The wait is almost over, “Psych” fans. Among the many offerings that will be available when NBCUniversal’s new streaming service, Peacock, launches nationwide Wednesday is “Psych 2: Lassie Come Home,” the long-awaited sequel to “Psych: The Movie.”
Now, seeing as it’s been a while since the first “Psych” film debuted on USA Network in December 2017 — and even longer since the detective dramedy series ended its eight season run in 2014 — we’re willing to bet that even the most die-hard fans don’t remember exactly where we left things with Shawn (James Roday) and Gus (Dulé Hill). Well, don’t worry, because we’re here to recap it all for you so that you’re fully prepared for the premiere of “Psych 2: Lassie Come Home” tomorrow.
OK, so “Psych: The Movie” takes place three years after the series finale, with Shawn, Gus and Juliet (Maggie Lawson) still living in San Francisco, having relocated there in the show’s final episode.
The plot kicks off when Shawn and Gus set out to discover why Juliet’s partner at the San Fransisco police department, Sam Sloan (Sam Huntington), is shot by former police informant Billy (played by Zachary Levi) — or The Thin White Duke, as Shawn and Gus call him. They find out that he’s heading up a mysterious organization that is threatening Juliet, who doesn’t want Shawn and Gus’s help at first, but gives in after Sam is smothered to death in his hospital bed and it’s revealed his dongle, which contains details about some of Juliet’s unethical methods at SFPD, was stolen.
While the boys are investigating, Chief Vick (Kirsten Nelson)’s — who is up for consideration for a position as police commissioner — daughter is kidnapped and taken off to Alcatraz by The Thin White Duke. Gus, Shawn and Juliet head after them, only to see that man be killed by Allison Cowley (Mena Suvari), the real mastermind behind this entire operation.
“Psych” fans will remember Allison as a character from Season 5, who was serial killer Mr. Yin’s (Peter Weller) apprentice. She’s had it out for Juliet ever since she got her locked up for a decade, but Allison’s attempts to take out Shawn, Gus and Juliet are ultimately unsuccessful and the police show up to arrest Allison and her fellow bad guys and rescue Chief Vick’s daughter.
As the movie — which also included a few cameos by “Psych” characters like Chief Carlton Lassiter (Timothy Omundson), Woody Strode (Kurt Fuller) and Mary Lightly (Jimmi Simpson) — comes to a close, Shawn finally decides it’s time to tie the knot with Juliet after an acquaintance helps him relocate Shawn’s grandmother’s engagement ring, which was stolen from him three years ago when he was in the middle of proposing to Juliet in San Francisco, and Gus and his newly introduced love interest, played by Hill’s real-life wife Jazmyn Simon, seem to be heading toward a solid relationship themselves.
That’s when Ewan (John Cena), Juliet’s brother and former black-ops guy, bursts into Shawn’s office on the run from the authorities — and we’ve been waiting to find out what happens next ever since.
Now that you’re all caught up again, here’s the official description for “Psych 2: Lassie Come Home,” courtesy of Peacock:
Santa Barbara Police Chief Carlton Lassiter (Timothy Omundson, “This Is Us,” “American Housewife”) is ambushed on the job and left for dead. In a vintage Psych-style Hitchcockian nod, he begins to see impossible happenings around his recovery clinic. Shawn (James Roday, “A Million Little Things,” “Psych”) and Gus (Dulé Hill, “Suits,” “Psych”) return to Lassie’s side in Santa Barbara and are forced to navigate the personal, the professional, and possibly the supernatural. Separated from their new lives in San Francisco, our heroes find themselves unwelcome in their old stomping grounds as they secretly untangle a twisted case without the benefit of the police, their loved ones, or the quality sourdough bakeries of the Bay Area. What they uncover will change the course of their relationships forever.
“Psych 2: Lassie Come Home” is written by “Psych” creator Steve Franks, Andy Berman and Roday. Franks, Hill, Roday and Chris Henze executive produce, with Franks directing.