FOX to Announce Fate of Dollhouse on Monday

Fans of Joss Whedon's new show Dollhouse will learn its fate next Monday, when FOX announces whether or not the show will return for a season two. FOX said yesterday in a statement posted on the weblog Dollverse that "The series has not been renewed yet. Any renewal announcement would be made at the upfront presentation a week from today."

On the encouraging side, Dollhouse star Eliza Dushku, currently traveling and volunteering in Africa, sent out a Twitter message that says talks about continuing the show are ongoing.

On the less encouraging side, Dollhouse hit its lowest rating ever in its season finale episode broadcast last Friday night, causing many media critics and observers to write the show off.

According to numbers provided by The Hollywood Reporter's James Hibberd on his Live Feed blog, Dollhouse's 12th episode "Omega" was seen by a series-low 2.76 million viewers and earned a 1.1 rating in national adults 18-49. It improved slightly on its lead in Prison Break (former lead-in Terminator: The Sarah Conner Chronicles has already concluded) which pulled only a .9.

Dollhouse was fourth in its timeslot, finishing ahead of a CW repeat of "America's Next Top Model." The numbers represented an 11 percent drop for Dollhouse since last week.

Although DVR adjustments always improve Dollhouse's performance slightly, the season-low numbers couldn't have come at a worse time, as FOX considers whether to renew the series.

(Spoilers follow)

The final two episodes of this season have dealt heavily with the overall mythology of the show. They have featured guest star Alan Tudyk (Wash from Whedon's Firefly) as Alpha, the rouge doll who has been terrorizing the Dollhouse all season.

They also have established a reveal of the truth behind Amy Acker's Dr. Saunders, who was a top doll named Whiskey before Alpha slashed her face up, and more confusion for Echo (Dushku) whom Alpha has imprinted with a personality mix called Omega.

Meanwhile, Agent Paul Ballard (Tahmoh Penikett) and Dollhouse operative Boyd Langdon (Harry Lennix) are now working together to protect Echo, while programmer Topher (Fran Kranz) is showing the first signs he is aware of the moral implications of his actions, something still not a concern for Dollhouse boss Adelle DeWitt (Olivia Williams).

Fan and critic reaction to the season's final two episodes have been mixed, with some commentators complaining that Whedon hid the best aspects of the show for too long, while others are still confused about where the series is meant to go.

In keeping with the mixed reactions, there has been no huge fanbase attempt to influence FOX's decision, just a steady drone from Whedon-lovers to give Dollhouse a chance. The most coordinated efforts were attempts to get viewership up for the finales, which unfortunately did not succeed.

There remains one unseen episode in any case, as FOX decided not to air episode number 13. That episode will not be made available online but will likely be included in the DVD release.

Sources:

dollverse

the live feed