7,895
edits
Dollhouse/WMG: Difference between revisions
no edit summary
m (revise quote template spacing) |
HLIAA14YOG (talk | contribs) No edit summary |
||
| (10 intermediate revisions by 5 users not shown) | |||
Line 1:
{{work}}
{{Unmarked Spoilers}}
== Alpha didn't perform the remote wipe. ==
In ''Epitaph One'' we see that the modern light-and-sound imprint chair came by Topher's improvements. The original was a bunch of pads and wires, like ''Alpha's'' imprinting chair. He knows less than Topher about efficient imprinting, and Topher didn't know enough to do a remote wipe. ''Epitaph One'' tells us that at some point people figured out how to do remote wipes and imprints using almost any audio or visual signal. I think we still haven't seen the person who invented that.
* It's possible that Alpha could do a remote ''wipe'', but the mass imprint required the chair. Granted, Alpha's own mass imprint was done without wires, but there were some nasty side effects (like the personalities fighting for control) that Alpha hoped to invert with <s>Echo</s>Omega, which required the chair for a procedure that even Topher wouldn't perform.
* Potentially er... something as of A Love Supreme. Topher invents a way to do it. Alpha -also- figured out a way to do but his method required pre-existing programming (or maybe he just needed the distraction).
* Topher had been approached by Adelle prior about creating a remote wipe, other house techs probably were as well. The LA house is much more ethical in the treatment of dolls than other houses as shown by the contrasting D.C. house. Another house could have developed the tech through much less ethical testing and alpha could have hacked in and stolen it or he could have figured out how to do it alone. Bennett could be capable. When Alpha 'ascended' he made the reference to hell implying that he now had full perspective on all the things that he saw as a doll. Also Victor states in "Needs" that he's always awake while in doll state, but that he can't get out, implying that his mind is fully active but suppressed by active arcitecture. Alpha could have studied Topher's imprinting techniques while suppressed. Alpha's chair probably uses wire input because of the availability and price of the instruments as he is living under the radar. Alpha's chair also transfers multiple imprints via wire about as fast as topher's epifluorescent chair implying much better implementation.
Line 18 ⟶ 17:
* Caroline is the direct-action type. We saw her break into the lab in "Echoes" and try to take the Dollhouse down from the inside in "Needs." It's not a stretch to imagine her pulling an operation in the style of PETA or Earth Liberation Front against Rossum, who in turn agreed to settle privately with Caroline rather than pressing charges.
** [[I Knew It!|Confirmed]] in [[S 02 E 11]]. Caroline tried to blow up Rossum's headquarters and referred to herself as a terrorist.
** Further support can be found in flashbacks to her intake conversation with De Witt [in the pilot?] where she seems to be coerced into it, fleeing from the consequences of her actions. Perhaps someone got killed because of what she did? (The [https://web.archive.org/web/20100816170734/http://www.hulu.com/watch/72274/dollhouse-dollhouse-season-one-recap#s-p1-st-i1 Season One Recap] on Hulu strongly suggests that this is exactly what happened.)
** Wasn't it mentioned several times over in Echoes that the lab was owned by Rossum and that Adelle learned of Caroline's strength/loss through the break-in?
'''2. Caroline knew Alpha before she became Echo.'''
Line 39 ⟶ 38:
In the second season, Caroline's personality will be put back into Echo. Unfortunately, she is still physically a doll; Caroline will only be an imprint. She will glitch like crazy. Alpha will likely cause all this.
Somehow, <s>Darla</s> Echo will be killed sometime around the middle of the third season. The mind of Caroline will be saved somehow, probably by a redeemed Topher, only for him to be [[Redemption Equals Death|killed]] after a beautiful day in the sun. Caroline will spend the rest of the season as a resurrected crimefighter, having to jump from body to body because it is dangerous for non-actives to be imprinted. Then someone will grow a new body for her. This will probably be a Doctor Saunders/Whiskey (see below), who has received an [[Took a Level
Season Four's antagonist will be "Dark Caroline" or some other appropriate fan nickname. Prvt. Pyle!Victor, Priya!Sierra, and Caroline!Echo2 will soon learn, this was all a [[Xanatos Gambit]] by Dewitt to have individuals infiltrate <s>Wolfram & Hart</s> the Rossum Corporation and shape it to her wishes.
Line 46 ⟶ 45:
== Victor will become the new head of security after Boyd gets killed by Alpha. ==
Just because Joss has a habit of killing people I like, Boyd will die. Then {{spoiler|newly-scarred}} Victor will be head of security.
* Doubtful, since it probably goes along the lines of why they wouldn't make handlers out of Actives. See the WMG below.
* {{spoiler|Jossed in Epitaph Two}}
Line 52 ⟶ 51:
== General Whiskey Imprint Speculation ==
'''1. Saunders is an active named "Whiskey"'''
* Only DeWitt and Dominic know.
* This explains:
** ...Dom yelling it out during the interrogation and Adelle's quick response, clearly hiding something. It also partially explains Alpha's secondary focus on her.
Line 67 ⟶ 66:
* {{spoiler|She was imprinted with most of her original personality}}, like in "Echoes," and it's {{spoiler|Dr Saunder}} in name only.
'''2. Topher knew Whiskey's original personality'''
* There is a personal connection between the two. Topher was somehow involved in getting her into the Dollhouse and feels guilty about it. It may even explain why he gave her certain abilities she shouldn't have, and why he made her dislike him.
** Going along with this, the personality Topher {{spoiler|imprinted on Sierra for his birthday}} is Whiskey's original personality.
*** Maybe Whiskey is the remains of the first time he tested the imprinting process, and the original was corrupted. Proto!Whiskey was his girlfriend, cause he talked her into trying out the new chair when no one else would.
