Dollhouse: "Ghost" 2/13 - Grading & Discussion

[Starbreaker]

I realized what's been bugging me about this pilot, but I couldn't really put it into words last night. There's a lot of... nothing. Talking heads where there should be subtle background music or noises or something. There are too many pauses where exposition that makes no sense to me is given.

Supposedly this is a new version of the pilot? I can't imagine how hard to follow the first one was. I understand the basic plot of the show, but I don't REALLY understand what the point of this show is going to be.

I read an LA Times Review that I agreed with with on one major point. Tahmoh Penikett's character is brought in way too early. There was a little too much conflict going on in this first episode. We should have been learning more about the Dollhouse and Echo.

I probably won't be tuning in again. There's too much great TV to watch during the week.

 

[Ptrope]

Bad acting, forced dialog, beautiful people, fancy clothes, and lavish sets.

"Dollhouse" is like a porno that never gets around to the sex.

No, that looks more like this.

Let's see ... that's $39.95 for the keyboard, $129.99 for the monitor, $1.50 for the Pepsi ... yeah, that about covers it.

Oh, yeah, the show! I was underwhelmed, sad to say. It didn't help that FOX ran all those irritating promos with Summer and Eliza ... the PG Porn was better than those! After all the hype for this show, and all the stated expectations, it just didn't really seem to come together. Eliza's acting was nothing to write home about, nor was Olivia Williams's. I hate to think what the dolts at FOX thought was obscure about the original premiere, because this one skated all over the place without really establishing much - after Firefly, I had the impression that FOX wants their premiere to spell everything out. Well, they're a few Sierra Bravos short of the alphabet here.

I agree with the folks who think Echo's handler was the standout of the show. Other than that, well, I'll watch it again next week to see if this is just teething, but so far, I think I may switch back to Moonlight on SciFi ...

 

[Forbin]

My partner likes Eliza Dishcloth so we will HAVE TO watch this after. I have been calling out all the disparaging comments to him in the other room to try and dissuade him but so far, to no avail.

Sigh

It's hopeless if he's an Eliza fan like me. Hell, I kept watching Tru Calling just because of her, and that was almost torture.

 

[Forbin]

I'm wondering just how much of the drabness and lack of humor is Fox's fault.

 

[Othello]

Below average. Just really not allt hat good. I'll give it a shot since it's only the pilot but that just wasn't very good. It's a shame cause there are some good actors on the show.

 

[Lindley]

I'm wondering just how much of the drabness and lack of humor is Fox's fault.

From the beginning I've gotten the impression that this show is meant to be less "Bewitched, Bewildered and Bothered" and more "Objects In Space". The toned-down humor may be Joss's idea.

The story-over-characters approach I can't really see as being anything but Fox, though.

 

[Hermiod]

I'm giving this an average. The premise is certainly interesting but the quick switch in to what almost felt like a police procedural show was disappointing.

It very much felt like Angel, by which I mean the lighting, the set design and everything about it reminded me of the season five Wolfram and Hart set.

 

[The Borgified Corpse]

I agree with everyone else. It's a decent thriller series and there are some elements that could come together to form something very interesting. But right now, it lacks that integral Joss Whedon spark that made Buffy & Angel so fun.

Still, A+ for Eliza Dushku. I've always felt she has an spark to bring to all of her work (although she couldn't save how poorly written her character was on Tru Calling. I still liked that show though, mostly for Harrison & Davis).

Amy Acker asking her if she wanted a massage... now come on Joss... don't tease us like that!

Joss Whedon can be an infuriating bastard that way. (But in his defense, he says that all of the Buffy/Faith subtext was completely unintentional.)

I'm giving this an average. The premise is certainly interesting but the quick switch in to what almost felt like a police procedural show was disappointing.

Considering I've been gorging myself on Law & Order DVDs lately, I don't have a problem with that.

 

[Captain Shaw]

I voted average its a creepy version of Joe 90 i will keep watching to see where its goes.
Just one thing the thread says 2/13 i thought this was the first episode.

 

[Bob The Skutter]

I voted average its a creepy version of Joe 90 i will keep watching to see where its goes.
Just one thing the thread says 2/13 i thought this was the first episode.

It was the first episode, 2/13 is the date (the American way.)

 

[Starbreaker]

It was the first episode (might be the last too). Ratings were... subpar.

 

[Captain Shaw]

I voted average its a creepy version of Joe 90 i will keep watching to see where its goes.
Just one thing the thread says 2/13 i thought this was the first episode.

