Catch-up Time

I got around to watching Dollhouse, Joss Whedon's new joint. Two words: Pee and yuke.

Whedon is a clever, facile writer who excels at taking genre tropes and stereotypes and resurfacing them into something shiny and new-looking. At his best (season 2 of Buffy, IMO) he creates powerful pastiches that combine humor and sentiment in a novel, refreshing way. At his worst, he's convinced that he's created a work of storytelling genius when he's really just reinventing the wheel. Whatever the result, he will not be dull.

Until Dollhouse. First, Whedon chose to build the show around Eliza Dushku (Faith from BtVS and Tru from Tru Calling), an actress of limited range but real charisma (even in the craptastic Tru Calling, the camera loved her). This creates an effect exactly 180 degrees away from what Whedon intended (I think). She plays Echo, a character who has her mind wiped away after each adventure as a negotiator, an assassin, or what-have-you. Rather than seeming remotely plausible, the show kept making me think, "Hey, now Faith's pretending to be a stripper!" It doesn't help the first episode was introduced by a brief prologue that looked and sounded exactly like Faith checking into rehab. Echo needs to be character who disappears into each assignment. Dushku cannot remotely do that. It doesn't help that the "wiped" Echo was written to seem mildly retarded.

Plus, I can't figure out why this secret organization even exists. It reminds me of Tru Calling, a show with a mythology so poorly thought-out that I couldn't even begin to care about the characters or plot. Seriously, there aren't enough hookers in the world? You need women who can be "programmed" to be the perfect lover one week, a world-class athlete the next? Why?

Maybe it will get better, but right now it's a miss, not a hit.

I've checked out on 24. It's just too ludicrous and mean-spirited. On the other hand, I am digging the return of Burn Notice. Jeffrey Donovan's Michael Westin is the perfect anti-Jack Bauer. And while I'm on the subject of checking out, I've decided that Heroes can't be fixed. Until they fall out of love with Sylar, the show has nowhere to go. Maybe if Brian Fuller could get back, stat, or if Brian K. Vaughn smothered Tim Kring with a pillow, but no other way.

Four episodes of Battlestar Galactica left. Man, will I miss this show when it's over.

And, as always, the funniest show on television is Smallville.