** I reckon they could be related. While it's understandable he'd be freaked out under the circumstances, Topher seemed absolutely ''digusted'' at the concept of waking up with [[Amy Acker]] in his bed. Like he's embarrassed by the implication he's getting turned on by his sister..?
'''2. Topher imprinted Whiskey with some of himself'''
* It explains how she was able to hack into his personal
'''4. Topher likes Whiskey.''''
* In the man-reaction sort of way. And so, to avoid temptation (because he's really a good guy), he imprints the new Dr. Saunders with a distaste for him.
Line 81 ⟶ 80:
* Just because her being a doll is too obvious.
* Possible chain of events:
### Saunders signed a contract for the five years and served as Whiskey.
### After finishing, she took a position as the Dollhouse physician.
* [[Jossed]] in "Omega". {{spoiler|She didn't get around to serving the full contract. "Dr. Saunders" is an imprint. They kept her on a permanent assignment that would keep her within the Dollhouse to protect her from Alpha.}}
Line 94 ⟶ 93:
** ...why Echo was spared, and why Alpha would have access to Caroline's stuff.
** ...why Alpha's so hellbent on bringing down the Dollhouse, especially since {{spoiler|Echo as Memory-Wiped Caroline contacted Ballard just like Alpha, only with less subtlety.}}
* Then there's the extra level of [[Meaningful Name]] to ''Echo'' and ''Alpha''.
* This is hinted at by the Susans' conversation about Sleeping Beauty and the Prince.
* '''Jossed'''. Oh well. It would have been one creepy ass [[Enemy Without]].
Line 102 ⟶ 101:
** It would predict multiple actors for Alpha. If he's a stand-alone complex, he can change Dolls without the Dollhouse machinery. Hostile takeovers also become an option - he could override a Dollhouse-assigned imprint.
'''4. Alpha wasn't an aberration or a freak event. He was a near miss.'''
* The ultimate purpose of the Dollhouse is to synthesize an ultimate polymath. Alpha was
'''5. One of the imprints that surfaced during Alpha's composite event is Topher.'''
* As suggested below, it seems likely that when Topher did his diagnostic-birthday-thing, he imprinted Sierra with his own personality.
Line 111 ⟶ 110:
** Jossed by "Epitaph Two" - neither Alpha nor Echo had sufficient skills to build the device, only Topher did.
== Alpha is [[Firefly (TV series)|Wash]]. ==
Wash is a [[Doctor Who|timelord.]] {{spoiler|When he died}} in ''Serenity,'' Zoe and Mal left too early for them to see the {{spoiler|regeneration energy}}. He then left to come to the 21st century and was caught up with the Dollhouse. Eventually, he was turned into an Active. As for why {{spoiler|he still looks the same after his regeneration}}, maybe he's found a way to control his regeneration. His TARDIS? Probably one of those plastic dinosaurs on the console in the cabin.
* If he's a time lord, then he wouldn't need to regenerate because only one of his hearts was pierced. He was perfectly fine and he faked death
Line 151 ⟶ 150:
== [[Dollhouse]] is set in the same universe as [[Buffy the Vampire Slayer|Buffy]], and Echo is Faith. ==
Sometime in the near future, Faith was captured and brainwashed into becoming one of the Dolls. Her awareness of self stems in part from her Slayer dreams.
* As an inevitable result, ''[[Dollhouse]]'' will complete the respective storylines of both ''Buffy'' and ''[[Angel]]''.
* As a corollary, Dr. Saunders is Illyria, presumably trying to infiltrate the Dollhouse to bring back Faith's memory.
** Dr. Saunders' self-identity issues seem to still fit in with that, somehow. Check Illyria's speech from Angel 5.17: "My face is not my face. I don't know what it will say. All I am is what I am. I lived 7 lives at once. I was power and the ecstasy of death. [...] Now ... I'm trapped ... [...] in this time and this place, with an unstable human who drinks too much whiskey [...]."
* Apparently, Faith wanted to go to college, and so Willow hacked a bunch of databases and set her up with a fake identity as "Caroline".
** This would certainly explain the total lack of background Bennett's been able to pull up for "Caroline".
* As for the unfortunate lack of blood, demon hordes, and twisted otherworldly architecture in Los Angeles: the Dollhouse is kept static and safe because it is run by Wolfram & Hart.
* Alternatively, since everything has a cost, Dollhouse was the price of the end of the {{Spoiler| Reality Rewrite}} at the end of Angel: After The Fall. W&H set it up so that Faith and Fred/Illyria are stuck in the Dollhouse. To keep Angel far away and unable, even by accident, to interfer with their newest plans, they set him up as an FBI Agent in DC. The other characters are still MIA, but will likely show up.
** Angel being an FBI Agent in DC would sure explain why Wesley is a Dollhouse planted senator.
* Okay, so here's what happened. The "spark" that turns a Potential Slayer into a Slayer is the same "spark" that keeps Caroline from being fully imprinted. At some point, Faith nearly died, and was actually clinically dead for a few minutes. When she woke up, she had amnesia, and named herself Caroline - maybe off of a gravestone nearby where she died. She went off and did Caroline things, eventually ending up in the Dollhouse. But the important bit is when she died, her spark, for some reason, activated two different Potentials - Victor and Sierra (or Anthony and Priya, if you prefer). Since her spark was split between two people, it wasn't enough to keep them from being imprinted. But it was enough to keep them from forgetting each other. In fact, the fact that they share a spark is what links the two against all odds.
