This week, Fox aired the final episode of Joss Whedon's bizarre, complex, frustrating gem, "Dollhouse," and, frankly, I couldn't think of a more appropriate way for it to end.
This final episode, titled "Epitaph Two," crystallized everything that was right with the show -- and everything that ensured that it would never be a mainstream success. First, it likely made little to no sense to those who haven't seen the episode "Epitaph One," which never aired on television and was available only on DVD. I guess at this point, Whedon and co. figured that, if you've stuck with the show this long, you're hardcore enough to have sought out "One" on your own.
The episode also had the rush-rush-rush feel typical of this final set of episodes, in which the show's creative team had to cram everything it wanted to accomplish into just a few hours. Just as we suddenly learned a few weeks ago that Boyd was evil, "Epitaph Two" revealed that Alpha was actually a good guy now. Huh. Really? It's an interesting idea (and I embrace anything that gives us one last glimpse of Alan Tudyk), but I would have liked a greater explanation beyond "he's evolved."
Yet, I loved the episode both in spite of its flaws and because of them. I love all its weird plot twists and impenatrability. Much like Echo, its main character, "Dollhouse" can't totally be known and, anything it does unveil is like a gift to the patient admirer. This is a show that rewards commitment and hard work.
It's also damn entertaining. From the gorgeous, sun-bleached landscapes to the always well-done action sequences, "Epitaph Two" felt like a well-mounted dystopian thriller -- with great one-liners and a lot of heart.
When "Dollhouse" aired its first few weak-but-promising episodes, who would have known we'd eventually connect so strongly with Adele and Topher? I for one never would have guessed that I'd actually shed tears at a scene in which a grieving Echo downloaded an imprint of her late, departed Paul into her brain so that he would always be with her.
Also, a year ago, would anyone have guessed that Fran Kranz's bratty Topher would be the savior of humanity? Yet, due to the way the show has developed the character over the last season, it made perfect sense.
At any rate, here are some more thoughts on "Epitaph Two."
* From the "things I'd like to know more about" file, what the hell happened to Whiskey? We never found out how she came back to the Dollhouse fold after killing Bennett or how her face got fixed. And did she survive the events of "Epitaph One"? Where is she? Also, why did Tony become Victor? I guess we got some explanation of that, but I wanted more. How did he recruit his followers? What happened to him?
* For once, the best one-liner of the night went not to Topher, but to Alpha: "It speaks to the scizophrenic in me. Well, both of them, actually."
* Loved Adele as a weathered but ferocious Earth mother, growing crops and tending to her human flock. The maturation of that Adele/Topher relationship is one of the things I really enjoyed about the show's later episodes, and one of the reasons I'm glad the show got a second season.
* Nice job making the futuristic survivors guild we first glimpsed in "Epitaph One" into actual characters with only a little bit of screen time. They could have just been a catalyst; a device to get our main characters where they needed to be. Instead, I actually cared when Mag got shot. They felt real.
* People bust on Eliza Dushku's performance as Echo and, admittedly, I don't feel she has the range of Enver Gjokaj (Victor) or Dichen Lachman (Sierra). But her breakdown over Paul's death was heart-breaking.Well done.
* So who left the "Paul" imprint for Echo? My money is on Alpha. So what is up with Alpha? I know we've been promised that there won't be a follow-up book or movie or anything, but I'm kind of hoping that someone eventually writes "The Alpha Chronicles." Because I'd dig that.
* What a perfect final shot -- Echo, reunited with Paul and instrumental in saving humanity, crawls right back into her little Dollhouse bed. Poignant, sweet and devastating.
Was it just me, or did anyone else find this week's installment of "Dollhouse" difficult to watch? Between Echo getting that involuntary spinal tap (without, apparently, benefit of anesthetic) and the ultimate fate of Boyd Langton, the whole thing just made me queasy. I thought it was an excellent episode -- and far more emotionally involving than I thought the show would ever be when it debuted last year -- but I don't think I could ever watch it a second time. With that aside, here are some more thoughts on "The Hollow Men." * So, we now know why Rossum is so hot for Caroline's body: she apparently has an antibody in her blood that can be used to create a vaccine for Topher's hand-held imprinting device. That's why Boyd the Dollmaster lured her and company out to Rossum -- to harvest her spinal fluid. And let me tell you, based on that spinal tap scene, I hope I never have to have that procedure in my life. Because, yeesh, it looked painful. * Speaking of Boyd, the scene where he finally unmasked himself as Rossum's founder was really creepy. However, was it believable? Everything we've seen of Boyd Langton, security chief/doll handler has lead us to believe that he's calm, even-keeled and not the least bit ego-driven. Yet, once he reveals himself as the Dollmaster, he seems totally nuts. When he started talking about how much he loved everyone it made me skin crawl. And it seemed totally un-Boyd. I expected him to rationalize his behavior, but he gives little or no reason for his actions, save the desire to get Caroline's blood. Is his real personality that different from what we've seen these past two seasons? Apparently. I guess Victor-as-Topher was right -- the dude WAS a really good actor. * Despite that stark shift in Boyd's personality, I thought every scene between him and Echo was utterly shattering. From Echo's heart-broken realization that her father figure had been betraying her to Echo leading a mind-wiped Boyd to explode in the Rossum lab, it all made me die a little inside. When Echo looked at Boyd and uttered "I loved you" with that mix of agony and contempt, it was devastating. Excellent work by both Eliza Dushku and Harry Lennix in these scenes. * Also nice work by Fran Kranz and Olivia Williams in the scene where Topher and Adele both try to shoulder the blame for the existence of the hand-held wipe device. There's a real mother-son vibe between these two characters that I enjoy watching. * So, for those of you who wondered why November had been imprinted with Mellie's personality before the siege of Rossum, you got your answer: it was so we'd feel extra bad when November/Mellie shot herself in an attempt to resist her sleeper programming. * There sure is a lot of gender-bending on this show, isn't there? This week, we saw Whiskey/Saunders imprinted with Clyde Ambrose's personality (nice touch -- she was in full male drag, complete with suit and tie). Of course, we already knew that the original Dr. Saunders was a man, and that his personality was (I assume) modified to suit his new body. We've also seen Echo imprinted with a male serial killer and Victor/Tony imprinted with a sorority girl named Kiki. You know, if it weren't for all this nasty apocalypse business, the Dollhouse might have a nice second life as the world's most authentic drag cabaret. * In spite of all the grimness in this episode, we did get the always-welcome sight of Victor as Topher. I don't have anything significant to add about that -- I just like seeing Victor as Topher. Also, I'd like to once again beg any TV types out there to find a show for Enver Gjokaj. The man is just amazingly versatile. * Well, that's it for me. Don't forget that the last episode of "Dollhouse" has been postponed a week, due to the telethon for Haiti being held next Friday on all the networks. The episode will now air Jan. 29 at 9 p.m. on Fox.
