Good News: Lindsay Price has officially removed herself from ‘Mother’ contention. Bad News: After breaking up (in real-life) with HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER’s Josh Radnor over what sources are calling ‘lifestyle’ differences. [Source]

Good News: Execs at ABC, CBS, CW and FOX can rest easy. Bad News: For NBC, who according to Silicon Valley Insider will (inexplicably) keep Jeff Zucker at the helm following Comcast’s deal to purchase 51% of NBC Universal from General Electric. [Source]

DOLLHOUSE
What is with those Whedon’s and their ability to always leave us wanting more. Fresh of the heels of this week’s DOLLHOUSE debacle that has FOX benching the ratings anemic series for November sweeps, comes a harrowing Sierra-centric episode that recounts the terrifying circumstances in which the Aussie beauty found her way to the Rossum Corporation. Both gripping and gut-wrenching, the episode was not only right up their as one of the series’ bests, but showed the few who bothered to watch, just how much potential this show has if given the chance.

MODERN FAMILY
Erik Estrada eat your heart out. For what FAMILY’s two “E’s” (Ed O’Neil and Eric Stonestreet) lack in the matinee idol looks department, they more than make up for by delivering the laughs. Yes, five episodes into the freshman series, O’Neill and Stonestreet, alongside the rest of the ridiculously talented cast, continue to raise the bar when it comes to L.P.M. (Laughs per minute). So much so that we’ll forgive showrunners Lloyd and Levitan (Christopher and Steven respectively) for leaving out the obvious ‘Four touchdowns in a single game’ shout-out many MARRIED WITH CHILDREN fans (okay, this TV Addict) was waiting for.

GREY’S ANATOMY
Thursday’s story-telling departure which had the good doctors of Seattle Grace (both new and old) recount the unfortunate circumstances that resulted in the unexpected death of a patient and the firing of a one of their own (Can someone please give Sarah Drew a regular series gig, and STAT!) was not only the best episode of the season, but continued to prove that the merger between Seattle Grace and Mercy West has been the best thing to happen to GREY’S ANATOMY since JOURNEYMAN’s cancellation and Dr. Owen Hunt’s arrival on the scene.

COMMUNITY
After a rocky start, the gang from Greendale Community College finally seems to have found their rhythm. Thursday’s episode — that had Britta learning about ‘bathroom girl-talk-etiquette’ from Shirley, Annie learning about selflessness from of all people Jeff, and Abed learning that less is more — gave virtually every COMMUNITY member a moment to shine. Plus bonus points for Moby Dean Pelton, who’s quickly becoming our favorite Principal since Mr. Belding.

THE BIG BANG THEORY
WHEEEAATONNNN!

If Paul Ballard spent all of last season attempting to bring down the Dollhouse, how does he justify working for them this season?
Tahmoh Penikett: Obviously he still wants to bring down the Dollhouse, but when we left him at the end of last season, he made an agreement to work for them. Why? Not only did he ensure November/Mellie’s release which gives Paul some peace of mind, he now gets to do some good. Which is where we found him at the beginning of the season. In “Vows,” he used Dollhouse technology to bring down a nemesis of his, Martin Klar (Jamie Bamber). What’s interesting though is what exactly is Paul’s hidden agenda? He has now made a deal with the devil (The Rossum Corporation) and continues to put Echo in harm’s way. And the questions of course are: When is he going to stop and when, or will his conscience get in the way?

What was it like reuniting with your BATTLESTAR GALACTICA co-star Jamie Bamber for the DOLLHOUSE season premiere?
It was awesome. When Joss [Whedon] told me that he had hired Jamie for the job, I didn’t believe him. For ten minutes I sat there going, ‘No you did not!’ and Joss would say, ‘Yeah, I did!’ Having worked with Jamie for five years, he is like family and I loved having him on the show, on my set, playing a completely different character. Obviously we have a lot of BSG fans amongst both the cast and crew and you’d be surprised how many people were like, ‘I can’t believe that’s his real accent.’ His British accent worked so well for an evil gunrunner, I thought he was perfect.

With BATTLESTAR GALACTICA having ended, is there a sense of relief not having to carry around so many secrets.
That’s an interesting question. But the truth is, stuff like that never really weighed on me. I just enjoyed being part of an amazing series. I never give out spoilers, but it was always fun giving out fake spoilers or misleading fans. I just got a kick out of how popular the show was and how big of a cult following it had. I miss it though. I do. But it’s still there, fresh and getting lots of critical acclaim and I’m still very close with the cast so it’s all good.

