'Dollhouse' Axed, No One Surprised

EW's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Dollhouse will end after its 13 episode run this fall. Even diehard Joss Whedon fans, like myself, aren't surprised that FOX has finally pulled the plug on the ratings-challenged drama that really hit its stride creatively in its second season. The show barely averaged 3 million viewers on a Friday night death slot and lost about 25% of its first season audience this fall. After FOX pulled 'Dollhouse' from its November sweeps schedule most people considered that to be the final nail in the show's coffin. This announcement seems like a mere formality.

To FOX's credit, they stuck with 'Dollhouse' a lot longer than most other networks would have. Even giving the show a second season was a huge leap of faith that show would be able to find a larger audience over the summer hiatus. That said, FOX certainly could have done a lot more to promote the show. They stuck it on a night where viewers are scarce to begin with and then barely advertised for the show, expecting viewers to magically tune in. Unfortunately, 'Dollhouse' was a show perfect for a cable network, like SyFy, and it really couldn't sustain itself in a broadcast model (Eliza Dushku, the female lead, had a development deal with FOX so the show had to be pitched to them first). Hopefully, Joss Whedon will think twice about bringing his ideas to a broadcast network in the future.