Whatever the reaction to the series, the "Dollhouse" set is a marvel.
During a visit to stages 18 and 19 on the Fox lot in Los Angeles last July, it was clear the network had confidence in the show at one point, as represented by its massive set that reportedly cost $950,000, per The Los Angeles Times. The two-story interior of the underground Dollhouse is infused with an Asian-design aesthetic.
"I think it looks like a futuristic brothel," said series star Fran Kranz, who plays programmer Topher.
It's probably too antiseptic for that comparison to hold. The center of the first floor contains a Koi pond. Above it, windows from Topher's lab look out on the tranquil scene below, which also has space for the Actives to eat meals, make crafts and work out.
Series creator Joss Whedon described the naturalistic set, filled with wooden decor, as "the perfect spa," during a tour of the space.
"The Actives are treated well (between missions)," Whedon said. "This is a very nurturing environment. We wanted to do everything to say, 'This is a happy, harmonious home. Don't ask any questions.' So they take enormous care of them. They spend a lot of time and money and resources protecting them.
"At the same time, they're sending them out to do various things, some of which are dangerous. There's a lot of yin to the yang of what they're doing. Another thing is that everything that is protective is constrictive. The idea was to create a place that was a place where Echo would want to get out of but that (viewers would) be willing to come back to every week."
(Contact TV editor Rob Owen at rowen(at)post-gazette.com.)
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)
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