“You and I
have been doing this dance for almost two years.”
At last, we
get the backstory for Echo/Caroline. This episode begins intriguingly, in
flashback, with Caroline, in conversation with DeWitt, about to sign away five
years of her life, seemingly of her own free will. This sharply parallels the
final scene in which DeWitt makes an identical offer to Sam. The actives, it
seems, are indeed volunteers. But it seems that there is usually a catch.
We have only
seen Caroline, thus far, in brief snatches. Here, we get to see her personality
as a loud, extroverted force of nature with a powerful social conscience and a
deep-lying idealism. She is as resourceful as Echo, but much more impulsive,
and this is her downfall. It is strongly implied that her covert activities against
the dastardly Rossum Corporation leads to the death of her boyfriend, Leo, and
that this is the unbearable memory which she seeks to erase.
Obviously, there
is an “A” plot, involving the release of a nasty drug within a university, and
much fun is had once it spreads to the senior staff of the Dollhouse. The
highlight of the episode is a stoned conversation between DeWitt and Topher
during which they get the munchies. You would expect this of Topher, but to see
DeWitt like this is both hilarious and a testament to the superb acting skills
of Olivia Williams.
The Ballard
sub-plot thickens as he gets more and more attached to Mellie, with the
dramatic irony thickening all the time. We know it’s a trap. Ballard may be a gentleman
of Leisure (or Leesure, as he said!), but he hasn’t given up, whatever DeWitt
may seemingly expect.
This episode
maintains the high quality and addictiveness of the previous one. Right now,
Dollhouse is a class A drug.
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