1) Thanks for the warning. I’ll *try* to overlook any elements that feel rushed, although I can’t promise to not mention it if it’s overly distracting

2) Intereeesting! Oh Boyd, what have you done!

3) Hmm, I guess the ‘storm’ is not the kind of supernatural/end-of-times event that I had perceived then? I am intrigued now though..

Thanks for the feedback Phoenix!

I love Victor/Sierra, really, and I actually almost cried at this episode when I realized that he was still sitting there for the entire day, waiting for her. I was far more interested in the Echo B-story than you, but still, Sierra and Victor carried this entire episode and they did it wonderfully.

To address a couple of your concerns:

1) They found out the show was going to be cancelled by the ninth or tenth episode. At that point, they were already trying to wrap the story up. Here’s the thing: Fox was actually quite kind and gave Joss and Co. the chance to finish the story. I’ll warn you: the rest of the second season is very rushed, because it’s telescoping Whedon’s initial “five year plan” into one half a season, but it’s still very good. “Epitaph One” is now completely cannonical (minus one retcon you’ll see in a few episodes) and the overall series finale airing on Friday is titled “Epitaph Two: Return.”

2) That *was* an all-access card. Echo may be able to walk all over the main floor (and, apparently, the garage) without interference but she now has access to everywhere that requires a swipe card (DeWitt’s office, the Rossum office above the Dollhouse, the weapons locker…)

3) The “storm” that Echo is referring to is the Rossum Corporation. If you remember in season one she gained back some of Caroline’s memories of Rossum, and Echo is vaguely aware of who she’s really fighting against. This gets fleshed out in the next episode, but trust me: something bad *is* coming.

Glad that you enjoyed the episode, and I hope you’re ready for a thrill ride because “Dollhouse” is about to gain some “Alias” like tendencies and it gets *really* gripping.

I agree that Topher’s moralistic side has been developed for a while – although I’d say that 2.04 was the first episode were I really believed that it meant something, both to him, and to the direction of the show (fingers crossed, at least).

I think Topher has been listening to the self-improvement tapes (mp3′s) on the subway every morning on his way to work. Must have picked them up during the off-season. It’s nice to see our Topher maturing into a semi-responsible adult. And, without giving too much away, Topher’s best days, IMO, lie ahead in the not too distant future. The same can be said for the show itself.

Redemption is better late than never, I suppose, but pity it took cancellation to get this party started.

Re: direction. I take it you haven't seen Epitaph One?

Re: Topher's sudden morals: I think it's a theme that has been gradually established over the course of the show. It has been both pointed out by Echo (for instance when she offers herself for help in "A Spy in the House of Love" or when she touches his heart in "Omega") but also by some developments on his own: For instance, he cares about Boyd and warns him that he's gonna tell Dewitt about the chip in "A Spy…", he seems to at some level genuinly care for the girl in "Briar Rose", he is visibly uncomfrotable with Victor being imprinted with Dominic in "Briar Rose" and he loudly tells Saunders in "Vows" that she doesn't know him, when she confronts him with "You don't care!". (It is still open for debate if he programmed Saunders with "too much computer skills", as she seems to think, so that she is able to hack his computer and find out that she's a doll, also a morally very intersting action, in light of "Belongin".)

So, for me the "Belonging" was just exploring explicitly something that was already hinted at over course of the show. Nice character development.