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How does a limbless torso work the DVR remote? Does he have to keep it in his mouth the whole time, or is there one of those gizmos that works by blowing through a straw? And where is a limbless torso on Friday nights that he can't watch it live?

I don't watch this show, I'm thinking about getting around to it, but for the moment I'd just like to thank you for letting me kick off my day with that picture of Tahmoh Penikett.

I howled at KikiVictor. Howled!

"I'm Kiki! I don't know how I got here; I so don't care. Am I drunk?"

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: I don't understand why Whedon keeps selling his shows to these Fox people. They clearly Don't Get It(tm) and proceed to crush his shows with terrible marketing, a lousy timeslot, and abusive 'get the ratings with the first episode or we kill the show' policies. I understand the appeal of network television, but is having failure after failure on network television really better than having some modest-to-significant successes on a cable channel?

Does Fox have some sort of abusive hold on Whedon? Is this like Stockholm Syndrome for television writers? "Oh, that's OK, I'll just make a better show next time, guys. No, no, don't get up, I'll toss myself out the window."

For heaven's sakes, Joss, go talk to the people at HBO. At least then we could wait out the "Scripts are gonna get better! Just wait!" phase with some entertaining nudity.

I just don't understand what is happening with this show. The end of last season was so good! Alan Tudyk! And now...ugh.

The only thing for it is less Eliza Dushku and more Amy Acker and Alexis Denisof. In fact, let's bring David Boreanaz in there too and just have a sixth season of Angel.

On a related note, I finally Netflixed "Castle" with Nathan Fillion. Once I got over the initial awful 5 to 10 minutes, it actually is a rather enjoyable show.

During the first 5 minutes, it annoyed me that the female lead was supposed to be "dateless" and supposedly didn't wear makeup (one police officer comments on that), and yet she's wearing an incredible amount of eyeliner and dark lipstick. She looks like a Russian supermodel. Also, I don't buy the daughter being so well adjusted, but she's cute and she doesn't wear makeup (yeah!) and I think I want to be her.

Echelon? Give my regards to the nice men in black from Langley when they visit. Should be any minute now.

To be honest, last season of Dollhouse was good TV, not great TV. This season is kind of meh. There's only so many times I can see Eliza Dushku in a whore of the week costume. A bit harsh but then again, so is Fox.

To recap the tired "origin story" again ... Dushku had a development deal with FOX. Talking with her peep, Whedon, about creating a show he allowed himself to get sucked in.

As for Dushku, while her genetic gifts are obvious, I'm actually seeing her some acting chops develop over the course of this show. Not great acting, but servicable. For moments. Now and then. Which is an improvement. Look at the boobies! Boobies can carry a show, especially if they're perky (& exceptional) - it's Fox!

The show, however is still a hot mess. I don't so much pine for the witty dialog and angst-y coming of age drama of Buffy. I am, however, intrigued by the tremendous potentialin the premise of Dollhouse, and the fact that they are all damaged, compromised and lost, and the considerable talent of the ensemble cast. Yet, each week comes up a bit short, for whatever reason.

Oh, just let it die already.

Have you guys considered that Whedon doesn't get shows on HBO or Showtime because...they don't want him? I find it hard to believe that he keeps pitching solely to Fox, the way they've treated him before. I get the feeling that Fox (who we know will air ANYTHING) is the only one willing to give something like Dollhouse a chance, and all the other networks probably turned him down. It's a bad show in a tough genre to sell, and it has terrible ratings. I don't see HBO or Showtime risking their necks for something like that.

*runs away from the wasps' nest she just poked*

Figgy, you are not alone. Dollhouse is not True Blood. Or The Wire. Or Deadwood. Or Six Feet Under. Generation Kill. John Adams. Oz. Firefly had amusing moments but it wasn't of the same quality as those shows either. Neither was Angel. Neither was Buffy.

