Eliza Dushku, Tahmoh Penniket, Amy Acker in Epitaph 13 (S1xE13)

DOLLHOUSE EPISODE 13 FanVid
Made for entertainment only. No copyright infringement intended.
Dollhouse belong to Joss Whedon/ FOX

DarkTory1000

The fan video does a nice job of pulling out and showing you some of the more disturbing scenes out of Dollhouse’s “lost episode,” Epitaph 13 (not televised yet–on DVD (lol) and download for $1.99.

I finally took the time to watch E13 this morning.

I’m a huge Whedon fan but for many similar reasons like many that could’ve-been/-should’ve been fans did not watch the whole season because it was not good.

I am going to watch the last three eppys of S1 if I can, before the premiere of Dollhouse – Season 2 on September 25. This time, given the parade of  guest-starring actors coming through I’m going to watch the show straight through–no quitting.

It’s not just for the guest stars, it’s due to a sea change in the way the FOX network perceives the show and to Joss’s 180-degree turn in how he’s presenting the show. Last year, he seemed like he wanted to be anywhere but helming Dollhouse. This year he’s effusive, practically bubbly when he speaks of the show and what is forthcoming. Besides casting the very fine Summer Glau in a three-episode arc in S2, there are a number of familiar faces (Allen Tudyk, Michael Hogan, “Ballard’s” former XO in their BSG days) that will be featured in S2 that I’ve written about previously.

In regard to E13, Whedon is saying that they plan to “return” to it in Season 2 and beyond. It had been put together as a series finale if Dollhouse did not get renewed for a second season and all bets were against that happening–but as it turned out it was one of the lowest-rated shows to be renewed.

I really want Dollhouse to be awesome this year. I wanted the same last year but if nothing else, I have to be honest about a show I watch. If it sucks I say so, try to give it some time if I’m as devoted as I am to Whedon or Alan Ball, as examples, I come back again but if it still is bad–I just won’t watch.

The Lost episode/Episode 13/Epitaph One was a stand-alone episode which focused on a post-apocalyptic scenario where humans with their original personalities were getting their butts kicked by actives set to take over the world by essentially, purging the world of native-personality humans. And it seems to have been mostly Topher’s fault. He went insane about it. Some of it was quite powerful. I didn’t know the rebels (previously) and so it was a bit hard to care what became of them. The former dolls of the ‘house –plus Ballard  & Adelle De Witt and some mean-seeming blond guy with a gun that knew Adelle, were shown in flashback. Whiskey (Amy Acker), who had been mindwiped (more) and appointed the caretaker of the otherwise abandoned Dollhouse was the only doll living in what had been the Dollhouse when the rebels show up.

Ironically, if more of the first 12 episodes of Dollhouse had been more like the 13 th –”Epitaph” I may have been more patient with it.

Here’s the text of the note that Joss Whedon (the Man) sent out along with the screeners for Dollhouse Season 2  Episode One, Vows.

Whedon’s letter to teevee critics not me:

Source: Aint It Cool

September 1, 2009

Dear Press Member:

You hold in your delicate paws a rough cut of “Vows,” the first episode of the second season of DOLLHOUSE, premiering Friday, Sept. 25 on FOX. More importantly, you also hold a free t-shirt! So that’s a thumbs-up right there, no? I mean, do you even have to watch the show? It’s clearly t-shirt-tastic! Did “Grey’s Anatomy” send you a shirt? They did? (Did they send any extra? I’d kill.)

Meanwhile, DOLLHOUSE. Like a man with the bright-eyed euphoria of narrowly escaped death, DOLLHOUSE is coming back from a hilariously unexpected non-cancellation with a verve, a joy and a visceral excitement that borders on manic. We’re psyched. This is the show we want to make. The twisty lives of the Dollhouse peeps are truckin’ along, and ECHO (Eliza Dushku) is going through one of her fresher Hells.

Some things have changed. We’re shooting in HD with a new crew, for a look that’s more lush and exciting – and faster, so we can achieve more visually and give more time to the actors. (and OMG, Olivia’s hair! Very key.) Some things have not.

To refresh, Echo has been rescued from ALPHA (who is still at large) after having all her former personas dumped into her brain all at once. PAUL BALLARD (Tahmoh Penikett) has agreed to work with the Dollhouse in exchange for NOVEMBER’s (Miracle Laurie) freedom. DR. SAUNDERS (Amy Acker) has discovered she is actually an Active, designate “Whiskey,” who was designed by TOPHER (Fran Kranz) to replace the doctor Alpha murdered. And ADELLE (Olivia Williams) has gotten a fabulous haircut.

We hope you enjoy our happy little tale. If you don’t: t-shirt… so soft… so sleepy…

Yours, etc.

-joss

Many of  the photos are thanks to the great work via ScifiScoop. All the promos material/photos belong to FOX/Joss Whedon.
Cannot wait for pics of more of the guest stars–and Tahmoh Pennikett (Helo, “BSG”) not in a suit!! Click through to my Dollhouse S2 Picasa Photo album to enlarge them!

