Dollhouse

[G'Kar]

I kinda' liked it. Its no Firefly, but nothing really is. I found little Whedon-esque dialogue and humor except for the "humanitarian" mind-eraser guy. It was interesting and intriguing enough, and I will definitely watch the next episode. My main worry is that every episode will be like this one, where she takes on a new personality and helps people, and there are occasional glimpses of a plot arc.

I loved the music. It was eerie. I like the guy playing her handler. Set design was cool, especially the ring of beds on the ground floor that have a sliding door.

I'm surprised this show even got made. I thought Whedon had sworn off Fox after the way they treated Firefly. And not only is he working with Fox again, they put his show on Friday night, which is often a death sentence.

[Inigima]

First episode is up on Hulu already, way to go guys :)

[Commodore]

[quote name='DanteGabriel' post='1686594' date='Feb 14 2009, 03.03']I thought some of the early lines were kinda laughable, too expositiony and hamfisted, and I found Eliza's first scene as the desperate girl being offered a deal to be... very awkward. She seems to still be getting comfortable with the role.

But it started to win me over as it went along. I think what might keep my interest is

SPOILER: Dollhouse

the fact that memories attached to the particular character trait remain. It seems like a way of humanizing what is sort of a very alien and unappealing process to have to watch. I hope that continues to be a running theme, but then again I don't want it to devolve into a "solve a borrowed character flaw per week" formula.

Also, all those shots of Eliza braless in a tanktop was... well, rank bribery, but well played, Fox.[/quote]

QFT

[Inigima]

I enjoyed it quite a bit. I'll be keeping an eye on it.

[Sheep the Evicted]

I just wastched it, and it was pretty decent - required a lot of disbelief suspension - but good none the less.

Pity that i'm getting Alias vibes from the show. Still i'll keep an eye on it and reserve judgement until about five episodes in.

[Deluge]

I'm watching it on Hulu right now, and for whatever reason there are no ads. I think Fox is trying to fuck over Joss again. :P

[Dinsdale!]

This show, it's just not as fun as I expect it to be.
And I'm not getting the great characters that I expect out of a Joss Whedon show.

I don't know what it is. I'm hoping it pulls together some more. Maybe it's just that the actor/director/writer team is still feeling itself out.

[kungtotte]

I'm with Dinsdale. I guess I'm going to give it the benefit of the doubt for a couple of episodes, and it has Amy Acker so it gets a couple of extra episodes worth of leeway because of that.

[Mexal]

It was good enough for me to want to watch the 2nd episode. That's enough for me.

[oneeye]

I'm suprised it wasn't cancelled mid pilot.

They were really pushing the male 19-49 demographic hard.

I'm going to keep watching but it's no Firefly.

[WarGalley]

I thought it was mediocre but I'll check out a couple more episodes. I'll probably be watching on Hulu from now on if it stays in the Friday night slot.

[quote name='DanteGabriel' post='1686594' date='Feb 14 2009, 04.03']Also, all those shots of Eliza braless in a tanktop was... well, rank bribery, but well played, Fox.[/quote]

Definitely.

[Werthead]

According to Whedon they filmed the first seven episodes as stand-alones with some minor continuing elements. Then the arc kicks in more defiantly.

Also, this is the first, studio-ordered episode and as such reminded me of the [b]Firefly [/b]situation. Whilst [i]Train Job[/i] was more fun, it didn't do as good a job of introducing the world and characters are the originally-planned pilot did either.

[Dirk Llama]

I liked it, for whatever reason. It's [i]flawed[/i], no doubt. The premise, even for sci-fi or television sci-fi, isn't good. As Sepinwall pointed out, the attempts to jump out in front of it with the conversation between Ballard and his superiors are weak. Why would you get an imprinted Echo as a hostage negotiator when you could get Michael Westen (I'm being facetious, but why not get a specialist)? And, dude, Michael will do it for a nominal fee or nothing at all. It's impossible to reconcile this, despite Ballard (Joss's) shitty assertion to the contrary that rich people want 'more' or what have you. It's a justification, but not a particularly good one. There could be an argument that the dolls memories being wiped adds a layer of discretion to the whole thing. They literally will not remember committing illegal acts and such, but given how intimately involved the handlers (or, at least the one we saw), Dominic (Reed Diamond's character) and DeWitt are with all of it, that justification doesn't work.

