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A powerful California CEO goes missing, and the CBI team is called in to find him in this witty, fast-paced episode of the CBS hit.

Software tycoon Jim Gulbrand is missing. The CBI team sets out to find him.

When they arrive at his swank boat, CBI consultant Patrick Jane and Agent Teresa Lisbon start looking around for clues. The boat is tied to the dock, but the anchor is also down. Lisbon has been paying attention to Jane and together, they figure out that Gulbrand is dead, his body tied to the boat’s anchor.

They notify Gulbrand’s girlfriend, Brooke Harper, a beautiful psychiatrist who treated the rich man’s no-good brother for substance abuse as a private clinic. Brooke is warm and friendly - a stark contrast to most coldly clinical head doctors. Jane quickly figures out that Gulbrand is a fraud.

As the team investigates, they learn that Harper is a con artist who swindles rich men out of their money. Gulbrand hid $10 million from his ex-wife during their divorce - money she is intent on getting her greedy little gold-digging hands on. Harper wants that money.

Gulbrand, who was the whimsical idea man of the business, asked a wheelchair-bound friend for help in hiding it. The CEO never told the man - who he hired as head of security - where he hid the cash, so the CBI team has to run through a few hoops to figure it out. The man, of course, can make an easy guess at where it is.

The case comes down to tailing Harper. Harper kidnaps the head of security and takes him at gun point to the train station, where she plans to use a key to open a locker where the money is likely hidden. As Jane predicted, the head of security gets out of his wheelchair and turns the tables on Harper, taking the money for himself.

How did Jane know this man was also a con? At one point, he drops the locker key on the ground. When he picks it up, he is able to take a good look at the bottom of the man’s shoes, which are scuffed. If he truly as paralyzed, his shoes would be nearly pristine. One of the best moments is when Jane says he has looked at shoes for years, but it never paid off - until then. I liked that the ruse didn’t work every time.

“Miss Red” keeps The Mentalist fans hopping - especially with the quippy repertoire between Jane and Harper. She is GOOD - and will likely escape from jail with her wits alone. I look forward to seeing her character in another episode sometime in the future.

It was fun to see the good and the bad side of observation. Jane is now one of the good guys; Harper uses her powers of observation to swindle and steal. It was a fantastic contrast.

I also loved the fact that Lisbon is catching on the powers of observation. It was great to watch the cameras follow the movements of Lisbon and Jane, who were in sync as their brains came to similar conclusions. They didn’t have to say anything. The visual of it spoke volumes.

However, my own powers of observation were apparently not too swift this week, as I cannot remember where the red was. Usually, the title somehow fits with something red in the episode to continue the Red John theme. However, I don’t remember Harper wearing red (or the bitchy ex, either). I remember some blood on the dead guy, but that is too easy - and doesn’t fit the title. I will have to take special care to watch next week so I don’t miss it.

I was glad this episode was better than the previous week’s “Red Sauce.” Of course, I guess a hit needs to take a dive every now and then to keep everyone on their toes - and keep stories fresh and interesting.

If you haven’t given in to The Mentalist craving, check it out at CBS.com, where you can watch free episodes.

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