For 8 seasons and 3 movies, Psych has been delivering hilarious misadventures, led by the main duo of Shawn Spencer and Burton Guster. Psych 3: This Is Gus on Peacock continues this tradition, foregrounding the duo's friendship and providing them with one hilarious circumstance after another.
Even though Shawn and Gus have most of the movie's most hilarious scenes, other characters, such as Carlton Lassiter and Chief Karen Vick, get in on some of the movie's funniest jokes. From beginning to end, the movie is packed with one joke after another, and might just be the funniest Psych movie to date.
Lassiter's Return Didn't Go As Expected:
"His Own Lawyer Framed Him? How?" "It's Simple. You Take An Empanada And You Wrap It In A Burrito."
Most of Psych 2: Lassie Come Home focused on Lassiter's recovery following being shot and suffering a stroke, a storyline that incorporated Timothy Omundson's real-life stroke and recovery process. Psych 3, naturally, finds Lassiter trying to return to work as much as he can, with some early assists from Shawn and Gus.
Aided by an earpiece and Shawn giving him guidance from out of view, Lassiter starts to make a compelling case for what suspect should be arrested for a crime... only to be derailed by Shawn and Gus feuding over an "empanadarrito." It leads to some incredibly awkward back and forth between Lassiter and the crowd listening to him, but it's absolutely hilarious in the moment.
Father Westley's Side Hustle:
"Father Westley Specializes In Exorcisms." "He Does Weddings, Too, Shawn. He's Also On Cameo."
Early on in Psych 3, Gus outlines everything he is handling in the wedding planning process to a disbelieving Shawn. One of these items is, of course, finding an officiant for the wedding. Gus has selected Father Westley, their old religion teacher, but Shawn rightly points out that the priest is perhaps best known for his work in exorcisms.
Gus counters that of course Father Westley also performs weddings since he is a priest after all. But as if that weren't enough, Father Westley is "also on Cameo," a very modern side hustle for a priest to have - and something made all the more hilarious by the fact that many Psych cast members are on the video request site as well.
Chief Vick's Latest Problem:
"Karen. May I Call You That? I Mean, In Light Of Recent Events." "I'm Not Changing My Name."
Psych usually lives firmly within its own world and timeline, but on the occasions on which the franchise does offer some social commentary, it never misses a step. When Shawn decides that he needs to investigate Selene's identity, he turns to Chief Vick for assistance in the investigation.
Yet right off the bat, Shawn and the Chief don't get off on the best foot, since Shawn comments on the less-than-enviable nature of her name, Karen, at this point in time and questions whether he can still call her that. Given the Chief's hilariously dry response, it's clearly not the first time she's heard this, and also not the first time Shawn has brought it up either, which just makes it even funnier.
When Shawn Got Really Meta For A Moment:
"My Name Is Shawn Spencer, And This Is My Partner, Burton Guster-Rodriguez." "Rodriguez?" "It's Always Been There, Man."
Shawn has many nicknames for Gus across the entire Psych franchise, and he introduces multiple new ones to the list in Psych 3 as well. One of these nicknames, however, is much more meta than the others, especially when it concerns Shawn himself - or at least the actor behind the iconic fake psychic detective.
When Shawn introduces Gus at Selene's old apartment building, he refers to him as "Burton Guster-Rodriguez," noting that Rodriguez has "always been there" This is, of course, a tongue-in-cheek reference to leading man James Roday Rodriguez, who went by James Roday for Psych's entire eight-season run and only recently added his birth surname back to his professional one.
Shawn And Gus's Fashion Show:
"Should We Slow Walk It?" "Shawn, Don't Ask Stupid Questions."
Through their many misadventures, Shawn and Gus have had their fair share of experience with fashion shows (in "Black and Tan: A Crime of Fashion") and high-stakes stunts and hero walks. Psych 3 combines both of those things and finds Shawn and Gus, garbed in two ridiculous costumes, strutting their stuff in exaggerated slow motion.
Of course, their slow-motion walk is cut short by the fact that their destination is only around the corner from their origin. It's a hilarious visual gag that the movie plays out to its full possible length.
Shawn And Gus's Self Awareness:
"Does It Have To Be A Movie Character?" "If You Want Us To Understand, Yes." "It Would Help Us Enormously."
More than most other shows in recent television history, Psych has many episodes that pay tribute to other films and shows. Shawn and Gus live in a world where their understanding of things is shaped profoundly by the popular culture they consume, even when it tests the patience of others who are trying to keep up with them.
Psych 3 gets wonderfully self-aware with this fact in a hilarious exchange between Shawn, Gus, and Selene's husband Alan Decker. When Alan is trying to summarize the criminal he's investigating, Shawn and Gus insist that "if [he] wants [them] to understand" the case, it really does have to be explained in terms of a movie.
When Psych Called Out USA Network:
"Do You Ever Watch USA Network?" "Not Since 2014." "And That Last Few Seasons Of Suits."
As should be clear by now, Psych is never afraid to get meta, but Psych 3 also shows that it isn't afraid to playfully bite the hand that originally fed it. When Shawn and Gus meet the woman who has been posing as Selene's sister, she claims that she is an actress. Naturally, they question if they've ever seen her in anything.
After claiming that they don't believe Peacock is a streaming service, Shawn and Gus take things one step further by taking two shots at Psych's original network, USA Network. Shawn hasn't watched USA Network "since 2014" (when Psych originally ended), while Gus hasn't watched since "that last few seasons of Suits" (during which Dulé Hill was a series regular).
When Shawn And Gus Improvised A Rikki-Tikki-Tavvi Song:
"Suck-It-Suck-It-Tavvi?" "The Mongoose Killed The Snake."
Shawn and Gus have many inside jokes, catchphrases, and shorthand that they use with one another, as a result of being best friends from childhood. While the many "Gus, don't be..." Psych jokes that Shawn uses might be the best known, the two friends also find hilarious ways to tell each other to "suck it."
In Psych 3, the duo takes this to a completely new level, repeating "suck it" over and over, faster and faster, until they come to the conclusion of launching into a Rikki-Tikki-Ravvi inspired song, consisting of "suck-it-suck-it-tavvi" and Shawn repeating the line "the mongoose killed the snake" in a dramatic 1980s pop style.
The Pitch Perfect Marvel Shout Out:
"Dude, Someone's Coming. Winter Soldier."
For anyone who has ever watched Psych, Shawn and Gus are undeniably best friend goals. Psych 3 functions as a real love letter to their friendship, while also finding a hilarious parallel between their relationship and another friendship that captivated fans in 2021: Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes.
While undercover, Shawn and Gus try to appear inconspicuous. Their answer? To enter "Winter Soldier" mode, which consists of striking poses reminiscent of those in promotional posters for The Falcon and the Winter Soldier - all while wearing uniforms with nametags reading Buck and Wilson.
When The Movie Redefined An Iconic Catchphrase:
"Come On, Son!"
Psych 3 features many of Psych's most famous running gags and recurring catchphrases, but it's the final act of the film that takes one of the series' best-known phrases and gives it a whole new meaning that changes the series in retrospect.
Shawn and Gus always exclaim "come on, son" to one another over the years, inspired by rapper and VJ Ed Lover. But as Selene goes into labor, with baby boy Guster soon to arrive, Gus frantically screams "come on, son!" in a moment that is completely hilarious and satisfying.