OK, so, "Dollhouse" resumed its second season death march on Friday after a brief hiatus and may I just say -- Wow. What an amazing, unexpected, brain-smacking episode this was! This won't be a long post, because I'm still recovering from a rather nasty stomach bug that invaded our home this week. However, I couldn't let this episode go without comment, so here's my brief assessment of "Getting Closer." SPOILERS BELOW
Let's start with this week's big reveal. We finally learned the identity of the big cheese pulling all the strings at Rossum...and it turned out to be none other than Boyd Langton! It makes perfect sense, yet seemingly came out of left field. The fact that we learned this bit of news right after a particularly heartwarming conversation between Langton and Echo made it all the more devastating. But what is Langton's end game? Why did he allow Echo to be reunited with Caroline, knowing that it would allow her to identify him as the Dollmaster (yes, that's his new nickname -- deal with it)? And was Langton the one who ordered the siege of the Dollhouse (and the assassination of Bennett by Whiskey/Saunders)? Or was it someone else? Clearly, the reveal of Langton as the Dollmaster asks more questions than it answers. But I'm very excited about where this show is going -- and pleased by its ability to pull the rug out from under us in a believable way. Here are a few more thoughts on "Getting Closer": * OK, so, I am a little confused about the Echo/Caroline time-line now. We're led to believe that Caroline is made a doll after her meeting with Langton, which followed her break-in with Bennett. Was this the same break-in that got Caroline's boyfriend killed? That would make sense, time wise. But it doesn't look like the same break-in. None of Caroline's other eco-terrorists pals seem to be there. Was she captured twice by Rossum? That would explain why they had a file on her. I don't know. I'm confused. * Up until Langton was revealed as the Dollmaster, the episode's most shocking moment was Whiskey/Saunders cold-bloodedly killing Bennett Halverson. At first, I thought the murder stemmed from Saunders' intense hatred of Topher; that she couldn't stand to see him happy and had to kill the woman he loved. But we're told she was a sleeper, activated by Rossum. So who did it? Langton? As her lover, he would have the ability to do the task. Or was it someone else? Also, we learned from the Epitaph episode that Saunders is welcomed back into the Dollhouse fold (and has her face fixed). Just how does that happen? * On a different note, I'm kind of sad for the loss of Bennett, and the side that she brought out in Fran Kranz's Topher. Their awkward romance was sweet, poignant, and vastly entertaining. I especially liked Topher professing his admiration for Bennett with a singularly Topher-ian pick-up line: "You know I always had a crush on you. Even when I thought you were a dude." * We also learned this episode what Topher and Langton removed from Paul to make room for the Doll architecture: his love for Echo. But Topher said he only removed the connections that were the freshest, so I assume his feelings for Caroline remain. Interesting. * So, apparently, there is no "Rossum." It's just a name, taken from a play -- Karl Capek's 1920 "Rossum's Universal Robots," to be exact. The play is about a scientist named Rossum, who learns how to create human-like machines. No, I've not previously heard of it, but, apparently, Capek invented the word "robot" for the play. The word is derived from the Czech word for "forced labor."
Putting together a list of this year's top 10 shows proved harder than I anticipated. While last year was a relatively spotty year for TV (with the exception of excellent final seasons for "The Shield" and "The Wire"), 2009 offered a lot of reasons to love the boob tube. Several returning shows had particularly strong seasons and there were some truly smart and imaginative new offerings. To accommodate all the year's notable programming, I present not only the traditional top 10 list, but also an honorable mention and a list of runners up. Do you have a problem with that? I didn't think so. On to the list. 1. "Breaking Bad," AMC: After a strong, but uneven, first season, AMC's wrenching drama "Breaking Bad" blossomed into a devastating, much-watch series in its sophomore outing. With the initial exposition out of the way, the tale of drug-dealing chemistry teacher Walter White (Bryan Cranston, whose brilliance goes without saying at this point) and his slightly more seasoned sidekick Jesse (Aaron Paul) went into overdrive. The guys got deeper and deeper into the drug biz. They built up a crew, acquired a lawyer (the excellent Bob Odenkirk) and unleashed a whole lot of hell. At its best, "Breaking Bad" is smart, darkly funny and deeply unsettling. It's the year's best show and, along with "Mad Men," cements AMC's reputation as the new home for great drama.
2. "Lost," ABC: Yes, I know the new conventional wisdom is that cable is king and broadcast is yesterday's news. But this year, the networks offered a lot of top-notch programming, including the best season yet of ABC's fascinating sci-fi drama "Lost." This was the show's penultimate season, and it was a doozy. We had time travel, the surprisingly touching romance of Juliet and Sawyer and perhaps the year's most shocking finale. What if, it proposed, everything we'd been watching these five seasons could be undone? The show's final season will, presumably, provide the answer. I can't wait. In the meantime, check out one of the season's funniest moments here. 3. "Big Love," HBO: How does "Big Love" do it? How does it manage to make a drama about a polygamist family seem like just another family drama (albeit an incredibly well-acted and well-written one)? Three seasons in and I'm more hooked than ever on the story of Bill Hendrickson (Bill Paxton) and his three wives, played wonderfully by Jeanne Tripplehorn, Chloe Sevigny and Ginnifer Goodwin. This season, everyone shone but Sevigny was a particular highlight as her increasingly unstable Nikki Grant battled her daddy issues, her insecurities and a host of secrets. 4. "Mad Men," AMC: Granted, this season of the period drama "Mad Men" was a little slow. There were too many episodes focusing on adman Don Draper's (Jon Hamm) home life, particularly his increasingly dreary wife Betty (January Jones). But the season's best episodes were so phenomenal, they made up for any lags. How can you deny the brilliance of "My Old Kentucky Home," which includes the now-classic line "My name is Peggy Olson, and I want to smoke some marijuana?" Or the visceral shock of the lawn mower scene from "Guy Walks Into an Advertising Agency?" Or the devastating genius of this scene, in which Don finally reveals the truth about his past? It all led up to the unforgettable, game-changing finale, "Shut the Door, Have a Seat," in which the "Mad Men" world we knew unraveled, and morphed into something new and exciting. Truth is, I'm willing to put up with this show's slow spots, because it delivers the goods more often than not. And when it delivers the goods, few shows are better. 5. "Friday Night Lights," NBC/DirecTV 101 network: Sadly, many people still haven't seen any of the fourth season of the wonderful drama "Friday Night Lights." That's because you can only watch it on DirecTV's 101 channel. The season won't air on the show's other home, NBC, until the summer. That's a shame, because this is possibly the show's best season since its first. The series reinvigorated itself with a brilliant story about Coach Taylor (Kyle Chandler) being forced to helm the football team at East Dillon High, a hardscrabble school far less well-off than his former home, Dillon High. The show has also successfully introduced new characters and started to close out stories for some of its returning characters. These include tortured good guy Matt (Zach Gilford), whose character has been through the ringer this season. It's disappointing that this series has to fight to be noticed (to even be seen, in fact), because it's easily one of the most moving, intelligent shows on TV. 6."The Good Wife," CBS: 2009 presented a bunch of promising candidates for best new show, but CBS's "The Good Wife" gets my vote. "ER" vet Julianna Margulies plays a familiar type -- the betrayed wife of a scandalized politician. Left behind to raise her family after a dalliance with a prostitute lands hubby in jail, Margulies's Alicia Florrick returns to her legal career -- as a junior associate. Turns out, she's pretty good at her job. The show manages to be both procedural and compelling character drama, with Margulies giving a brave, powerful performance. Bonus: the husband, played by Chris Noth, is portrayed not as a complete jerk, but as a flawed guy who still loves his angry wife. Good, adult entertainment. 