'Dollhouse' cancellation sparks debate: Zap2it readers talk back

"Dollhouse's" cancellation announcement Wednesday caused a bit of a stir, partly because of Zap2it's rather controversial stance that it was glad the show was ending.

The sentiment was met with the expected positive and negative reactions, based on the readers' feelings for the show.

READERS WHO HATED OUR GUTS

Bob - "This is not a cause for celebration."

Daniel - "To the t.v critic who is So glad Dollhouse was cancelled: why don't you try to write something creative, so you can see how hard it is to write, and then ask us to crtique you."  (Editor's note: Daniel has just critiqued us. We open up Zap2it to commentary every day. We encourage it!]

Isaac - "You must have missed the premise and themes that the show was trying to cover.I'm appalled by your lack of respect what a journalist you are. This show was amazing and someday people will come to terms with it."

FernLaPlante - "While Dollhouse was no Buffy, it was far superior to Angel (which I also liked). I am upset that Zap2It is glad this innovative, shocking, and thought-provoking show was cancelled. Zap2it can continue to watch Jay Leno instead."

[Editor's note: Just because we didn't support one innovative show, doesn't mean we hate innovation. R.I.P. "Pushing Daisies." We still mourn you.]

READERS WHO DISLIKED THE SHOW

Gia - "Love the article. I'm pleased that this awful show got canned. It brightened my day when I heard the news!"

Rorschach - "While the basic idea was interesting, it was so poorly developed. Really, you can record personalities and transfer them body to body, and we can't come up with anything more interesting that robo-hookers? Part of what made 'Epitaph One' so great was the way it extended the concept out in ways that were exciting and scary. If the rest of the series had done that, I think it would have been better for it."

AmericanEagleJRL - "If people loved this show, it woud be getting more than 3 million viewers a week and thus, not being cancelled. The show was a dreadful bore."

Michael - "THANK GOD IT WAS WHACKED!!!"

Iain - "THE SHOW WAS UTTERLY DUMB!! IM GLAD IT GOT CANCELED!!! ... THIS SHOW SHOULD HAVE BEEN CALLED "DULLHOUSE" BECAUSE...IT WAS!!!!"

READERS WHO WERE SUPPORTIVE OF WHEDON, BUT DISAPPOINTED IN "DOLLHOUSE"

Shifty0524 - "Great column! I couldn't have put it better than myself. Whedon is great, but Dollhouse is not."

Beth - "I have watched this from the start, and even though I did not love it I stuck with it because I trust Joss. The show had serious potential, potential that was tapped in a half dozen episodes that could be considered almost breathtaking, but the focus on Echo, instead of the ensemble, killed it. Because, bless her, Eliza just can't carry a show, and should not have been put in that position to begin with. Instead of the 'hooker-of-the-week' set-up, it could have evolved into something with a little more soul. Look at the characters- Dr. Saunders, Adele, the other dolls, even Topher have all evolved into interesting characters played by great actors. I want to say I am saddened by the cancellation, but I can't -- and that hurts. The actors deserve something better and Joss needs to move on and find a new muse."

Zoe - "I'm glad Joss is free to do better things. I thought from the beginning that the premise was only designed to last one season to get Dushku out of her Fox contract so that they could do a Faith spinoff. Joss deserves to be on a station like HBO or Showtime that will allow him to explore endlessly without interference. This show was screwed from the get go when I heard Fox made them re-do the first few episodes. Not the worst show ever and definitely not the best."

Katie - "I didnt start enjoying Dollhouse until the last few episodes. I think its downfall was that it wasnt an ensemble. Not many people actually cared about Echo, they wanted to see Victor, Sierra, Claire/Whiskey. Thats the reason this cancellation is sad imo because this show was getting to were it was good but it could of been better from the start if it was an ensemble, and not a vehicle for Eliza D."