I don't really care, though. I can accept the fact that Fiona blows shit up on [i]Burn Notice[/i] every week, to no consequence, I can accept this silly bullshit.

Another problem I have is Dushku. She's good at what she's good at as an actress and it's really not this. I could see a dude like Michael C. Hall (who doesn't even draw on the same bag of emotions, whose diction and speech patterns changed from [i]Six Feet Under[/i] to [i]Dexter[/i]) knocking a role like this out of the park. Still, I think such a role might encourage an actor to ham it up (to draw distinction between the different imprints/characters) and Dushku seems to be hanging back a bit in that regard. I appreciate that.

She's competent, though and just hot as fuck. So, again, I'll accept it.

I don't have as much of a problem with the fact that Echo is the main character and has no, you know, character. It's clear that, over time, Joss is moving her towards self-awareness. In the meantime, Ballard (I have reservations about the actor) will probably shoulder the burden of characterization amongst the static (comparatively) characters. One would hope they could develop some of the other static, supporting characters (DeWitt, Dominic, Boyd, Topher) and make it so that they aren't (as they appear now) just awful people doing an awful thing.

Maybe it's just the built up good will I have with Joss (and, Minear is writing for the show, too). I watched and enjoyed [i]True Blood[/i] with similar reservations because Alan Ball built up significant good will with Seasons 1 and 3 of [i]Six Feet Under[/i].

I'm going to watch the whole first season, unless it gets cancelled or never really improves.

[potsherds]

I think I'll echo the general 'meh' attitude that some folks have here. I liked the episode quite a bit, but I'm inclined to agree that this isn't Dushku's forte, the central premise of the show is a bit ham-fisted and cliched, and I have concerns that I may lose interest rather quickly if a central story doesn't start to form. I'll definitely tune in for half the season or so, but any more will depend on some improvements, I guess.

[delete this account pls]

I would have thought Mya would be all over this thread by now.

[Vegas]

I'm interested in how they address the overall lack of sympathetic characters. The only person the viewer can really get behind and cheer for is the agent trying to bring the Dollhouse down. All the Dollhouse employees are accessories, and the dolls themselves are hopeless victims, routinely and repeatedly abused. I didn't feel, "Wow, Echo is so badass." I felt pity and horror.

If the focus of the series is the slow, inexorable destruction of the Dollhouse, then count me in. If it turns into a weekly "Wacky Adventures if Echo and Friends" then I doubt I'll be able to see past the horror of the situation.

And what people are saying about the serious tone is spot on. And again, I think it's because the show is focused on victims and criminals.

It'd be one thing if the dolls were themselves in between roles. That they actually wanted to be doing these things. But instead they seem more like slaves and zombies.

It is an interesting concept and project. Just not an enjoyable one, I think.

[Knight of Ashes]

I'm interested enough to carry on watching, though some part of me kept thinking "Gee, wish they'd done [b]Faith the Vampire Slayer[/b] instead."

Yes, I know Dushku didn't wanna do it.

[Annelise]

[quote]I could see a dude like Michael C. Hall (who doesn't even draw on the same bag of emotions, whose diction and speech patterns changed from Six Feet Under to Dexter) knocking a role like this out of the park.[/quote]

Or Toni Collette, I think she's doing a great job w/ this in the [i]US of Tara[/i] on Showtime. I haven't seen Dollhouse yet, but I intend to give it a looksee.

[Max the Mostly Mediocre]

It's unkind, but every time Dushku was in her, uh, blank slate mode, I couldn't help thinking that Summer Glau did it better in Firefly/Serenity.

[Rubies & Jade]

I was bored by it--just wasn't that intresting. and liking Joss, Buffy or Eliza just isn't enough to make me care about this show. I'll probably watch one or two more (often pilots are a little odd) but I'll most likely end up passing on it.