Pilot For 'Dollhouse' Exceeds Expectations

"I am still trying to catch my breath," said Jace in a relatively spoiler-less review of the script. "While I had extremely high expectations for 'Dollhouse' (I always trust in the Joss), I was worried that, after all of the hype and hoopla, it wouldn't quite live up to my preconceived notions about the project. I am happy to say that not only were those expectations matched but they were exceeded."

The pilot episode is called "Echo," which is the name of the show’s central character played by Dushku. Echo, according to Fox's official description "is a young woman who is literally everybody's fantasy. She is one of a group of men and women called 'Actives' who can be imprinted with personality packages, including memories, skills, language — even muscle memory — for different assignments. The assignments can be romantic, adventurous, outlandish, uplifting, sexual and/or very illegal. When not imprinted with a personality package, Echo and the others are basically mind-wiped, living like children in a futuristic dorm/lab dubbed the Dollhouse, with no memory of their assignments — or of much else.

"The show revolves around Echo's burgeoning self-awareness, and her desire to know who she was before, a desire that begins to seep into her various imprinted personalities and puts her in danger both in the field and in the closely monitored confines of the Dollhouse."


 According to Jace, among the themes in the show are the development of Identity, self-determination, and free will. It delves into issues of morality and mortality and asks hard questions about the ethical ramifications of science and technology.


Many people wonder if Echo will simply be vampire slayer Faith in a different setting. Word is that Echo will not only not be Faith, but has about 48 different faces to show the world. Whedon has created a challenging character for Dushku. The set-up of the show allows her play a variety of personalities and moods in a single episode. In the pilot episode alone, Echo assumes at least five identities.

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