Mr. Nigel Murray - "This news is interesting. As a fan of the show Fringe, I read this is a possible positive or a negative. Positive in that they might have an open slot to move Fringe to where it might not be beaten by CSI, Grey's, and the Office. Negative in that once the first domino falls, Fox will be less trigger happy with cancellations, and Fringe seems in danger of that.

"As for the "Friday Night Death Slot," I agree that traditionally, Friday nights tended not to be a very good slot. Although, in recent years, the slot's appeal has been improving. Battlestar Galactica did well in the Friday night slot. (I know, it's cable, but still). Also, CBS' new Friday lineup is rumored to be more successful than their previous years. It's a bit sci-fi but I guess more paranormal ghost-like with the Ghost Whisperer and Medium."

tv - "I'm a huge Josh Whedon fan and I watched every episode out of loyalty but I thought the premise was 'icky' and not in keeping with his theme of female empowerment."

josef - "I actually agree with you on some of your points, but just because I don't care for DH doesn't mean I wanted it cancelled. The show does have its fans and for them, I'm sorry that you've lost something that you liked. However, I do think that Fox gave it a chance. Hey, if Fox gave Firefly as much of a chance as it gave DH, Wash might still be alive. I tried to give DH a chance, too, but from the get-go there was one big problem for me: I can't stand Dushku. Of all the actors and actresses in Whedon's previous work, she's the last one I would've picked to lead a new series, but Joss seems to have a thing for her. Well, we all have different tastes..."

READER MARK O. ESTES WHO WAS DISAPPOINTED IN ZAP2IT

"You're 'fans' of Whedon, but celebrate that something he actually put his heart and soul into didn't work?

"Zap2It, as a die hard fan of this site, I have to shake my head and disagree wholeheartedly with this article. Not as a fan of the show, but as a fan for this site. This article is like telling a kid that Santa Claus doesn't exist and that he was a fool to ever think that Santa Claus existed in the first place.

"For me, seeing this article under the Zap2It moniker is like finding out that your greatest hero is actually a crappy bastard who doesn't give two thoughts about anyone and only saves people for publicity. In short, Zap2It, what happened to you?"

and later ...

"First, let me say that I am glad you guys took time to address my concern. Zap2It is the reason why I wanted to write about TV news, because I loved how you guys handled things here. I bookmarked the site through Ryan's Guide To Lost Column and have followed it ever since. In short, the people behind the site are amongst some of my biggest idols.

"With that being said, is it not wrong to critique those who critique? Yes, you are entitled to your opinion. Everyone is. But the article that I read seemed for lack of better words, lackluster and low brow; and while it was an opinion piece, it was in fact just that. An opinion. Fans of any show come to you guys for news and knowledge about their favorite shows, whether they are canceled or not. It's one thing to announce that a show is canceled, which you guys so eloquently do, but to write a piece saying "I'm so glad 'blank' has been canceled, let me count the ways" is like an epic "Nyah Nayh!" to your viewers, if not a slap to their faces. So all I am saying is that, maybe an article entitled "Where 'Dollhouse' Went Wrong" or something of that nature would have been more debatable than what was written.

"As for "not being a blind follower of all things Whedon", I understand that whole-heartedly, because I disagree with some things Darlton has done for LOST, but I am not going to pop a bottle of champagne for their failure."

ZAP2IT'S FAVORITE READER COMMENT ON THE  POST

J Means - "'With a series end in sight, Whedon can hopefully give Sierra and Victor a happy ending.' Whedon? Happy ending? Those two words don't even go together. FOX couldn't get a happy ending out of Whedon if they put a gun to his head. Whedon's a capable writer/producer, but he doesn't do happy endings. Just ask Willow and Tara."

Touche J Means! You are absolutely correct. Whedon doesn't like to let his couples be happy, but man, we can dream, can't we?

Follow Zap2it on Twitter for the latest TV, movie and celebrity news updates.

Related:

'Dollhouse': Why we're happy it got canceled
'Dollhouse' shuts its doors
'Dollhouse' recaps
Worst 10 TV theme songs: 'Dollhouse' to 'American Idol,' '90210' to 'Cleveland Show'