Remember when Dollhouse was announced, and Whedon assured everyone that Fox wouldn’t screw it up like they had Firefly, because the executives weren’t the same, and the climate had changed in the network, and whatever? It was already funny at the time, but the punchline is only beginning to be actually delivered now:

A person familiar with the thinking of some Fox executives told TelevisionWeek that there have been concerns raised inside the network about the fundamental underpinnings of the show.

Specifically, because the heroine of the show, played by Eliza Dushku, has no free will or ability to do much beyond what she’s told to do, viewers might find it hard to root for her. In addition, some executives have expressed concerns that early episodes of the series have been confusing and hard to follow.

(Nevermind that I’ve been nonplussed about this show from the very beginning.)