What has it been like joining the Whedoneverse?
People kept asking me, “Are you ready for this?” But having already come from a huge sci-fi show myself that has a massive following in its own right, it really hasn’t been that different. Yes, Joss has the cult following which is great to be a part of since his fans are so loyal and committed, but at the same time, people love Ronald D. Moore as well.

Although I’m fairly certain I’m not going to get a straight answer after hearing your anti-spoiler policy, I feel as though I have to ask. Is there any chance Paul is the one secretly feeding Senator Daniel Perrin (Alexis Denisof) information about the Dollhouse?
You’d think that he would and we’ll see. But that would be the obvious sort of thing and maybe just a little too obvious.

Of course until that day comes, the auteur himself would really appreciate if you don’t lose hope and tune into DOLLHOUSE (TV Guide Magazine’s Matt Roush calls tonight’s installment “a dark powerhouse”). See for yourself after the jump.

Hi guys. Lot going on.

Back to breaking Tim’s episode. Keep the faith, peeps. I’ll bring you news (and hopefully a little humor, I mean would it kill me to punch these up a little?) when I can. -j

With Michael Ausiello breaking the somewhat expected news that FOX is benching DOLLHOUSE for November Sweeps and in the process, virtually guaranteeing your availability to direct that episode of GLEE, I couldn’t help but wonder….

Is it not time to take a page from Felicia Day and her GUILD by cutting the network out of the equation?

After-all, If DOLLHOUSE’s consistently low ratings are any indication, you’ve got at the very least, two million loyal fans devouring everything you touch. Which means, should you ever decide to go THE GUILD route and distribute your own series online for a a mere 99¢ per download, one might expect you to net somewhere in the range of 1.5 to 2 million dollars per episode of [say, for argument sake] FIREFLY: THE ADVENTURE CONTINUES. Which, if we’re to believe TV By The Numbers, is a healthy profit considering the average episode of DOLLHOUSE is said to have cost somewhere in the range of 650,000 to 1.3 million per.

Add to those profits, DVD sales, foreign distribution, product placement, online streaming, merchandising and the one thing money can’t buy — actual ownership of the show affording you the creative freedom to do whatever you choose — and once again, I have to ask, what are you waiting for?

I think you’d agree that FOX tried. The network put their money and marketing muscle behind the show, even going as far as to renew it for an unexpected second season. Unfortunately, the reality of the current television landscape seems to be that if you really want to stick to your own dark and gritty vision, one that asks the difficult questions and challenges viewers with something other than the procedural-of-the-week, you’re probably not going to be able to do it on any of the major networks (just ask the creators of SOUTHLAND). Well, that, or either start sending Echo on more missions that involve either (a) Vampires or (b) Glee Clubs.

DOLLHOUSE’s inevitable cancellation is a sign. A sign that it’s time to continue the pioneering journey you started with DR. HORRIBLE’S SING-A-LONG BLOG by putting your money (or at the very least, some savvy investor’s money) where your mouth is and see what happens.

Rest assured, this TV Addict will be first in line to press ‘Buy it Now’ when you do.

[Update] Read Joss’ response to our Open Letter here!

On October 30th, Joss Whedon’s muse will return to “The Public Eye,” in the DOLLHOUSE episode of the same name when Summer Glau drops by the Dollhouse playing Bennett Halverson, the genius programmer from the Washington, DC, Dollhouse. More photos of which can be found after the jump.

ON HER AUSSIE ROOTS: After breaking onto the scene in NEIGHBOURS, Australia’s longest running soap, Dichen followed in the footsteps of fellow NEIGHBOURS alum Jesse Spencer, Russell Crowe, Kylie Minogue and Guy Pearce by hightailing it to America after landing the role of Sierra in Joss Whedon’s DOLLHOUSE. “NEIGHBOURS has a huge, huge audience, but as far as the production values or quality of writing… no where near DOLLHOUSE.”

ON THE WHEDONVERSE: As Nathan Fillion, Alan Tudyk and Summer Glau will tell you, there is a serious fringe benefit to nabbing a starring role in a Joss Whedon show (You know, outside of getting to spend time with the man, the myth, the legend himself!) That benefit: The Whedonverse. “The Joss fans are wonderful. They love him, love his work, and love the people who he brings into his world,” says Lachman. “I mean sure, there are a few people out there on the internet who think anonymity buys them this license to be nasty for want of a better word that I don’t want to repeat into a recording device. But for the most part they’re gorgeous. I have a twitter, I communicate with them, they write to me, I write back a lot of them, make me laugh, they’re so supportive, it’s great. I’m so lucky and am loving it.”

