Deseret News | Fox is not to blame for the failure of 'Dollhouse'

Reader comments
Scott D. Pierce: Fox is not to blame for the failure of 'Dollhouse'

Jared | 5:43 p.m. Nov. 16, 2009

I am watching Dollhouse Season 1 on DVD right now. I am really enjoying it. It is too bad it hasn't gotten better ratings. Scott is right that if it gets bad ratings it deserves to be cancelled. Scott is wrong in saying that the bad ratings are warranted.

Jon | 6:13 p.m. Nov. 16, 2009

I can blame Fox, and rightly so. The promotion for Dollhouse was horribly wrong. And sure, they plastered it around a lot last year, and compared to this year, last season had great numbers. But honestly, how much serious advertising can you say Fox did for this season? I haven't seen a single TV spot for an episode on any of the other Fox shows. Yeah, sure, Virtual Echo. . . what a great advertisement! Except not. Fox completely didn't take advantage of the unaired episode, or capitalize on anything else. I can blame Fox for this just as much as the viewers.

And I disagree with you; I thought every single one of the Firefly episodes were great. But this isn't about Firefly.

I watch lots of FOX shows online | 6:24 p.m. Nov. 16, 2009

"The ratings for "Dollhouse" are horrible. Beyond horrible. Almost unimaginably bad. So Fox has canceled the show.

What part of this is hard to understand?"

The part that so many people are watching Dollhouse and it is receiving raves from fans and yet ratings indicate that it isn't doing well but that's a bunch of B.S. Nielsen ratings and other rating systems are not gauging the actual viewership. When people from as far away as Sweden, Germany, Italy, France, Spain and the Netherlands are searching online for info. about the show it indicates that interests is a lot higher than we are led to believe by the select few households who are allowed to participate in rating systems such as Nielsen's.

It is time for the news networks to realize that the demographics of this country are changing and that a rating system based on whether someone has landline telephones don't work and that selecting a handful of households and asking them to report (or track) what they watch isn't going to work either since if someone misses an episode of Dollhouse or another show they jump online to watch it.

Comments continue below

Didn't complete but kept the $1 | 6:30 p.m. Nov. 16, 2009

RE:Jared

"I am watching Dollhouse Season 1 on DVD right now."

You are not alone and this is why so many fans are upset with the networks. They don't understand how people watch TV. I have not watched a single episode of Dollhouse on a TV yet I've watched and re-watched every episode online and I intend to buy both season one and season two on DVD.

"I am really enjoying it. It is too bad it hasn't gotten better ratings. Scott is right that if it gets bad ratings it deserves to be cancelled. Scott is wrong in saying that the bad ratings are warranted."

The problem is how the rating system is set up. It does not take into consideration the actual views of people. I got one request from Nielsen in the mail in several decades and they tried to bribe me with a dollar bill to get online or mail in a survey.

You have to be kidding me? Is that how they run their business? Bribing people to take a survey that was totally lame and had nothing to do with my viewership? Oh, I didn't complete the survey

Anonymous | 8:47 p.m. Nov. 16, 2009

people who say dollhouse is not worth keeping clearly are the shallow type. seriously, dollhouse is one of the best show I've ever seen) sure, the pilot is not the hit episode, but every single episode keep you watching and the story was built up. You see each character start to reveal their personality, and that's the beauty of dollhouse. It's about self, real humanity, morality, neuroscience, and human mind. It cannot be a wow-hit at the first glance, but it's the gem in the fast-pace commercialized materialistic world.

Television and commercials these days make people like you become ery shallow, and judge things and loe things just only in the first glance. That's why you fail to appreciate real humanity and beauty in Dollhouse. Sorry you cannot get in touch with real show like Dollhouse. I do not watch it on Friday, cus it's the night for going out, and I'm sure majority of the watchers do the same by watching it later online. Fox needs o reconsider keeping great show like dollhouse and reschedule it. Fringe is not even as good, seriously.

Hero of Canton | 9:13 p.m. Nov. 16, 2009

Scott, I respect your opinion on a lot of things but on this one I think you have got it slightly wrong.

I agree that 'Dollhouse' is not the most compelling show out there, there are other shows on FOX that I follow with more interest than 'Dollhouse' but it is better than most of the junk that is on broadcast TV. FOX did indeed fail this show and they did it on purpose. I agree that TV is not a charity case but there has been little to no advertisement for 'Dollhouse' and it was put in a terrible timeslot. If you believe in a show, which they very clearly claimed they did by giving it another season, then you have to do more than lip service. Put it in a decent time slot and advertise the thing. DVR numbers consistently proved that people would watch the show, it was the time slot that was killing it. Nielsen numbers are a joke and everyone that understands them knows that.