** This...actually makes a whole lot of sense than the one right below this.
Line 167 ⟶ 166:
== The Actives are cheaper than real experts. ==
One obvious problem with the premise, pointed out by almost every reviewer, is that if you want the world's greatest hostage negotiator, you can just hire them without all this sci-fi malarky. Even the memory-wipe stage doesn't make the Dolls much more attractive. One possible solution is that the Actives are cheap compared to hiring the real world-ranking experts - although still expensive in absolute terms. This means that the Dollhouse can't be making any money from the Actives, but the whole operation could just be a non-profit field test of a technology that has something other than money driving it. Perhaps the government wants to turn entire cities into millions of [[24|Jack Bauer]] clones during terrorist attacks. Or maybe the creators of the Actives see them as inherently superior to normal humans and want to transform the entire human race.
* The first episode talks about, not only imprinting other peoples' personalities onto an Active, but also mixing and matching to mold someone. It's not perfect - you can't just select "this trait, that trait, and this background aspect" the way one might create an RP character - but it's certainly a higher degree of selectivity than sticking with 100% natural personalities. This does raise the question of how the Dollhouse gets so many different natural personalities to work with while remaining so secretive that the FBI believes it a fairy tale at best....
* Also, the best hostage negotiator in the world may not be around anymore. Remember that the obvious main part of her personality in that episode was based on a woman who had committed suicide.
Line 173 ⟶ 172:
* It seems that the Actives have more than just experience or skills. They seem to be closer to manufactured versions of Taskmaster from [[Marvel Comics]] (or for a less obscure reference, that chick with superhuman muscle memory from ''[[Heroes (TV series)|Heroes]]''). They don't seem entirely human. They seem "better". As the cop chasing after the Dollhouse explained, you ''can'' hire the world's best whatever...but Dollhouse can give you better for a slightly higher fee.
** He went to the Dollhouse instead of somebody else because he already had a relationship with them. DeWitt does call him a "valued customer," after all.
* You may be able to hire the best hostage negotiator currently alive, but the Dollhouse can mix and match the personality to make you a better one than any who ever lived. More importantly, the hostage thing was an emergency which the manager didn't seem eager to respond to. Judging by what we've seen so far, on ordinary day to day assignments, the Dollhouse is like a luxury whorehouse, only it can give you what money can't buy you anywhere else: Authenticity. The Dollhouse can set you up with a date who has ''genuine'' feelings for you; it can give you the real thing, whatever that is to you. This is something people are willing to pay any price for: [
** As for the source of the imprints, here's a theory: Psychology/Medical studies. The people bankrolling the Dollhouse obviously have a strong network in the mental sciences, so it's not too much of a stretch to think that people who sign up for clinical studies are being recorded for imprints.
* There's discretion. You can hire the world's best X, but then you have to depend on the expert valuing confidentiality. Or you can make a temporary X and know that once the job is done, no one will know that you hired a bank robber, assassin, or someone to do [[Girl Genius|something with a tea cozy and only one spoon for forty-three hours]].
== ''Dollhouse'' takes place in the ''[[Street Fighter]]'' universe. ==
The Active technology is a refined version of the ability of M. Bison that created the 13 "Dolls". Instead of just creating assassins, the Active system can install all manner of skill sets. The Actives are even [[Theme Naming|theme-named]] like the Dolls: NATO phonetics, as opposed to months.
== Agent Ballard is Alpha ==
Line 187 ⟶ 186:
It would explain his fixation with the Dollhouse; he may not be able to recall where it is anymore but, suffering from a kind of PTSD, he sends himself these "clues" to lead himself-as-Ballard back to the Dollhouse. He may also be, in some way, attracted to or obsessed with Echo in his Alpha persona.
* Alpha is the most well known Active among Dollhouse. They know who he was, what personalities he had been given and, most importantly, what he looks like. If Ballard is a persona of Alpha, the Alpha would have to be the recipient of plastic surgery after the still unknown events which occurred. General workers in Dollhouse seem to have been told Alpha was killed. If he is alive, one would think the upper-echelon of management would want him dead as quickly as possible. Saying 'no' to a hit on an FBI agent who ''MIGHT'' be Alpha would seem silly, even for a company intent on privacy.
* Some evidence, the official music video of [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQglEOoTIac "What You Don't Know"], the show's theme. There are scenes here that, unless they're splices of other different scenes, directly imply (along with the music) that Ballard and Echo know each other. Now, there are only a few ways this could happen. At the end of the video, during a fight between them, he seemed to clearly know her face. The lyrics even outright state this. His being Alpha, post some kind of surgery, is possible and indeed may be probable from a [[Twist Ending]] perspective. More so, Alpha was skilled as a surgeon; they said this outright in the series' second episode. Do the math.
** In the original pilot, Echo (or one of her personalities) and Ballard met; this is undoubtedly the clip you're referring to. Alpha would probably be unable to or unwilling to hold down a job, let alone send himself mail.
** The argument seems iffy at best because it takes its cues from Ballard. Ballard received a picture of Echo (likely from before she became an active); this would explain Ballard's recognizing Echo. A real clue into this would be Echo recognizing Ballard during the clip, but there is no hint there that she does. His apprehension happens because Echo ''does not seem to recognize him.'' Though, it should be pointed out that the video holds scenes which are slightly out of order and cross at least 3 episodes.
Line 210 ⟶ 209:
== Alpha wants to make Echo into someone like him ==
Setting up the [[Hunting the Most Dangerous Game]] scenario was all part of his plan to force Echo to evolve or die. Somehow, when he encountered her on his post-integration rampage, he recognized that she had the potential to undergo that same integration; he knows that only some form of great stress can force the memories
* As a corollary: it's possible that Alpha is obsessed with making her 'wake up' because they knew each other before they became dolls. [[Love Makes You Evil]] and all that.
