'Listen' to this inspired criticism
Dalton Boland
Issue date: 8/26/09 Section: The Edge
Looking for sci-fi police drama where the episode's perpetrator is brought to justice with a long jail sentence and a witty one-liner? I know I always am. If it sounds interesting, definitely check out "The Listener" on NBC. Haven't heard of it? Don't worry, no one has, but I can confidently say I have watched and enjoyed every episode. This is not because the show is well written, well acted, original, thought provoking or even generally good. It's because the show is none of those things.
"The Listener" accounts for the daily life of the aptly named Toby Logan, a paramedic who, more often than not, gets too involved in the victim's life and hunts down the criminals who assaulted them. Of course, he never actually fights anyone. Sure, he's willing to get into isolated environments with known criminals and accuse them of their crimes, but he likes to talk it out. I'm not sure how he hasn't been shot yet.
In what I like to call the Niko Bellic phenomena, he's awkward in every situation, but none of the other characters seem to notice. Seriously, this guy could be playing basketball at Rucker Park and playing piano in the Colonial Country Club in the same episode, and in both situations he would get the same amount of respect. Also, he can read people's minds. That's right, he's a genuine telepath. Just let that sink in for a second.
The show makes a point that Toby cannot control the frequency or quantity of his telepathy, but in actuality he can hear everything. The show doesn't even follow its own rules on his psychic abilities, which surprises me, seeing that the plot of every episode hinges on this ability.
The writers seem to take the "Lost" writing philosophy, where every rule is subject to change when most convenient for the story. And although this man in his 20s has supposedly kept his abilities secret for his whole life, within the first few episodes he reveals his secret to everyone he talks to on a regular basis.
Now if I were telepathic, which I am, I would try to keep that quiet. I assume that kind of secret could find its way into a newspaper pretty quickly in the real world.
The supernatural aside, the supporting cast doesn't bring much to the table. Toby's zany sidekick/ambulance driver, Oz, provides some laughs, but he's really just "Entourage"'s Turtle minus the hat and weed. Both of them are short and plump, aspire to be a part of the hip-hop scene and are completely codependent on the laid- back protagonist. But hey, as long as he stays funny, I'm OK with a little unoriginality.
I love to hate this show, and I wasn't lying when I said I've seen every episode. "The Listener" is so bad that it's good, so check it out.
"The Listener" accounts for the daily life of the aptly named Toby Logan, a paramedic who, more often than not, gets too involved in the victim's life and hunts down the criminals who assaulted them. Of course, he never actually fights anyone. Sure, he's willing to get into isolated environments with known criminals and accuse them of their crimes, but he likes to talk it out. I'm not sure how he hasn't been shot yet.
In what I like to call the Niko Bellic phenomena, he's awkward in every situation, but none of the other characters seem to notice. Seriously, this guy could be playing basketball at Rucker Park and playing piano in the Colonial Country Club in the same episode, and in both situations he would get the same amount of respect. Also, he can read people's minds. That's right, he's a genuine telepath. Just let that sink in for a second.
The show makes a point that Toby cannot control the frequency or quantity of his telepathy, but in actuality he can hear everything. The show doesn't even follow its own rules on his psychic abilities, which surprises me, seeing that the plot of every episode hinges on this ability.
The writers seem to take the "Lost" writing philosophy, where every rule is subject to change when most convenient for the story. And although this man in his 20s has supposedly kept his abilities secret for his whole life, within the first few episodes he reveals his secret to everyone he talks to on a regular basis.
Now if I were telepathic, which I am, I would try to keep that quiet. I assume that kind of secret could find its way into a newspaper pretty quickly in the real world.
The supernatural aside, the supporting cast doesn't bring much to the table. Toby's zany sidekick/ambulance driver, Oz, provides some laughs, but he's really just "Entourage"'s Turtle minus the hat and weed. Both of them are short and plump, aspire to be a part of the hip-hop scene and are completely codependent on the laid- back protagonist. But hey, as long as he stays funny, I'm OK with a little unoriginality.
I love to hate this show, and I wasn't lying when I said I've seen every episode. "The Listener" is so bad that it's good, so check it out.
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