Creator Joss Whedon had a lot to talk about the un-aired episode and the famous faces coming in the second season.
- Jul 25, 2009
AceShowbiz - "Dollhouse" was one of the most anticipated panels at San Diego Comic Con Friday, July 24 convention, particularly because the un-aired episode "Epitaph One" was screened in full. Creator Joss Whedon and star Eliza Dushku along with a couple of other cast were present to give their take on the so-called 13th episode and season 2.
"Epitaph One", which will go straight to DVD, takes place in the year 2019. A group of human heroes, including the character played by Felicia Day, comes across an abandoned Dollhouse and finds one of the Actives. The band is trying to figure out how Dollhouse affects the state of the world, only to discover a larger global scenario.
Overall, "Epitaph One" is a game-changing episode where much about the whole story's ideas are packed in one. However, when a fan asked Whedon whether it is appropriate to call it a second pilot, the writer said "I wouldn't call it a second pilot but it is definitely a different vision and it will contain a lot of things about the characters and who they are and where they're heading that people might not have seen or expected."
The first season of "Dollhouse" did not generate enough rating to guarantee it a second season. But FOX put faith in the show and Whedon was thankful for that. "I'd say it came extraordinarily close to being canceled," he dramatized it. "I'd say it was probably pronounced on the table and we went, 'Nooo!' (feigns CPR) and the camera pulled back and it went (gasps) and the music came up and we all cried."
Regarding what second season brings, Whedon spilled "Well I think ultimately the thing that fascinates me is morality and personal politics; the politics of the personal, of the person in the moment as opposed to the statement. Yet I would say in terms of the second season, the abuse of power and the different kinds of forms it can take is going to become broader and more, in fact, political, and we're going to see the Dollhouse in the world a bit more."
Other interesting tidbits from the panel include the revelation that Alexis Denisof and Summer Glau will guest star in future episodes. Whedon also said there would be "old friends on the show...and maybe a couple of other faces you recognize" in the second season.
A Snippet of "Epitaph One":
