Dollhouse

"With last night's double-header, Dollhouse swung firmly back towards "best thing Joss Whedon's ever done" territory. There was only one slight problem... the weak subplot involving Summer Glau. Mega spoilers below!" - RAPatton from Bookmarklet

Until Friday night, it wasn't. Season 1 didn't get good until after the first 5 episodes - RAPatton from iPhone

"With last night's double-header, Dollhouse swung firmly back towards "best thing Joss Whedon's ever done" territory. There was only one slight problem... the weak subplot involving Summer Glau. Mega spoilers below!" - Steven Perez from Bookmarklet

They may have a new best female charachter - RAPatton from iPod

"Wake up, Mr. Senator. I want to make sure I get your good side." - Vezquex: God of FF

"Fox sort of has that reputation for sexy or edgy or blah, blah, blah, but they don't actually want that and it frustrates me. It's the classic American double standard —torture, "Great." Sex, "Oh, that's so bad."" - Steven Perez from Bookmarklet

*sigh* Something tells me that we're gonna be debating the whys and wherefores for a long time. - Steven Perez

I just skimmed the article - planning to read it later - but the idea of the dolls as avatars for people trapped in relationships is just stellar.... wish I'd thought of it... - MASTER OF THE OBVIOUS

"We all know Fox wouldn't let Joss Whedon tell the stories he wanted to tell in his mind-bitches-for-money show Dollhouse, resulting in some hit-and-miss early installments. But in a new interview, Whedon explains that Fox's biggest problem was with sexuality. Even though Fox forced Whedon to scrap the show's original pilot (which was much more mythology-heavy and set up a ton of ongoing storylines) and replace it with a bunch of standalone episodes, Whedon tells the Chicago Tribune that wasn't really Fox's problem with the series. Whedon explains: The problems that the show encountered weren't standalone versus mythology. Basically the show didn't really get off the ground because the network pretty much wanted to back away from the concept five minutes after they bought it... The idea of sexuality was a big part of the show when it started and when that fell out, when the show turned into a thriller every week, it took something out of it that was kind of basic to what we were... more... - RAPatton from Bookmarklet

And Fox butchered another Whedon brainchild. I'm not sure why anyone is surprised. Why does he keep going back to them?? - Chieze Okoye

"If you've been wondering when we'd see more of the post-apocalyptic world that Joss Whedon granted us a glimpse of in the unaired Dollhouse season one finale, "Epitaph One," wonder no longer. Apparently the series finale — which, God willing, will air in January — is called "Epitaph Two: The Return," and features Felicia Day's character. The episode is from the pen of "Epitaph One" writers Maurissa Tancharoen and Jed Whedon, plus Andrew Chambliss. Don't forget to watch two hours of Dollhouse — featuring Summer Glau — this Friday at 8." - Steven Perez from Bookmarklet

"Commenting on the cancellation of Dollhouse, Joss Whedon teased that by the time the show ends in January, we'd know what his next project will be. Some fans think that we're already being given hints." - Steven Perez from Bookmarklet

"Wednesday's announcement of Dollhouse's cancellation came as no surprise to most, but that doesn't mean that we're not here to help those for whom the news means emotional turmoil. Let us walk you to happiness, one step at a time." - Steven Perez from Bookmarklet

"Do actors ever feel truly secure in their chosen profession? In the past year, Olivia Williams has spent six months filming the Joss Whedon sci-fi TV series Dollhouse, shot a movie in Berlin with Roman Polanski, played Ian Dury's wife in the upcoming biopic Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll and taken a supporting role in Nick Hornby's adaptation of Lynn Barber's memoir, An Education – as tasty and varied a body of work as any actor could ask for. Yet, this very morning, the 41-year-old actress tells me, she considered once again whether she shouldn't have followed in her parents' and older sister's footsteps and become a barrister. "But then my barrister friends are all sufficiently neurotic and barking-mad to make me realise that one isn't the sensible choice over the other," she laughs. In fact, Williams might well have been hectoring juries today had serendipity (in the shape of Kevin Costner) not diverted the then-28-year-old, broke and trudging through auditions for body-cream ads, from... more... - RAPatton

"A woman of classical, slightly austere beauty that belies her personal warmth, Williams was bought up in London's Camden Town by the aforementioned barristers, studied English literature at Newnham College, Cambridge, before joining the Bristol Old Vic and spending three years at the Royal Shakespeare Company. Her first major role in front of the cameras, as Jane Fairfax in a 1996 TV... more... - RAPatton

