Felicia Day (Whedon mainstay and star of Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog) has let everyone know via Twitter that her episode (#13) of Dollhouse will not be airing on Fox and will only be on the upcoming DVD set. It should be noted that official notice of cancellation has not come from Fox yet. Give it time.
While this is not unexpected news giving the declining ratings of the show, it does suck donkey balls nonetheless. Is it even possible for Joss Whedon or his fans to trust Fox anymore? Perhaps we're simply too much the minority for the network to care. Give the world to the reality television fans. Our cause is lost. Granted, the crappy timeslot didn't help matters.
On the other hand, if Dollhouse follows in the footsteps of Firefly, we might be seeing a movie from the franchise in a year or two. It's just a glimmer of hope for Whedon-fans. (Thanks to RazorD for the tip).
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
4-09-2009 @ 3:23PM
Alexgk said...
I'm not sure how it really went down for Firefly, but why would he even try bringing a show to Fox again? From what I understand they never gave Firefly a break..wouldn't seem to make you want to do business with them again.
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4-09-2009 @ 3:18PM
Jeremy said...
Arrgh! I knew I shouldn't have bothered watching. We watched the whole season to date last week and now it's going to be killed off. Sigh. One in a long line of premature Fox deaths.
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4-09-2009 @ 3:33PM
Skapig said...
Can't pin this one entirely on FOX. Whedon delivered a very weak show to a network he was already on thin ice with. You'd think that after Firefly he would have learned to start off his series so slowly. Firefly was good, but probably crawled along the first few episodes for many viewers who by that time had been lost. Even after the rewrite and all the Whedon glorification and hype, he came back with a spectacularly lame pilot. After that only got marginally better in terms of plot. Never ended up making the characters worth watching though. A big opportunity squandered on Whedon's end this time around.
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4-09-2009 @ 10:06PM
Tom said...
My thought exactly: you can't blame FOX entirely for this one. This show was very weak.
I was just wondering how long it would take before I would find a comment to this effect. Would it be a boatload of people crying foul and no voice of reason? Or would I find a similar voice? Three comments in, I had my answer.
FOX maybe have been short-sighted to rid itself (and us) of Firelfly, but Dollhouse was more painful to watch than living a life without Joss Whedon is.
4-09-2009 @ 3:33PM
Andrew Cheadle said...
Joss's best shows, Buffy & Angel, thrived on the WB and UPN. Buffy ended on UPN by Joss's choice while Angel ended when the WB cut it loose. Then the WB went under.
I'm thinking the CW would do well in picking up Dollhouse to put the network back on the map. FOX can't be trusted with a JW project (Firefly) or a SciFi series.
Lets hope the CW's WB side sees the youth factor while the UPN side remembers how cutthroat they got over Buffy. And the WB side can see the error of their ways.
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4-09-2009 @ 3:45PM
Edward said...
I was thinking about the same thing. CW seems like the most logical choice to pick this series up, where it could run Season 1 during the fall and start Season 2 in January. Maybe a network like MyTV could pick it up and have something in addition to WWE.
4-09-2009 @ 4:33PM
Ashley Boyd said...
Ostroff, the head of programming, recently stated:
"Right now, in terms of new programming, we’re very focused on building The CW’s brand as a destination for young women. If a sci-fi/fantasy show came along that was really well done and would appeal to our young women demo, then we’d certainly consider it."
I don't see Dollhouse as being particularly geared toward young female audiences personally.
4-09-2009 @ 3:44PM
mdisloki said...
This is soooooo frustrating!!!
Just cancel TSCC too, so I don't get my hopes up. Although if the rumors are true they have already destroyed TSCC's set. Two great shows, two bad choices.
I am at my breaking point with Fox. There are several other shows on Fox that I really enjoy, but I think this decision, if it proves true, will force me to boycott Fox. I know it won't accomplish much by myself, but I will tell everyone and anyone that will listen to stop watching Fox as well.
If they had been patient with Dollhouse it would have been one of the top 10 shows on TV by the end of the 2nd season.
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4-09-2009 @ 3:47PM
Edward said...
So when 24 ends after 2010, Fox will only have House and American Idol as its top shows.
4-09-2009 @ 4:54PM
mdisloki said...
That is very sad, especially since both shows have gotten stale in my opinion. I like Hugh Laurie, but how many mystery cases can he diagnose.
4-09-2009 @ 3:44PM
Kenn Thomas said...
I understand that Dollhouse actually is poised for renewal and a schedule shift to help improve its ratings.
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4-09-2009 @ 7:09PM
sww said...
Really? Do tell more...
4-09-2009 @ 3:45PM
hedgehoggy said...
It really just wasn't a very good show. It had some interesting ideas, but so much of it was cloaked by the very flawed writing that seemed to make the alleged female leads come across as weak and sexualized. I tried to like it but the number of eye rolls each week reached an epidemic level and so this doesn't really come as a surprise.
But hey - Buffy was a great show...
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4-09-2009 @ 3:45PM
Jimmy said...
Not surprised. While Dollhouse has really grown on me since the first episode there's been something missing from the beginning. There was no "Whendon-ness" to this series. Still, I wish we could have seen another season.
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4-09-2009 @ 3:54PM
Saltypoison said...
While I have enjoyed his previous shows, I just think Joss dropped the ball on this series. I just haven't been able to get into it the way I did with Buffy/Angel and Firefly. And I am still shocked that he went back to Fox, as they royally screwed up with the presentation of Firefly.
I just hope this results in TSCC being picked up for a third season, though I won't hold my breath on that.
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4-09-2009 @ 4:27PM
dt3 said...
damn... if eliza dushku in a mini skirt and thigh-highs can't succeed what hope does the rest of the world have??
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4-09-2009 @ 10:20PM
Tom said...
I thought I was going to love ED in thigh highs and miniskirts too, but this show made even THAT unwatchable! Plus, I really thought that she looked like she really couldn't act in this series--maybe it was the writing or the ridiculous characterizations (it doesn't feel right calling them full characters) they put her into each week. It looked liked she was just collecting a paycheck, like she wasn't sold on the series or her character and it came through. Whatever it was, it just didn't work
4-09-2009 @ 4:27PM
moreartplease said...
If it ends well, then this is a show that is very well suited for a 13 episode limited run, like Harper's Island is currently enjoying. Hopefully it has a satisfying ending, and we can all enjoy it for years to come.
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4-09-2009 @ 4:28PM
Dan Chichian said...
If it was indeed Fox's decision to monkey around with the first five episodes they really don't have the right to complain about the ratings. If the show still has poor ratings after a second season then yes, they should drop it.
Besides what on earth are they going to put in it place - more reality dreck?
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4-09-2009 @ 4:34PM
Kara said...
It doesn't imply cancellation; it's a separate issue. Clarification here:
http://sepinwall.blogspot.com/2009/04/dollhouse-13th14th-episode-in-limbo.html
"Fox network won't decide the fate of "Dollhouse" until Upfront week, near the end of May, and the decision not to air "Epitaph One" has nothing whatsoever to do with renewal."
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