** Alternately, Alpha is the reason Echo became an Active. He was assigned to bring her in after the events flashed back to in 1x07, and feels responsible for her as a result. (And that was the reason he went crazy?)
Line 224 ⟶ 223:
== Eventually, if the show runs long enough, Echo WILL be rented by a woman. ==
There's no way that isn't on the schedule to happen at some point. [[Joss Whedon]] gets credit from the left for not side-stepping the issue of homosexuality; he has a ready made "don't judge" moral (someone important in the woman's life disapproves and tries to kill them); and there's plenty of opportunity for [[Fan Service]].
* Topher will [[Firefly (TV series)|be in his bunk.]]
* According to [https://web.archive.org/web/20091225015101/http://www.afterellen.com/people/2009/2/eliza-dushku-interview?page=0%2C0 this] interview, no homosexuality for the first 13 episodes. It will show up in the second season, assuming they don't get [[Screwed by the Network|screwed]] again.
* Thrown a bone by Episode 9, in which Dr. Saunders mentions that homosexual encounters are the most popular reason Dolls are rented out.
* {{spoiler|Confirmed, retroactively, in 2x08; all of Echo's past romantic engagements are being murdered by Alpha, and some of them are women.}}
Line 248 ⟶ 247:
* [[You're Insane!|You're out of your mind.]]
* At least some of the hatemongering on the web is being planted by Joss ''et al,'' to garner an incensed response from the fans of this FRICKING AWESOME show.
* This show is produced by [[NBC]] [[Universal]]. When [[
* Confirmed: Not only did Dollhouse make it to the end of season 1 (despite the 13th episode only appearing on the DVD), it's been renewed for a second 13-episode season. Now there's a twist no one here on [[TV Tropes]] saw coming.
** And now they're saying it's about to be renewed for a third.
*** ''That'' has been discredited. Apparently, it got beaten by ''[[Stargate Universe]]'' (on [[
*** Jossed. It's been canceled, and FOX hasn't renewed it for a third season.
== The Dollhouse is the centuries-prior predecessor to the Academy. ==
[[Firefly (TV series)|The Academy]] makes use of powerful mental control and subliminal messaging to control its agents. This could easily be a refined version of the basic imprinted personalities used on the Actives. Over five centuries, they improved the technology to its present state in the ''[[Firefly (TV series)|Firefly]]'' Verse, though it seems they can't quite get the tech to develop psychic powers to produce perfectly mentally stable agents....
* So, keep your eyes open for the episode where an Active goes berserk after seeing an ad for Nature Valley granola bars! (All right, [[
** But wait, wasn't that [[Universal]]?
*** If it is Universal, then the odds of an Active going berserk over a granola bar [[Product Placement]] approach certainty.
* And when the Operative says he has no name, he means that
** Would also explain why Earth has been abandoned in the Firefly 'verse, {{spoiler|what with the Apocalypse and all. All the Firefly people are descendants of ihabitants of Safe Haven}}
Line 266 ⟶ 265:
{{spoiler|Jossed}}
== Penny from ''[[
We've got WMGs for the rest of the Whedonverse, why not complete the set? {{spoiler|The ELE hired Penny because they recognised Billy's potential but wanted to stamp out his idealistic streak. They got an Active to become Billy's dream girl before crushing his spirit, causing him to fall to genuine evil. Of course, getting an Active killed would probably be extremely expensive, so those so inclined could probably use this as a theory of how she might have survived.}}
* Sure, where does Sugarshock fit in then?
Line 282 ⟶ 281:
** Really? It's not simply that {{spoiler|Saunders is so afraid of Alpha that she won't leave the Dollhouse}}?
*** Really. {{spoiler|Alpha asks if she's always wanted to be a doctor, then calls her a liar when she says "yes." More significantly, Dominic calls out "Whiskey" when he's in the chair in Victor's body. It's casually dismissed by everyone in the room as a request for a drink, but it's also a letter of the NATO alphabet -- while it could be a red herring, the line suggests strongly that someone in the room is a doll. And given what happened earlier in the episode, who's a better candidate than Doctor Saunders?}}
*** He'd just called out Topher and Boyd's names, then looked ''right at Saunders'' and said Whiskey.
**** It's worth noting that Saunders herself appeared to be the quickest to dismiss it. It seemed like DeWitt was echoing Saunders, not ''vice versa.''
* {{spoiler|Jossed}} in 2x10: {{spoiler|Boyd is threatened with being put in the Attic or being murdered, but not with being turned into a Doll.}}
Line 310 ⟶ 309:
== There is no mole ==
Topher inputted the subversive subroutine at the behest of Adelle so that Paul Ballard would back down for the time
The mention of a single person on the inside to Agent Ballard was to throw him for a mental loop and confuse him enough to both have him worried about protecting Mellie and get him out of the FBI. In other words, it's a [[Mind Screw]].
* Considering how much of a [[Chessmaster]] DeWitt appears to be, this is entirely possible. {{spoiler|Though it's Jossed now...}}
Line 331 ⟶ 330:
== The Dollhouse orchestrates the 'volunteering'. ==
Allegedly, the dolls are all volunteers. It's not explained why they would do this with only a blatantly amoral and secretive company's word that they'll get paid or even get their identity back, or even how they find the Dollhouse. So, instead, how about the Dollhouse finds them? All the dolls seen so far are young and reasonably attractive, so there's two necessary criteria. Given the martial arts they pull off quite frequently, another one is probably athletic ability. So maybe they go through winners of athletics competitions to find the best-looking ones, isolate them from their friends and family via the insinuation of other dolls into their life, grind them down past the [[Despair Event Horizon]], and then see that they find their way to the Dollhouse.
