Premiering on Fox in 2009, Joss Whedon’s Dollhouse was an innovative, contentious and short-lived science fiction series whose themes were challenging for viewers from the outset. This collection of essays examines the series’ relevance in the context of today’s social and political issues and media landscape.

Table of Contents Acknowledgments Introduction: Welcome to the Future Michael Starr and Heather M. Porter Part I: Society and Self “Now that we have a black president”: White Feminism, ­Post-Raciality, and the Curious Case of Boyd Langton Mary Ellen Iatropoulos “The body doesn’t matter, it’s the mind that we want”: Examining and Critiquing Contemporary Socioeconomic and -political Structures Through Rossum and the Framework Erin M. Giannini Ripley, Alice, and Echo: Corporate Malfeasance and the Female Body Sherry Ginn “We’re also misunderstood, which great humanitarians often are”: Examining the Intelligence and Wisdom of the Mad Scientist Topher Brink Heather M. Porter Part II: Philosophy and Technology Earning a Place on the Ark: Evolution, Ethics, and Epitaphs Madeline Muntersbjorn From Androids to Actives: Death of Identity and the Legacy of Technicism Thomas D. Parham III Agencied Objects: Locations of the Technodomestic ­Object-I in the Whedonverses Juliette C. Kitchens “How does it feel to end the world?”: The Dark Ecology of the Dollhouse Michael Starr Part III: Form and Function What You Don’t Know Won’t Hurt You? Constructive Omissions in the Title Music Janet K. Halfyard Friday Night Rites: The Posthuman Hero’s Tale in the Television Narrative Devon E. Anderson “You cannot possibly stop them alone”: The Formula Conspiracy Story, the Monomyth, and Whedon’s Complicated Heroics Stephen G. Melvin “Tell me about the Dollhouse”: The Impact of Promotional Paratexts on Audience Reception Tanya R. Cochran Part IV: Influences and Allusions “I’m awake now”: Female Cyborgs, ­Self-Awareness, and (Qualified?) Rebellion in Dollhouse and Westworld Eve Bennett “To grow, we all need to suffer”: Memory and Trauma as the Path to Personhood Jeana Jorgensen and Keegan L. Mills Lost, Not Gone: The Haunted (Doll)House Catherine Pugh Pod People, Zombies, Dolls: Fear and Anxiety in I Am Legend, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, and Dollhouse Charmaine Tanti Appendix 1: Dollhouse Episode List Appendix 2: Westworld Episode List, Cited in Text Appendix 3: Whedon Television Episode List, Cited in Text Appendix 4: Whedon Filmography, Cited in Text About the Contributors Index

“[T]his collection is a welcome addition to Whedon studies in general and to the study of [the] often-neglected series Dollhouse in particular.”—Elizabeth L. Rambo, associate professor of English, Campbell University