And I gotta say, I liked the second season a whole lot better than the first. I know, Wheadon was trying to make a point about consent but there was just too much porny "look at me in my short skirt being a sexy, empty headed doll" in the first season.
And I realized something tragic. Tahmoh Penikett is a stunningly pretty man, but his acting is wooden and not great. Compared to the guy who played Boyd, Harry Lennix, Penikett's Ballard was wooden and became superfluous. Compared to the amazing Olivia Williams, who played DeWitt, Penikett was like a bowl of pudding that hasn't set yet, occasionally slopping over the sides when jostled into action. But I still like looking at him.
Did it make the point I think Wheadon was trying to make about bodily autonomy? Not really. I think it was much better at showing the problem of corporate domination (see the episodes with the senator, for example). Maybe if the show hadn't been cancelled, Wheadon wouldn't have hamfisted so much of it. But he's Joss Wheadon, he's got to know by now that his shows have a 50% chance of getting axed right when it get's good. (See Firefly, for example).
I don't think Dollhouse is nearly as good as Firefly or Buffy. I won't be rewatching it anytime soon. But it's still better than most of the schlock on TV*. Perhaps that's why I haven't actually turned on my TV in months.
*Those of you with cable probably have better TV options. But us poor folks with our antennas are shit out of luck.
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