You can also go to the source of most of them, the owner of all them, fox.com/dollhouse.com .

Dollhouse’s Season 2 – Episode One is being described thusly (I have not seen it):

TV critics got their DOLLHOUSE 2.1 screeners today (wrapped in a lovely burgundy t-shirt and a note from Joss Whedon).

Titled “Vows,” the episode is superb: funny, suspenseful, sexy and
willing to kick around more than a few Very Big Ideas. Combined with
the series’ terrific “lost” episode (“Epitaph One”),
“Vow” roughly triples my investment in this series’ fate. Which is to
say, its eventual cancellation will be three times harder to bear now
than the day before I saw “Epitaph One.” via I am – Hercules!! at aintitcool.

“When Dollhouse’s second season begins September 25, bells will ring as Battlestar Galactica’s Jamie Bamber guest stars as a wealthy businessman who marries Echo (Eliza Dushku) while she’s on assignment.

“I was really impressed with Jamie,” Dushku tells TV Guide Magazine. “He’s a gorgeous husband with [whom I got] great wedding pictures for my first time down the aisle.”

Despite an intense on-screen fight—“I found myself literally sobbing real tears,” Dushku says—the faux wedding day was not without some lighter moments.

“I took a picture and sent it back to my mom, and she called me, a bit flustered,” Dushku says. “In the past couple years, I’ve been getting the [marriage] question from her more than ever, so it’s nice that I could send her some pictures to tide her over.”

Source: TV Guide Magazine

Thanks to The ODI from TV Spoilers

One of the best scenes from Terminator: the Sarah Connor Chronicles featuring Summer Glau.

Thanks to vchmainstream!

As you probably know by now, Summer Glau is set to join her friend and sometimes boss (“FireFly”, “Serenity”) Joss Whedon on the FOX  scifi drama “Dollhouse.”

FOX recently made many fans happy by announcing that the beautiful and talented Summer will appear in a multi-episode “Dollhouse” arc later this season.

Glau will play a character named “Bennett” who shares a past with Eliza Dushku’s “Echo” and has a connection to another Dollhouse character.

The story details though not written in stone,  have Bennett working for a Dollhouse. It was mentioned informally some time back (prior to renewal) that if the Dollhouse series were to continue into a second season that there likely would be more than one Dollhouse that comes to light.

In interviews prior to the confirmation of Summer as a guest star on Dollhouse, Joss Whedon had affirmed that he would love to have her guest but the right role would need to be created for her.

It’s not known at this time exactly when Summer will first appear on Dollhouse or for how long though have no fear, the FOX advertising dept. will make sure you know exactly when and for how long (and I’ll tell you here, too and probably be less in your face about it, though no guarantees because I’m pretty darned stoked).

Other Whedon veterans and/or fan faves that have or shall come to play at Dollhouse include Season One recurring player Amy Acker, season-closing guest star Alan Tudyk and Felicia Day, who appeared in  the shrouded-in-mystery13th episode, “Epitaph One.” Also, some of Tahmoh Penniket’s chums from Battlestar Galactica have guesting roles in S2 including Jamie Bamber (Apollo) and Michael Hogan ( Saul Tigh).

Summer Glau most recently starred on FOX’s “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles,” which was paired last spring in the Friday night death slot with “Dollhouse.”  The series’ ratings performances were not all that different but Dollhouse was deemed to have more potential and “Terminator” was cancelled. Dollhouse, to the surprise of almost everyone including Whedon, was renewed.

Personally, I’m a huge Joss Whedon fan. Whedon sort of reversed his initial request that we not tune in to Dollhouse so I did, but it sucked! He had all kinds of mixed feelings about working on Dollhouse whilst tethered to FOX and he was right to feel that way. Season One’s first two-thirds was simply unwatchable, IMO. It was far worse than Terminator, which itself could veer into near-unwatchability but had Ms. Glau to redeem it–then they started using her less and essentially shot itself in the head. Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles was cancelled in May, 2009.

I tried watching Dollhouse in three distinct instances. I watched the premiere and several episodes that came after but hated it. Then later in the season, I read that it was “finding it’s footing” but I must have tuned in too soon because save for one solitary eppy, it was still terrible. Finally, the season finished out with buzz about the “promise” it was showing. I heard, belatedly that Alan Tudyk did Whedon a solid and showed up for the last three shows of Season 1. I would have tuned in for that and will watch the three as well as search for the “mysterious (hype) Episode 13″ prior to trying for the third and last time to like Dollhouse.

I have never  given a television series three chances–not three shows–three separate times watching several shows each time, to win me over. It was solely due to Whedon’s involvement that I did so.

