Dr. Katz: The Audio Files

I’ll admit: I was skeptical about an audiobook adaptation of *Dr. Katz*. The original show’s squiggle animation and muted palette were part of its charm—how could that translate to audio? Turns out, it *elevates* it. Jonathan Katz’s voice is the perfect vehicle for this material—his delivery is so dry it’s practically arid, and it makes every patient’s unraveling funnier by contrast. The standout here is Laura Silverman as the receptionist, whose exasperated interruptions (“*Dr. Katz!*”) feel like the audience’s id breaking through. The pacing is where this shines: sessions unfold like real conversations, with pauses and tangents that somehow land harder than scripted jokes. H. Jon Benjamin’s bit about a “stapler-based betrayal” had me rewinding three times. That said, it’s not perfect. A few segments drag—Rick Overton’s patient, while funny, overstays his welcome by a minute or two, and the lack of visuals means some callbacks (like the infamous “squiggle” references) might confuse newbies. But these are quibbles. The production is crisp, the performances are *alive*, and the humor ages like fine wine: still sharp, still weird, still deeply human. If you’ve ever sat on a therapist’s couch (or just *wanted* to rant at one), this is the audiobook equivalent of a perfect session—minus the co-pay.