Not sure why I never made this connection before, but something in that post made it click for me: there seems to be a definite similarity (not in a plagiaristic way) to Philip K. Dick's short story "Paycheck" (a much better short story than movie).

In Paycheck, a man agrees to work for a company for a few years and at the end of that period, his mind will be wiped and he'll get a huuuuuuuuuuge paycheck. However, he finds that when the job is completed, he has agreed to trade in his paycheck for an envelope containing what appears to be a random collection of apparently worthless items. The story then revolves around the meaning of those items and him figuring out exactly what it was he had been employed to do.

Compare this to Dollhouse: Echo (and the other dolls) are hired for a period of time, at the end of which their minds will be wiped and they'll get a huuuuuuuuuuge paycheck. Dollhouse will be revolving around Echo becoming more and more aware of what exactly is going on.

JMaloney | May 15, 17:58 CET

klfair, you did just fine. Other than omitting the period (full stop) at the end of the link title. Which is something even more experienced members seem to do every so often. Ta for the link.

SoddingNancyTribe | May 15, 18:01 CET

"The fantasy is so complex, it's sure to burnish his cult hero status." (Philadelphia Inquirer)

The One True b!X | May 15, 19:43 CET

Nice to see positive words and excitement about the new project rolling in from all over. Welcome aboard once more to all of the new folks :)

zeitgeist | May 15, 19:48 CET

JMaloney, there is a fundamental difference in the comparison you made. I haven't read Paycheck, but it sounds like the guy is still himself, but has his memories of the job wiped. So the guy is himself before/during/after the job (with some amnesia). In Dollhouse, every memory and personality trait is gone.

The 10 facts just made me realize other plot arcs this show could take:
- What if not all the dolls are volunteers? Or if one of the executives decides to cut costs by having an "accident" just before an Active's time is up?
- The memories of each assignment are wiped from the Actives. I'm guessing some handler is going to secretly record those memories, to blackmail clients.

[ edited by OneTeV on 2008-05-15 18:13 ]

OneTeV | May 15, 21:13 CET

What if not all the dolls are volunteers?

I believe one of the casting sides included a character posing that very question, didn't it? The Boyd/Topher one?

The One True b!X | May 15, 21:26 CET

You're exactly right, OneTeV, which is why I'm only saying that there are similarities/parallels, and not exact duplication. My understanding, though, is that once the dolls have completed their "sentence" (for lack of a better word) of five years, or whatever, they'll be returned back to their original selves, essentially being exactly as they were prior to joining the Dollhouse, just five years older.

The other difference is that Echo will be learning about/remembering herself while she's still employed, whereas in the P.K. Dick story, he's working things out after his job is complete (and his memory of such is wiped). Also, Paycheck relied heavily on a time travel theme, which I don't think has any relevance to Dollhouse.

My main point was that there's a definite parallel in the idea of memory wipe/piecing together what's going on via random clues, which is driving the main plot of both Dollhouse and Paycheck.

JMaloney | May 15, 21:35 CET

Yeah but if it's a question about how society and/or technology pressures and distorts the individual or their sense of reality then PK Dick is gonna have asked it, that was most definitely his bailiwick ;).

('We Can Remember it for You Wholesale' asked some of the same questions for instance)

Saje | May 15, 23:57 CET

JM, I still think the kettle of fish is a lot more different than you do. Jennings character is still himself while working, and afterwards, essentially the same person. In Dollhouse, the "person" is taking a five year nap, and the Active is a completely different person(s). A better comparison would be with "Total Recall", where the Arnold character gets a new personality on top of a little amnesia. (Which I just remembered, was also based on a P. K. Dick short story... Oops, Saje just pointed that out.)

I don't think the underlying drive of the story will be Echo trying to remember herself, but instead how responsible does she become for the actions she takes as an Active. I'm thinking of how Wesley's character was permanently warped by the events in "Billy", because he couldn't resolve if his dastardly actions were a part of him, or imposed on him. In Echo's case, that gets a lot more complicated.

OneTeV | May 16, 00:00 CET

From what registered on my midn when firstr eading about it, I gathered Echo is retaining some of her previosu Imprints after receiving new ones.

Of course that could foreshadow remmemebring the actual self.

There's nor eal simialrity int ehs tories, not even a sueprficial one, but I'm sort of flashing on the Rock Hudson-starring tour de not quite titled Seconds.

DaddyCatALSO | May 16, 04:19 CET