"[Dollhouse] became just a scoach too whore-y. Never had a better meeting, everything was great, then they [FOX] said "so they're kinda like prostitutes and that's not ok" Word came down that it wasn't ok. I wanted to make a show that's about feeling bad about feeling good or good about feeling bad. Fantasy is just that, fantasy. FOX wanted to back away from these implications. Every episode [of the first season] is ridiculously hard, because the central core has been ripped out just enough, that we're constantly dancing around our own premise." - Steven Perez from Bookmarklet

I really do hope AMC or HBO would hire Whedon. Letting Whedon be Whedon would unleash the awesome. - Spidra Webster

""Dollhouse" is closing its doors at Fox. The network has canceled Joss Whedon's cult fave, which in May beat the odds with a second-season pickup despite low ratings. The sci-fi series, which is filming episode 11, is expected to finish its 13-episode order. After some dismal performance in the fall, despite the ratings bumps "Dollhouse" got from DVR viewing, Fox benched the show for the November sweep after four episodes. It is not clear whether Fox will air the remaining episodes starting Dec. 4 as planned." - Steven Perez from Bookmarklet

WHY???? I love them so much. ah well... :( - See-ming Lee 李思明 SML

"The TV show may be on hiatus until December, but the Dollhouse crew is still releasing tantalizing nuggets from the show's universe. The latest viral marketing campaign offers more clues as to how the Rossum Corporation's mindwipe apocalypse begins. Yesterday, the website for the Rossum Corporation — the nefarious technology company that operates the Dollhouses — launched. On its face, it's a standard corporate website, touting the remarkable abilities of Rossum's technological advances. It also outlines the terms and conditions for becoming a Rossum client, and includes a response to Senator Daniel Perrin's allegations of illegal and unethical activities perpetrated by Rossum. But the rabbit hole goes a bit deeper. One of the posters at Whedonesque called Rossum's corporate phone number and received a call back, ordering them to "Ditch the tech." " - RAPatton

or the show's demise closer. It's cancelled. - Shawna Benson

"Everyone who's been complaining that Dollhouse pulled a bait-and-switch, showing us a post-apocalyptic world at the end of season one, then failing to revisit it in season two: quitcher bitchin'. We saw the roots of that dystopia last night. Oh, and this is your spoiler warning: I'm going to assume you saw last night's episode already. If you haven't, go and watch it. Twice. Dollhouse must have been testing our faith on purpose. I went into season two convinced this was one of the all-time great TV shows, exploring thorny issues of gender, power and identity in a way that few other shows ever manage to hint at. And then the season's first two episodes left me wondering if I'd just been hallucinating. Last week's serial killer/Chaucer mash-up was a huge leap in the right direction — but last night's episode, "Belonging," was the real thing. I totally apologize for saying Glee is better than Dollhouse. So yes, this was definitely a prequel to the unaired "mindwiped Mad Max" episode,... more... - RAPatton from Bookmarklet

I see your point, but that's assuming that they think giving him a human being is a big deal. Adelle clearly knows, but she was conflicted from the beginning. The question is if Rossum knows and if so, do they gain anything by his death. - mikepk

"Savor tonight's all-new Dollhouse: It'll be the last one until December. But you'll get a concentrated dose of the mind-wiping during the holiday season, including two hours in a row of Summer Glau." - Steven Perez from Bookmarklet

"It's a rare storyteller who can jump between disciplines without much fuss, and equally rare is the raconteur with the connections to make such transitions look easy. Thankfully for John Cassaday fans, the artist's skill set and vision has finally afforded him a place behind the camera of Joss Whedon's "Dollhouse," following the pair's collaboration on Marvel's "Astonishing X-Men." In an interview with The Beat, Cassaday discussed his decision to transition from comic artist to television director and gave readers a look behind the "Dollhouse" production curtain. "[Joss Whedon and I] got to know each other a few years before 'Astonishing X-Men' and through that became even better friends," said Cassady. "We found that we had a similar way of telling a story, almost a shorthand language."" - RAPatton from Bookmarklet

"After Cassaday was approved by the studio to sit in the director's chair, he prepared by shadowing the show's other directors for several episodes before begging pre-production for his upcoming debut. Whedon's been championing Cassaday's debut for awhile now, meaning he must be picking up plenty from the set visits. When asked about his favorite characters, Cassaday pointed out his fondness for the show's high concept as well as its character-driven narratives." - RAPatton

