners, which she fingerprints. She calls Shawn to let him know what she found, then he and Gus tail Westwood and spot a body in the back of her truck. They call Lassiter after they see her dumping it into the marina, but when Lassiter has the water dredged, the body turns out to be a mannequin. It's not a total loss, though, as they find much of the stolen merchandise was dumped as well. Meaning, the thieves were after something besides the goods they took. As Shawn and Gus leave the dump site, Wilde is there and recognizes that Juliet's supposed fans are working with the cops. She reports this in a call to one of the other girls, also commenting that Westwood messed up and needs to be dealt with.
Shawn and Gus go back to the department store to investigate and are told by Heather that all the credit card applications get shredded on Fridays, the day after the robberies took place. Shawn calls Juliet and tells her that the thieves were using the hand scanners to steal credit information, and thus the identities of unsuspecting store customers. As they are talking, Fox and Wilde approach Juliet and demand she come with them. Shawn overhears that right before Juliet hangs up. Shawn and Gus rush down to the arena to help Juliet and discover Westwood's dead body in the back of her truck. Knowing that Juliet is in imminent danger, they rush inside to see that she is in the middle of a game. By watching Fox and Wilde, Shawn and Gus see that the girls are angling to take Juliet out, in a violent and ultimately deadly way. As Wilde heads for Juliet, Gus makes his way onto the track and takes her out. Fox then tries to ram into Shawn, but Juliet clotheslines her and creates a pile-up, allowing for the arrest of the burglars.
Trivia[]
- The title is a play on the phrase "talk dirty to me".
- Denise Fox, Cynthia Wilde and Rita Westwood are named after Denise Westwood, Cynthia Fox and Rita Wilde, three radio DJs from the Los Angeles area whose shows on classic rock station KLOS (95.5 FM) the Psych writers would frequently listen to.
- The opening flashback is a reference to Shawn's horoscope for Henry in S2E6 "Meat Is Murder, But Murder Is Also Murder": "Sagittarius: Please return the BB gun you confiscated from your son in the second grade. P.S., you are a cranky-pants."
- Shawn's line about three-hole punchers would be the origin of a long-running inside joke among the Psych cast and crew, as Tim Meltreger had originally written it as "three-hole punches" and insisted that James Roday Rodriguez stick to the exact script because he considered it funnier that way. Throughout the rest of the series, members of the cast and crew would periodically mention the item while shooting and everyone else would pretend to laugh hysterically. This inside joke was referenced in S8E9 "A Nightmare on State Street" when Gus picks up a three-hole punch and all the zombies (played by crew members) start laughing at him.
- Mickie James is one of several wrestlers to make an appearance in the Psychverse. There's another wrestling reference at the end when Juliet takes out Denise with a clothesline.
- The building where the roller derby matches are held is named "Berman Auditorium" after Andy Berman, a prominent member of the Psych crew.
- Shawn introduces Gus to the team as Longbranch Pennywhistle, which is the band Glenn Frey was in with J. D. Souther before he formed the Eagles.
- Shawn tries to think of a silly nickname to "introduce" Gus to Heather, but he draws a blank. This is the only time in the entire series that that happens.
- This is the second time Juliet officially goes undercover (the first time was in S1E15 "Scary Sherry: Bianca's Toast"). Both times, her real personality starts to reflect her undercover personality (becoming more vapid and vain when undercover as a sorority member, and becoming more aggressive when undercover as a roller derby girl). The chief acknowledges this in a conversation with Juliet, stating that she tends to "dive in a little too deeply" when she goes undercover. Both episodes also show Juliet in her undercover (much more feminine) outfits at the police station, to comedic effect.
- The song playing during Juliet's first derby match is "Check Yes Juliet (Run Baby Run)" by We the Kings, and the scene appropriately opens with Juliet performing an elbow check on an opponent. The song playing during the second match is "One Way or Another" by Blondie. "Space Age Love Song" by A Flock of Seagulls is playing during Shawn and Juliet's "couple skate", which is a reference to an alternate music video for the song that features clips from the 1991 comedy Career Opportunities including a romantic roller skating sequence.
Quotes[]
Gus: What are we doing, Shawn?
Shawn: Well, for starters we're both growing mustaches very, very slowly. But we're also investigating.
Shawn: It was me. I felt a vibe. I got a message.
Karen: You did?
Shawn: Yes. Turns out it was a major metaphysical snafu. O'Hara said it was a non-start, I threw a tantrum. I was crying, kicking and stamping my little feet. [awkward pause] I mean, they're not abnormally small.
Shawn: You can't sit out here alone, in the dark, in a parked car. You'll get picked up for mopery.
Gus: "Mopery"?
Shawn: With intent to creep.
Shawn: Dude, I can't believe this. You lifted your look right off this mannequin.
Gus: On the contrary, Shawn. Clearly, someone is stealing my look.
Shawn: Right. I did see Tommy Hilfiger creeping from bush to bush sketching you.
Gus: You took my exam?
Shawn: A little harder than the river raft test. Way easier than the Secret Service test. Any of the questions I didn't know I just answered "C", right?
Gus: Oh my God... Oh my God.
Shawn: Dude, it's done, relax. And you know what? [high-pitched] Nailed it! Well... [high-pitched] Almost nailed it! At the very least, definitely didn't [high-pitched] blow it! I don't think!
Gallery[]
The gallery for "Talk Derby to Me" can be found here.
Digital Releases[]
