# Somebody explain the TV show "Bull" to me **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 15, 2019, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/somebody-explain-the-tv-show-bull-to-me/831198 "2019-03-15T21:35:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2019, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/somebody-explain-the-tv-show-bull-to-me/831198/1 "2019-03-15T21:35:53Z")
I don’t watch the show, but my wife does, and I’ve tried to pay attention to a couple of episodes but I have to admit I really don’t understand what is going on there. So, Bull is a “jury consultant”? He works with lawyers to select a jury that will return a favorable verdict? Isn’t that what any decent lawyer should know how to do anyway, without hiring a consultant? Also, it doesn’t seem like his business is a consulting business as such. Outside lawyers don’t come to him looking for help, but rather defendants come to him, and then he has his in-house lawyer(s) try the cases? Is that the way it works? Finally, what’s with the woman back at the office who’s staring at some giant monitor full of faces and giving Bull a real-time rundown on which jurors are leaning which way? How does she know what the jurors in the courtroom are thinking? And is there any courtroom in real life that would let someone sit at the lawyer’s table and talk over a headset to someone back at the office while the trial is going on? ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2019, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/somebody-explain-the-tv-show-bull-to-me/831198/2 "2019-03-15T21:40:11Z")
For someone who is just supposed to be a jury consultant, he sure does a lot of private investigating on behalf of the client. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2019, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/somebody-explain-the-tv-show-bull-to-me/831198/3 "2019-03-15T21:48:59Z")
Might help to know that [Dr. Bull is basically an idealized Dr. Phil.](https://deadline.com/2016/08/bull-tca-michaeal-weatherly-cbs-dr-phil-mcgraw-1201801403/) ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2019, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/somebody-explain-the-tv-show-bull-to-me/831198/4 "2019-03-15T21:51:07Z")
So, a “Gary Stu”? ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2019, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/somebody-explain-the-tv-show-bull-to-me/831198/5 "2019-03-15T21:52:28Z")
Or, being male, Gary Stu. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2019, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/somebody-explain-the-tv-show-bull-to-me/831198/6 "2019-03-15T21:54:46Z")
> [@Skywatcher](#): > > Might help to know that [Dr. Bull is basically an idealized Dr. Phil.](https://deadline.com/2016/08/bull-tca-michaeal-weatherly-cbs-dr-phil-mcgraw-1201801403/) Which is one of the reasons I avoid watching the show… 😉 Did Dr Phil really have a consulting business like that? If he did, I’m guessing it wasn’t successful? (Or he’d still be doing it.) ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2019, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/somebody-explain-the-tv-show-bull-to-me/831198/7 "2019-03-15T22:02:57Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > …Finally, what’s with the woman back at the office who’s staring at some giant monitor full of faces and giving Bull a real-time rundown on which jurors are leaning which way? How does she know what the jurors in the courtroom are thinking? And is there any courtroom in real life that would let someone sit at the lawyer’s table and talk over a headset to someone back at the office while the trial is going on? I haven’t watched the show, but this description immediately made me think of the 2003 move _Runaway Jury_, which was based on a John Grisham novel. Such scenes were prominent in the film, in which the villain, played by Gene Hackman, is a professional jury consultant. In the film the jury consultant was hired by the defendant, a weapon manufacturer. The Hackman character’s employees look at big screens that follow the jury members and research and surveil those members thoroughly, offering opinions such as you describe the TV series showing. I wouldn’t be surprised if the creators of the TV series were inspired by the movie (and/or novel), but wanted to make the jury consultant the hero rather than the villain. > **[Runaway Jury](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Runaway_Jury)** > > Runaway Jury is a 2003 American legal thriller film directed by Gary Fleder and starring John Cusack, Gene Hackman (who had also starred in The Firm and The Chamber), Dustin Hoffman and Rachel Weisz. An adaptation of John Grisham's 1996 novel The Runaway Jury, the film pits lawyer Wendell Rohr (Hoffman) against shady jury consultant Rankin Fitch (Hackman), who uses unlawful means to stack the jury with people sympathetic to the defense. Meanwhile, a high-stakes cat-and-mouse game begins when j In... By the way, it’s a real profession; wikipedia has: > [@](#): > > Trial consulting is the use of social scientists, particularly psychologists and communication experts, and economists, to aid attorneys in the presentation of a criminal trial or civil lawsuit. Modern trial consultants help prepare witnesses, improve arguments and rhetoric, and select juries.[1] > **[Trial consulting](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trial_consulting)** > > Trial consulting is the use of social scientists, particularly psychologists and communication experts, and economists, to aid attorneys in the presentation of a criminal trial or civil lawsuit. Modern trial consultants help prepare witnesses, improve arguments and rhetoric, focus group and mock trials, change of venue surveys, and select juries. > Traditionally sophisticated jury selection methods were a mainstay of trial consultants, they now "place far less emphasis on jury selection than they ... ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2019, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/somebody-explain-the-tv-show-bull-to-me/831198/8 "2019-03-15T22:09:37Z")