"You would think that there would always be a market for pretty, programmable people, but it appears that even the ultra-rich need to curb their spending in tough times. A pair of leaked memos suggest Dollhouse LA needs new clients." - Steven Perez from Bookmarklet

"Joss Whedon's weird-brain-science show Dollhouse may struggle in the live ratings, but enough people are watching it on their DVRs that Fox promises to run all 13 episodes of season two. But season two is unlikely to have 22 episodes. Fox scheduling chief Preston Beckman tells The Hollywood Reporter that even though Fox isn't happy with Dollhouse's ratings, the network plans to air all 13 episodes — although during November sweeps, Fox might have to air something else, to goose up its numbers. Fox won't make a decision about giving Dollhouse the other nine episodes of season two until after the first 13 episodes finishes airing — which means the show still has a chance. But it also means the show will have to shut down production after it finishes shooting episode 13, and then ramp back up if it gets another order. Joss Whedon tells THR he's currently shooting episode eight, and he'll make sure the script for episode 13 gives fans a degree of closure, in case the show does not come... more... - RAPatton from Bookmarklet

"It really may not be too late to save Dollhouse — last week's episode, "Belle Chose," did see a nice uptick in ratings, and luckily all of those people saw a much better episode than the first two of the season. If the show keeps improving in both ratings and storytelling, we might just see a second miracle. On the other hand, it's nice to know the show's not planning on leaving us totally unsatisfied. (And I'm betting that closure includes another glimpse of the "Epitaph One" future.)" - RAPatton

The last episode was pretty good. But I know several people who have given up on it. For a Whedon show, it's lacking the sense of humor that it needs to keep some of the mediocre acting from taking over. I love his ideas and his shows in general, but there are some casting and writing flaws here that keep the show from really working. - Jen (SquirrelGirl)

"Here are all the promo pics from "The Public Eye (Part 1)," the first episode featuring Summer Glau as Bennett Halverston, the "genius programmer" at the DC Dollhouse, who gets Echo strapped to a table. As interesting as the pics are their captions: Like, apparently Summer's character is "seeking revenge" on Echo?" - RAPatton

"That's more like it. After two seriously "meh" episodes, Dollhouse returned to form with a twisty story of a serial killer and a college professor — and the weird secret they have in common. Naked, dripping wet spoilers below. Despite a couple of flaws — which I'll get to in a bit — "Belle Chose" was Exhibit A for how great Dollhouse can be when the concept is handled right. So it's not surprising that it was written by Tim Minear, the man who gave us Firefly's "Out Of Gas" and many of Angel's best episodes. So what's the secret these two men share? They're both in positions of great power — the college professor is tenured and at the zenith of his career, the serial killer is wealthy and connected. But neither of them can have what they want, and their fantasies about women remain tantalizingly out of reach. That's frequently the larger thread of Dollhouse: The wealthy may already own your bodies and souls, but they want to own your hearts and minds as well. They always have some unfinished business, something that people (usually women) are unable to give them freely for whatever reason." - RAPatton from Bookmarklet

"And of course, Paul is totally in love with Echo — this episode pretty much broadcast it. The whole Fast Times At Ridgemont sequence where Paul watches Echo in the shower and then watches her act flirty later on, in extreme slow-mo. That's not your standard concerned handler look — that's a seriously schmoopy/lustful look. I kind of want them to have Anthony Stewart Head guest star, so he can raise one eyebrow and say, "A Handler in love with an Active? Fascinating."" - RAPatton

"Oh, and it's official: Dr. Claire Saunders is missing, both in the sense that nobody knows where she is, and in the sense that we miss her. A lot. And it's sounding like despite Boyd's amazing tallness, Adelle really will go over his head and have Claire dragged, kicking and acting her heart out, back to the Dollhouse." - RAPatton

"Captain Malcolm and Inara Interestingly, the relationship between Malcolm Reynolds and Inara Serra is probably the most normal of Whedon's leading romantic stories, despite the fact that the two never get beyond meaningful glances and playful flirtation. From the get-go, Malcolm disapproves of Inara's profession. She's a "companion," which, in the world of Firefly, is a specially trained, deeply spiritual individual who creates meaningful sexual and emotional bonds with their clients. Captain Mal disdainfully refers to this as "whoring." In fact, the Captain makes it clear over and over that he doesn't respect her profession. But he makes clear, after famously punching out another man who calls her a whore, that he does respect her. In fact, his disapproval of Inara probably stems mostly from jealousy. I imagine that if "Firefly" had continued, Joss Whedon would have leveraged this hot-and-cold romance into a much more destructive story-line. Whedon and crew have indicated that Inara... more... - RAPatton