No-one seems to have been looking for Caroline; and in the yearbook video she was pretty offensive about all her friends, which suggests she managed to separate herself from them.
Line 350 ⟶ 349:
The only other serious candidates are Adelle (which would make no sense) or Topher and/or Claire (and neither of them could be an effective antagonist). Furthermore, this leads us into...
* There's also Dominic. It looks like he was the only character not mentioned on this page. What, too [[Obviously Evil|obvious]]? {{spoiler|Turns out, sometimes the obvious choice is the right one.}}
* {{spoiler|sort of confirmed}}
== Next season, Agent Ballard will become Echo's new handler. ==
Line 369 ⟶ 368:
"Dollhouse: Awakening" sounds a hell of a lot like a finale. It's only the eighth episode. Yep, [[The Firefly Effect]] lives on.
** [[The Other Wiki]] says the eighth episode is called Needs, and involves Echo, Sierra and Victor regaining part of their real personalities. Sounds more like a turning point in the arc-plot, not a finale.
** ALL 13 episodes WILL be shown on Fox (apart from on April
** Well, not exactly; only 12 of the 13 episodes were shown, with the last being available only on DVD. But since the show was renewed for a second season, this theory has been [[Jossed]].
Line 396 ⟶ 395:
# All of the world's governments are apparently in on Dollhouse, and surely not all of them are keeping silent because they want to partake in a fantasy every once in a while. Some other, more pressing, concern must be keeping the officials protecting the Dollhouse.
# The Dolls are named after military call signs.
# Aliens are the only thing Joss hasn't pulled out yet.
** Alternatively, the Dollhouse is working with [[Fringe|Z.F.T. to prepare soldiers for the coming war against a parallel universe.]]
* {{Spoiler| Pretty much Jossed}}
Line 453 ⟶ 452:
* Lawrence Dominic is Professor Fuyutsuki: the right hand man.
* Ballard is Kaji: sort of... Kaji did a bit of investigating, didn't he?
** Well, he did enough investigating {{spoiler|to get shot for it.}}
Wrong, Neon Genesis Evangelion is Echo's Attic dream and Echo is all 3 pilots. Caroline is Asuka, the id. Did I fall asleep-season 1 Echo is Rei, the super-ego, and Omega-Echo is Shinji, the ego.
* Alpha is Kaworu
* Sierra and Victor are Toji and Hikari.
* Boyd is Gendo, the father-figure who is ultimately a corrupt chessmaster and wants to bring about Instrumentality.
* Claire is Fuyutsuki.
* Clyde is Yui.
* Topher is Ritsuko.
* Adelle is Misato.
Line 492 ⟶ 491:
* [[Doctor Who|The Doctor]] is a Doll on assignment. The TARDIS is his handler.
** I think my brain just imploded...
** The Time Lords invented imprinting technology and the Dollhouse are actually using stolen tech they found inside Wash's crashed TARDIS. (see "Alpha is [[Firefly (TV series)|Wash]]" above)
*** The Dollhouse technology is simply a modified Chameleon Arch, stolen from Wash's TARDIS.
** The Time Lords actually sent the Doctor out on assignments, which he interprets as his rebellious misadventures, which the Time Lords knew would prevent greater disaster, so he is essentially a Sleeper Active. But now that the Time Lords are gone, he is a Doll with no assignment, which creates his angst.
Line 499 ⟶ 498:
The events of episode 10 represent either a dry run, or a rediscovery by the Los Angeles branch of this particular function.
* If you like, you can combine it with the "the Dollhouse's ultimate purpose is to produce polymaths" theory above, and say that the plan is to allow their customers, after they die, to wake up in young attractive bodies knowing kung fu.
* The department Adelle was working for before her transfer to the
* Wait a minute - did you just say [[Battlestar Galactica|"Resurrection"]]?
* This doesn't really work though. The original person (Their 'soul', I guess) stays dead, the dollhouse just creates a copy. It's like with vampires in Joss' other work- they may look like you, act like you, have your memories, they may even think they are you... but the original you is still dead. Of course, strictly speaking this means that all the dolls' original personalities are also technically dead. Perhaps you could skirt around this a bit by taking Ballard's suggestion that you can't erase someone's soul, so putting a mind back in its original body means it's really them, but... this is all getting rather philosophical now.
** Obviously you wouldn't get the service unless you held the kind of [[wikipedia:Physicalism|physicalist]] beliefs that make you think this sort of resurrection is reasonable. Or unless you thought the world needed someone like you around (like Margaret).
*** Or unless you hold the belief that the soul, as created by God(s), is smart enough to "stick" to the mind no matter what happens to that mind.
* {{spoiler|1=Seemingly confirmed by 1x13, "Epitaph One". At least, this seems to be the Rossum Corporation's big motivation - DeWitt et al seem none too happy at the idea.}}
== Adelle is a Terminator. ==
There's no way she could have shrugged off a bullet to the stomach that easily. Clearly, she's been sent back in time by Skynet to manipulate or control the Dollhouse so Skynet can use that technology to its own ends.
* Clearly, so that they can turn captured Resistance members into Skynet sleeper agents.
== Echo is somehow responsible for making Alpha ==
Just like she told the girl, Susan, about how Briar Rose made the prince to get her out.
{{quote|"It's okay to be rescued by someone else if you're young, or small, or can't do it yourself."
"The prince shows up at the last minute, takes all the credit."
Line 535 ⟶ 534:
== The Dollhouse is an ally of Torchwood ==
Secret underground organization with unlimited funding? check. Lonely, geeky tech wiz? check. Questionable morals? check. Adelle could have worked for Torchwood when she lived in the UK and Torchwood and UNIT could certainly use a few dolls.