7. "Nurse Jackie," Showtime: The next best new show of the season, "Nurse Jackie" stars Edie Falco as the title character, an excellent nurse who is also a philanderer, drug addict and general rule-breaker. But you kind of love her anyway, thanks to Falco's spot-on performance. Bonus: Merritt Wever's performance as newbie nurse Zoe, maybe the year's funniest new character. 8. "True Blood," HBO: A surprise hit in its first season, HBO's vampire soap "True Blood" got even better in its second season, thanks to some truly insane plotlines, the deepening of several characters and LOTS of sex. Yes, the storyline involving Michelle Forbes's quasi-demoness Maryann was uneven, but it was never boring. And all the show's supporting characters were in top form this season, especially Alexander Skarsgard's Eric, Ryan Kwanten's Jason and Chris Bauer's hilarious Andy Bellefleur (I chuckle every time I think of Bauer's reading of the word "pizazz"). With so many elements clicking, there's only one thing I can say: bloody good show! 9. "Modern Family," ABC: Imagine if the Bluth family of "Arrested Development" was made entirely of well-meaning, decent people instead of self-centered brats. It sounds awful, doesn't it? Well, ABC's new sitcom "Modern Family" isn't awful. Not even a little bit. The show has the dry wit, wacky characters and mockumentary format of "Arrested," but has something else, too: a heart. This family isn't stabbing each other in the back. They love each other. And you know what? Loving families can be funny, too. Especially if the family members are played by deft performers like Ed O'Neill, Sofia Vergara, Ty Burrell and Eric Stonestreet. Don't believe me? Take a look at this. 10. "Dollhouse," Fox: Yes, I know that Geek Nation is up in arms because Fox didn't renew its challenging sci-fi series "Dollhouse" for a third season. But come on! It's a show that deals with heady topics such as personal identity, exploitation and our culture's growing dependence on technology. We should be happy it even got two seasons. Particularly since the show's second season has been nothing short of excellent. The show centers on a company that imprints mind-wiped humans, or "dolls," with new identities to meet the needs of clients. This season, doll Echo (Eliza Dushku), has developed a personality and free will. Other characters have deepened as well, including Dollhouse tech Topher (Fran Kranz) who has gone from a smarmy geek to a truly complex, compelling part of the show. So yeah, I'm sad this is the last season. But I'm glad we got to see "Dollhouse" at all. Honorable Mention -- ESPN's "30 for 30": Technically, this isn't a TV series but a series of occasional specials ESPN is running to celebrate the network's 30th year on the air. But it's too good not to mention. Each special focuses on a different story or personality in sports history. Each is helmed by a different director (Peter Berg and Barry Levinson are among the contributors). And each provides a truly fascinating look at the world of sports. Well-worth watching. Runners up: 1. "Dexter," Showtime: For John Lithgow's awesome performance as the season's chief villain, Arthur Mitchell. 2. "White Collar," USA: For being one of TV's most entertaining new shows, and providing a star-making role for the charming Matthew Bomer. 3. "The Closer," TNT: For being one of the few procedural dramas with a sense of humor that goes beyond darkly comic puns about body parts. 4. "30 Rock," NBC: For Alec Baldwin's continually great performance as Jack Donaghy 5. "Glee," Fox: For proving that a scripted series with musical numbers can work (take that, "Cop Rock!"). Also for Jane Lynch.
This week's "Dollhouse" recap is a wee bit late, and will be short, as I've had a busy weekend of Christmas prep (gift buying, gift wrapping, cookie baking, card filling-out, etc.) and am zonked. But I was impressed by this week's pair of episodes, "Meet Jane Doe/A Love Supreme." Though I've often observed (as have many others) that Eliza Dushku doesn't quite have the versatility required to play Echo, she was, admittedly, excellent in these two episodes, as we saw Echo finally becoming something close to a whole person.I would have liked to learn more about what happened during those three months between Echo's adventures in dumpster diving and her rebirth as Echo 2.0 (maybe Alpha Echo? Or is that too on the nose?). But overall, both episodes were solid. In "Jane Doe," we saw Adelle betray Topher in what seemed like a total act of self-preservation. Adelle clearly saw that her bad guys had no shot against the really bad guys, represented by Keith Carradine's smarmy Matthew Harding. So, she decided to play their game, and turned over Topher's design for the remote imprint. You know -- the one that will, presumably, have a hand in destroying the world. The scene in which Topher confronted her was brutal and an excellent moment for both Fran Kranz and Olivia Williams. "You're the coldest bitch on the planet," Kranz's Topher snarled at Adelle. He's kind of right, but maybe she felt she had no choice. In "Love Supreme," we saw the very welcome return of Alan Tudyk as Alpha, who started picking off Echo's old romantic engagements. We learned, of course, that this was all a giant ploy to get to Ballard. You see, while spying on Echo and Ballard, Alpha saw them hooking up -- and realized the Echo was in love with Ballard. Not imprinted-by-a-creepy-chair love, but real love. Alpha, seemingly, kills Ballard, but (spoiler if you haven't seen Epitaph One), we know he doesn't really die. So what happens? Overall, a smart, fun pair of episodes. And yes, it did feel a little strange to be watching a show about exploitation and human trafficking while I wrapped gifts for my 9-month-old nephew, but sometimes you have to multi-task. Here are a few more observations on "Meet Jane Doe"/"A Love Supreme." * Must say, it was a little jarring to see Glenn Morshower -- known mainly for playing stand-up guys on "24" and "Friday Night Lights" -- as a racist sheriff. In fact, that whole storyline felt like filler. I would have preferred a little more background on the evolution of Team Ballard/Echo/Langton instead. * After all that build-up on the Ballard/Echo relationship, I thought the actual consummation of it might be lame or a letdown. But it wasn't. The romance felt sweet, sexy and totally earned. * Ballard is kind of a tool, though -- at least when he scoffs at Echo's lack of culinary skills. "36 personalities and not one of them can cook." Dude, where are you from? The 1950s? Modernize, for Christ's sake. * It was a good night for Topher lines. In addition to his "coldest bitch on the planet" line, we also had that great moment when Topher learns that Echo can access her old imprints without the aid of the chair. "I'm obsolete," says a crushed Topher. "Now I know old people feel. And Blockbuster." * In addition to Carradine, Morshower and Tudyk, we also saw the return of Patton Oswalt as Joel Mynor. To date, Mynor is the only "client" that I've liked even a little bit. Maybe that's because he turned to the Dollhouse out of a broken heart after losing his wife. But other clients have used the Dollhouse to heal emotionally, and I still thought they were icky. Perhaps I only like Mynor because he's played by Oswalt, who kind of raises the game on every show he's on. * How scary was that scene when Alpha turned all the dolls into ass-kicking zombies? Scary, and beautifully choreographed. * I've raved a lot about Enver Gjokaj's uncanny ability to capture the voice and mannerisms of other characters on the show (see last week's hot Topher-on-Topher action). But Tudyk did an excellent job this week of capturing Tahmoh Penikett's voice in that scene when Alpha accessed the Ballard identity he'd imprinted himself with. Thoughts?
