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- TV Series: Dollhouse
- Episode: A Love Supreme
- Starring: Eliza Dushku, Olivia Williams, Harry Lennix, Fran Kranz, Tahmoh Penikett, Enver Gjokaj, Dichen Lachman
- Written By: Jenny DeArmitt
- Directed By: David Straiton
- Network: Fox
- Series: Dollhouse
Dollhouse: A Love Supreme Part 2
Alpha Returns With A Vengeance! Nuff Said! By Kurt Anthony Krug
December 13, 2009
Dollhouse Review(2009).
© Fox/Bob Trate
Let’s dispense with the bad stuff first. This episode is called “A Love Supreme, Part 2” and the last episode was called “Meet Jane Doe, Part 1.” There was no need to put “Part 1” or “Part 2” in either episode’s title, never mind the fact that one followed the other. That makes no sense and is confusing if you watch it on Hulu.com.
It’s also minor in the grand scheme of things.
Paul Ballard (Tahmoh Penikett) returns Echo (Eliza Dushku) to the Dollhouse, run by a now-ruthless Adelle DeWitt (Olivia Williams). Adelle puts Echo in solitary confinement and won’t treat her for her headaches as a way to get under the skin of Ballard, who was helping Echo for three months when she was MIA. Adelle knows Ballard was helping Echo all that time (he says only a week), but wants to hear him admit it – which he won’t.
Supreme Doll Alpha (Alan Tudyk, who was in Dollhouse creator Joss Whedon’s short-lived Firefly series), who is obsessed with Echo, returns in this episode. And boy, does he return. He creates a device that makes the Dolls violent, turning them on the Dollhouse personnel.
He also wants to understand the love between Ballard and Echo. Alpha has photos of Echo’s time with Ballard during these three months, mentioning that the two didn’t sleep together. Ballard confessed to Echo in the last episode that he didn’t have the right. Alpha tells Ballard that not sleeping with her, not taking advantage of her, means that he loves her.
For an encore, Alpha (SPOILER WARNING) experiments on Ballard and downloads his brain patterns, leaving Ballard brain-dead. A spectacular battle between Alpha and Echo follows.
Tudyk’s performance as Alpha is top-drawer. He is over-the-top crafty and calculating, unpredictable, not to mention ostentatious and bloody brilliant. There are times when he comes off as the Joker from the Batman mythos, especially with the suit and tie he was wearing (it would’ve undermined his performance if it was purple). Take a bow, Alan. Now if you can only land a TV series where you don’t get killed off early (V), a movie where you don’t get killed off in a shocking fashion (Serenity, you leaf on the wind, you) or you’re a recurring character (Dollhouse).
What also goes to make this episode fire on all cylinders is Enver Gjokaj’s Victor, who is downloaded with the brilliance of a Freudian-trained psychiatrist who tries to psychoanalyze Echo. He tells Adelle that men wear everything on the outside (including their genitals), whereas women are more tightly controlled and keep everything on the inside.
Sierra (Dichen Lachman) is programmed to be a 1950s flapper woman straight out of a pulp noir novel. Her speech patterns and sexy outfit really make her convincing in this role. Too bad it was too short. However, like Gjokaj, it’s a matter of quality over quantity.
Patton Oswalt (The King of Queens) guest-stars as one of Echo’s former clients who is targeted by Alpha. Previously, Echo was downloaded with the persona of his dead wife Rebecca. However, Oswalt’s character Joe is now engaged to be married, and he and Echo talk about moving on. That’s very profound.
Ballard and Topher have the best lines in this episode. When Ballard learns that he’s sitting in an expensive, comfy, ergonomic chair, he says, “I thought my ass felt pampered.”
Upon learning that Echo doesn’t need to download prior personalities, she just can simply recall them, Topher says: “I’m obsolete. This is what old people must feel like. And Blockbuster.” Ouch.
Needless to say, this made up for the last episode in spades.
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Yet another episode that demonstrates that Alan Tudyk, if the Powers That Be were so inclined, could pick up Ledger's "Joker" baton and run with it. The make-up would mostly obsure the identity, but he's got the crazy-psycho-killer down.
This show needs to carry on. It's seriously just starting to get interesting. FOX is a bunch of morons. Of COURSE the show started slow. It takes a bit to build an audience, but they're just starting to build to something and *phwt*, the plug is pulled.