Mags (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} magistera) wrote,@ 2009-02-22 03:45:00 |
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I'm making a paperclip Eiffel Tower.
So, having watched the first couple of episodes of Dollhouse, and having read everyone else's reactions, I don't find a lot to disagree with, in terms of the fact that Dollhouse is creepy and skeevy and wrong, and both way too much the Joss I know and not enough (in terms of dialogue etc) the Joss I hope for, and I don't necessarily trust that Joss is capable of recognizing and dealing with the skeeviness he's created in a way that actually makes it worth it. Last night's episode really drove home what it was that creeped me out the worst about the show, though:
I hate, hate, hate the fact that every one of Echo's victories is taken away from her. If two episodes can make a trend, both times, she's put into dollhouse-mirror (pun intended) versions of classic situations for women who've been abused: in the pilot, she's forced to confront the person who raped her (for the purposes of this post I am treating the imprints as real, as they are for the Actives), and in "The Target", she's being stalked (but with an immediacy that provides the perfect drama for a 45-minute episode, and without recognizing those parallels, natch) . But what I really hate, and what I really worry Joss is not self-aware enough to address, is this:
In both episodes, Echo triumphs over her abusers. Not just triumphs; she kicks ass and takes names. In the pilot, she wades back into the rescue, knowing that this means confronting her abuser. She demonstrates unbelievable bravery, sucking on her inhaler before striding in and convincing the kidnappers to kill each other and let the girl go. In last night's episode, she runs from her murderous "boyfriend", overcoming injuries, being roofied, and choked, only to gain a sudden strength from her "real" self and overcome her attacker in turn. She has help & support from others in both cases, but she saves herself. If it ended there, I'd probably be thrilled at the way Echo is allowed to save herself, instead of being constantly rescued by Boyd or a string of per-episode white knights.
But then it's all taken away from her. Immediately. She no sooner accomplishes whatever the incredible escaping feat of the week is, than it's taken away. "Did I fall asleep?" and it's all gone. Back to the blank slate. And yeah, that's kind of the point, and I get that, I really do - but I don't feel like the show ever acknowledges how shitty this is, or that it ever will. To me, it's like a re-affirmation of everything horrible that happened to her, without the redemption of her, well, redemption. Call me cynical, but I wouldn't be surprised if, when Echo inevitably "composites", that we'll see a montage of all the horrible things that will have happened to her by that point, without any of the ways she overcame the odds and kicked the ass of anyone who crossed her.
And then there's the fact that I've read the alleged original pilot script, and it's so much better than either of the two episodes that have aired, and I can actually find the Joss in it (see post subject), unlike the episodes that have aired. It actually makes me want to watch the show. Did we know that one of the "get off the case" FBI agents is an Active? Because I totally missed that, if so. The show that it lays out is so much more convoluted, and contains so many more realized (in that one episode) factions, and seems at least somewhat more aware of the creepiness of the premise - it's just all-around so much better than what's actually aired.
Dammit, FOX, why do you make everything suck?
So, having watched the first couple of episodes of Dollhouse, and having read everyone else's reactions, I don't find a lot to disagree with, in terms of the fact that Dollhouse is creepy and skeevy and wrong, and both way too much the Joss I know and not enough (in terms of dialogue etc) the Joss I hope for, and I don't necessarily trust that Joss is capable of recognizing and dealing with the skeeviness he's created in a way that actually makes it worth it. Last night's episode really drove home what it was that creeped me out the worst about the show, though:
I hate, hate, hate the fact that every one of Echo's victories is taken away from her. If two episodes can make a trend, both times, she's put into dollhouse-mirror (pun intended) versions of classic situations for women who've been abused: in the pilot, she's forced to confront the person who raped her (for the purposes of this post I am treating the imprints as real, as they are for the Actives), and in "The Target", she's being stalked (but with an immediacy that provides the perfect drama for a 45-minute episode, and without recognizing those parallels, natch) . But what I really hate, and what I really worry Joss is not self-aware enough to address, is this:
In both episodes, Echo triumphs over her abusers. Not just triumphs; she kicks ass and takes names. In the pilot, she wades back into the rescue, knowing that this means confronting her abuser. She demonstrates unbelievable bravery, sucking on her inhaler before striding in and convincing the kidnappers to kill each other and let the girl go. In last night's episode, she runs from her murderous "boyfriend", overcoming injuries, being roofied, and choked, only to gain a sudden strength from her "real" self and overcome her attacker in turn. She has help & support from others in both cases, but she saves herself. If it ended there, I'd probably be thrilled at the way Echo is allowed to save herself, instead of being constantly rescued by Boyd or a string of per-episode white knights.
But then it's all taken away from her. Immediately. She no sooner accomplishes whatever the incredible escaping feat of the week is, than it's taken away. "Did I fall asleep?" and it's all gone. Back to the blank slate. And yeah, that's kind of the point, and I get that, I really do - but I don't feel like the show ever acknowledges how shitty this is, or that it ever will. To me, it's like a re-affirmation of everything horrible that happened to her, without the redemption of her, well, redemption. Call me cynical, but I wouldn't be surprised if, when Echo inevitably "composites", that we'll see a montage of all the horrible things that will have happened to her by that point, without any of the ways she overcame the odds and kicked the ass of anyone who crossed her.
And then there's the fact that I've read the alleged original pilot script, and it's so much better than either of the two episodes that have aired, and I can actually find the Joss in it (see post subject), unlike the episodes that have aired. It actually makes me want to watch the show. Did we know that one of the "get off the case" FBI agents is an Active? Because I totally missed that, if so. The show that it lays out is so much more convoluted, and contains so many more realized (in that one episode) factions, and seems at least somewhat more aware of the creepiness of the premise - it's just all-around so much better than what's actually aired.
Dammit, FOX, why do you make everything suck?
