Kimball Cho

Kimball Cho
The Mentalist character
Tim Kang as Kimball Cho
First appearance	"Pilot"
Last appearance	"White Orchids"
Created by	Bruno Heller
Portrayed by	Tim Kang
Information
Nickname(s)	Cho, Ernie, Ice Man, Cho Friday
Gender	Male
Occupation	FBI Special Agent Former Agent for the California Bureau of Investigation Former U.S. Army
Title	Supervisory Special Agent (FBI) Special Agent (CBI)
Family	unknown
Significant other(s)	Elise Chaye (ex-girlfriend) Summer Edgecombe (ex-girlfriend)
Children	None
Nationality	Korean-American  USA

Kimball Cho is a fictional character portrayed by Tim Kang on the American TV crime drama The Mentalist. Cho is a former agent for the California Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and is currently an FBI special agent. Cho serves as the polar opposite to Patrick Jane, but is keen to learn his powers of observation.^[1] He is portrayed as straightforward and direct, but sometimes makes witty jokes with much of the humour lying in his ability to deadpan. According to The Mentalist Code, he received his name from Dr. Richard Kimble, just as Red John received his name from Fred Johnson, the one-armed man on The Fugitive.^[2]

Background

Before joining the CBI, Cho lived a varied past as a hopeful baseball player, a gang member of the "Avon Park Playboys" and a member of the U.S. Army Special Forces. As a member of the Playboys, he was known as "Iceman", because according to gang member Jon Jon, "if you wanted something done cold, you got Cho" — a reference to his cool and collected character. Jane remarks that this has not changed. At age 14, he stole a car and promptly crashed it. The turning point came when he shot the gang leader KS in the shoulder because he was planning for the Playboys to conduct a home invasion in which Cho did not wish to take part. Within weeks of getting out of the gang, Cho enlisted in the U.S. Army, eventually serving in the Special Forces.

On the job

Cho is well regarded by the CBI team, showing concern and the desire to help when Jane is going through difficulties. At most times, Cho seems to be the calmest and most clearheaded of the agents, but is shown to have a loose temper if someone he cares for is threatened. He is usually the agent that makes the arrest, reads suspects their rights and acts as the team’s main interrogator, often partnering Wayne Rigsby when attempting to chase down suspects. He and Rigsby often bet on Jane's abilities. In "Bloodstream", he is briefly placed in command of the team by LaRoche after Lisbon insults LaRoche. His loyalty to Lisbon is shown in this episode, as he offers to let her call the shots, but she refuses. In one episode, he shows some belief in the supernatural when a witch apparently casts a spell on him.

In season 3 episode "Bloodsport", Cho is forced into an uncomfortable position when he finds out Special Agent Wayne Rigsby, while lying to a parole officer to give his father an alibi, has named him as a person that could corroborate the alibi. Cho is angered and states in his time with the police (almost ten years), he has never lied to a fellow officer. Though unhappy about it, when LaRoche questions him, he sides with Rigsby and lies. He eventually forgives Rigsby.

In the third season episode "Rhapsody in Red", he meets a young pickpocket with a similar background to himself when he was young. The pickpocket steals Cho's car, and is later caught and held at CBI headquarters until foster care can take him. Cho ends up helping the kid prove his father, who had been arrested for robbing a store, is innocent. At the end of the episode, father and son are reunited, and Cho laughs as Rigsby reacts to having had his wallet stolen.

Early in season 4, Cho injures his back when he is hit by a car while chasing a suspect. This leaves him with constant and severe pain which he overcomes with the use of painkillers, of which he takes more and more as the pain remains. It is implied that Cho develops a dependence on these pills, which he notices in an incident which almost costs Rigsby his life. Cho is later seen flushing the pills down the toilet.

Two years after the events in the episode "Red John", it is revealed that Cho has joined the FBI and had spent months in Quantico for training. He is happy to see Jane again when Jane returns to the US.

Personal relationships

In the season 2 episode "Blood In, Blood Out", Cho is shown as having a girlfriend, Elise Chaye (portrayed by Sandrine Holt), who says he is talking even less than he normally does (because he is worrying about something), implying that he is a reserved man even when in a relationship. He evidently cared deeply for Elise, because after masked men threatened the pair of them and hit her, he became determined to find who they were.

He avoids alcohol, as shown in the episode "His Red Right Hand" when the other agents are drinking shots of tequila in memory of their dead colleagues. Cho raises his glass but does not drink from it, instead taking a sip from a bottle of water. Also, in the episode "A Price Above Rubies", Lisbon accepts a glass of champagne whereas Cho does not at a black tie event they were both attending.

In "Pink Chanel Suit", he states his parents were Korean. Cho speaks Korean in "Blood In, Blood Out" when he asks the victim's grandmother for forgiveness.

In season 4, Cho has a new love interest. Summer (played by Samaire Armstrong) is a prostitute, who first appeared in the episode "Pink Tops". She is questioned by Cho regarding the whereabouts of a drug dealer. She is later appointed by Cho as a CBI informant. A strong chemistry is shown between the two. Summer also notices Cho has a severe backache. In the episode "At First Blush", Summer confronts Cho after he fires her, saying she wants her job back and she has "given up everything else for this job". She asks him to admit he is firing her because he has feelings for her and doesn't know how to handle it. He admits he likes her. Summer slaps him, and after realizing what he said, kisses him. Cho is taken by surprise, but starts kissing her back. The two share a passionate kiss in the elevator. After Summer proves to be emotionally immature and damaged, Cho encourages her to move to Seattle to live with her sister and enroll in community college.^[3]

References

1. Tim Kang Chicago Now Interview
2. Daniel, David (2013). The Mentalist Code and the Search for Red John. (1st ed.). Rajanata. ISBN 978-1495942228
3. "The Mentalist Review: Who Can Make Kimball Cho Smile?". www.tvfanatic.com. Retrieved September 14, 2016.