So, last night marked the start of the "Dollhouse" death march, as Fox aired back-to-back new episodes of the sci-fi drama -- not long after the network announced that it wouldn't renew the series for a third season. This was the first of three two-hour extravaganzas that will air this month...before the series' final three episodes are burned off in January. The series finale airs Jan. 22 at 9 p.m. But, as death marches go, last night's double whammy, "The Public Eye/The Left Hand," was pretty darn good. Spoilers below. First off, this week's ep featured an excellent guest cast, including Joss Whedon alumna Summer Glau, who played a brilliant -- albeit highly imbalanced -- programmer at the D.C. Dollhouse. We also saw the fabulous Ray Wise playing her boss, in a performance that renewed my sadness over the cancellation of "Reaper." Those two guests were most prominently featured in the second half of the double feature, as Adelle and Topher traveled to D.C. to retrieve Echo and learn more about Sen. Daniel Perrin (Alexis Denisoff), who was revealed to be some kind of active/human hybrid used by Rossum to discredit the Dollhouse theory. It was great to see Fran Kranz's Topher face off with Glau's Bennett, a character who is basically a female version of himself. His inevitable fascination with her (and what I gather was her at least semi-genuine infatuation with him) was fun to watch. Topher is possibly the character who has grown the most over the course of this brief series. This season alone, we've seen him vulnerable, regretful and oddly sympathetic. And here, we got to see him come close to falling in love. Well, until Bennett tried to have Echo killed. But such is love. Anyway, here are some bullet points on "The Public Eye/The Left Hand." * Not only did the episodes have great guest stars, we got see yet another great performance by Enver Gjokaj, arguably the show's most versatile actor. As Victor, he's been everything from the Dollhouse head of security to a serial killer to a bimbotic sorority girl. And here, we got to see him imprinted with the personality of Topher Brink. Oh my God -- so perfect. As always, Gjokaj flawlessly captured the voice, mannerisms and surface characteristic of the person Victor is "playing." The Topher-talks-to-Topher scenes in "The Left Hand" were a definite highlight. The episode's best exchange came when Real Topher described dead-armed Bennett to Victor Topher: Real T: "Imagine John Cassavetes in 'The Fury' as a hot chick." Victor T: "Which you know I often have!" Awesome! * Wow -- have to admit, I didn't see the Perrin twist coming. For much of the season, Denisof's scenes have felt like filler, but this week he got to shine as he learned a little about his past, and had to decide whether to face what happened to him or wipe it all away and continue to be used as a pawn. He chose the latter. Why, I wonder? Maybe he's not as strong as Echo, who has said repeatedly that she doesn't want to go back to the "sleep" of being an active. Anyway, he made the choice to be Rossum's monkey, and he took poor Madeline down with him. And how creepy/sad was that final scene of "The Left Hand," with Bennett, calmly standing over a terrified Madeline? Yeesh. * Dude, what did Caroline do to Bennett? More importantly, when did she do it? And why? Was it during the raid on the Rossum lab? And, though we learned that Bennett is probably not a doll, something is definitely wrong with her. But what? How long has she been in D.C.? Where did they find her? * What did you think?
As you may have heard, Fox has reportedly opted not to renew its fine, but abysmally rated, drama "Dollhouse" for a third season. The series will finish out the 13 episodes of its second season, with the last episode reportedly slated to air Jan. 22 (according to the Chicago Tribune's Maureen Ryan). Well, it's not a tremendous shock, is it? Everyone and his mother has been reporting how crummy the show's ratings are, and Fox pulled the series off the air for November sweeps (it returns Dec. 4). But it's a shame nonetheless, because "Dollhouse" has really hit its stride creatively this season. "Dollhouse," as fans know, is about a company that provides "dolls" (human beings imprinted with customized personalities) to wealthy clients for everything from sexual encounters to philanthropic pursuits. One "doll," called Echo (Eliza Dushku), is slowly discovering traces of her true identity, and the Dollhouse itself is under attack from a crusading politician. That's a pretty basic description of what's come to be a very a complex show. Though the series, created by "Buffy, the Vampire Slayer" mastermind Joss Whedon, started slow, it's matured into one of the most fascinating shows on TV. The last episode aired before the pre-sweeps yanking was the excellent "Belonging," which showed us how Echo's fellow doll Sierra (Dichen Lachman)came to the Dollhouse. It was everything good TV should be -- emotional, exciting and quietly devastating. If the remainder of the season's episodes are anywhere near as good, well, I'll just be grateful that Fox has agreed to air the whole second season. But I'll miss it. A lot.
This week's episode of "Dollhouse" was a pretty strong one, highlighting the show's creepy underpinnings (it is SERIOUSLY dangerous to meddle in family disputes, particularly when they involve homicidal maniacs), while also providing some solid entertainment value (every time I think of Victor as Kiki, I smile). Despite some weaknesses, which I'll touch on below, this episode is an example of how good "Dollhouse" can be. I seriously hope its ratings improve, because I'd really like to see where they're going with this. You? Below are some more thoughts on this week's episode "Belle Chose." * I like the moral complexity they're giving to Ballard as Echo's handler. Despite his decision to work for the Dollhouse -- and his own past with November/Madeline -- Ballard is SUPER uncomfortable with Echo going on sexually charged engagements. So much so that he'd rather profile a serial killer than watch Echo seduce a skeevy professor as the coquettish Kiki. Does this make him a hypocrite? Does it mean he truly cares for Echo/Caroline? Thoughts? * By the way, I loved the doll costume room and am glad we're seeing it again after that glimpse in the "Needs" episode. And I loved that image of Ballard and the other handler waiting awkwardly for their charges as they "shop." "I won't even do this for my wife," moans the other handler. Ha! * Ok, let's get into the meat of the episode -- the killer plot. Clearly, we're meant to notice that the sociopath in the coma isn't that different from the folks at the Dollhouse. He kidnaps women and forces them to play the roles of women in his life. He uses paralytics and not cutting edge technology, but there isn't a huge gap between this guy and Topher, brain scan not withstand. I guess Topher is marginally better, as he doesn't actually beat people to death with croquet mallets. Still, did he really have the right to get all judge-y about waking coma guy? Or, in the words of a highly amused Boyd Langton: "Topher has an ethical problem. Topher!" Also, isn't it kind of weird that no one remarks on the similarities between the killer's actions and the Dollhouse? Not even Ballard or Langton? Wouldn't someone say something? * In Topher's defense, I was happy to hear him use the phrase "man reaction" again. * Reservations about the killer scenario aside, I loved that this week's episode was really a showcase for Enver Gjokaj as Victor. It's hard to say I have a favorite "character" among the actives as they are, by definition, without character. But Gjokaj is by far the best actor, able to be convincing in any persona. He was amazingly creepy as the killer, and sounded just like the actor who played the part in the episode's early scenes. But he was just as convincing as Kiki, prancing around like a nympho sorority girl, oblivious to the fact that he's really a man. Oh, and what a dancer! * That said, it did Eliza Dushku a MAJOR disservice to have her and Gjokaj play the same characters. Though I think Dushku's really good as the evolving Echo, she's just not a chameleon-like performer, so it's hard to buy her as all these other characters. The scene where we realize the killer has been transferred to her body is jarring, and I did love the moment when "Echo" returns and warns the kidnapped women that the killer won't be truly gone until she is dead. But after Gjokaj's amazing, natural work as the same character, Dushku seemed a little flat. This isn't a knock on Dushku. When she's playing to her strengths, she's excellent. But Gjokaj is more versatile and this episode really showcased that. * By the way, if "Dollhouse" doesn't make it beyond this season, can someone please find a vehicle for Gjokaj? He's a real find, and I'd love to see what he can do with a more developed character. * OK, so why did Echo return to her body? Was it just a glitch? Or was it that she sensed what she was doing was evil and wanted to try and stop it? Also, the killer still seems to be in there. Is that just a tease, or is Mr. Creepy bound to return? * Also want to mention that Dr. Saunders's departure finally came up this week. I liked the disagreement between DeWitt and Langton over whether she's "missing" or if she just left. Their differing viewpoints on this matter of semantics speaks to a larger issue. DeWitt still sees Saunders as an active. Langton sees her as a person. For all his supposed loyalty to the Dollhouse, he sees the soul in Saunders, just as he eventually saw it in Echo. Makes you wonder about that loyalty, doesn't it? * One more point: Topher talks about the code needed to do a remote wipe via phone. I'm assuming this is the technology that he (or someone) will use to cause all the hell that happens in Epitaph One. Thoughts?
