I Dream of Dollhouse




Well, we've finally done it--the Mrs. and I finally got around to watching the series finale of Dollhouse, "Epitaph Two". (We would've done it sooner, but we had to track down on DVD the episode "Epitaph One" in order for "Epitaph Two" to make sense.) I'm sad to see the show end so soon but given its troubled production history and low ratings, I'm just glad that the show made it to the air at all.

Dollhouse, Joss Whedon's most ambitious work so far, was unlike any other science fiction TV show I can remember: In contrast to other shows in the genre which take sophisticated technology for granted (space travel, artificial intelligence, advanced medical tools, etc.), Dollhouse traced the development and abuses of a new technology and its impact on both individuals and society at large. It explored themes similar to movies such as A.I., Dark City, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and Total Recall and pushed them into wild, disturbing new directions. Furthermore, it had an unflinching amorality which permeated the entire series, much like Dexter, Profit, and the animated series Aeon Flux. Top it all off with a haunting opening theme song by Jonatha Brooke (which you can listen to in its entirety here) and you have one of the most thought-provoking, morally complex, and emotionally challenging science fiction TV series ever to air in the U.S.--yes, even more so than the recently re-booted Battlestar Galactica series. Check out io9 for in-depth yet spoiler-heavy articles here and here.

Oh, those lovely, creepy programmable doll people, how we hardly knew ye . . . .

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