"Pretty Much Everyone On Dollhouse Finally, in Whedon's most recent creation, pretty much every romantic relationship has it's twisted, destructive side. For starters, the first real romantic relationship we get is the one between FBI agent Paul Ballard and his neighbor Mellie. Just when we see Ballard getting comfortable with this woman, Whedon hits us with the revelation that she was... more... - RAPatton

"Season two of Dollhouse gets "darker and stranger" and further from the "client-of-the-week" aspect as it goes along, says writer Jed Whedon. And there are lots of exciting twists coming up, with . Plus clips from tonight's slasher-tastic episode. Spoilerama! Writing in the Chicago Tribune, blogger Maureen Ryan makes an impassioned case for why we should cherish Dollhouse, especially in an era where people are trying to give Roman Polanski a free pass for raping a young girl: "Dollhouse" sets out to do what network programs are supposed to do — to entertain — but it also examines thorny ideas about power, exploitation and gender. Few other shows on television are willing to do this (and here I have to mention of FX's "Sons of Anarchy," which has made the fallout from a rape one of the most interesting stories of the fall). But complex questions about manipulation, deceit and the ability to make self-aware choices are built into the DNA of "Dollhouse," which is about attractive... more... - RAPatton from Bookmarklet

"Ryan talked to Jed Whedon about the show's themes and upcoming episodes. Whedon explained that the writers decided to do more "client of the week" episodes at the start of season two, to ease into the show's themes for new viewers. And they figured that for viewers who had seen the unaired post-apocalyptic episode "Epitaph One," the knowledge of the evil dark future would lend more... more... - RAPatton

"Fox wants to make sure you flee Dollhouse's "glamor and dehumanization" premise. The show's new widget, which puts a flirty Eliza Dushku on your desktop, helpfully explains "this show is for creepy teenage masturbators." Good job, Fox! The "Virtual Echo" app, which runs on the somewhat insecure Adobe Air platform, is reminiscent of those "virtual girlfriend" programs that proliferated in the 1990s. You can customize how often Echo struts out onto your screen (wearing a different outfit each time) and does a trick. (When she's hostage negotiator Ellie Penn, she throws a card, which "hits" your screen and reads, "Your Boss Is Coming!" or "Why Be All Business?" or "Call Me." Which is sorta cute, I guess.) If you're missing her fashion catwalk strut, then you can always click "see me now," and she'll come when you call her. There's also an augmented reality version, where you can show a special card to your webcam, and make Echo move around the webcam image of your home or office — so it looks like Echo is in your room, with you. Whoa." - RAPatton

Then, when you are idle, she says, "Oh, did I fall asleep?" - mandyvan from iPhone

"After a first season characterized by many as having gotten off to a weak start, Joss Whedon’s newest series returns on the kind of high note you have to see to believe. In the opening episode, Echo has been on a long term engagement; the episode takes its title from the fact that we first join her persona, Roma, on her wedding day.  But all is apparently not the blissful picture it seems: while Roma shares her first dance with her husband, Martin Klar, a wedding guest takes a phone call about a “shipment” being delayed. However, it turns out that Klar is not the actual client. Instead, Echo is working as Paul Ballard’s partner, trying to bring Klar to justice. It turns out that Ballard and Klar have something of a history, from the days before Ballard started looking for the dollhouse." - RAPatton from Bookmarklet

"The episode ends on Boyd Langton, Echo’s one-time handler and now dollhouse head of security, finds a note on Saunders’ desk that reads, “I am running out of excuses” – a reference to a conversation they had wherein Saunders reveals that she never leaves the dollhouse. Then, we see Saunders in a convertible, looking anxious as she drives out into a bright afternoon, and Sierra and... more... - RAPatton

"Think Dollhouse can't get any trashier or more twisted? Eliza Dushku has some news for you. In a conference call with reporters, she talked slashers, sorority girls... and breastfeeding? And you only think you know what Dollhouse is about. Spoilers... You don't know Dollhouse!" - RAPatton from Bookmarklet