I've gone back and forth about writing weekly recaps on Fox's "Dollhouse," mainly because I don't often get to watch the show live, and because I'm not sure how much an interest there is in this show. I didn't get to do a recap last week because I had a few other things I needed to do, and I debated about whether to skip this week's recap as well. But, eventually, I decided it was a good idea to do a recap this week, and to check in with the show as often as I can. After all, I do like it and it's one of those shows that gives you plenty to talk about. Talk this week's episode for example. We open with that Ballard/Topher scene in which Topher babbles about how he's perfected "Dollhouse" technology to the point where he can make physical changes in the dolls, as well as mental ones. I was a little confused at first, because we did see him make some physical changes last year, as when he turned Echo into a blind woman so she could infiltrate that cult. But we shortly see what Topher's talking about: he's turned Echo into a young mom. And he's added all the bells and whistles, including maternal instinct and, um, lactation. Eek. Yeah -- no way this could go wrong. Turns out, the Dollhouse has been hired by a dad who lost his wife in childbirth. Due to her death, Dad can't bond with his son, so he hires Echo to love the child. Again, eek. Echo (as Emily, the mom), senses how distant the dad is and goes snooping. She finds what I assume are pictures of the man's dead wife and assumes he's having an affair. He tells her the woman is someone he loved who died and she believes him. All seems well, until Echo overhears Daddy calling the Dollhouse to come "take care" of Echo/Emily. Of course, she thinks this means "dead" as opposed to "rendered memory-free," and panics. Eventually, Echily attempts to flee with the baby, going so far as to contact the police. When the police learn that Echily, despite her protests, isn't the baby's mama, they take the child away and Ballard takes Echily back to the Dollhouse so she can become Echo again. Except...it doesn't work. Echo retains memory of the baby, whether as a continuation of the composite effect she's experiencing or because, (as Ballard tells Topher) the maternal instinct he gave her was so strong that it couldn't be erased with a regular wipe. Whatever it is, Echo takes out Topher with a palm to the nose and runs back to get what she thinks is her baby. She nabs the kid, and threatens Dad with a knife, but he manages to calm her down, convincing her it isn't really her child. She drops the knife and Ballard comes in to collect her. Now here's the part I want to talk about. Echo tells Ballard how intensely she loved the baby, and how much it hurt when he was taken away. She doesn't understand why it's necessary for the Dollhouse to give her such real feelings on engagements. Because she really does feel everything they've ever done to her. Ballard tells her he knows that she remembers the other identities. No, she tells him. Not remember. Feel. She feels that she got married. She feels motherhood. And it all hurts. Ballard, in an odd, but convincing, twist, suggests she tell Topher. Maybe he can fix her so she doesn't feel all the painful memories. After all, he's willing to tackle the Dollhouse himself. He doesn't need her to keep putting her heart and soul at risk. No, she tells him. Feeling nothing would be even worse than feeling pain. She was asleep before. She wants to be awake now. What do you make of this exchange? It's sort of the mirror image of the conversation between Ballard and November/Madeline earlier in the episode, in which she tells him that she preferred to "sleep" for five years rather than deal with the pain of losing her daughter. Echo prefers the pain. She prefers awareness. She wants to be whole again, inasmuch as that's possible. Another thing I want to pull from this scene is Ballard's seemingly selfless offer to take Echo's pain away. For the past season or so, we watched him trying to find Caroline, Echo's true self. Now, he's willing to sacrifice Caroline so Echo doesn't suffer. So where does Ballard's obsession lie? Is he now obsessed with Echo, as opposed to Caroline? Is his obsession all about physical appearance? Or is it that Ballard was initially obsessed with Caroline because of her looks, but appreciates Echo for different reasons, primarily her ability to evolve? I hope this show stays on the air long enough for us to get answers to these questions. Meanwhile, here are some more thoughts on "Instinct." * By the way, this episode drove home for me just how closely the active/handler imprinting ritual mirrors parenthood. As Adelle points out, babies need to be imprinted with love and care. So do the actives. Think about the script for the imprinting process: "Everything's going to be all right." "Now that you're here." "Do you trust me?" "With my life." Isn't that the unspoken exchange that takes place between every parent and child? * Hey! November's back! Or, rather, Madeline. Adelle pays her a visit and gets her to come in for a diagnostic. Madeline, we see, is living the sweet life. It's unclear whether she was rich before, or if this is the spoils of an active's paycheck. At any rate, she gets a knock to the head while at Dollhouse headquarters, thanks to a hysterical Echo. Maybe this triggers the problems with November/Madeline that are eluded to in "Epitaph One?" * Any idea why Sierra was put on the mommy job as well as Echo? Was it just to provide support for Echo? I guess new moms need a confidant, especially new moms with creepy, distant husbands. But it just seems like a waste of resources in this economy. Also, she wasn't really much help, was she? * We get another glimpse of Alexis Denisof's Sen. Perrin. So far, his story seems to be all exposition. Though I am intrigued about who's leaking him information. Thoughts? * All in all, I felt this was a bit of a comedown after last week's "Vows," but it was still a solid outing. Also, how devastating was it when Echo was pulled into the wipe room, screaming for her baby? Yeesh.
The Fox sci-fi drama "Dollhouse" is a classic case of show improving the minute it gets out of its own way. When the series, created by "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" mastermind Joss Whedon, debuted earlier this year, it had little more going for it than the good will of fans. Sure, the show's premise -- a massively successful "secret" company that imprints human beings with various personalities -- was intriguing, but the execution left something to be desired. That's mainly because the lead character, Echo (Eliza Dushku) was, by definition, devoid of personality. She was, simply, a human doll, just wandering aimlessly through the "Dollhouse" of the title, waiting for her next mission. It was hard to get invested in someone who doesn't have a soul. And most of the non-doll characters were evil, with the possible exception of Echo's handler Boyd Langton (Harry Lennix) and the obsessed FBI agent Paul Ballard (Tahmoh Penikett) -- but even they were a little too intense and flawed to be relatable. But, over time, the show opened up. We learned that Echo was slowly absorbing her personalities, evolving within the context of her "doll" persona. We learned more about Agent Ballard, who is completely infatuated with Echo's former self, Caroline. We learned that Dollhouse manager Adelle DeWitt (Olivia Williams), wasn't entirely evil and was, herself, just a pawn in a sprawling corporation. As the characters grew and the show's arc became more apparent, it got better. By the end of its first season, Dollhouse had become a fascinating, if still flawed, parable about humanity, exploitation and free will. The new season beings Friday at 9 p.m., and it picks up where we left off. Echo is back at the Dollhouse, after having all her old identities downloaded into her at once by rogue doll Alpha. Ballard now works for the Dollhouse, much to the disapproval of Langton. Given the assignment Ballard sends Echo on (see the above photo), Langton's skepticism is understandable. Meanwhile, Dr. Saunders is still dealing with the realization that she's actually a doll named Whiskey. Full of rage and sadness, she's acting out by tormenting Dollhouse techie Topher (Fran Kranz) with mice and, um, other stuff (Topher, as usual, gets the premiere episode's funniest moment, which involves him denying lustful feelings for Fozzie Bear). And, for those of you who were wondering, the show doesn't seem to be ignoring the unaired "Dollhouse" episode "Epitaph One," even though that episode was only unavailable via download and on the first season DVD. Judging from the premiere, the series does seem to be sowing the seeds for the futuristic world we see in "Epitaph." However, if you haven't seen that episode, you'll still be able to follow the premiere. "Dollhouse," much like its heroine, really seems to be evolving before our eyes, developing depth and a strong identity of its own. I'm looking forward to seeing where it's going.
