Photos
Video
RSS
Twitter'The Listener' review
"The Listener" will be the last drama to air at 10 p.m. Thursdays on NBC for a long time. That's not the show's fault -- it's just holding the fort till Jay Leno comes along in September.
But looking at the lineage of that timeslot over the last few decades -- "Hill Street Blues" to "L.A. Law" to "ER" -- it's kind of a downer to end the line with this not especially interesting placeholder.
"The Listener," an import from Canada, isn't a bad show, not really, and star Craig Olejnik has a sort of low-key tortured-soul aura about him that fits the role well. But the show doesn't really bring anything new to the table, and as such doesn't really succeed at holding attention over a full hour.
Olejnik plays Toby Logan, a rookie paramedic with a jocular partner (Ennis Esmer), a rocky relationship with his ER doctor ex-girlfriend (Mylène Dinh-Robic) -- and a big secret. He's a telepath, and he has been for most of his life. He has occasional flashes back to his troubled mother, who had the same ability, and discusses them with his mentor, Dr. Ray Mercer (Colm Feore, "24"), who has encouraged Toby to keep his mind-reading skills under wraps.
There are hints in the two episodes NBC sent out for review that Dr. Mercer knows more about Toby and his history than he lets on, and Toby's quest to recover his memories of that time will be an ongoing thread in an otherwise episodic show.
Mostly, though, Toby uses his ability to help people. Being able to read others' thoughts from a fair distance away is handy when your job is a first responder, and it allows him to be on the scene to help save lives and launch the case-of-the-week stories in each episode. The pilot concerns a car-crash victim who's keeping a secret about her son, and the second review episode (which, incidentally, is not the second half of Thursday's premiere but an episode scheduled for early July) is about a missing girl whom her mother believes is dead.
His ability usually puts Toby a step or two ahead of the cops, which causes the predictable conflict with the tough-but-beautiful detective (Lisa Marcos) who frequently crosses paths with him. He does, of course, manage to pass on information he has without revealing how he got it, and things tend to work out.
It's easy to trace "The Listener's" ancestry to "Medium," "Ghost Whisperer" and other shows where people with extra-sensory abilities use them to fight crime or otherwise do good, and that's most of the problem with the show. Toby's power isn't different enough, and he's not affected by it in a substantially different way, than the characters who've preceded him, so watching the show tends to bring on the Yogi Berra-esque feeling of deja vu all over again.
Olejnik does prove to be a pretty watchable actor, though, and admirably doesn't overdo it in scenes where what he sees and hears disturbing things or dredges up fragments of his past. To the extent that "The Listener" does prove interesting, it's mostly due to his performance.
"The Listener" still doesn't make for must-see TV, though. NBC's Thursday drama legacy is ending with more of a whimper than a bang.
Related:
Summer TV 2009: What to watch when it's too hot to go out
NBC summer: 'Philanthropist,' 'Listener,' 'I'm a Celebrity'
Post a comment
Zap2it Twitter Talk 
Picky point - it hasn't already aired north of the border. We do get the pilot a day earlier (tonight) though it will normally be in simulcast with NBC on Thursdays. Overseas markets have already seen the show, though.
Funny I was going to say exactly the same thing about it not airing already north of the border. I didn't watch the whole episode last night as it definitely didn't hold my attention plus I had other things to do - getting garbage ready for pick-up this morning , ha! CTV was definitely pushing it beforehand with the commercials but I'm not sure I'll continue to watch. It is nice to see different parts of Toronto and try and guess where they are.
My bad - I got a bad bit of information on its schedule in Canada. Post has been updated.
I have to agree that it doesn't do enough to hold your attention for the whole hour. I found the lead character to be good to watch but the relationship with the ER doctor doesn't work for me. She is rude and doesn't trust him, why would he want to be with her....on the other hand the relationship with the cop has promise. I'll watch another eppisode to see how it goes cause there is nothing on television right now.
I really liked the show and plan to keep watching it. It is better than a lot of other crap that is currently airing on the networks these days. The actor playing Toby doesn't overplay the part which would be an easy thing to do.
I agree with Louisa, the ER doc is rather rude. I could do without her. I like the chemistry he has with the detective.
I was extremely disappointed with this show. After seeing promos for a show that could spotlight a small gifted segment of society, I find a paramedic doing everything but his job, breaking and entering, obstructing police investigations, sexually harr***ing and stalking fellow employees, and in general doing everything that would get a civil servant fired and indicted for felonies. I'm not sure if it's the clueless writing by unknowns, the inept production, or the lack of real research into what a paramedic actually does for a living, but this 1970's approach to a 21st century drama is a mockery of the contributions of a small gifted segment of society. Instead of watching this next week, I'll tune in something more intellectually stimulating - The Home Shopping Network!
Go ahead Mike, that seems to be your intellectual speed. It is just a show, lighten up a bit.
Did Mike watch the same show that I watched? For one thing EMS has to do alot of breaking and entering. I have had to break down doors and even break windows to get into a house with a full code or a diabetic.
sexually harr***ing is another thing I laughed about. For one he used to date the doc and another I don't see him flirting with anyone else so far.
Well lets not forget this is reality TV and just like House MD they should be fired from there job soon.
I watched this show, and I liked it. I read a review putting it down. I saw idiots writing in, saying they were going to watch it, but changed their mind after reading the review. I decided to watch it and get my own opinion. I liked the show. Yes, it is similar to Ghost Whisper and Medium. Since I watch these two shows, this one caught my interest. Not every show is going to make a major impact. Just take it for what it is - another show.
I watched both episodes that aired back to back and enjoyed it. There's not much out there to watch so I'll continue to watch it. I enjoy the stories.