Dollhouse (TV Series) The Attic (2009) User Reviews

If Every episode had been this good........

[Lelo34 · 10/10 · 23 December 2009]

Or even somewhere close, this show wouldn't be getting down to 3 final episodes.

If there's one thing Joss Whedon can do, it's conclude a series. While the formula is there for all his series, its disguised well enough that you don't see it coming until it smacks you in the face.

Here comes the spoiler: The main characters face what suddenly seems like insurmountable odds, there might be a turncoat in their midst, who ends up not being a turncoat after all, and a villain turns ally.

He still does it very well, and for the first time, I'm actually sad that this series is going away. I watched it sporadically until the last couple of weeks, but they've caught a good wind, and it's too bad the series is going gone.

Into the Attic

[Tweekums · 9/10 · 6 February 2019]

The previous episode ended with Adelle dispatching Echo, Sierra and Victor to the attic. Shortly after Echo is processed she appears to die only to wake up, kill two attic workers and try to rescue Sierra and Victor only for them all to die and this be revealed as a dream. It then starts recurring although now Echo knows it isn't real... just life in the attic. As she explores she finds an unlikely ally who tells her about the true nature of the attic and about a dangerous predator who kills the attics inmates. Back in the main part of the Dollhouse Topher and Ivy are being pressured find a way to 'repair' Ballard.

After many mentions of The Attic it was great to finally see it and learn just what it really is. The way it is depicted nicely captures the strangeness of dreams with the constant feel that things aren't quite real but are still believable to those in the dream. The truth about the nature of the attic was interesting and not too obvious. The events back in the Dollhouse were no less interesting as ideas for what to do with Ballard were discussed. The cast did a solid job with Eliza Dushku being on great form as Echo and Reed Diamond makes an enjoyable return for the first time since his character left the series in the first season. Overall an impressive episode which answers some important questions.

Through the looking glass!

[Joxerlives · 7/10 · 9 June 2012]

The good; Quite effective episode which explains a lot in terms of exposition but the best part of all is the bait and switch at the end, hell of a Keyser Soze, worthy of 'Enemies' and 'Not Fade Away'.

The bad; Considering how omniscient Rossum are supposed to be it seems incredible that Adele is able to assemble her troops without them knowing. But maybe they do? Clyde might as well be called 'Basil Exposition'.

Best line; Echo; "My real name's Echo" (so what about Caroline?)

Packing heat; everyone fielding H&K MP5Ks and M4's. Ballards takes Boyd's revolver for his confrontation with Adele and she has acquired a Walther PPK in case Alpha plans another visit.

Echo;12 Boyd; 10 Dominic; 10 Sierra; 7 Victor; 7 Ballard; 11 November; 1 Echo kissage; 4

Kinky dinky; Adele says that the Dollhouse need's a 'strapping new Victor'.

Capt subtext; When Topher claims to have tried homo and hetertopic cures for Ballard Adele puns on the words and asks who hasn't? Note Echo describes Terry Karen's family as 'hateful', her opinion of them obviously influenced by his memories. Adele states what we all thought, that Boyd is like a father to Echo. Clyde 1.0's fears are essentially what we see realised in Epitaph 1. If Adele is considering Ballard for the new Victor perhaps she wants him to play Roger from now on?

Notches on the Dollhouse bedpost; Sierra and Victor get it on but it's not real Echo; 6 definite, 2 possible November; 1 Ballard; 1 Victor; 1 Adele; 1 Sierra 1 Topher; 1 possible

How'd they get away with that? Unbelievably gruesome, especially the sushi scene

Total number personalities; Echo; 41 Sierra; 13 Victor; 11 November; 3 Total LA dolls; .

9-Echo, Sierra, November, Victor, Mike, Tango, Alpha, Whiskey, Kilo Topher is a bit geeky; Has no idea about Ivy's sports analogy. He's wrong though, Darth Vader kills Captains, not Lieutenants.