== Adelle is a Timelord ==
Line 552 ⟶ 551:
== Echo-Omega had a heart-to-heart talk with Boyd and Ballard during the drive back to the Dollhouse ==
Ballard had a pretty impressive shift in attitude by the end of the episode; during the drive back to the Dollhouse, he undoubtedly had a long talk with Echo-
== Victor will {{spoiler|be the new Dr Saunders}}. ==
Line 559 ⟶ 558:
== November/Madeleine's five year term was over. ==
Remember Susan's line from "Briar Rose" about how the prince doesn't save Sleeping Beauty, he just shows up at the last minute and takes all the credit? It's like that.
* Also, this is why Adelle doesn't see any need to tell Madeleine, "By the way, we're letting you out of your contract early, so don't be surprised when you walk out the door and discover that it's 2009 instead of 201X." She isn't.
* {{spoiler|Jossed: turns out she was let out years early as revealed in the episode "Instinct"}}
Line 577 ⟶ 576:
* This editor read into things, especially Omega, that the Dollhouse has really vague understanding of what composite event really is. They think it's when an Active is imprinted with many personalities resulting in a psychotic. But it's really when an Active in their Tabula Rasa state develop self-awareness and personality that is, in part, based off the original personality that was there (the strongest parts); to greater and lesser degrees, this also means that the Active has to respond to their sudden knowledge and either accept or reject it. All that the imprinting of the other personalities does is give them experience and skills of many lifetimes. It's like suddenly you wake up one morning to realize that you can literally do everything Batman can. What you do with that though. This editor notes this because...
** Alpha and Omega clearly demonstrate a very focused sense of purpose and self. Alpha was psychotic because the original personality already was and that was the strongest trait to carry over. Alpha as an Active developed the attraction and superiority kick all on his own. Same for Omega - her devotion towards promises and helping people. If a composite event were really just a mishmash of personalities, Omega would have responded in the way Alpha probably expected it to happen. Likewise, Alpha probably wouldn't have been able to focus so much on such a specific goal - there's no reason why 48 different personalities would even agree on such thing unless it's not really personalities.
** Contrast the behavior of Alpha and Omega to their original personalities likely reactions and their own. Alpha destroys his original personality - he doesn't restore himself. Omega's first few acts as well as the last moments of the episode are radically different than the blank slate Caroline (or the original personality Caroline in the redshirt's body).
** Whiskey's mini-composite event - the side story involving Whiskey has many echoes with the larger one involving Alpha and Omega. However, with only one personality imprinted and the more gradual self-discover instead of the harsh method used by Alpha and Omega, the event is rather benign. Note how Whiskey acts to Victor in their scenes together. Initially, Whiskey acts exactly how a self-aware doll would - despondent and dejected, telling Victor as much. However, after re-discovering what happened, confronting her past selves, Whiskey reconciles everything. Subsequently, Whiskey's gesture towards Victor, the first time that gesture was shown despite being part of one of the original personalities, is a symbol of Whiskey's acceptance, free will, and acknowledgment of one of the original personalities. Moreover, it's a happy sign to both Victor and Whiskey - a turn around from the previous negative exchange.
** Victor and Sierra both demonstrate a vague memory of each other and Echo. This is a throwaway line in a previous episode noted by Topher about flocking. However, in their blank original states, they both seem to recall each other and have an attachment to each other, if vaguely. This shouldn't happen if it were completely their original personalities - it's really their blank slate memories manifesting on their own.
Line 584 ⟶ 583:
== Dollhouse is actually a branch of the [[Hellsing]] Organization ==
* There's only one explanation for Adelle DeWitt's stoic demeanor, the British accent, her aristocratic personality and role as head of a secret organization: she's clearly Sir Integra Hellsing, who's dyed her blonde hair, assumed a fake name and has come to the United States to oversee the Dollhouse, which is one of the Hellsing Organization's more specialized and esotoric projects. And Echo? Well, the chilling truth is that Caroline was just one more memory implant and Echo is really... Alucard, in his "Girlycard" form. The long dark hair, the piercing eyes, the intuitive ability to, when push comes to shove, ruthlessly tear through her enemies? It's all Alucard's homicidal nature slipping through the imprints and tabula rasa state, which in reality are very high-level, experimental versions of the Control Art Restriction System. That's the true purpose of Dollhouse: Hellsing was starting to lose control of Alucard, and the Dollhouse is an elaborate experiment to try to improve the CARS, by testing it on both him and on ordinary people who are being used as a control group. As for Alpha? That whole storyline's just an elaborate [[Mind Screw]] meant to keep Echo from realizing the truth: what really happened was that she reverted completely back to Alucard and sadistically laid waste to Dollhouse before they could reapply the seal and force him back into his Girlycard, "Echo" persona. This also explains why Echo is drawn to Sierra: in reality, Sierra is Seras Victoria with her hair grown out, similarly mind-wiped by Hellsing to preempt any threat her loyalty to Alucard might pose to the project. Of course, as her sire, Echo instinctively recognizes her anyway.
* This Troper thought {{spoiler|Clyde 2.0, aka Claire Saunders In A Suit}} looked waaaaaaay too much like Integra for her comfort.
== Ballard is a Doll ==
Line 606 ⟶ 605:
== {{spoiler|At least 75% of this page has been Jossed in the old-school sense of the term by "Epitaph One".}} ==
== Epitaph One is the seed of the [[Firefly (TV series)|Firefly]] universe. ==
In the [[After the End|future]] of Epitaph One, [[Earth-That-Was]] could no longer sustain us - due to all the {{spoiler|remote imprinting tech}} and the mess it made of the world.
