...let me show you them.
I finally got around to watching the latest episode of Dollhouse, "Haunted", and lets just say it wasn't my favorite episode. I think this episode sort of summarized everything I don't really like about this show. True, it has been getting better. The last few episodes have been the best episodes of the series thus far, but I don't get all of the "Dollhouse is the greatest show ever!!!" talk that's been floating around lately.
It's main problem for me will still always be Echo. Do you know the reason why the last few episodes have been better? Because they didn't focus all on Echo, but instead let the other characters have the spotlight. Because "Haunted" was almost exclusively Echo, it was just....boring. I couldn't even pay that much attention to it. I'm starting to understand why people were saying this show couldn't work with a main character who was always a different person every week. It's because I have never felt connected to Echo once (and I kind of hate her real persona, Caroline, too. She's annoying). Maybe if Eliza Dushku was a better actress I could feel something, but she's not a very good actress! She's good at one thing: Faith. That's it. She cannot carry the show like this episode was trying to let her do. So it just ended up being SO boring.
Where this show does do well is in giving the other characters room to shine and focusing on the overarching story arcs. Most of the main arc revolves around Paul and his investigation of the dollhouse, so it probably comes as no suprise that I thought all of his parts of this episode were the best. I really liked his relationship with Mellie in the early episodes, but now it is just so disturbing (and that sex scene was totally hot, but totally icky). Every time we spend time with Ballard, we learn a little bit more about the dollhouse and the mystery, while at the same time getting some interesting moral stuff with the Paul/Mellie storyline. Why can't the show be about them?!
As far as the other characters go, this is another reason why I have a hard time with this show. I find Topher completely reprehensible, so the fact that the show constantly plays him for comic relief is disturbing to me. The same thing with Adelle. The show is trying to make her seem more sympathetic, but because I find everything she stands for entirely reprehensible, I can't muster any sympathy for her. The only people who work at the dollhouse who I sort of like are Boyd and Dr. Saunders, because they seem to have the most issues with what's going on, but even them I'm not too sure about. Heck, the only one who I could really truly like and not feel bad about was Laurence Dominic because he was such an asshole. And then he actually ended up being against the dollhouse the whole time! I loved him! I miss him already. Bring him back!
I'm finding that besides this last episode, I have been enjoying Dollhouse, at least moreso than I was at the beginning. But even when I am enjoying it, there's always that niggling thought in the back of my head that the show could be better. It just has to get a new lead actress, make the characters more likeable, and completely change around the plot. Yeah...that should work ;)
What does everyone else think about Dollhouse?
1 comment:
Well put, excellent analysis. :) Seriously, this show has PROBLEMS.
First, as you point out, Eliza Dushku just can't handle the role of Echo/Caroline. She's not strong enough as an actress to play multiple characters convincingly, and she plays Caroline like a whiny, self-righteous brat. I think the actress who plays Sierra is a bazillion times better as an actress and more likeable too. I mean, how cute was she as Topher's nerdy friend in this ep?! She can effortlessly slip into these doll personas and I never once think of her as an "actress" playing a part and trying to impress us with her "acting" ability the way I'm always rolling my eyes at Dushku's "efforts."
I agree with you also, about the need to shift audience POV more firmly in the Paul investigation camp. Paul Ballard should be THE main character. The dolls are victims, for the most part, so it's hard to have a victim as your main character because the victim is rarely an agent in the plot; he/she can't move the story along because they're always at the mercy of others. The attempt to make Echo "special" and more active could only work if A.) Echo/Caroline weren't so annoying B.) Eliza Dushku could handle lead character duties (which she cannot; she's both annoying and boring as a lead actress) and C.) The writers let Echo break out of her doll-state more fully so that she becomes an active hero we can root for. I just don't see any of these things happening any time soon, otherwise "Dollhouse" would turn into a completely different show. And apparently, Joss thinks Eliza's just the bee's knees when it comes to acting and such. *eyeroll*
Right now, Paul is the guy we should be following as our lead, and the dollhouse leaders (Topher, DeWitt, et al) our (slightly intriguing/sympathetic, but still definitely eeeeevil!) villains. Intead, the dollhouse people are the main characters, the ones whose eyes we see almost everything through, and yet they are, as you say, reprehensible people. I like DeWitt better than you do because I think Olivia Williams manages to bring some depth to her characterization. But Topher is an arrogant jerk, even Poor Man's Dixon is turning into a company man who does what Adelle and the dollhouse tell him to do.
In other words, it's a good idea for the writers to add layers and some sympathy to these "villains", but they are, afterall, the villains of the story and our hero, Ballard, is reduced to a B-plot storyline week-in and week-out (if that! sometimes he's C-story level!). The priorities on the show are completely out-of-whack with what an audience is looking for in its storytelling.
Plus: These standalone eps have got to go! They. Are. Boring. Dushku can't handle 'em and they're not even interesting as murder-of-the-week plots. I've seen better mysteries on Matlock.
Rant off/
;)
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