USA Network’s Psych was well represented by fans waiting in long, long lines waiting to get in to Ballroom 20 for Thursday’s television panels at Comic-Con. We know that we have a lot of Psych fans on CinemaBlend, and are going to try to Live Blog the SDCC panel (though WiFi is terrible in this room at the moment).
Here’s the bio prepped for the Psych panel as it gets ready to tease Season Eight:
For the fifth year running, cable TV's most beloved fake psychic detective series is bringing its signature brand of humor, pop culture nostalgia and delicious flavor to Comic-Con. Fans will get a unique, interactive peek behind the pineapple as the show's creative team discuss Psych's long-anticipated musical episode and upcoming season, share exclusive video content, and take audience questions galore. The panel, moderated by Psych guest star and ‘80s icon and fan favorite Cary Elwes (Pierre Despereaux), features stars James Roday (Shawn Spencer), Dulé Hill (Burton "Gus" Guster), Maggie Lawson (Juliet O'Hara), Tim Omundson (Carlton Lassiter), Kirsten Nelson (Chief Karen Vick), and Corbin Bernsen (Henry Spencer), as well as producers Steve Franks (creator and executive producer), Kelly Kulchak (executive producer), and Chris Henze (executive producer). Hilarious hijinks are highly likely to ensue.
And the panel is about to begin, right after this sizzle reel of past show highlights. Keep hitting refresh for updates. And “Suck it!”
1:08 Cary Elwes announced as the panel’s moderator, and this place is going nuts. “Let’s hear it for Psych fans!” he screams. Ballroom 20 explodes!
1:12 Cast intros! Corbin Bernson can't find a seat on the panel. He chooses to sit on the side of the stage. The crowd is eating this up!
1:13 Maggie Lawson and Tim Omundson get great responses. Hill comes out, and is a rock star. They're all playing to this rowdy crowd. You can tell they have been to Comic-Con the past five years. This is their joint!
1:15 James Roday is a sex symbol? Women are going nuts.
1:16 We've been told to Tweet using the hash tag #PsychSDCC. Get busy, people. Elwes asks the audience if they want Roday to join Twitter. He says that after a long wait, he's finally going to join. "It was about me being afraid. I don;'t want to be afraid anymore." He live Tweets from @JamesRoday for the first time from the SDCC stage. The crowd wants him to Tweet "Suck it!" Of course.
1:19 This has become a Twitter love fest. Steve Franks joins, as well. Follow him at @SteveFranks. They are going to have a contest to see who can get the most followers by the end of the panel.
1:20 Elwes asks the cast if they were going to do a Psych movie and recast their roles, who would play who? Omundson wins by saying he'd want Hal Holbrook to play his part. "Let's see his abs!"
1:23 Elwes is a great host. He asks Nelson, Omundson and Bernson to tell them "something deeply personal" about themselves. The cast talks in vague answers, but you can tell that they are having fun with these different questions. Bernsen, for instance, has a fear of spiders!
1:24 Roday tells Elwes that if he were to make a mix tape for the perfect road trip, it would have plenty of Cure, Depeche Mode and Tears for Fears on it. Seriously, they may never talk about the actual show, and the fans don't really seem to mind.
1:25 Ah, this is great! Hill is challenged to name as many nicknames for his character as he can in one minute. "Bad News Marvin Brown" gets the biggest laughs!
1:26 Elwes asks Frank about the news that there will be two additional episodes added to season eight. He says that there was a fan vote, which led to ... well, he introduces Jeff Wattell from the USA Network to reveal that Dream Therapy has won the fan-vote contest!
1:30 Elwes says that the Psych musical episode screened in San Diego on Wednesday night. Because most of the people in Ballroom 20 missed it, he encourages Hill and Roday to sing a number from the episode. They ham it up!
1:31 Nice! Now they're showing us clips from the musical episode!! It's fantastic! And melodic!
1:33 Franks says that they have been planning the musical since the show's pilot, but they waited to make sure they got it right. He says he knew that Dule and Maggie had musical backgrounds, and that he hears James sing when they shower together. (!!) Elwes asks the crowd if they think this musical "should go to Broadway?" The ballroom erupts!
1:36 Fan questions! Do the actors have a favorite prop from the set? Nelson wants to bring her Chief badge home. Hill says he wants to take the Blueberry, and the crowd cheers wildly. Lawson is about to answer when her microphone explodes in weird technical noise. Onundson uses it as an excuse to make killer fart jokes. Psych, people!
1:40 A man dressed in a Deadpool/Where's Waldo combo outfit asks if we'll see more "bad ass" Sean. The cast says there will be more "badd ass" Gus.
1:41 Next question: Any more themed episodes yet? Franks says they haven't done Harry Potter, visited London, or done a Guy Ritchie thriller ... so they plan to mash all of those elements together in an episode. Details to come! Roday also says they had a lot of fun going back and taking one of their old episodes and remade it, using Psych all-stars to help improve the episode. Roday says it's hysterical, and he's very excited for people to see it.
1:46 A charming lady steps up to the mic and lobs an "As you wish" at Elwes. Easy, but it gets a GREAT response. Elwes, himself, gives her a tender thank you.
1:47 Is McNabb reall fired? Will we see any more? "Officer McNabb is not done on Psych," Roday confirms.
1:47 Why, after the first episode, did the Psych logo go from blue to green? The producers think that it was a network decision, and now they're all married to "Psych Green."
1:48 How does Kirsten Nelson properply pronounce her name? She grabs her ear. "Kear-sten." So there you go.
1:50 It's also confirmed that Nelson directed a Psych episode for the upcoming season. The cast gushes about her talents behind the camera. "It's a love song," Nelson says about the episode. "It's a love song to Psych"
1:51 A little girl named Natalie says she watches Psych with her family. The cast LOVES her. LOVES!! She does a "suck it" and the ballroom explodes. The cast is going to match her, doing their best "suck its" Roday and Hill have an endless "Suck it" battle! This crowd can't get enough.
1:53 How come Gus has been so hungry this season? "That's a good question. Gus has a fast metabolism," Hill says. He says that running joke has expanded over the years. And he says that his snack of choice is Berman's nuts. I'm not sure if he's joking.
1:56 Last question ... A West Wing fan asks Hill the differences between the shows. "On one, I say 'Mr. President' a lot. On the other, I say 'Shawn!!' a lot!" Then he gushes about his writers on both projects. "I was just thankful to be in both."
And that's a wrap on the Psych panel, with the cast and crew thanking the fans in Comic-Con for all of the support they have shown this program over the years.
