Without googling I was unsure whether The Betty crew were pre- or post-Firefly, but yeah, the similarities definitely there. It does feel like Baldwin's character written for someone badass like Perlman.
^^S/UF: I'm glad they seem to have lightened him. Nothing worse than a charmless lead. I could even accept a serial killer as series lead as long as not charmless. Oh wait...
ETA: Doesn't Baldwin use the 'I was aiming for his head' gag. I'm sure I've heard that before, but did Whedon originate it?