Despite Ratings Increase Dollhouse Needs More Whedon

It’s week 5 of Dollhouse Ratings Watch and we finally have some substantive good news. The DVR bump in viewers was nice, and gave hope that the show could continue. But for the first time ever the ratings for Dollhouse went up Friday night. Not way up, only about 7%. It’s quite possible that the show could have found its bottom and will now slowly build up a strong cult fan base.

That’s the most I think Dollhouse can hope for at this point. The show is – as of right now – the weakest of Whedon’s programs. That said it is still on the verge of being purely great. The little touches Whedon uses to flesh out his characters and worlds are slowly coming to light, especially in relation to the goings on in the Dollhouse itself. And we’re finally getting a Whedonism or two thrown in with “man reaction” coming into my every day parlance.

Eliza Dushku has hinted that the sixth episode is really going to hook fans and newcomers, and I have to believe her. That episode is written by Joss and I have to believe because now that I’ve started enjoying what is being done with Dollhouse it is about time we start getting a Whedon show. These initial episodes have felt so standalone, with only minor connectors that make you realize there’s a potentially interesting story being told. I think Dollhouse has actually suffered from a little too much interference, and while that may have been necessary to keep Fox on board it’s time for it to stop. Right now Dollhouse needs the hardcore Whedon fans. The people who usually support him en masse when it comes to DVD release time.

If next week’s episode delivers on the vague promises then I think there’s a good chance that Dollhouse can make it. It’s time to let go of the notion that we can force those who watch The Ghost Whisperer to change the channel and focus all of the creative energies on the millions who would show up if only this show were more Whedonesque.

That movement starts with the characters. Jokes about Eliza’s acting (in)ability are irrelevant really. Sarah Michelle Gellar wasn’t much better, except that Gellar has far superior comic timing. Buffy worked so well as a character because of the lighter moments that got you through any whining or complaining. Echo doesn’t have that right now. Joss Whedon doesn’t make comedies, or anything remotely like them, but there’s a wit and irony in his characterizations that I’ve been missing on Dollhouse. I need a moment where Mal kicks a guy who ends up getting killed. That scene in Firefly helped establish the character as a bad ass, but also added some levity to a serious problem since Mal hadn’t quite intended on that happening.

I’m really getting into the world of Dollhouse, but unlike previous Whedon shows or Battlestar Galactica I’m not connecting with the people as much as I’d like. Hopefully that starts to change as Tahmoh finally comes face to face with Echo next week. Plus Patton Oswalt is in the episode and that can only mean good things.