Espenson: Dollhouse is Just Fine

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Randy Giles

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From SciFi Wire:

Writer/producer Jane Espenson (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) defended Joss Whedon's upcoming Fox SF series Dollhouse--on which she is a consulting producer--against negative buzz and rumors, saying that it's shaping up just fine, thank you.

"It's really good," Espenson said in an exclusive interview with SCI FI Wire. "I think it could very well appeal to not just Whedonites, but a much broader audience. I think it's extremely good, and the concept just blows me away: It's fantastic, this notion of people who have been erased and are now imprintable with whatever you want them to be. ... It's sci-fi of the most human kind. It's sci-fi about people, as opposed to, you know, phenomena. And I really love that."

Espenson also downplayed reports of production interruptions, a bad timeslot and network meddling, calling them "overblown."

"We are now rolling along glitch-free," Espenson said. "I think people are very confident now that everyone is on the same page with what the show is, how amazing it can be, and I think that a lot of this has been overblown. I mean, very, very often on Buffy we were sort of, 'Oh, we don't quite have that script ready.' That's sort of just how TV goes. It's just when it happens at the beginning like this that it gets a lot of attention, and I think that people were concerned that the Firefly scenario would play out again. But, you know, I think that we're very confident of what the show is, and yeah, it's moving along so smoothly now."

Espenson said that she is currently writing a first draft of her first solo script for Dollhouse, the 11th episode of the first 13 ordered by Fox.

How is Whedon holding up? "He seems happy and comfortable and delightfully amusing as always," Espenson said. "You can't get through a few minutes with him without laughing."

Espenson said that viewers will be pleasantly surprised by star Eliza Dushku's performance in the series. "I think people are going to be really, really impressed with Eliza's performance," she said. "In fact, this cast all the way through. We have this incredibly versatile cast that's just perfect for this kind of show, where people are playing, ... as they're being imprinted with different personalities, they're playing different characters. And so part of the genuine fun and joy of the show is just watching, 'Oh, my God, look at who they are now.'" Dollhouse debuts Feb. 13, 2009, at 9 p.m. ET/PT. --Patrick Lee, News Editor
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Good to hear.
 
It's weird. The good things people say about it seem to ring so hollow, whereas the negative stuff seems so much more solid. Not a criticism of the show, I suppose that's just how it works. I'm glad to hear someone on the team really speak out about it though.
 
Lindsey McDonald said:
It's weird. The good things people say about it seem to ring so hollow, whereas the negative stuff seems so much more solid. Not a criticism of the show, I suppose that's just how it works. I'm glad to hear someone on the team really speak out about it though.
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I disagree. Almost every negative thing said about the show sounds exactly what Jane says...stuff that's been hugely overblown and exaggerated. It's not uncommon for shows to have a few problems as the writers get their bearings and the show is still coming together...that doesn't mean the show is doomed, or that the problems were very big at all in the first place.

People are just talking because it's a Joss Whedon show. If this was being made by someone else who wasn't JJ Abrams people wouldn't be nearly as negative.
 
Randy Giles said:
I disagree. Almost every negative thing said about the show sounds exactly what Jane says...stuff that's been hugely overblown and exaggerated. It's not uncommon for shows to have a few problems as the writers get their bearings and the show is still coming together...that doesn't mean the show is doomed, or that the problems were very big at all in the first place.

People are just talking because it's a Joss Whedon show. If this was being made by someone else who wasn't JJ Abrams people wouldn't be nearly as negative.
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Oh, yes, I completely agree. Sorry, I didn't make that clear. I don't believe a word of the negativity, to be perfectly honest. Then again, I don't believe a word of the positivity either - of course they're going to say good things about it. I prefer to wait and see what it's like, and what happens.

What I mean is that I have to remind myself that I don't believe a word of the bad stuff. It seems so much more immediately.....emotive, I suppose.
 
Then I would agree with you...I don't necessarily take the good things being said as proof the show will indeed be awesome and perfect, but if the writers say they think things are rolling along smoothly for them, I believe that they believe it. 🙂
 
That's encouraging...but Jane Espenson is just a Whedon sock-puppet so I think she'd say that regardless...
 
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