Joss Whedon wrote one major cult classic. He inherited his father's wit. BUT. He has major follow-through issues, doesn't know how to pace himself (or his storylines) and lets his affection for people blind him to their limited abilities.

Dead Like Me was a lovely little show (more it's first season than it's second). All of Joss' shows are on par with DLM. Wonderfalls. They are not among the best ever made.

The hardcore JW fans can delude themselves into thinking it's just that Joss is misunderstood but he's not. He's egotistical. Talented and egotistical. That is why he pitches to FOX. FOX is a major network. Bigger paychecks, more publicity, better shot at award nominations.

In my opinion, FOX has actually been incredibly generous to Joss Whedon. His shows getting the ax don't bother me like it did when it was Battlestar Galactica or Deadwood.

Joss Whedon is funny and has some nice ideas. But he's overrated as a showrunner and a writer.

Sara--read BierceAmbrose's comment above. I had forgotten the origin story myself, but Whedon was not pitching to Fox, he was trying to come up with a show idea to feature Dushku because she was the one who had a deal with Fox.

Please, some examples of how Joss has shown himself to be egotistical. Because whenever I've seen him interviewed or listened to his audio commentaries, he's seemed humble and very down to earth, as well as hysterically funny. I never heard him say that winning awards or garnering a ton of publicity were his major goals; he's always said that he just wants to make shows that people love. And they do.

Plenty of utterly crappy shows get good ratings and run for years; it doesn't make them good. Plenty of good shows with a lot of promise get canceled after a few episodes, and that doesn't make them bad. What's clear to me is that a lot of people in charge of network programming don't know what the fuck they're doing.

If Joss can't get deals with the bigger networks, it's because they're morons, not because he's untalented or overrated. I don't think the guy's infallible, and I don't like Dollhouse, but I think that's mainly because he tried to design a show that was already cast, rather then develop a story and then cast actors who fit the parts. His shows made me cry and laugh more than any other so-called comedy or drama out there.

I don't usually go out of my way to watch television on Friday nights, and I imagine that many others who are the target audience don't either, so this makes sense. Unfortunately, I don't own a DVR. The quality of this show aside, Friday nights are a viewing wasteland for my demographic, and Fox is stupid. By their logic, ABC might as well start airing a drama about professional football on Sunday afternoons opposite the real games.

DH2 hasn’t made it to Australia yet so it’s sad to hear they haven’t capitalised on the momentum they established towards the end of last season. It really seemed like they had figured out a way to make their unwieldy premise work, but it sounds like they are lapsing into old bad habits.

As for “egotistical” how the hell would that separate Whedon from any other figure in mainstream entertainment? In his line of work, reputation and ego are practically currency. How else do you pitch the idea of a vamp fighting cheerleader to convince suits to part with their money? The guy has faith in the quality of his work and wants to pitch it to the widest possible audience. Unfortunately, it seems that the appeal of that work is limited to something smaller than the audience size Fox demands.

I agree with the comments that Whedon isn’t an HBO guy. He trades in smartly written pulp with fantasy plots and engaging characters which, while welcome, just doesn’t seem like HBO fare (“fun” vs “dour” maybe? I can’t quite put my finger on it). I often wonder whether Firefly would have been shitcanned so quickly had it been commissioned by the (then) Sci Fi network? Or for that matter, would BSG would have made it to 4 seasons had it been commissioned by Fox? He would be a big fish in a small pond, sure, but at least the quality of his work might stand a better chance of going un-fucked with. [grabs umbrella and raincoat for impending torrent of spittle flecked derision].

This is probably going to get me shot, but could you guys PLEASE give it a rest with the Firefly circle jerk? I mean, the show wasn't THAT good. To be honest, I tried to watch it...twice. I made it through 5 episodes and really just didn't give a shit about the characters. It was no Veronica Mars; that's for damn sure.

Whedon's work of genius is embodied within Buffy, and it is gone. Accept it.

That being said, I think Dollhouse is ok for filler TV, and I still have it on DVR.