After saving Topher's life, Langton reaches the rendezvous point with both the computer genius and Echo in tow. Then all the Los Angeles "conspirators" head off to Tucson, for the final confrontation with the Rossum Corporation and its mysterious leader. But there's one final twist in store for all of them... a little something to remind them all that no one can truly be trusted!
CHARACTERS
Echo: Caroline is finally made part of Echo's composite, after two years of episodes, and... It's a non-event. Caroline does not appear to become in any way a dominant personality. Echo is exactly who she already was, just with a bit of new information. This is one of several frustrations about an episode that doesn't have time to do character when there's so much plot to get through.
The Security Chief: Langton insists that, even with Echo's mind scrambled, they still need to follow through with the plan to infiltrate Rossum's Tucson headquarters. He uses his knowledge to break himself, Topher, Ballard, and November out of the Rossum cell, allowing them to strike at the corporation from inside the belly of the beast. In private, he admits to Adelle that while he considers the Dollhouse staff as "family," he has never really liked nor respected Ballard and doesn't understand what Adelle saw in him.
The Genius: Topher really can't help himself when it comes to playing with gadgets, can he? In the middle of Rossum's lab, seeing his Apocalypse Weapon being mass produced, he knows with every fiber of his being that the right thing to do is to destroy it. But he also sees that the gadget doesn't work, and he recognizes why. He can fix it in ten minutes and, with no more than a few encouraging words to provide a rationalization for doing so, he honestly can't help himself. He just has to make the toy work, no matter how bad an idea he knows it is.
THOUGHTS
The Hollow Men is to Season Two what Omega was to Season One: The not-quite finale, which nevertheless wraps up most of the arc of this season. The war against Rossum builds to its climax here, as Echo, Adelle, and their group face off against the mysterious Rossum founders. It's all paced at lightning speed, with terrific performances. Harry Lennix, Amy Acker, and Miracle Laurie get the best moments, but everyone gets something to do. We even get a brief return of Enver Gjokaj's Topher impression, which injects a bit of humor into an otherwise all-out suspense episode.
While the pace and performances make this highly watchable, however, The Hollow Men is a disappointment. In fact, this episode gets worse in my mind the more time I have to think about it. One issue is inevitable: Getting Closer delivered the series' single biggest twist. This episode sees that twist play out, but there simply aren't any surprises on the same level as the one that closed out the previous episode.
I also think it's a bit of a cheat. From the ending of Getting Closer, there were many possible paths to follow. Maybe the Rossum head had lost control of his company (to, say... Harding? Who, after much build-up this season, has barely even been mentioned the past few episodes), and was using Echo to bring things back under control? Maybe the Rossum head actually isn't the villain? Maybe there's some big plan in play?
Well, no. The Rossum head's just crazy. Nothing more to it than that. And as that character is revealed to be a lunatic, this episode becomes vastly less interesting. I know it's hard to wrap all of this plot up in 45 minutes. But there were a lot of pieces on the board that might have been used. Many of those pieces go unused and unmentioned, while the writers - and by the credits, I'd say this one was pretty much written by committee - don't even get the best use out of the pieces they bother to play with.
The Hollow Men is all plot, and I don't mean that in a good way. There's no time for characterization, or to linger on interesting little moments. The long-awaited scene in which Caroline is integrated into Echo comes to pass... and it's meaningless, as Echo remains indistinguishable from who she has been. Why would a moment that the series has been building toward since its first episode get such an absolute lack of acknowledgement? Because there's plot to get through, and no time to do anything save to get through it all.
I'll be interested to see how Epitaph Two ties it all together (if it does). But while The Hollow Men entertains, it leaves the viewer feeling hollow afterward. Much like a fast food meal, it's reasonably fun to consume - but it suplies virtually no real nourishment.
Rating: 5/10.
Previous Episode: Getting Closer
Next Episode: Epitaph Two - The Return
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