Help! Somebody (CBSRMT)

[chicagomilam]

I like this episode, so much that the ending bothers me. E.G. Marshall says it's up to the listener to figure out what the guy discovered. I'd like to know from those who've listened to it, what they came up with as to what the ending was about.

[vgarci]

Matt,
Can you tell us the episode number or the date of the broadcast? I'd be glad to offer comments.

[chicagomilam]

750818, Help! Somebody!

[brian1984_2001]

I rated this on an 8 in my listening log. I remarked that it was a poignant tale with a metaphor as subtle as a punch in the face.

I remember that the ending was strong (uncharacteristic of most Elspeth Eric scripts) and I won't say who "Somebody" was and spoil it for those who have not heard it.

However, I don't recall specifically what the final thought was.

[Texas]

Hoo, boy...chicagomilam, I may really step in it here but...

A) Elspeth Eric was fascinated by various psychological conditions, and; B) this seemed almost, by design, unfinished.

The central character, played by the late William Redfield, seemed (when I first heard the show a few weeks back, and when I listened again today) to have toward his father a bit of what some psychologists have called "defensive detachment" ( http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=%22defensive+detachment%22&btnG=Google+Search), which is usually described as one (of multiple) precursors to a certain condition.

Redfield's character didn't have that particular condition, but he exhibited the signs of the detachment...I've read stories (and personally experienced it, unfortunately) of those who didn't cry when they learned of their father's death. There are delayed effects, which can be devastating, of this choice (which can be conscious or unconscious) of detachment. "Unconscious" is key here...this is almost like being exposed to deadly amounts of radiation. Unless you know what to watch out for, you can sometimes take a lethal dose of it yet you don't know it's happening, or what it's doing to you.

In Redfield's character's case, he didn't seem to know what had happened, either. He was unable to find happiness...perhaps unable to find love. More aptly, he didn't [i:02977c2d48]understand[/i:02977c2d48] what true love really meant. His father may have tried to show love in death by leaving his fortune to Redfield, but that alone was a hollow substitute for the real thing. Again, trust me on this, as a boy when you "detach" from a man who by divine design was meant to be both your primary role model and your special source of respect, nurturing and support (although, sadly, many fathers don't do this, and Redfield's character's father didn't appear to, either) [i:02977c2d48]this is not an uncommon side effect[/i:02977c2d48].

(I guess the "feral dog" in the story (I won't go further, on Brian_1984's word) was almost a metaphor for Redfield's character. A creature without a family, adrift in the world without a true home to go to.)

Cort Benson's character seemed to connect the dots on this at the end for Redfield's character. From then, I got the feeling the latter man was going to see things in a whole different light...and that's where this unfinished story ended...

Just my .02.