Alright, I know I've been a bad blogger. And maybe someday I'll finish out the best of the decade. But right now, there's just one thing that I have to write about.
Dollhouse finale!
I just finished watching it on DVR. I was thoroughly satisfied, especially for a show that I watched every episode of, but didn't ever love.
I knew what to expect going in. This is Joss Whedon, there are certain markers. Main characters were going to die. Redemption would be found. Vagueness would ensue.
The finale picked up where the unaired "Epitaph" left off, with Felicia Day, that guy and Molly from Heroes racing away from the zombie like "butchers" in LA to find Echo and the others. They were eventually captured by Rossum soldiers, one of whom was Paul. I knew not to expect things to be the same, but it seemed odd that Paul would be with Rossum. As it turned out it was all a plan. Rossum had kidnapped Topher to create a sort of mind bomb, that would wipe the entire world. Already a little bit unstable, for having been Topher, they drove him completely insane by shooting a someone in front of him every time he messed up. After rescuing him, Echo shot Clyde in his latest form and the fugitives headed to a farm, where Prya and Adelle and a young boy were picking strawberries. We find out that the boy is Prya's son. Anthony is conspicuously absent.
After explaining what was done to Topher and why, Topher reveals that he figured out a way to do the bomb but backwards, restored anyone who was ever wiped to their original "actual" status. Thrilled by the prospect of a returned world, but worried for their own existence, the gang realizes that they need to get someplace underground. They need to return to the dollhouse. An alarm goes off, and every one panics, fearing Rossum found them. But instead a group of Mad Max style fighters show up, speaking russian, among them is Anthony. As it turns out a small group of people have enhanced themselves further to help fight Rossum, allowing themselves to download various skills, but only able to keep so many at a time they wear the imprints around their necks in flash drives. We soon find out that although they had the child together, Anthony's decision to become one of these super soldiers, and forever revert to Viktor, drove a wedge between him and Prya. They head to Los Angeles, and the Dollhouse.
Paul and Echo talk on the trip, about how for ten years they've been dancing around their feelings. He asks why she only ever lets him in when she thinks their about to die, and she blows off the question. When they reach LA, they get ready to fight the butchers, there's some awesome gun mowing down and Penny, uh, I mean Mag (Felicia Day) gets shot in the legs. Paul runs over to check her and is immediately gunned down. Echo seems unshaken and other guy throws Mag over his shoulders and they head down into the Dollhouse.
The Dollhouse seems unchanged, dolls wander around it, one commenting as soon as they enter, "I try to be my best." But the biggest surprise comes when it turns out the person looking after all of them is Alpha. He teases Viktor about his face, and when Viktor playfully calls him a psycho he responds that he's "lapsed." So now, Spike, I mean Alpha is a good guy. The super soldiers try to take control of the situation but Alpha and Echo outsmart them (ah duh) and Prya begins smashing the flash drives angrily. Echo loses it on her, reminding her how lucky she is to have Anthony, and that he'll always love her. Echo finally admits to loving Paul, and Prya introduces her son, T, to his father.
Meanwhile with help from a video of Bennet, Topher builds the bomb and tells Adelle and Alpha that he has to actually explode it himself. Adelle offers to go with him, but he tells her that he "has to fix what we did to their heads, you have to fix the rest of the world. Your job is harder." She hugs him and Alpha takes him upstairs.
Adelle and other guy get ready to take the dolls to the surface, and she and Echo say goodbye. She tells her that Alpha went to destroy the tech and then hide, not knowing if he'll revert when the bomb goes off, but that he's leaving the chair. She tells Echo that the last fantasy the Dollhouse will fulfill will be Echo's. Echo responds that she has no fantasy. Adelle hugs her and they head to the surface. Topher sets the bomb off, and the dolls all collapse and wake up disoriented. Molly from Heroes sees other guy and asks what happened. He tells her he'll explain it. Back in the Dollhouse Echo finds a envelope with her name on it and a drive inside sitting on the chair. She sets up the chair and lies down. As it turns out, it's Paul's imprint. This way he can be with her always. She walks down into the house, past Prya, Anthony and T, and reclines in her pod, finally at peace.
OK, analysis time. Like I said, I saw certain things coming.
- Paul's death: As soon as Paul and Echo all but said "I love you" in the truck, I knew one of them had to die. It was that simple. I didn't expect it quite as soon as it happened, but thus is the way of Whedon. He giveth Wesley his Fred and then he taketh Fred away.
- Topher's redemption: Someone had to sacrifice themselves to save the world. Spike, Cordie, Shepherd Book, now Topher. Plus, in Topher's mind, the only way to redeem the destruction which his tech brought about, was to pay with his own life.
- Human element over tech: It's the old Return of The Jedi model. The Ewoks and rebels win with heart. Maybe this is because I just watched Buffy season four, where magic beats technology, but I'm starting to see a theme.
There were some other Whedon-y touches that I noticed.
- The scene where they start to fight the butchers was almost exactly like the final scene of Angel. I half expected Echo to grab an ax and say "Let's go to work"
- The butchers themselves bear a remarkable resemblance to the reavers of Firefly and Serenity.
- Vague ending with a sense of continuation...We could get a Dollhouse movie, or comic. (I don't want one. I'm glad it's over. DR. HORRIBLE 2!!!!!!)
Surprises
- Anthony and Prya got to live happily ever after. My dad and I were trying to figure out their tragedy, and guess what, there wasn't one! They have a kid. They get to be happy. I'm still not sure what to do with it.
- Alpha's a good guy now. I was happy, because between this and V, I was sure that Alan Thudyk was going to be the bad guy forever. And that would make me very sad.
- Didn't end on a battle that we never get to see. It was kind of a nice sweet romantic ending. Way to grow Joss.
Anyway, did anyone else watch and have an opinion?