ON WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS: On October 23, the highly secretive Rossum Corporation will be a little less so, when fans finally get a closer look at one of the Dollhouse’s most mysterious members, “[But] not too close,” warns the actress. “Just enough to understand what happened in Sierra’s life to bring her to where she is today.” Adds Lachan, “This season is less about the engagement-of-the-week and more about how deep this thing [the Dollhouse] goes and how very wrong it is. Be excited, it’s really really cool.”

Good News: Proving that no politician on either side of the aisle is safe, SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE delivered a scathing (and fairly accurate) assessment of President Obama’s progress (or lack-their of) over his first 10 months in office. Bad News: We’re still waiting for Fred Armisen to deliver a convincing Obama impersonation. [ZonTV]

Good News: Thanks to the tweet heard ’round the world, BONES gets some much deserved publicity. Bad News: All it took was a production shutdown due to a rumoured case of swine flu. [TVMoJoe]

Good News: 48 HOURS Producer Robert Halderman just scored a once-in-a-lifetime exclusive… Bad News: In which he’s the star, having just been arrested for attempting to extort 2 million dollars from David Letterman. [RadarOnline]

Good News: ALIAS creator J.J. ABRAMS has teamed with FELICITY writer Josh Reims to write a one-hour-long spy thriller featuring spies who are also married. Bad News: Audiences probably aren’t ready for our dream scenario that has Jennifer Garner and Keri Russell playing the happily married butt-kicking duo, or are they? [TVMoJoe]

“It’s like DEXTER Freaky.”

Is how actress Eliza Dushku describes an upcoming episode of DOLLHOUSE that revolves around how Dichen Lachman’s Sierra found herself employed by the mysterious Rossum Corporation.

“The episode just blew my mind,” revealed a visibly excited Dushku during a recent one-on-one with the TV Addict. “Dichen’s introduction to the Dollhouse is so dark and layered.”

Two words which coincidentally also sum up the second season of DOLLHOUSE, which returns tonight on FOX at 9PM (Global TV in Canada) after a rocky first season that culminated in a phenomenal string of episode, including the unaired “Epitaph One” (only available on DVD and iTunes)

Just don’t ask Eliza Dushku what’s going to happen next.

“People think I’m playing coy, but I really don’t know what’s going to happen, and I sort of prefer it that way.” explained the actress. “I don’t drill Joss [Whedon] because it’s fun to be just as surprised as everybody else is.”

What Dushku does know is that her character Echo, which found itself the target of a fair bit of criticism last season after being somewhat of a literal blank slate, will be a lot more interesting this year, and fast.

“Echo is no longer a unaware of her surroundings,” says Dushku. “She’s remembering, becoming aware of all these things going on around her. In the first episode alone you begin to see her (alongside handler Paul Ballard) start to work together in order to bring down the Dollhouse. Obviously it’s not a simple task, especially when you begin to realize just how big the Rossum Corporation is.”

Those unfamiliar with the series — which if last year’s ratings are any indication are about 98% of you — should probably know that the Rossum Corporation is not just your every-day Enron (Read: Big evil corporation). It’s one of those only-in-Hollywood big evil corporations whose insatiable quest for money and power found them designing the drug that makes the Dollhouse possible, and, as we saw in “Epitaph One” might invariably lead to the fall of all humankind.

Unless of course Echo can do something about it.

A task which will be made all the more difficult since she will have her hands full in tonight’s season premiere helping Paul Ballard (Tamoh Penikett) bring down a British baddie played by none other than BATTLESTAR GALACTICA alum Jamie Bamber.

Who we should probably mention isn’t the only fan favorite popping by the DOLLHOUSE. Tonight’s premiere includes Alexis Denisof of ANGEL fame playing a politician intent on bringing down the Rossum Corporation. With upcoming episodes featuring BATTLESTAR GALACTICA alum Michael Hogan and Whedon muse Summer Glau, who coincidentally enough began shooting her arc the day after Eliza Dushku sat down to talk with us.

“I’m going to get to work with Summer this week,” teased the actress. “She might be from the DC Dollhouse, she might be some sort of Topher-esque character and she might be really crazy and bad ass. Might be.”

Yeah, we might have to see this.

DOLLHOUSE airs Fridays on FOX at 9PM (Global TV in Canada)