It was the first episode, 2/13 is the date (the American way.)

OH yes feeling stupid now.
Am i the only one who got a Boston legal vibe from the set.
I think Danny crane would love it in there.

 

[Jax]

Dollhouse (series debut) - 4.72 million & 2.0/6
Weak but better than SCC and did grow out of 2nd half though Dollhouse needs 6 million minimum to survive. FOX put the dam show at 8pm, SCC is dead.

 

[tharpdevenport]

They had an interview on the radio today with Whedon, and during it they played a clip from the pilot which was between Topher and her Handler; all this did was to re-enforce how badly done things were. Topher's dialogue was forced, like it was written by a low-level FOX writer, and didn't "fit", hell -- not even the actor saying the lines was being Topher, he was just himself reading Topher's lines -- it was BAD.
And the whole scene was just a "Androemda" lead-you-by-the-nose pastiche of things that should have been worked out over time in a more professional and fitting manor.

The episode as a whole was just as boring and annoying as later seasons of "Stargate: SG1", "The X-Files", and had a boring "this is just bad" vibe like "Enterprise".

Reading fan replies over at Whedonesque, I made the comment that I thought some people are just blinded by the lack of a episodic Whedon series, to which the amazingly over;y crazy Whedon fans jumped in saying that I am telling them they were wrong and what not; I thought Whedon's fanbase was a little smarter than that, but appearently not.

 

[commodore64]

I think Joss Whedon is a genius, and really wanted to like it ... but didn't. I'll tune in again next week hoping that it gets better.

 

[Admiral2]

Below average.

Trekkies, remember that ep of voyager where 7of9 started acting like people her collective had assimilated? That was essentially an episode built around proving Jeri Ryan has some kind of range as an actress. This is like an entire serious built around proving the same thing for Eliza Dushku.

 

[Lumen]

Bad acting, forced dialog, beautiful people, fancy clothes, and lavish sets.

"Dollhouse" is like a porno that never gets around to the sex.

This first episode was unimpressive. It was able to hold my attention, but that might be because I can't stop looking at Eliza Dushku -- point being, at no point did anything in the show strike me as smart, original, or even very interesting. I think during one of the commercial breaks I remarked that it was sort of like The Davinci Code with half the suspense.

My girlfriend remarked that it really reminded her of the The Train Job -- we got fed a bunch of information and a premise in the first twenty minutes, all of which was sandwiched between a small example and a big example of all that information.

This episode was the second pilot that Whedon made after someone pointed out problems with the first, right? So we'll be seeing the original pilot next week? If so, should be interesting. I'll watch next week, but my high expectations of Whedon aren't going to keep my there forever.

The ratings seem like semi-good news, anyway, but I can't imagine next week will be very close to this week after that lackluster opening.

 

[Bob The Skutter]

Bad acting, forced dialog, beautiful people, fancy clothes, and lavish sets.

"Dollhouse" is like a porno that never gets around to the sex.

This first episode was unimpressive. It was able to hold my attention, but that might be because I can't stop looking at Eliza Dushku -- point being, at no point did anything in the show strike me as smart, original, or even very interesting. I think during one of the commercial breaks I remarked that it was sort of like The Davinci Code with half the suspense.

My girlfriend remarked that it really reminded her of the The Train Job -- we got fed a bunch of information and a premise in the first twenty minutes, all of which was sandwiched between a small example and a big example of all that information.

This episode was the second pilot that Whedon made after someone pointed out problems with the first, right? So we'll be seeing the original pilot next week? If so, should be interesting. I'll watch next week, but my high expectations of Whedon aren't going to keep my there forever.

The ratings seem like semi-good news, anyway, but I can't imagine next week will be very close to this week after that lackluster opening.

Apparently we're never seeing the original pilot, so either it was stupendously bad, or has absolutely nothing to do with the so as it is now.

 

[BenRoethig]

I like the pieces (Eliza specially). but not sure of the final product yet. I would have liked to see Caroline start to wake up in Echo or Paul to get a little closer, but right now this seems like a poorly written T&A copy of the Pretender

 

[Peak]

Knowing FOX, the original pilot was great, and most of the problems people have is due to memos from higher ups at FOX.

I think they explained too much in the episode, better begin with a blank slate the first episodes (no hint on who "Echo" was and so on) and begin to work in backstory and explanations after 10 episodes or so...

Above average. I feel that there's too much studio interference in this episode for it to be really good.