I’ve watched it a few times and found it to be the TV equivalent of oatmeal. The premise is complete bull (hence the title), it’s just a goofy pseudo modern conceit to hang weekly “solving crimes” plots onto. The lead character is as much Dr. Phil as I am. What’s odd to me about it is it fits neatly into the genre of “past their prime star solves crimes now” shows aimed at the retiree set (Barnaby Jones, Diagnosis Murder) - the oddness being that Michael Weatherly is not really past his prime, yah? I mean, if he spent a few months at the gym, he could probably handle the running and shooting type of show that David Boreanaz got himself into. But, I guess he’s comfortable with his target audience and making modest ratings and TV star bucks. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2019, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/somebody-explain-the-tv-show-bull-to-me/831198/9 "2019-03-15T23:12:17Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > Finally, what’s with the woman back at the office who’s staring at some giant monitor full of faces and giving Bull a real-time rundown on which jurors are leaning which way? How does she know what the jurors in the courtroom are thinking? The gimmick is that his people put together a “mirror jury” of people similar to those on the actual jury. ---
**Author:** ![gvntofly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/91b2a8/32.png) [@gvntofly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gvntofly)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2019, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/somebody-explain-the-tv-show-bull-to-me/831198/10 "2019-03-16T01:09:11Z")
It’s called Bull after the main character. He runs a jury consulting firm that sets up a ‘mirror’ jury. If Juror A is a white woman in her 50’s who hates men generally the chick with the huge monitor will have a live person on the mirror jury just like the real juror. If Juror B is an Asian man in his twenties who likes sports then the chick has exactly the same type of person on their mirror jury. This mirror jury stays through the entire trial to give Bull (and his employees) insight on how to ‘sway’ the jury to their side. Because they have access to the mirror jury they have insight into the real jury. And they can manipulate the outcome of the trials this way. I like Michael Weatherly so I like the show. It does highlight certain social questions though like how far anyone can be ‘just like’ someone else. It also poses a variety of privacy questions. ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2019, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/somebody-explain-the-tv-show-bull-to-me/831198/11 "2019-03-16T02:01:17Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > Which is one of the reasons I avoid watching the show… 😉 > > Did Dr Phil really have a consulting business like that? If he did, I’m guessing it wasn’t successful? (Or he’d still be doing it.) Going from memory here, but he was hired by Oprah Winfrey when she was sued by cattle ranchers after she had said on one of her shows that she would no longer eat hamburgers due to fear of mad cow disease. During the trial, she was down in Texas doing a remote version of her show. She eventually won the trial. His “straight talk” impressed her enough that she made him a regular guest on her show, which led to a show of his own, which led to his current media career. So, no idea how successful he was, but it wasn’t as lucrative as being blessed by Oprah. ---
**Author:** ![Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Springtime_for_Spacers)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2019, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/somebody-explain-the-tv-show-bull-to-me/831198/12 "2019-03-16T03:41:42Z")
> [@Icarus](#): > > I’ve watched it a few times and found it to be the TV equivalent of oatmeal. The premise is complete bull (hence the title), it’s just a goofy pseudo modern conceit to hang weekly “solving crimes” plots onto. The lead character is as much Dr. Phil as I am. What’s odd to me about it is it fits neatly into the genre of “past their prime star solves crimes now” shows aimed at the retiree set (Barnaby Jones, Diagnosis Murder) - the oddness being that Michael Weatherly is not really past his prime, yah? I mean, if he spent a few months at the gym, he could probably handle the running and shooting type of show that David Boreanaz got himself into. But, I guess he’s comfortable with his target audience and making modest ratings and TV star bucks. I have this feeling that Weatherly’s career trajectory will end with him playing the annoying Dad of a major character in an NCIS spinoff 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2019, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/somebody-explain-the-tv-show-bull-to-me/831198/13 "2019-03-16T13:25:05Z")
