Dollhouse: Actuals

So something came up. My curiosity was piqued, and I had to watch "Epitaph One". It turns out that FOX is going beyond shooting itself in the foot by not airing this, because not only will the events of the episode matter in the upcoming season, but it is a damn good episode. It mostly takes place in 2019, but we see a series of "memories" (which may or may not be accurate) of the Dollhouse's later (and early) days. One scene features Echo and Ballard working together, and shows us that Echo's time as Omega left some strange side effects. But the rest of the episode is dedicated to showing how the technology that makes the Dollhouse possible could (and in the continuity of the show, does) destroy the world.

In "Man on the Street", each act begins with someone discussing the existence and potential of imprinting people. The last interviewee states that the human race will end because of this technology because if we can erase who we are, there will be no way to be ourselves. In the future of Dollhouse, that is exactly what has happened. It started with Rossum deciding that the dolls would become permanent slaves in order to allow their clients to upgrade themselves by permanently placing themselves in an active's body. If a client doesn't like the way they look, or doesn't want to be allergic to shellfish, they can upload their mind into a better body. And when that body dies, they can put themselves in a new one. Suddenly, the episode "Haunted" takes on all new meaning. Will this stagnate the human race? Will anyone new ever be born? Or will people be raised like animals to be made into vessels for the wealthy if the person is attractive?

One of my favorite aspects of the episode was the tragedy of Topher Brink; here is a man who wanted to change the world, and he succeeded in ways he never imagined. Topher wasn't the most moral of people; he not only was ok with the idea of the Dollhouse, but he relished the ability to improve it. He made the technology better, faster, and more accessible. And then, all his ideas were corrupted and used to turn any broadcasting device into an imprint chair (kind of like in "Gray Hour"; you see, Joss knew what he was doing back at the beginning of the season when everyone was complaining about the episodic nature of the show). The knowledge that he gave world governments the power to turn people into killing machines through telephones eventually drove him insane.

Also, the scenes with Whiskey were beyond creepy, which, to me, means that I loved them. Amy Acker is a seriously underappreciated actress (Enver Gjokaj also is showing promise because he seemlessly becomes a new character every week), and her portrayal of a mind-wiped but still somewhat aware doll very well. I could have done without the speech from Felicia Day and Caroline-in-the-kid at the end, but I am super-psyched to see where things go from here. Oh, and I was very happy to see Laurence Dominic again; I knew he'd find his way out of the attic somehow.

Up next: Down the rabbit hole...