* The solution to the mess was to settle on a new planet on the rim (of a new solar system), called Safehaven. This, and similar settlements would eventually form the Independents.
Line 634 ⟶ 633:
== Every major character in the LA Dollhouse is working against the Rossum Corporation. ==
Every character is either a mole or has a [[Xanatos Gambit]] going on against Rossum, but none of them are aware that the others are doing it. Because so many high-level people appear to be connected to the Dollhouse, every investigation is being kept very hush-hush. At some point in season two people will begin to connect the pieces, and eventually in season 3 they'll work together to fight the other Dollhouses and Rossum.
More specifically: DeWitt has a Gambit to rise through the ranks of Rossum and take them down from the inside, Boyd is a mole for someone, Ballard is still working for the FBI, Topher feels guilty and is sabotaging the imprint process causing the compound events. Dominic likely was a mole for the NSA, but was simply bad at it and so he was caught. All of the others went along with Attic-ing him, because they couldn't let any of the others know that they were betraying Rossum.
Line 667 ⟶ 666:
* It would explain where she was during that episode (possibly with Boyd covering for her). But it would also give the surviving Wesley/Fred shippers a happy, and Joss would never do such a thing. Unless it was to make their later misery all the more profound. Okay, it was sent by Whiskey.
* I consider it unlikely that Whiskey wants to bring down the Dollhouse. If that happened, Whiskey's pre-wipe personality would be restored and "Claire Saunders" would cease to exist, which is exactly what Whiskey doesn't want, according to "Vows".
** Unless she brings it down from the outside, without making her presence known to anyone who knows she's an Active. She may be thinking she can tear it down and walk away as the person who she's become. The flaw in this plan is that, presumably, she needs regular treatments to maintain her
*** I don't think most imprints need to be
{{spoiler|Jossed, it was Rossum}}
Line 697 ⟶ 696:
== Topher is falling for Sierra. ==
Am I the only one who got that vibe from "Belonging"? Not that he'll do anything about
== Senator Perrin is NOT helping Rossum. ==
Line 731 ⟶ 730:
* The problem with that is Topher's magic taser, which very clearly didn't work on him or on DeWitt. While in theory some kind of handwave would be possible, it just wouldn't sit well.
** If DeWitt were the partner, there is no reason why the taser would have worked on her. Clyde doesn't imply that the partner transferred his/her personality, and the ages match. As for Topher being Clyde 2.0 (or, more likely, Clyde 2.5, Clyde 3.0, Clyde 3.1, etc) I was under the impression that the taser worked on the current Active architecture. And this architecture seems to be what is necessary to constantly load and delete new imprints into a brain, which means it may have not been necessary for one wipe followed by a single, permanent imprint. The bigger problem with Topher being Clyde 2.0 is that we are specifically told Clyde's knowledge of the technology was suppressed in the new imprint.
*** Except that Clyde's been in there 17 years, with no idea how much time has
**** But the fact remains that the guy says they were 'students' which suggests 18-25; it was 16 years ago, and he, like DeWitt , seems 40-ish, fitting the timeline of events well.
* The thing though is that DeWitt is very clearly not in control of Rossum or what have you. Even Harding answers to higher ups. Were DeWitt the original, surely she'd be good enough to stay in control.
Line 741 ⟶ 740:
For clarification, Actives are people (volunteers) whose minds have been wiped and who can be "imprinted" with any personality and hired out for jobs or "engagements", sometimes of dubious morality. When needed, they can be wiped and imprinted with a personality that can be of use to the Dollhouse rather than used for engagements {{spoiler|(such as [[The Medic|Dr. Saunders]])}}. Perhaps Megan Fox just couldn't cut it as a Doll? (Incidentally, this would also explain her...er...acting.)
Also, compare [https://web.archive.org/web/20090317202412/http://editorial.sidereel.com/Images/Posts/Dollhouse_Echo.jpg Echo] to [http://www.bigchicosmovieblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/megan-fox-4-30-08.jpg Megan]{{Dead link}} - notice the similar dead eyes and surreal expressionless faces?
* No way. If she was an Active, [[Take That|she'd be better at acting]]. And would be less of a resentful bitch in interviews. I mean, if she's an active, why the smeg did they pick ''this'' useless personality to go with that [[Ms. Fanservice|body]]?
== What Topher and Ivy took from Ballard was his thing for Echo/Caroline ==
[[Rule of Drama]]. He wouldn't be happy if he found out. In Epitaph One, Caroline said the "jury's out" on whether they were together at that point.
* Or his thing for November.
* Or - my personal favourite guess - his ability to have "man-reactions" altogether. That would be [[LO Larious]].
Line 752 ⟶ 751:
== It doesn't matter who Clyde 2.0 is. ==
Because s/he's just going to be implanted into a different body anyway. There are at least 6 named characters running around with active architecture in their heads who could end up as Clyde 2.0. My money's on "You don't want to end up like November."
* Well, maybe. Don't forget that we are going back to an earlier version of the technology. We take it for granted that the 'point' of the technology is and always has been to constantly change imprints but that's because the Dollhouse needs to use it this way for its business. Therefore, the technology has been developed to enable constant loading and wiping of (modified) brains. But consider how much trauma wiping and imprinting must
** Possible, but Clyde 1.0 does note that his copy will probably have changed bodies by now.
** Maybe Bennett is Clyde 2.0. Or, Ivy.
*** Can't be Bennett. She isn't a Doll.
Line 762 ⟶ 761:
**** But the tabula rasa is an imprint, it's just a default, probably built into the architecture. Once you have active architecture, everything is an imprint, including your original self, your original self just hasn't been tampered with and had bits added, like the imprints Topher et al create. Proof: the disruptor will knock Madeline out, and someone's release procedure involves a more or less routine round in the chair.
