The Deal With Dollhouse 1×13: A Prediction
I’ve made this prediction elsewhere prior to the confirmation that the thirteenth episode of Dolhouse will not air, but I want to make it again here, and then make one further comment. Given that the DVD set is released on July 28, immediately after Comic-Con, I suspect that “Epitaph One” (the episode in question) will screen at that convention as promotion for the DVD.
That’s the prediction, and here’s the futher comment: If it transpires that Fox were to move in the direction of renewing the series, holding off the thirteenth episode (which reportedly could be viewed as a bridge between a season one and a season two) until July instead of burning it off in May would give the show a burst of mid-summer press attention that it would not otherwise receive, perfectly timed to bring additional notice to a second season.
Addendum: It should be noted that while this is a PR debacle to be sure (PR people supposedly get paid to understand how an announcement, even a passive one, will be viewed by the public and therefore get paid to be ready for it), this weirdness does not yet indicate whether Dollhouse has been renewed or cancelled. While it’s understandable to suffer conniptions and make the assumption, reports continue to be that the decision on whether or not to pick up the show still has not yet been made.
Addendum: Tim Minear, the writer and director of 1×12, which Fox is airing as the season finale, chimed in over on WHEDONesque.
Okay. So maybe I can help clarify this somewhat. Because we scrapped the original pilot — and in fact cannibalized some of its parts for other eps — we really ended up with 12 episodes. But the studio makes DVD and other deals based on the original 13 number. So we created a standalone kind of coda episode. Which is the mythical new episode 13. The network had already paid for 13 episodes, and this included the one they agreed to let us scrap for parts. It does not include the one we made to bring the number back up to 13 for the studio side and its obligations. We always knew it would be for the DVD for sure, but we also think Fox should air it because it’s awesome.
Addendum: The weird thing with the above, however, is that no one has ever given anyone outside of Fox the clear indication that 1×13 was not considered part of the episode order by the network. In fact, way back in January, Kevin Reilly specifically said they would be airing “13 episodes”. So there are still some lingering holes in the story as it is piecing itself together.
But the important bits for right now are these: Dollhouse is not currently a cancelled show. Not airing 1×13 has nothing to do with renewal or cancellation and everything to do with what the network considers a fulfillment of their contractual obligation to air the episodes it licensed.
However, because this sudden 1×13 fustercluck (which could have been avoided by a PR operation at Fox that didn’t have its head up its ass) has nearly everyone thinking the series has been cancelled, it is more important than ever to make sure casual viewers understand that next week’s preemption by Prison Break is for that Friday and that Friday only, and that Dollhouse returns the following week.