When your media organization is essentially run out of your living room, you're not always on the list to get the best materials from the networks. Don't get me wrong -- many networks have been great about hooking me up with DVD screeners of new and returning shows, including Fox. But, if a network has only a limited supply of something, I'm usually not among the chosen picked to receive it. Such was the case with "Epitaph One," the "lost" episode of "Dollhouse" that never aired on Fox during the show's first season. It is included with the show's first season DVD set, and some folks got a sneak peek. But, alas, Fox was out of copies by the time I requested one, so I had to wait until the show was released to watch the episode. Well, the show was released in July, but I got busy and, long story short, I only just watched it this weekend. But I was totally blown away. For those who don't know, the episode takes place 10 years in the future, in a dystopian world where-- well, I should probably save that for a spoilers section below. It's peppered with flashbacks showing how the Dollhouse played a huge role in the world's ongoing destruction. Echo/Caroline (Eliza Dushku) actually isn't seen much, though she's mentioned frequently. Instead, much of the focus is on Amy Acker's Whiskey, the active who, until late last season, believed she was the Dollhouse's doctor, Dr. Saunders. Anyway, the episode is awesome, and I highly recommend picking it up -- particularly since I also watched the second season premiere of "Dollhouse" this weekend and Joss Whedon does seem to be treating "Epitaph One" as canon (meaning, even though it didn't air, he's not ignoring the stuff that happens in it). Many things alluded to in "E1" are picked up on in the first ep (which I'll discuss at length closer to its Sept. 25 premiere), so watching that episode should give you greater insight into the show. Anyway, a few (incredibly late) spoilers are below. I would appreciate those who have seen the show giving me their thoughts, particularly the answers to my questions.
* Here's my biggest question: Just you do you think that little girl had been imprinted with when she went evil? Was it someone we know, you think? The fact that the persona wanted to inhabit Felicia Day's character and not the guy indicates that it was a female, but I'm not sure. Didn't it sound an awful lot like Lawrence Dominic? But maybe it was November/Mellie/Madeline. After all, we don't really have any clue what her true personality was like. * I'm guessing that Rossum's idea of imprinting dolls permanently and using them as "new models" for existing personalities had a role in the imprinting technology run amok. But how? And is Topher the one who sent out that code via phone call? Or did that even happen? What's with Topher anyway? And does anyone else have tremendous new respect for Fran Kranz and his work on this show? His character really developed over the course of the first season, and "E1" sort of brought him full circle. * Just what happened to Saunders/Whiskey? Why did she revert back to Whiskey? Why was she still at the Dollhouse? I assume that she was waiting for Boyd, as he promised to come back for her. And when/why did they fix her face? * When were Victor and Sierra given their old personalities back? Why? Sigh. So many questions. Hope the show is around long enough to answer them.
It's well known among those who cover TV that the Fox network sends out the best promotional swag with screeners of its shows. For last year's "24" premiere, they sent out a Jack Bauer action figure. With the DVD of this season premiere of "Bones," they sent out a Kathy Reich's book and socks (socks!). And, of course, they hand out t-shirts like candy. Over the past couple years, I've gotten a "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles" tee, two "House" tees and a makeshift jersey celebrating the network's new sitcom "Brothers" (sorry, guys -- even a free shirt won't make me say nice things about that show). So, when I received the screener of the season premiere of "Dollhouse," I wasn't surprised to see a t-shirt sharing space with my DVD. But even better than a shirt is the hilarious note from show creator Joss Whedon that accompanied the DVD and the soft, red tee bearing the words "Dollhouse Activewear." Lest you think Whedon restricts his wit to his series, let me share with you a few excerpts from the note, which is one of the funniest things I've ever received with a screener (yes, funnier than the prescription bottle/pencil holder I got with my "House" DVD). The note, addressed to "Press Member" starts thusly: "You hold in your delicate paws a rough cut of "Vows," the first episode of the second season of 'Dollhouse,' premiering Friday, Sept. 25 9 p.m. on Fox. More importantly, you also hold a free t-shirt! So that's a thumbs-up right there, no? I mean, do you even have to watch the show? It's clearly t-shirt-tastic! Did 'Grey's Anatomy' send you a shirt? They did? (Did they send any extra? I'd kill.)" The note goes on to reference how "Dollhouse" barely evaded cancellation and garnered a second season or, as it's put in the memo "Like a man with the bright-eyed euphoria of narrowly escaped death, "Dollhouse" is coming back from a hilariously unexpected non-cancellation with a verve, a joy and a visceral excitement that borders on manic." After that, there's some more info on the show and a couple references to series co-star Olivia Williams's hair (apparently she has a new haircut). Look, I liked "Dollhouse" quite a bit last season, particularly the later episodes. And, if the new season is half as energetic and witty as this note, I'm sold. The t-shirt also helps.
Ok, all -- I'm back from my journey to the Indianapolis 500 and, aside from camping alongside the racetrack and sharing a set of port-a-potties with a bunch of drunken hooligans, it was pretty good. But, of course, I missed the blog. And, really, could I have left at a worse possible time? I've barely gotten to write anything about the new fall lineups, about which I have some strong feelings. So, even though all my fellow TV writers have moved on to arguably more important things (like the steaming train wreck that is "Jon & Kate Plus 8), I'm going to write a few quick thoughts on some of the broadcast networks' recent announcements. * Does anybody else get the idea that Fox was only allowed to renew one of its low-rated, acclaimed cult sci-fi series. How else to explain why the network renewed "Dollhouse" and not the equally worthy "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles?" I really would have liked to see them both come back, especially since "TSCC" was just hitting its stride with a great finale. But I'm glad that at least one of them will return. "Dollhouse" just got better as it went on, and I'm interested to see what Joss Whedon and co. will do with a second season. * NBC renewed the cult series "Chuck," but canceled "Medium" and "My Name is Earl." CBS has announced it will pick up "Medium" and another network might pick up "Earl," but I'm thinking the latter is unlikely. Where would "Earl" go? The show, which I loved in its first two seasons, is running out of steam. And where would it go? ABC picked up "Scrubs" when NBC dropped it, but that show still had some creative juice left (at least, that's what I've been told. I don't actually watch it.) "Earl's" returns are diminishing, and I'm not sure anyone else wants to jump on board. * OK, for me, this was the saddest announcement: The CW canceled "Reaper." Well, maybe. ABC studios is still trying to sell the show, and syndication is a real possibility. Check out all the details here at the ReaperDMV fan site. They encourage writing to your local CW affiliate, and I second that. I know "Reaper" never really lived up to the promise of its pilot, but I was really fond of it. I loved Ray Wise's cheeky performance as the Devil, and Bret Harrison had a nice Everyman charm as reluctant soul-hunter Sam Oliver. I still held out hope that it would gel a little better as it went on, but I always enjoyed it. I'm not surprised it's gone, but I'm still really sad. In fact, I was so distracted by "Reaper's" cancellation, I barely noticed that The CW didn't pick up the "Gossip Girl" spin-off with Brittany Snow. That was a little surprising, as the show's had a lot of buzz. But, judging from the back door pilot that aired as a "Gossip Girl" episode, I can't say not picking it up was a great loss. Well, that's it for now. I'll have more on the new shows once I get a chance to see some. I also plan to start watching the summer shows soon, so I'll have reviews on those in the near future as well.
