Episode 1 - Vows
28 March 2012
Synopsis: Paul Ballard hires Echo to help him take down an arms dealer who he failed to arrest while with the FBI. He marries Echo but soon discovers that she is spying on him. Ballard steps in to save her and they manage to catch Martin dealing weapons. Back at the Dollhouse, Dr Saunders is coming to terms with the realisation that her personality was manufactured by Topher. She tries to torment him but he explains that he made her to always question him with no ulterior motive other than to look after the Actives. Boyd asks her out and encourages her to leave the Dollhouse. Victor’s scars are healing after expensive surgery.
The Good: Dollhouse does a great job of picking up where last season left off. Victor’s scarring, Dr Saunder’s revelation and Paul Ballard’s place in the Dollhouse all get addressed. But more than that, this episode is a mission statement, pushing the story forward on all fronts.
The Echo story is given a new shot of life as she admits to Paul Ballard that she can remember each of her personalities. We knew this process was occurring last season but now she has a level of self awareness and perhaps will become a lot more interesting to watch as a result. For those who have seen the episode “Epitaph One” it seems like her new partnership with Paul will grow and develop as they work to bring down the Dollhouse from the inside.
The writing certainly makes the best of a bad situation. As Adelle all but admits, another person in her position would probably have sent both Echo and Ballard to the attic by now. But Adelle wants her handlers to be committed and dedicated and sees this as a way of neutralising the threat which Ballard represents. She also manages to explain the connection between Rossum and the Dollhouse a little more fully by saying that the houses provide research as well as cash to the corporation. For his part it would seem Ballard hasn’t given up on trying to bring down the Dollhouse, at least indirectly. It would seem he provided information to a rising Senator Perrin (Alexis Denisof) to start investigating what Rossum are up to.
It was a nice moment to show Adelle tenderly caressing Victor’s healing scars. A reminder of her secret meetings with him (109). Similarly it was a good explanation for Dr Saunders to say she didn’t want her scars healed less she be sent back to being an Active.
The best part of the episode though was of course Dr Saunders coming to terms with being an active. As you would expect the realisation has had a dramatic impact on her. Now she tortures Topher because she realises that he created the personality that she once believed was her own. Her natural inclination to dislike him is now combined with the realisation that he made her that way. “Aren’t you the Lord my God?” she asks him. It’s a wonderful exploration of the issues surrounding an active personality becoming aware of their origins. Interestingly Boyd seems attracted to this revelation, like he somehow can relate better to her now.
Eventually she confronts Topher, believing that perhaps her hatred for him was programmed to make his eventual sexual conquest of her all the more satisfying. But on the contrary the private Topher actually made her hate his scent to avoid that situation ever occurring. He explains to her that in order to safeguard the wellbeing of the actives he made her question everything that he said to avoid anything being overlooked. He explains that her hatred of him is entirely her creation. All he intended for her was that she be good at her job (see Best Moment).
The story does as much for Topher as it does for her. It’s the kind of characterisation the show has been crying out for from episode one. It makes Whisky a far more interesting character than Echo. At least for now. The final point about Topher is that he is seen here sleeping at the Dollhouse. It seems unlikely that that is his home, more likely that he often sleeps there when overworked. It answers, to some extent, one of the smaller questions of the show. And it shows the stress and the dedication which underpin Topher’s attitude to his work. I think the writing has always implied a level of depth to his character and now it would seem we are getting to see it.
The Bad: Once more the Echo story is hard to care about. It’s so clear that the Martin Klar character is a one-off that time spent on it doesn’t seem to matter.
Then there is the issue of Paul hiring her to do this. Exactly how much money do unemployed FBI agents have? We’ve been led to believe it costs tens of thousands to hire an active. But even assuming that Adelle cut him a special deal, this mission must have been going on for a long time. Several months at least, surely, for them to fall in love and get married. Is Adelle really paying for all this and presumably for Paul to live just to catch one arms dealer?
The strangest part of the story is that Paul then beats her in her concussed head as part of his plan. It’s as if she’s a faulty TV and he is bashing her hoping the picture will change. Somehow he manages to reawaken her kung fu skills just in time to save the day. A stupidly convenient turn of events.
Then there just is the issue of Paul wondering around the Dollhouse and now becoming an employee as Echo’s handler. Aside from it being a stupidly risky move on Adelle’s part, it just feels very convenient. Did he have to sign an employment contract? Do Rossum know about this, surely they wouldn’t be happy?
Sierra’s posh accent was not good.
The Unknown: Why does Boyd suddenly like Dr Saunders? What is Adelle hoping Paul will do or become as an employee? What is Rossum doing which has caught Senator Perrin’s eye?
Best Moment: The entire scene in Topher’s makeshift bedroom, acting and writing of the highest order. Topher shows real vulnerability and compassion as he explains why he made Dr Saunders the way she was. He justifies his decisions to her beautifully and even offers her the chance to get her original personality back. But as angry as she is about being “manufactured” she is scared to “die.” This is who she is now and it’s all she has ever known. He points out that “You’re human” to which she replies “Don’t flatter yourself.” It’s a great line, it’s not meant to be funny, it’s just clever.
Epilogue: More encouraging signs from Dollhouse. I don’t like sweeping generalisations because they are invariably not true. But so far on Dollhouse, the Echo and Ballard stories have been poor and everything else has been good. That remains true here but everything else here is excellent and the Echo\Ballard story shows signs of improvement. Perhaps this show can be turned around after all.
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