"Dollhouse" Impressions
I watched the premiere of "Dollhouse" last weekend. So, before I give my first impressions of the show, I should point out that I am a full-out Joss Whedon fanboy, with "Buffy", "Angel" and "Firefly" among my all-time favorite shows. I am genetically predisposed to like "Dollhouse"!
Even so, I previously posted that the preview trailer for the show "...left me with mixed feelings" and overall, I was concerned about the timeslot and the quality of the show. It was only my blind fanboy-ness that kept me interesting in the show. Thus, my expectations for the first episode were fairly low.
So, let my impressions begin! My first impression will be expressed in the form of an equation:
Eliza Dushku + White Dress = My Viewership
She looked fantastic. It's clear that FOX wanted some sex appeal in the show, and it certainly supplied the goods.
OK - that's fairly shallow. I meant to say that the initial 'white dress' scene served very effectively to draw in the male demographic while simulaneously setting up the premise of Echo's missions and how she interacts with the clients and how she is extracted from a job. (whew - pretty nice recovery there)
I think the show did an excellent job of setting up the premise of the Dollhouse and the overall framework of the show. This is also where I believe many of the professional reviewers are missing the point of the show. For example, the Entertainment Weekly review states "...the series' technogeek who oversees the re-wiping...programs a flaw in Echo's new persona that causes trouble for this mission. That seems like an excessively elaborate setup..."
This is just a miss on the reviewer's part. The implantation of the *flaws* as well as the *knowledge* of the base personalities into the Active is a key fact the audience needs to know. The flaws illustrate that implantation is not a magical process and, in typical Joss fashion, will have consequences later in the series.
In fact, I thought the second half hour of the premiere was a masterwork of television writing. Rather than just have the techie explain all of the limitations and capabilities of the personality implantation process ("Fringe", I am looking at you here...), Whedon actually shows the viewer what can happen. Sure, Echo developing asthma as a part of the personality might be a little shaky on the science side...but, Joss is setting forth the rules of what can and can not be accomplished via the implantation process. And, I believe he will stick to the rules he created.
Some reviewers seemed to get it, however. I agree with Todd Patterson over at Slate, who wrote, "...if you can cleanse your mind of expectations, then Dollhouse stands all of a sudden as the best action show on network television." I'd agree - this show has a ton of potential, if it is allowed the opportunity to grow.
I agree with TP. I liked My Own Worst Enemy and it got cancelled. What's going to stop Dollhouse from getting cancelled? But I hope it doesn't, I like it so far.
-- Posted by: Lori at February 17, 2009 11:17 AMYou both make good points - however, I think there are some very salient differences.
First off, there is Whedon. His fanbase is pretty rabid, which pretty much guarantees a base viewership. Sure, the base viewership is not big enough to save a show, but it is there.
Second, even though there is much sense in the comparison to "My Own Worst Enemy", I honestly did not make the connection until you mentioned it. I think the marketing was more about Eliza Dushku, her tanktop and the mystery around the organization that controls her. MOWE seemed to me to be about a split personality (from the marketing). So, I think the general public will think this is a different thing.
That said, the chances of "Dollhouse" making it past six episodes has to be around 10%. After all...it's on FOX.
-- Posted by: Fred at February 17, 2009 5:37 PMI've heard the Dollhouse comparisons to my own worst enemy and I'd make two points to refute that. 1) there is a lot more room here because she can have any personality not just 1, and 2) my own worst enemy wasn't all that well written. There were good points, but not all that many.
-- Posted by: Elton at February 23, 2009 2:48 AM
The only thing that bothered me was the similarity with recently-canceled My Own Worst Enemy, with Christian Slater. we have another agent controlled by an agency, and she "breaks," with others trying to figure out how to protect her from being killed while accomplishing the various missions. Not sure if there will be a big future for this show unless the switch from a male to a female lead is the key.
-TP
-- Posted by: tpull at February 16, 2009 7:58 PM