Just got done watching the first season finale of "Dollhouse," titled "Omega," and I've gotta say that I'll be pretty upset if Fox doesn't end up ordering a second season. Though the show was a bit underwhelming in its early episodes, it's shaped up into a mighty promising series. Not only does it raise thought provoking questions about the nature of identity, the role of technology in our lives and the horrors of exploitation, it's also incredibly entertaining. This last episode in particular was a fast-paced, action-packed hour, as Alpha (Alan Tudyk) fled the Dollhouse with a newly altered Echo (Eliza Dushku). The attempt to retrieve Echo made for strange bedfellows, as Ballard (Tahmoh Penikett) joined forces with the Dollhouse staff. Meanwhile, we got a lot of Alpha background, a brief reunion between Echo and Caroline and the answer to a major question raised last week. In fact, in recapping this episode, I'd like to start with that answer to that big question, raised in many "Dollhouse" fans' heads after last week's episode: Is Dr. Saunders (Amy Acker) really a doll? The answer was yes. She was a doll named Whiskey, and was the house's No. 1 active, until Alpha took a shine to Echo. The flashback scene in which we learned why and how Alpha slashed up poor Whiskey was absolutely heartbreaking, as was the scene where we met the original Dr. Saunders -- a man! In an interesting twist, Dollhouse tech Topher (Fran Kranz) made the Whiskey version of Saunders a little too smart. After her encounter with Alpha, Saunders slowly starts to realize that she's really a doll. Eventually, she hacks Topher's system and finds proof of her past as Whiskey. She confronts Topher, and he, surprisingly, doesn't have some snarky comeback. He's quiet. Until she asks him an important question: If he's responsible for building her personality, why did he make her hate him so much? Topher responds by asking her why she didn't read her original history. "Don't you want to know who you are?" he asks. "I know who I am," she responds. But who is she, really? Why did Topher make her hate him so much? And, more important, why did he imprint her with excellent computer skills -- skills, as Saunders pointed out, beyond those that a doctor would typically have? Do Topher and Whiskey/Saunders have a past? Were they related? Was he in love with her? Did her want her to eventually learn her real identity? Is that why he made her so tech savvy? In the final scene with Echo, Topher is noticeably shaken from his encounter with Whiskey. Why? I don't know, but it does help lend a little depth to Topher -- a character I'd previously found pretty unlikable. Incidentally, the episode was a real showcase for Acker, who nailed every second of Saunders' awakening to the realization that her whole life was a lie. Perhaps the saddest moment was her vicious verbal attack on poor Victor (Enver Gjokaj), Alpha's most recent victim. When she berated him, saying that he'd never again be his best, that all he could hope for was to inspire pity, it was devastating. And, once again, great work by Gjokaj, a real find who continues to lend soul to this blank slate of a character. His wide-eyed, wounded puppy expression in this scene broke my heart. But, while the "Whiskey" reveal was a great twist, the heart of this episode was the Alpha/Echo confrontation. Through flashbacks, we learn that Alpha, even in his doll state, was obsessed with Echo. The obsession leads him to kiss her in the hallway, risking the wrath of DeWitt (Olivia Williams). It leads to the assault on Whiskey, and, of course, to Alpha's eventually psychotic break. Here's my question -- when Alpha has that break, what was Topher trying to do? I get that the machine malfunctioned, but it did look that Topher was intending to download a bunch of Alpha's imprints. Why? What was he trying to accomplish? I don't get it.At any rate, we saw the start of Alpha's killing spree, which included destroying his original identity, Carl William Craft, an attempted murderer. We also learned which personality Alpha downloaded into Echo. It was a previous Whiskey imprint, that of a trashy criminal. He chose the imprint because she was familiar with San Pedro, where Alpha's original persona, Carl William Craft, had a hideout. After their escape, Alpha and Echo kidnap a girl named Wendy (yes, that was Ashley Johnson, who played young Chrissie on "Growing Pains), and Alpha imprints her with Caroline. He then downloads all of Echo's imprints into her brain. Surprisingly, she doesn't snap. And she doesn't kill "Carolyn," as Alpha instructs her to. She turns on Alpha, and chastises him for his arrogance. "We're not Gods," she tells him. She attempts to reunite her body with Caroline's personality, but Alpha shoots Wendy before that can happen. Alpha then decides that he's going to download Caroline into Echo, then shoot her. Then he's going to do it again and again, using different girls all over the country. Anyway, Echo escapes and Alpha chases her outside, holding the Caroline imprint. Eventually, he tosses it onto a beam. Echo tries to retrieve it, but it falls...into Ballard's waiting hands below. Huh. Cool. Anyway, here are a few more thoughts on "Omega." * Loved the scene where Echo is trying to convince Caroline to "come home" to her body. Caroline says she signed a contract with the Dollhouse. Echo poo poos that reasoning, saying that not one of the many personalities in her brain believes that someone can sign a contract to be a slave "especially now that we have a black president." Tee hee. * Once again, great work by Tudyk as Alpha. He's great at balancing Alpha's scary, violent moments with comical, goofy crazy-guy moments, as when Alpha's handler tells him to watch his step. Alpha immediately looks down at his feet. Hilarious, yet unsettling given what we know about this guy and who he's going to become. * Fascinating twist at the end, when Ballard agrees to work with the Dollhouse if they agree to free one of the actives...November. Why? Why her and not Caroline/Echo? Did Ballard feel so guilty about sleeping with her when she was Mellie that he decided he had to do something to make it right? And what about Caroline? Why did he return her? Was he using her as leverage so he could get inside the Dollhouse, bring it down and free Caroline at a later date? Well, at any rate, we learned November's real name. It's Madeleine. I can only assume that her "real" home is an old house in Paris covered in vines. * By the way, can I say how much I loved the crime-fighting team of Ballard and Langton (Harry Lennix)? I loved how their cynical yet decent personalities fit together like a lock and key. More of them together, please! * OK, one last time -- PLEAAAAASE bring back "Dollhouse," Fox! Please!