The guest list on Dollhouse for Season 2 looks really impressive and I’m encouraged by that because weakness in  a couple of main-character castings of  Dollhouse, plus let’s face it, some stupidly scripted shows have been killing it for me. Tighter scripting, LESS ELIZA, and some beefy, fun-to-watch roles for the guest stars could make Dollhouse worth tuning in for. Fingers crossed.

Dollhouse – Season 2 Promo
Thanks to babisnakis!

“Dollhouse” will have its second season premiere on FOX on Friday, Sept. 25.

OMG! They read my post!

Ha!

I’m so happy! Joss Whedon took my advice about how to make Season 2 of Dollhouse watchable!

This is pretty mind-blowing as previously Whedon had been very iffy about Summer Glau joining the cast and I suppose she hasn’t really–just guesting. Good start, though! This seals it. I will start watching Dollhouse again. I’ve watched in total about 6 episodes–only one of which I though was good–the rest were “fair” or worse. I suppose I should go back and watch, was it the last three episodes of Season 1 Dollhouse that were a “turning point” for the FOX suit’s choice to renew?

I’m not a teevee snob. I can tolerate a good show being “off ” once in a while. Even when much of a season of a multi-year show is off, I’ll stay ( Battlestar Galactica, Season 3–only a handful of good episodes). However, when a show is in it’s first season and episode after episode leaves a bad taste, I’m not invested enough to stick around. With Dollhouse, after Whedon sort of reversed his initial request that we not tune in I did, but it sucked!

Today’s scoop:

Dollhouse: For those Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles fans who are still hurt by its cancellation, you’re about to jump for joy. Summer Glau is heading to Dollhouse this season, playing Bennett, a Dollhouse employee who shares a past with Echo (Eliza Dushku). Glau is recurring and joining the likes of Alexis Denisof, Jamie Bamber, Michael Hogan and Keith Carradine, who all guest star this season. Check out what former Battlestar Galactica star Tahmoh Penikett has to say about the reunion below.

Tahmoh Penikett on acting opposite his former BSG castmembers on Dollhouse: “I did get to work with both of them and it made me so happy. It was different, but it was so cool. Both of their characters are so different from the ones they usually played. They’re so different from their characters on Battlestar, and they both did a smashing job. Michael Hogan is amazing, and it was just so great to see Jamie on the show.”

From E!

As you know hell froze over and the Joss Whedon/Eliza Dushku/Fox “Dollhouse” series was renewed though it was performing more or less (in the shared Friday Night Death Slot) in the range of the now-cancelled Terminator:The Sarah Connor Chronicles. There are now a bunch of promotional cast images for their upcoming second season of Dollhouse.
I wanna see the guest stars.

Tahmoh Penniket

I’m not really fond of the Eliza shots but frankly, she’s not the reason why I may take another look at this show. Dollhouse will help me to like it with consistently good guest stars (Summer Glau, repeatedly) .
Tahmoh Penniket, who will probably remain “Helo” from Battlestar Galactica for the rest of his acting career, looks very hot, as usual.

Promo media found at and thanks to, the ever-awesome SciFiScoop.

Eliza Dushku

[View with PicLens]

Elizabeth Mitchell in the forthcoming "V"

Alan Tudyk is a full time cast member in V????? When did this happen?

As it pertains to Joss Whedon’s show Dollhouse, which to be honest I’m way behind on, Tudyk’s Alpha ”will always be a part of the equation,” says Whedon.

Sounds like ol’ Joss is getting tired of being asked if Summer Glau will be on Dollhouse, tho’. His phrasing I have to assume, is industry jargon ‘cos otherwise it sounds a little bit rude (last paragraph)

Dollhouse creator Joss Whedon told EW.com that he is two weeks into breaking stories for the Fox sci-fi series’ second season, having wrapped his top-secret horror film The Cabin in the Woods on May 29.

With one season under their belt, Whedon and his writers “understand what works, and what didn’t work so well or what we weren’t so thrilled about,” he told the site. “We don’t have the onus of trying to be a big hit sitting on our shoulders. We can just be ourselves. And so the stories we’re breaking are pure, and exciting, and everybody’s on-board in the room, and it’s never flowed better.”

Whedon added that season two won’t pick up right with Alpha storyline, but a little bit later. (Alan Tudyk, who has scored a role on ABC’s midseason series V, may not be available right away, but Whedon hopes he’ll be able to use the character at some point.) “Alpha will always be a part of the equation,” he said.

Whedon added that he’s also hoping to work out time-sharing with the producers of ABC’s Happy Town, which nabbed Amy Acker, aka Dr. Saunders/Whiskey.

What about Summer Glau, Whedon’s former Firefly/Serenity co-star who is now free from Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles?

“We’re still breaking the episodes,” Whedon says, “but we didn’t honestly go into the season going, ‘Now how can we figure out how to service Summer?’ when we already have a huge ensemble. I adore Summer and she’s phenomenal, but I have to service the cast I have first. If something comes up that’s good enough, my God, I’d hound her. But the rumors of her becoming a big part of the show are greatly exaggerated.”

Via SciFiWire