Return to the Dollhouse

Posted by ptb under *mixed, Television |

Tonight begins the final run of Fox’s sci-fi human slavery action drama, Dollhouse. I think I like this show, I know I want to, but it hasn’t been easy. There’s always been something really cool and really creepy going on, but it’s been a slow build to where the show’s finale seems to be heading.

I think a big part of this has come from attempts to broaden the appeal and ultimately generate ratings. Creator Joss Whedon has a very loyal fanbase going back to his Buffy the Vampire Slayer days, but his most recent TV series Firefly and Dollhouse have struggled to put up big enough numbers to survive. Part of the blame falls squarely on Fox for airing the show on Friday nights, but I think just as much has to go to the writers.

If you look at some successful Fox dramas (any network really) there’s a definite single episode done-in-one production ethic behind the series. House, Bones, Fringe, and Lie to Me all seem to fit this mold. Sure we learn something about the characters along the way, and there are some threats that loom for a few episodes, but mostly you get everything in that hour. A notable exception to this is 24, but Fox has made every effort to compress the timeline on how things play out for the viewers by only running from January to May. I think Dollhouse tried to use this approach, but given the morally questionable nature of the weekly “adventures” it did little to get viewers invested. Once they came in with the big threat that was building (which happened in the DVD/digital only final episode of season one) it was too late.

After a hiatus 4 episodes into this season, Fox churned out 3 2-hour blocks in December and are dumping the rest in January starting tonight at 9PM. I will be watching. The 6 episodes in December were great. In many ways the show is great, but in other more accurate ways the show is cancelled.

Tags: cancelled again, Dollhouse, Eliza Dushku, fickle, FOX, Joss Whedon

kamila harris said,

i saw one episode of this.. and it was REALLY cool but i had no idea what was going on, and then I never remembered to watch it again, what is it on Friday’s or something? Why even bother airing a show on a Friday night other than Ghost Whisperer (meaning – stuff for old people who watch TV on Friday nights)

cuz like.. cool people like us hang out on our computers on Friday nights
ptb said,

Exactly. How are we expected to watch a show on Fridays? I was writing this post and Angie was making me a collage for my desktop.
kevinmld said,

The thing is Joss Whedon has a following but it’s a small following cultivated on two tiny networks that weren’t even successful enough to still be in existence and as a result had a completely different measurement of what a hit show is than Fox does. In the world of network tv and even movies, Joss is still basically a nobody despite the quality of his work. He should be focusing on working for cable networks or direct to the Internet/DVD, but then he’d have no one to blame should his show fail.

Having said that, had we ever done that best of 2009 group blog post, Dollhouse would probably have been my pick for best television series.
ptb said,

That’s a fair point about the networks Buffy and Angel aired on. Fox was clearly not the place for Dollhouse or Firely, just like NBC was not the place for Battlestar Galactica.

It’s not to late to do our Best of 2009 post. I just need the rest of your picks (and Angie’s).