Bondage; Sierra tied up; 2 Ballard; 2 Echo; 4 Victor; 2 Knocked out; Echo; 7 November; 1 Sierra; 2 Victor; 3 Topher; 3 Ballard; 1 Kills; Sierra; 3 kills Echo; 3 November;1

Know the face? Greg Collins also played one of the thugs in the Angel ep 'Rm w/a vu' 16-Whedon alumni-Mark Shepherd-2 (Dollhouse/Firefly), Amy Acker-2 (Dollhouse/Angel), walking action figure-2 (Buffy/Dollhouse), Eliza Dushku-3 (Buffy/Angel/Dollhouse), Jim Piddock-2 (Angel/Dollhouse), Gregg Henry-2 (Dollhouse/Firefly), Alan Tudyk-2 (Dollhouse/Firefly), Felicia Day-2(Dollhouse/Buffy), Alexis Denisoff-3 (Buffy, Angel and Dollhouse), Kristoffer Pohala-2 (Dollhouse/Angel), Stacey Scowley-2 (Buffy/Dollhouse) Clyde Katulas-2 (Buffy/Dollhouse), Maurissa Tanchon-2(Dollhouse/Dr Horrible), Summer Glau-3(Angel/Firefly/Dollhouse) Glenn Morshower-2(Buffy/Dollhouse), Greg Collins-2(Angel/Dollhouse)

Reminds me of; The whole thing is very reminiscent of the Buffy ep 'Restless', right down to the monster pursuing the characters from dreamscape to dreamscape not to mention the Angel ep 'Hellbound'. Astonishingly Enver's double is played by his twin brother, just like Nic Brendon in 'The Replacement'.

The twisty tree reminds me of Tom Burton's Gothic masterpiece Sleepy Hollow. I don't get the Highlander reference, I don't remember Connor pursuing anyone obsessively across the centuries? Need I mention The Matrix? Whedon clichés; Maimed characters. Rich and powerful families who cover up the evil deeds of their wayward sons. Top security installations which aren't secure at all. Loving self-sacrificing mothers who risk all for their children. Corporate politics literally played with deadly seriousness. Monty Python quoting villains. Offices full of zombies. Strawberries.

Breaking the programming; Echo can now overcome even the Attic and leads the others to safety.

Questions and observations; Note the shortened title sequence, obviously too much to fit in otherwise. Topher now calls Ballard, Paul. Boyd has 'stuff going on at home'? Presumably the little girl mourning her sickly horse is Margeret from Haunted who was a keen equestrian. Echo never was a kid so presumably we're looking at little Caroline (interesting if you compare her to the girl who played little Tru in Tru Calling and young Eliza in This Boy's Life and True Lies). We also see the thug who terrorised Eleanor Penn again. Dominic very much dressing down in the attic, not a suit in sight. Adele knows about Kinnard.

Marks out of 10; 7/10, we're getting to the heart of the conspiracy at last.

Trippy, but does not fully live up to its own hype

[gridoon2024 · 7/10 · 2 November 2010]

Ah yes, the notorious Attic. The place where the problematic Dolls are sent to, the place that fills with fear anyone who even hears its name, the place from where nobody has returned. We've been hearing about the Attic since early season 1; when Dominic was exposed as an NSA spy he tried to commit suicide rather than being sent there. With so much hype built throughout the series this episode - where we finally get to find out what the Attic is - had a lot to live up to. And, IMHO, it did not quite live up to it. Sure, it's trippy and weird and crazy and stuff, but doesn't really offer much that we haven't already seen in, say, the "Nightmare On Elm Street" films (or, to use a more obscure example, the season 3 "Alias" episode "Conscious" - one of the best of that entire series). And what's more disappointing is that it takes Echo & co. relatively little time to figure out how the Attic works AND how to escape from it - which makes it look much less fearsome a place that it was hyped up to be. As for the big twist at the end, we already knew it had to happen sooner or later, to set up the series' endgame. My favorite scene in "The Attic" actually happens outside of it: Paul Ballard awakens after Topher's extremely challenging operation on his severely damaged brain, and for a while he can't walk straight and he only speaks in gibberish - possible Frankenstein homage? *** out of 4.