Review: 'Dollhouse'

Brian Wilson is a genius, but like all creative people working at that level, he's as likely to crank out a forgettable ditty as he is another "Good Vibrations." His genius depends on having a variety of unpredictable and often uncontrollable factors working out just so. The wrong starting point, the wrong collaborator and an otherwise magnificent idea can collapse under its own weight.

I feel that way about the work of Joss Whedon. He's undoubtedly a genius, and I'm always interested to see his next project hit the screens. But while "Buffy The Vampire Slayer" and "Angel" were classic pieces of television, "Firefly" was a creative and rating disappointment. Yes, lots of Whedon fans loved the show, but for me (and for many others), the potential just never quite jelled onscreen.

Whedon's latest project is "Dollhouse," a slick and often compelling series starring Eliza Dushku as "Echo." As the first episode opens, she finds herself in some sort of undefined trouble and chooses to have had her personalities wiped clean so she can be imprinted with any number of new personas.

This highly illegal "Dollhouse" offers the wealthy, powerful and connected, men and women who can become whomever the client wants or needs them to be. Whether imprinted to be a lover, an assassin, a corporate negotiator or a best friend, these so-called "Actives" know nothing about their situation and are only conscious of whatever life they are living at that moment in time.

It's a compelling idea, and the team of Whedon and Dushku should make "Dollhouse" irresistible. But after watching three episodes of the show, I'm still not convinced.

Part of the problem is that the show has had some well-reported problems during the initial production. Fox was reportedly unhappy with the pacing of the pilot and some of the early scripts. So the initial pilot was reshot, and the order of the episodes has been shuffled to make the show more accessible to audiences early in the season.

And audiences might need the help. The premiere episode has a lot jammed into it. Echo finds herself first as a companion for the weekend, then as a hostage negotiator attempting to retrieve a kidnapped girl. There are all sorts of subplots, including an FBI agent attempting to prove the Dollhouse really does exist, hints of several entangling backstories among the executives and workers at the Dollhouse, as well as a mysteriously odd scene at the end of the hour that sets up an entirely different subplot.

Whedon has said in interviews that "Dollhouse" is really about personal identity, and how it's defined. You can see that exploration play out in upcoming episodes, but there are so many balls being juggled that I found that I sometimes felt that the show still hadn't found its identity.

Ironically, one of the biggest challenges might be the charisma of Dushku. No matter what role she plays in one of these "engagements," she is absolutely impossible to take your eyes off of her for a second. And it makes me wonder how much of Echo's successful transformations is due to her imprinted knowledge, and how much can be attributed to the fact that she's a smart, sexy woman. Even if she can't remember who she really is.

In the premiere episode, one character tells her that when he asked for a hostage negotiator, he was expecting someone like Edward James Olmos. And that's an interesting idea. How much of "Dollhouse" is really about the definition of personal identity, and how much is simply setting up opportunities for Dushku to show off her great legs and pouty lips in a variety of roles?

I'm on the fence about "Dollhouse." Like "Fringe," the episodes are uneven and sometimes frustrating. But when the tone is just right, it's an unbelievable look at our future.

 

"Dollhouse" premieres on Fox on Friday, February 13th, 2009.