"Upcoming imprints: According to Dushku, this Friday's episode is the "mommy" episode, and it was one of the hardest personalities for her to take on, since she's never been a mom. "Trying to tap into that maternal instinct was difficult, but a thrill," she says. And she hinted there will be breastfeeding involved, which sounds like it might be beyond even Topher's proven ability to... more... - RAPatton

"Summer Glau joins the cast: The invincible Summer Glau has already filmed two episodes, and Dushku says they're just about to start working on episode seven. As we've mentioned, Glau plays a programmer, and Dushku mentioned she works at the Washington, DC Dollhouse. We'll learn a bit more about how things work differently at the other Dollhouses. And Glau's character has some backstory... more... - RAPatton

"Eliza Dushku was Twittering a storm on Friday night. Among other things, Alexis Denisof has an "extraordinary DH arc," and "next week's Mommy" was one of her hardest imprints to play. "Russian is hard too." [Twitter http://twitter.com/elizadushku ] Want to know how the Echo-Ballard relationship will play out now that Ballard is Echo's WatcherHandler? Let Eliza Dushku and Tahmoh Penikett elucidate: [BuddyTV http://www.buddytv.com/dollhou... ] And here's a new promo for Friday's episode: And Joss talks Summer Glau's upcoming guest spot, plus Dr. Horrible. [Zap2It http://blog.zap2it.com/korbitv... ]" - RAPatton

Love Olivia Williams' dress with the square neckiline - RAPatton from iPod

Wow next episode looks like a B movie - Kevin L

"Dollhouse is about a company so eager to please, its employees will be whoever you want. So it's weird how Joss Whedon's show itself is so stubbornly itself, so relentlessly odd. Here's our spoiler-lite preview of tomorrow night's episode! To be clear what I mean by spoiler-lite here, there will be plenty of spoilers for the first season of Dollhouse — and there'll be incredibly vague statements about what happens in the episode that airs tomorrow night. But no major plot revelations, unless you watch the clips the network released." - RAPatton from Bookmarklet

"The good news is, all the scenes not involving Jamie Bamber are potent, and mostly thought-provoking. There are some hilarious one-liners and a few really sick, disturbing scenes that twist the knife marvelously. And any time Amy Acker is on the screen, the show becomes the brilliant, luminous art movie you know it could be. (We only get Acker in three episodes this season, so Whedon... more... - RAPatton

""Vows" does have a great final minute, which sets up a mission statement for the rest of the season and offers us something, and someone, to root for along the way. The episode also sets in motion a few other long-term plot lines which I can't wait to see play out, and which offer loads of potential. All in all, I'm still cautiously optimistic about the future of Dollhouse going... more... - RAPatton

""Buffy the Vampire Slayer" creator Joss Whedon has never been shy about his love for comics, and it looks like we'll be treated to more evidence of that affection in the near future. In an interview with Complex, Whedon shared some details about the upcoming season of "Dollhouse," and also dropped some info about the episode set to be directed by his "Astonishing X-Men" artist John Cassaday. As if that wasn't enough to get the comics wire buzzing, he confirmed the looming conclusion of Dark Horse Comics' "Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season Eight" series—and followed that up with the news that we'll definitely see a "Season Nine" for Buffy and co. "He’s going to f--- up so much," joked Whedon of the fan-favorite artist's "Dollhouse" debut behind the camera." - RAPatton from Bookmarklet

Stephen, I agree I think it could be a hit, but I also think it has a chance of being horrible too. I also agree about the comic books. Just don't care for them. - Rachel Lea Fox

"We were excited to talk to Penikett, who's one of the most compelling actors on television, at Comic Con. In case you can't hear the audio on that clip, he told us not to be too sure that former FBI agent Paul Ballard is really working for the mysterious Dollhouse that he was fighting to destroy for so long. In fact, Penikett hints that Ballard still has his own agenda. As for the peppery relationship between Paul Ballard and Boyd Langton, which included a fistfight as well as a team-up in last season's "Omega," Penikett tells us to expect a lot more conflict between those two." - RAPatton from Bookmarklet

"We had a question we'd been dying to ask about the end of Battlestar Galactica — before the final episode aired, Penikett told some interviewers that he'd convinced the show's producers to change Helo's fate. In the original script for the finale, Helo had an ending which seemed too obvious, according to Penikett — until talked the producers into changing it. So we were dying to know — what was Helo's original fate? And according to Penikett, Helo was supposed to die in the final battle." - RAPatton