** If Clyde 2.0 had no special knowledge and no free will, then what was the point of him? How can a personality with no 'aspiration' resemble ''any'' human being, let alone one who must have been some kind of genius?
*** He does have special
**** It's Clyde 5.0, he's not a known character, but Clyde 6.0 very much is.
== Epitaph One is not the literal future - it's a symbolic one representing two competing groupminds. ==
Rossum is making an army as shown in Stop Loss/The Attic. This is the killer imprints. The sanctuary that Alpha created is not a literal one... it's another groupmind, abit one where everyone retains their individuality (more or less) and the journey there is like trying to escape The Attic. Note the use of climbing a ladder into a light in both episodes and other motifs (a place of fear, adrenaline). Thus, in the future, -everyone- is an Active.
** Not sure. Am I the only one who thought the hive mind in Stoploss seemed ''way'' cruder and more limited than any of the tech we've seen so far, even the retro/homemade imprinting gear? Although I think that was mainly because the episode was a bit rushed. That's where cancellation roulette gets you.
*** Hi there, welcome to the armed forces. Money is poison, and they spend as little of it on the infantry as they can. Stuff tends to be a bit crude, and cruder is better in the armed forces, as well, because simpler is tougher and easier to replace.
**** Not crude as in uncomfortable/unimpressive, crude as in simplistic and limited in applicatation (i.e. easily overcome in the space of one filler episode).
***** {{spoiler|No, it's really true.}}
Line 807 ⟶ 806:
We've already seen they can mess with memories in the one where Gun and Lindsey were tortured. The reason this one is so complex is because someone pointed how easy it is to break a simple prison. With this one by the time Angel and company even figured out what was happening to Faith they'd be just as confused as the viewers are.
== Echo is DeWitt's daughter ==.
* Possible, but unlikely, given that Adelle is ''at most'' 15 years older than Echo. Still, that'd be one more reason for their relationship it to be a secret, if this guess is true.
** Fifteen is certainly old enough to have a child. It's also certainly a likely age at which to have a child and give her up for adoption, which would explain why Caroline doesn't seem to know
== Boyd will die between 2.11 and the series finale ==.
Line 817 ⟶ 816:
== Active Architecture enables stable imprinting of full personalities ==.
In the Dark Future of Epitaph One and Epitaph Two, there are a) Actuals : people whose minds and brains have never been tampered with ; b) 'dumbshows', who are wiped but not imprinted (unlike Actives, they cannot even speak and are hardly functional) ; c)'butchers' who have been wiped and imprinted with a crude program that makes them mindless killing machines ; d) 'tech-heads' ex-Actives (with Active Architecture) who have taken the technology into their own hands ; e) 'immortals' who move from body to body such as Harding, Ambrose and Iris. These last presumably also use Active Architecture. This seems to be what is required to imprint someone with a fully functioning copy of a personality rather than a simple program designed to turn them
== Alpha was created intentionally ==
Line 824 ⟶ 823:
== The reason Echo and company ultimately failed to stop the end of the world is because cutting the head off of a snake doesn't work ==
Boyd was right when he said that once the cat was out of the bag, it wouldn't go away. Unless the 'head of the snake' is the only one with the information, all cutting off the head does is cause new ones to grow. If Echo and company had done what Boyd proposed they could've stopped the end of the world. Especially after wiping Boyd. It's much easier to fight a war when you've coup'd your main enemy, after all.
* It seems to this troper that this WMG is true in another way. Judging by "Epitaph One", the first sign of the coming end was seen when Harding and Ambrouse decided to provide a service of immortality. "Epitaph Two" shows us the Neuropolis, where the remains of Rossum survived by means of imprinting people. They don't seem fully responsible for the mess. When Eco and company decapitated Rossum, they destroyed the handheld imprinting device, but the idea remained. Inevitably, at some point a technician in some obscure house figured it out and built a new system tied into the communication networks. But there was no visionary leader now. Instead of world domination and enslavement which would have resulted from {{spoiler|Boyd___}}'s plan, came chaos brought about by reckless use of the tech. Lose-lose.
Line 840 ⟶ 839:
== [[Total Recall]] takes place [[Twenty Minutes Into the Future|in the future]] of [[Dollhouse]] [[After the End|after Epitaph Two: The Return.]] ==
After Echo and company manage to take down the remaining Rossum members, civilization begins it's slow crawl back to normalcy...but some people just haven't learned. Remnants of the Imprint technology still remain, and have been reverse-engineered by Rekall Incorporated. However, the technology is still unstable, leading to schizoid-embolisms and ultimately lobotomies.
== The big bad we saw was an Imprint ==
I mean come on! I don't care what you say what kind of Evil overlord places himself again and again in dangerous situations like {{spoiler|Boyd}} did. Back in the day when Caroline came across the test subjects it looked like their imprints where hard wired in as in the singing imprint. Wouldn't be too far to believe that the big bad decided to leave a sleeping imprint on {{spoiler|Boyd}} untill he found it useful. I mean that kind of sincerity and courage couldn't be faked could it?
Deniel? What deniel.
== Boyd Langton was a candidate for the CBS show Undercover Boss ==
Langton could have had a hidden camera on him to record and see how things were done on the lower levels of his company. Once the company was powerful enough for the government to be unable to stop them, his time in the Dollhouse would have been an episode of Undercover Boss.
{{worksubpagefooter}}
[[Category:Wild Mass Guessing/Live Action TV]]
__NOTOC__
| |||