For those tragic few of you who, like me, have been sucked into Fox's fascinating but low-rated Joss Whedon drama "Dollhouse," last night was a big night. We finally saw the mysterious and deadly escaped doll Alpha (Alan Tudyk, who starred as Wash on Whedon's excellent but short-lived drama "Firefly") and Agent Ballard made his way into the Dollhouse for the first time. It was a pretty terrific episode, and it has me psyched big time about next week's season finale. However, I did have a few thoughts/questions during last night's episode. Perhaps you can help me out with them? THAT'S Alpha???: OK, I know the revelation that Tudyk's character (a wonky environmental engineer) would turn out to be Alpha was all over the Internet. Yet, somehow, I managed to avoid seeing it, and was completely surprised when Tudyk's character, Stephen Kepler, suddenly slashed up Victor's face. Of course, I probably should have guessed that the character was secretly Alpha, even without the benefit of spoilers. Seriously -- Ballard just HAPPENS to find this guy who can lead him to the Dollhouse just as Alpha resurfaces with a message for former security chief Dominic? Big coincidence, no? Yet I didn't really think Kepler could be Alpha, mainly because of Tudyk's appearance. Don't get me wrong. Alan Tudyk is adorable in a "My science teacher is so smart he's sexy"-sort of way, but he's no fantasy object. And fantasy, as we've been told many times, is the Dollhouse's business. He's also, I believe, a bit older than the other dolls (he certainly appears significantly older than Eliza Dushku, who plays Echo) But heck, maybe I'm being silly. Maybe a lot of Dollhouse clients have sexy schoolteacher fantasies, making Tudyk's Alpha a hot commodity. At any rate, Tudyk was great, as both the phobic, whiny Kepler and the coldly vicious Alpha. Good to see him on screen again. The Whiskey Made Me Do It: OK, we need to talk about that scene when the Dollhouse staff implant Victor with Dominic's personality. As Saunders goes to sedate him, Victor/Dominic looks at her and says "Whiskey." It's assumed he wants a drink instead of sedation, but I think otherwise. "Whiskey" fits the naming template for the dolls. Perhaps Victor/Dominic wasn't talking about booze but about Saunders. Maybe she's a doll! Think about it: she gets slashed by Alpha, putting her out of commission for any fantasy engagements. But, instead of killing the damaged doll or letting her out of her contract (I'm convinced the five-years-and-out deal is a total sham, aren't you?), they implant her with a doctor's personality, and put her to work. That would explain why she seems so negative about the Dollhouse, yet never openly defies it. It would also explain her creepy encounter with Alpha. He asks her if she's always wanted to be a doctor. She says yes. He calls her a liar, then forces her to describe the first time they met. Though terrifying, there was something a bit off about that moment. If Alpha is really fixated on Echo, why would he care about Saunders' past? But, if Saunders is a doll, then the moment makes perfect sense. Alpha is toying with the doc, mocking her, and she doesn't even know it. Obviously, this is all speculation at this point, but I think it's a plausible and interesting possibility. Welcome Back, Dominic: Fun to see Victor taking on Dominic's personality. And am I crazy, or did Enver Gjokaj (Victor) sound exactly like Reed Diamond (Dominic) in this scene? It was uncanny to the point where I wonder if Diamond's voice was actually dubbed in. If not, great work by Gjokaj. Who is Echo This Time?: Can't wait to see what personality Alpha imprinted Echo with at the end. It's pretty clear that it isn't Caroline. So who is it? And why did he pick Echo? We still haven't learned anything about Alpha's fixation on her. The Dollhouse Heals the Children: One last quick note. I was struck by the irony of this episode's Mission of the Week. Echo has to help a little girl who has been the victim of sexual abuse. Topher, in a clever move, imprints Echo with a "healthy" version of the girl's personality, and has Echo walk the girl through her recovery. In her mission, Echo and the little girl discuss the lack of female empowerment in the fairy tale Sleeping Beauty. Echo's persona tells the little girl that, perhaps the prince didn't save Sleeping Beauty. Perhaps Sleeping Beauty's subconscious conjured the prince up. Perhaps she saved herself. Later, we'll see both Ballard and Alpha attempt to become Echo's prince. But here's what struck me as odd about this story: The Dollhouse helps sexual abuse victims? This is a business that actually CREATES sexual abuse victims by basically forcing the dolls to have sex with strangers. It's hard to believe that Topher and co. actually care about healing the psyches of others, given their line of work. Yet maybe that's the point. Maybe this mission was about Topher and other Dollhouse employees acting on their guilt and trying to offset their evil deeds. Or maybe I've overthinking.
Figured I'd check in and say a few quick words about Fox's "Dollhouse," since I'm really liking it and haven't written anything on it since my initial review. Though the show was promising at the outset, coming from acclaimed TV auteur Joss Whedon, it was a little shapeless and flimsy at first. The concept -- a super-secret business that erases the identities of human beings and implants them with new ones to satisfy the needs of wealthy clients -- was so complicated, it immediately called for a lot of mythology-heavy episodes explaining what the Dollhouse is and why we should care about any of the characters (particularly the "dolls," most of whom are just vacant shells). However, the first few episodes were stand alones, focusing heavily on "missions" undertaken by a doll named Echo (Eliza Dushku). There was a little backstory: pre-Dollhouse, Echo was a girl named Caroline who, due to some terrible occurrence in her life, volunteered to have her identity erased. There was an FBI agent named Ballard (Tahmoh Penikett) trying to track down the Dollhouse (and Caroline). There was an escaped doll named Alpha who had killed a bunch of his house-mates, but spared Echo. And there was all sorts of intrigue and shady characters. But it didn't add up to much. Whedon and Dushku begged fans to stay tuned, telling them the mythology would kick in. Eventually, it did, with a set of excellent episodes that gave us a good bit of insight into how deep the Dollhouse conspiracy runs. We learned why Caroline offered herself up (the tragic death of her lover) and why Ballard's neighbor Mellie (Miracle Laurie) seemed so unbelievably smitten by him (she was a doll, sent to spy on him and kill him if required). We learned that Echo is, gradually, showing some signs of self-awareness that both fascinate and frighten her Dollhouse keepers. We also got some insight into Dollhouse manager Adelle DeWitt (Olivia Williams), and learned that she's not the cold fish we once thought she was, but a sad, guilt-ridden women who knows her life is dedicated to something awful. Then, this week, the show gave us another stand alone "mission of the week" episode, in which Echo was inhabited by the psyche of a wealthy, murdered friend of Ms. DeWitt. It wasn't as good as the mythology episodes, but I didn't mind it as much as I would have in the beginning. I've come to care about DeWitt somewhat, so I sensed her pain at the loss of her friend, and the relief she felt in being able to help the woman solve her own murder. Yet I didn't like how the the storyline did sidelined Echo. I guess that's an odd way of putting it, since Dushku was on screen for much of the episode. But, through the whole episode, she was only Margaret, the dead woman, and never Echo. There were no scenes with a post or pre-implant Echo hanging out in the Dollhouse. There were no hints of Echo hiding under or in the spirit of the dead woman inside her. That's problematic. If Echo is supposed to be the main character, there should be some growth in her story (at least, as much as the concept allows) in every episode. I didn't like seeing her development put on hold. But I loved the development in Mellie/Ballard storyline. In the last episode, Ballard learned his neighbor and new love interest was a doll named November -- but that he can't show any sign that he knows this, or Mellie/November will kill him. So this episode, he kept trying to pretend everything was OK, but was secretly torn up by the idea that he had inadvertently become a Dollhouse client. It was distressing, particularly in the scene where Mellie offered herself up to Ballard physically, saying that she could be anything he wanted her to be. Instead of turning Mellie away, Ballard proceeds to have rough, angry (and highly disturbing) sex with her. It was an intense, scary moment, well-played by Penikett and Laurie. The episode was worth it for that scene alone, but I also liked the forward movement with Topher (Fran Kranz), the skeevy tech who erases the dolls' identities and implants their new personalities. This episode, we saw him implant one of the dolls, Sierra, with the persona of a fellow geek. The two spent the whole episode playing video games and laser tag, and talking about sci-fi. It seemed pointless, until DeWitt eventually explained to Echo's ex-handler (and new head of security) Boyd Langton (Harry Lennix) that this is something Topher does for himself every year on his birthday. It's lonely being Topher, she explained. And even someone as seemingly odious as this lab rat needs a friend now and then. This revelation didn't make me like Topher, exactly, but it did make him a little more tolerable. All in all, "Dollhouse" is still promising, and still worth watching. I know it's not doing well in the ratings, but it's apparently scoring some respectable numbers if you factor in DVR viewership and streaming. Hopefully, that's enough to buy it a second season. Though "Dollhouse" has its ups and downs, there's a lot of potential here, and I'd love to see it get a chance to develop.
