'Dollhouse': Should We Keep Watching?
Should we keep watching Dollhouse? Well, yeah. Not because it's a Joss Whedon show -- I will tell you right now that that signature humor you're hoping for is not going to suddenly appear over the next few episodes -- but simply because it is solid enough to warrant a decent trial period. What drew me into the pilot were Echo's personalities/identities (the bubbly girl after a weekend date who's psyched she might've found "the one"... the kidnapping victim who has grown up to achieve greatness to compensate for her childhood trauma... the clean slate who's completely unaware of the experiences she's had and the layers she's built in her lifetime) and what they all say about human nature and what we can learn from different people's realities.
Just me? Okay, even if I'm all alone on that one, you might be happy to hear that with each coming episode, another layer of mystery will be peeled back. We'll learn more and more about what's gone down in and around the Dollhouse since it opened its doors. And by the way, Topher's stellar scientific processing system for booting, wiping and rebooting the lucky inhabitants of said Dollhouse has a few glitches... some more serious than others.
You'll learn about one particularly frightening malfunction in the first few minutes of tonight's hour and -- SPOILER ALERT -- it has everything to do with that "Alpha" man who was watching video of Echo/Caroline while several dead bodies lay strewn around him at the end of last week's episode.
So, yeah, just watch tonight. Give the show another shot and come back here to chat about what you think afterwards. And if you have Dollhouse questions you desperately need answered, write to me at kghosh@zap2it.com
I really didn't like Dollhouse last week, I thought the pilot was weak and felt like a bad too futuristic version of Alias... I disliked it (I would almost say 'hated it') very strongly.
I was going to give th show another shot since TVGAl had warned us about the pilot being lacking, but what annoys me is the fact that just because Joss Whedon had a part in it, we should all be avid watchers... Great writers did lousy shows, it's not uncommon.
It would serve the show if media would stop advertising it as "Whedon's next wonder" and try to describe the show for what it really is... Because right now, it's making me want less and less to keep watching it....
I don't think the implication of the piece is that anyone should watch a lousy show simply because of the names involved behind the scenes. Rather, I took it to mean that Joss shows often (as far as I'm aware) take a few episodes to really come into their own. And given the rumors about Fox's interference with the pilot episode, it's probably worth investing another week or two to see if things improve (I, too, was not terribly thrilled with the pilot). Plus, from the preview it looks like Matt Kessler, from the ridiculously awesome show 'The Middleman' is in tonight's episode.
the show needs a few weeks to get its feet, ill watch and see how it goes,but I think part of the problem is some of the show had to be toned down for fox and this show would be better on hbo or showtime
I will continue to watch because I have faith in where Joss wants to take us. While I am extremely disappointed that Fox interfered in his creative process AGAIN (see Firefly - didn't they learn that if you keep doing things the same way, you'll keep getting the same results!?), I am also disappointed to learn from you Korbi that it looks like Whedon's trademark humor and wit isn't really going to make an appearance. That is actually what endears his characters to us so much, and if we don't have that, I can't say many of the characters on this show are going to be very likable. I mean, Eliza is supposed to be someone different each week, so I think it's going to be hard to know if you care about her. Of course, I didn't really see much difference between her bubbly girl and her abused girl, just some smiling, which with Eliza always looks like a backhanded comment or a sign that she's scheming.
I realize I sound all negative, but it's because it wasn't what I expected from Joss. That doesn't mean I won't stick with it and come to love something different from him, though.
oops, I meant backhanded "compliment", by the way.
I feel the same way others feel about the pilot episode. To be honest I can take it a step further and say that I feel a little sad for Dollhouse's inhabitants. They seem like mind controlled prostitutes and it just makes their entire situation a little depressing. I have followed Joss for quite a while and I will continue to watch Dollhouse with the hopes that the writers can change the near pity that I currently feel for the characters.
I loved it and will without question keep watching. Was the pilot as good as any episode of Firefly? No. But then what show is? Only LOST and BSG really, so Dollhouse shouldn't be compared against what was one of the greatest television shows of all time.
The pilot was better then the pilot of Buffy, in my opinion, and Buffy turned into a fantastic show, there is no reason to doubt that Dollhouse will as well.
I think people were expecting something frankly unrealistic (Firefly 2 perhaps) and that is why they're disappointed. If you watched it with an open mind I think you would have been very entertained. I was at least and can't wait to see what happens next.
I watched the pilot, but it just didn't seem like it should have started there. It's like there was a missing episode or episodes that should have come before. That or the script was cut up to get somewhere fast. I'm not sure, something was just off about the pilot. I'll give it two more episodes.
I thought the show was good, not great. Didn't impress me instantly like Pushing Daisies, but it doesn't repell me like those adds for "Castle" either. I'll certainly watch it a few more times, if Fox doesn't cancel it first. I always encourage networks to give shows a chance, so why shouldn't I do the same.
I'm done with DOLLHOUSE - sexist, unfunny and poorly-acted. Joss can talk about how the Dollhouse is supposed to creep you out but, if DOLLHOUSE is meant to be satire or commentary, then it needs to be distinguishable from the baseline for how women are depicted on TV crime dramas (ie. generally poorly). I'll p*** on this one. The only downside is that THE SARAH CONNOR CHRONICLES got jerked around by FOX once again to create a Friday night action block to support DOLLHOUSE. SARAH CONNOR actually is a show about strong women kicking butt as opposed to the micro-thin 'feminist' veneer Whedon has laid over the creepy misogyny at the heart of DOLLHOUSE.