Original artwork, not a still
I couldn’t help but overhear, probably because I was eavesdropping.
— Ally McBeal ‧ 1997
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
The speaker admits to overhearing a conversation, then undercuts the excuse by conceding it happened because of deliberate eavesdropping. The joke is the self-cancelling logic: "couldn't help" becomes "chose to." It is a cheerfully shameless confession of nosiness, delivered as if it were an explanation.
Context reviewed
