While there’s been some pretty compelling posts around the net suggesting that Dollhouse is Josh Whedon’s best work, the general consensus seems to be that Dollhouse was a massively ambitious disappointment.  In truth, the potential that was there has only been showing up over the last five episodes. What will humanity look like when all of our experiences and personality traits are just space on a hard drive? What makes you human if your body and mind are separable? What is the difference between exploitation for the common good and evil? All surprisingly deep philosophical questions for a show whose original facade was that of a high end brothel. Though wrapped in kinky fantasies and kung fu kicks, Dollhouse really did try to tackle those ideas. Sometimes with a fair amount of success, like the episode “Needs” but also with some shallow detours like the god awful “Stage Fright.” In the final tally, Dollhouse simply wasn’t able to grow up enough to catch a steady audience over its twelve episode run and this will likely be the last episode ever broadcast.

This is it. Alpha has Echo captive out in the wild and Ballard is captured by the Dollhouse. What exactly the clearly insane ex-active has in mind with Echo isn’t clear but its bound to be ugly.

Through out the episode we catch flashbacks of Alpha’s time as a doll. Turns out Doctor  Saunders has a much bigger role to play than we had originally known. She too was an active. The House’s most popular in fact. Alpha’s non fatal attack on her seems to be even more significant now. After Echo arrives, Alpha takes an interest in Dr. Saunders aka Whiskey, the same way Victor had been taking an interest in Sierra.

Ballard and Mrs Dewitt are joining forces to try to capture Alpha and Echo. Ballard seems to be able to handle all of it with surprising smoothness considering how obsessed he’s been with the Dollhouse. Ballard attempts to help Topher, Dewitt and Boyd decipher what Alpha’s motives and target could be. Realizing that the first thing that Alpha destroyed was his primary or original personality, Topher discovers that Alpha too has stolen Echo’s primary personality.

Now having built his own imprint chair and kidnapped a hostage, Alpha’s plan for Echo starts to crystalize. Alpha wants to build his own perfect mate. To do that, he has to remove Echo’s true self and dump all of her previous imprints into her at once. To do that, Alpha uses his homemade brain chair to put Caroline (Echo’s true personality) into their hostage. At this point Alpha delivers a psychotic and gripping soliloquy. It’s proof that Alpha has lived up the boogeyman persona that’s been building all season long. Tudyk is once again excellent, playing up the glitches in Alpha’s programming. One personality overrides another as Alpha’s ticks and freaks out.

Once again in flashback, we see Alpha and Whiskey in the Dollhouse. Whiskey is the most popular doll and is consistently being called out on jobs. Suddenly Alpha appears over her and says in a creepy childlike voice “Whiskey, let Echo be number one” and slashes her face. Now subdued Alpha appears to be getting another treatment, but something goes wrong and Alpha’s imprint is warped as he struggles.
Back on the manhunt, Ballard tries to understand Alpha in some deeper sense. He thinks the actives still posses a soul and that understanding who Alpha was before he was wiped could tell them who he has become. You can almost hear the Whedon sub plot bells ringing.

Now with Caroline imprinted on the hostage, Alpha sets out to make Echo into his own super crazy love partner. Alpha fancies himself god-like and superior to ordinary people and he intends to make Echo the same. Thus transforming her into his “Omega”. Caroline is trying to appeal to Echo. Its fascinating for the mind, encased in another body to try to talk rationally with her own body, even without her persona. Alpha expects Echo to kill Caroline and exorcise her original self permanently. Echo isn’t going that way though.

In a fantastic twist, the newly crowned Omega turns on Alpha laying him out with a pipe to the face. Even with all of her actives in her head, Echo maintains a feeling of self. Her inner soul as Ballad called it, continues to see the evil nature of Alpha. Who we discover through Ballard’s detective work was well on his way to becoming psycho before the Dollhouse picked him up. After some esoteric conversation with her own mind, Omega and Alpha begin the inevitable fisticuffs. Omega gets the upper hand and it looks like we may have a neat tidy ending, but just as Omega/Echo is about to escape Alpha shoots Caroline in the throat.

Ballard and Boyd are breaking out their old police skills as they track down the victim of Alpha’s last act of free will before becoming an active. Once they do, they discover that she too has the facial scars that Alpha has made a calling card. It seems like Balard and Boyd’s sleuthing could turn something up and the two are closing in.

Alpha has the upper hand and he forces Echo back into his home made chair. Claiming he’s going to destroy the hard drive with Caroline on it if she doesn’t comply. Echo is having none of it though. Now reversing roles, Echo is chasing Alpha just as Ballard and Boyd arrive.

Now with all the principles in place for a finale showdown, there’s an excellent foot chase using a power station as a backdrop. During the fray, Alpha throws away the hard drive containing Caroline. Ballard catches the hard drive thus finally getting to save Caroline in an incredibly esoteric way. Alpha escapes to be a specter should the Dollhouse magically get renewed.

Back at the Dollhouse, Topher begins to see that the active Whiskey is peaking through the cracks in the composite of Doctor Saunders. She too is able to see beyond her imprint. Ballard is working at the Dollhouse now in exchange for “Millie’s” freedom. In the final moment as the actives return to their pods for sleep Echo whispers one name “Caroline.”

Whedon’s premise became obvious. Though personalities and memories can be calculated and copied, a person’s true nature can’t be overwritten. Its a very good ending to what became a very good series. It had the potential to be great, but Dollhouse just never was able to get there. Sadly, it looks like Whedon will once again be without a network TV home. Though the airwaves might be poorer for that, I’m guessing with the success of Dr. Horrible, the internet will be made richer.