Joss Whedon's sci-fi Dollhouse premiered Friday, and the news isn't good: Overnight ratings were the worst in the show's history. Translated: If you like it, you'd better watch it while you can.
The half-hour numbers for Dollhouse among adults 18-49 and 18-34, according to TV by the Numbers (rating/share, audience):
9-9:30 p.m.: 1.0, 1.0, 2.698 million 9:30-10 p.m.: 1.0, 1.0 2.427 million
So how bad was it? Here's a roundup of analysis:
"barely registered with live viewers" --TV Wrap"The show's lowest-ever audience last night" --Digital Spy
"Dollhouse went right back to where it left off: as the lowest-rated show on a major broadcast network" --The Live Feed
"The second season launch of Dollhouse actually [lost] viewers from Brothers, plummeting to its lowest ratings to date" --HitFix
It's kind of too bad. We like Whedon and we like what he's doing with the show: deepening the mythology, introducing some complex character interactions and muddling the motives of his heroes in ways that you don't usually see in prime-time drama. Maybe that's the problem?
Dollhouse airs Fridays at 9 p.m., at least for the time being. What did you think of the season-two premiere if you saw it?