> [@gvntofly](#): > > It’s called Bull after the main character. > > He runs a jury consulting firm that sets up a ‘mirror’ jury. If Juror A is a white woman in her 50’s who hates men generally the chick with the huge monitor will have a live person on the mirror jury just like the real juror. If Juror B is an Asian man in his twenties who likes sports then the chick has exactly the same type of person on their mirror jury. > > This mirror jury stays through the entire trial to give Bull (and his employees) insight on how to ‘sway’ the jury to their side. Because they have access to the mirror jury they have insight into the real jury. And they can manipulate the outcome of the trials this way. > > I like Michael Weatherly so I like the show. It does highlight certain social questions though like how far anyone can be ‘just like’ someone else. It also poses a variety of privacy questions. OK, so is this “mirror jury” also sitting in the courtroom, and somehow in communication with the woman back at the office who is in communication with Bull? How do they find these mirror jurors? Are they employees of BullCorp or do they select them from the general public after the jury is seated? ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2019, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/somebody-explain-the-tv-show-bull-to-me/831198/14 "2019-03-16T13:40:03Z")
I liked that guy on NCIS but when I heard the premise for the show I just couldn’t watch. There are no jury consultants that operate that way, and why isn’t he a lawyer or detective anyway. I may be old but I’m not old enough to watch that pap. It’s embarrassing enough to admit I watched NCIS. ---
**Author:** ![Spud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spud/32/347_2.png) [@Spud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spud)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2019, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/somebody-explain-the-tv-show-bull-to-me/831198/15 "2019-03-16T13:40:22Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > OK, so is this “mirror jury” also sitting in the courtroom, and somehow in communication with the woman back at the office who is in communication with Bull? How do they find these mirror jurors? Are they employees of BullCorp or do they select them from the general public after the jury is seated? No, they are somewhere not disclosed yet seem to have live access to the actual trial. The term “Suspension of disbelief” is really handy here. My wife loves this show… I can tolerate it. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2019, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/somebody-explain-the-tv-show-bull-to-me/831198/16 "2019-03-16T13:48:33Z")
If you’ve had a tough day, where the jerks seem to be winning, and want a show that’s just for fun, where you \*KNOW \*the down-trodden defendant, wrongly accused by a heartless society, is going to be exonerated at the last second by some tricky sleuthing, watch it. (Or, hang out in Café Society on your laptop while your wife _thinks_ you’re watching TV with her…) It keeps reminding me of the Tim Roth show “Lie to Me”, where an almost identical consultant pulled last-minute rabbits out of almost identical hats. ---
**Author:** ![Spud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spud/32/347_2.png) [@Spud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spud)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2019, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/somebody-explain-the-tv-show-bull-to-me/831198/17 "2019-03-16T14:29:09Z")
> [@digs](#): > > (Or, hang out in Café Society on your laptop while your wife _thinks_ you’re watching TV with her…) Do you have a camera in my family room? [Outloud] Umm of course I’m watching… even with all that they only got one more juror to turn go green.[/Outloud] [In My Head] I can’t believe how many people don’t appreciate the beauty of a Big Mac [/In My Head] ---
**Author:** ![Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/channing_idaho_banks/32/250_2.png) [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Channing_Idaho_Banks)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2019, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/somebody-explain-the-tv-show-bull-to-me/831198/18 "2019-03-16T15:35:43Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > It’s embarrassing enough to admit I watched NCIS. Tell me about it. ---
**Author:** ![gvntofly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/91b2a8/32.png) [@gvntofly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gvntofly)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2019, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/somebody-explain-the-tv-show-bull-to-me/831198/19 "2019-03-16T15:36:26Z")
> [@digs](#): > > If you’ve had a tough day, where the jerks seem to be winning, and want a show that’s just for fun, where you \*KNOW \*the down-trodden defendant, wrongly accused by a heartless society, is going to be exonerated at the last second by some tricky sleuthing, watch it. > > (Or, hang out in Café Society on your laptop while your wife _thinks_ you’re watching TV with her…) > > It keeps reminding me of the Tim Roth show “Lie to Me”, where an almost identical consultant pulled last-minute rabbits out of almost identical hats. Such a fantastic show! I learned so much I still utilize currently. It’s nice you respect your wife so much. 😊 ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2019, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/somebody-explain-the-tv-show-bull-to-me/831198/20 "2019-03-16T16:28:05Z")
I saw the first few/several episodes and decided it’s going to be the same thing every week, so I stopped watching it.