Don't get me started on the great debacle that was my beloved 'Firefly', I still hurt deep down because of that travesty.

Sorry, Joss. | 12:01 a.m. Nov. 17, 2009

I loved Firefly. Own it. Own Serenity. Great stuff.

But the Joss Whedon formula is SO OLD. You can write the episodes before he does. Sure, the scenery changes a bit, but that's really it.

Joss, can we PLEASE have a show that doesn't rotate around some absurdly powerful but mentally delicate female character? Not that I mind powerful female characters in the least, but every single show is the SAME. Yes, we get it - she's beautiful, but dangerous! Stunning, yet damaged! Oooh, so deep!

Buffy. Firefly. Dollhouse. It's all bee done before. By you. Give the people something new!

Josh Whedon | 12:17 a.m. Nov. 17, 2009

Firefly, Dollhouse = super boring

Philippa | 1:30 a.m. Nov. 17, 2009

IMO, Dollhouse could have done a lot better on somewhere like HBO or the BBC [yes, wrong country!] which have a history of enabling edgy, dark and different programming.

Firefly was - and is - awesome. Best series ever; not a wasted word of dialogue, a richly layered setting and a pitch perfect piece of casting. Lightning in a bottle.

I would encourage Joss to think about the 'Sanctuary' route to programming. Webisodes available by easy pay-per-view; just like Dr Horrible. See where that took Sanctuary :-).

Anonymous | 5:43 a.m. Nov. 17, 2009

Heres an idea.... Turn off the TV and read a book!

aaron | 6:53 a.m. Nov. 17, 2009

i like dollhouse and for me its hard to belibe that the sow didnt have enough rating. the big companys like fox they always do what they want. they dont care what the people said.

Anonymous | 11:42 a.m. Nov. 17, 2009

The first season of Dollhouse was very well done, and very entertaining, however I have had less interest in the second season. The cinematography is different, the sets seem a lot darker... And I am not so sure of the direction they took, so soon after the season finale.

Everything of Joss Wheadon's I have seen, I have liked. I think a lot of people however, lost what interest they had, once the second season started.

Marsha | 11:46 a.m. Nov. 17, 2009

Just started watching Dollhouse days after Fox announced they were ditching it. Have to say that I really loved it, and am sad to see I won't get to see more. Just finished the first season, and am totally addicted!

Anonymous | 11:52 a.m. Nov. 17, 2009

I disagree that this is entirely the viewers fault. I agree that in order for a show to be successful, people have to watch it. But FOX is notorious for taking a show that is good, but has most of a niche’ following, then move it into a time slot doomed for failure. I recall Tru Calling having such a fate. It started out on a Friday timeslot, got a decent following, then they moved it against CSI on Thursday… WHO IN THEIR RIGHT MIND THINKS ANYTHING WILL BE SUCCESSFUL AGAINST CSI? I mean, come on. Wonderfalls was another example, but really wasn’t very good, just ok.
I would say the only show that was good, that they didn’t kill by putting it in time slot hell was Arrested Development. That show was entirely the viewers fault. It was too smart a comedy for the average joe to enjoy. At least until the final season.

Barry B | 11:53 a.m. Nov. 17, 2009

I'm a fan most things Joss. Dollhouse just didn't hold me. Some episodes were fine but I just didn't get into the characters. Angel, Buffy, Horrible, and especially Firefly all had vivid characters. Dollhouse seemed flat.

Couldn't watch it. Tried. | 1:33 p.m. Nov. 17, 2009

I love Joss Whedon. Hated Dollhouse. It was just so boring. I kept trying to like it,and kept falling asleep. Eliza Dushku was good, though.

Firefly and Buffy were amazing.

Le sigh | 2:41 p.m. Nov. 17, 2009

I love all things Whedon, and really, really wanted Dollhouse to succeed. I dutifully DVRed it each week and then played it back on a night when I wasn't out living life. But in all honesty, I think it's okay for this one to get the axe. I feel like Joss has written himself into a corner with this one. Each episode feels like he's having to reinvent the wheel. The characters are flat (by design) which is an interesting concept, but in reality keeps it distant and humorless. I miss the Whedon humor of Buffy and Firefly. This story line leaves very little room for deep character development, endearment, or even for amusing side characters like Cordy and Jayne. Sorry, Topher doesn't cut it. I think Whedon's time could be better spent working on a new project for a non-network or online outlet. I just hope he doesn't throw up his hands in surrender and retire.

anon | 8:16 a.m. Nov. 18, 2009

Yeah, airing FireFly out of order really helped it. And the Friday night killzone always gains viewers. LOL. I don't care what show you put there, I am not going to watch it.

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