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Amy Acker is a favorite among Whedonites (followers of Joss Whedon) for her role as Fred Burkle and Illyria on “Angel,” and also co-starring in an influential arc on the show “Alias.”  Joss woke up and “smelled the Acker” — he said it, not me! — and rewrote a character on his new venture “Dollhouse” for the actress.  Doing one-episode stints on shows such as “Ghost Whisperer,” “Private Practice,” “Law and Order: Criminal Intent” and more, Acker was ready to fall back into the comfortable confines of Whedon witticisms, supported by a crew filled with familiar faces.

So, you are Dr. Saunders.  What are your duties in the Dollhouse?
I’m there to take care of all the dolls.  I seem to be the multi-purpose doctor, since I’m the only one there.  I’ve done some stitches, some Band-Aids and some psychological counseling.  It’s a fun job because I get to see everybody and do a little of everything.  And I feel like I’m there to keep the morality of the Dollhouse in check.

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Eventually a person just has to wake up and smell the Acker and realize you just have to cast Amy Acker.

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When your fans start up a Web site to save your show, before said show has even aired, that lets you know you’re a cult favorite. And that’s the case for Joss Whedon and “Dollhouse.” His shows mean something different to everyone, but there’s a sense of ownership shared among Whedon’s fans. And on a Feb. 5 conference call, Whedon was candid in answering questions about everything from the “Dollhouse” reshoots and time slot to his upcoming horror movie, “Cabin in the Woods,” to the possibility of a “Buffy” movie (not looking good) and more Dark House comics.

After I recovered from the mind-blowing fact that I was going to sit in on a conference call with Whedon, it was interesting to hear him explore all the speculation about “Dollhouse.” And while the pilot has its flaws, his answers were reassuring as to the plans for the show, which airs Feb. 13 on Fox. It sounds like Whedon’s holding down his end, now it’s just up to the fans and Fox.

Whedon: “I think (‘Dollhouse’) went through a tougher process, tough in a different way than the other shows. Probably most similar to Angel in the sense of what we had in our minds about what Angel was ultimately was different than what the network did. Our version was a little darker, and in this instance, it wasn’t so much a question of reworking what the show was as it was a question of reworking how we get into it. There were definitely some differences of opinion about what was going on and what we were going to stress in the show, but mostly it was about how do we bring the audience in and the mandate was very much once they had seen the pilot.”

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While this really has nothing to do with Amy, I thought it was a very interesting read.  There are spoilers for the various Whedon shows – you have been warned.

Whedon Hallmark #1: Strong, kick-ass female characters

How “Dollhouse” fits: As an “Active” or “Doll,” Echo ( Eliza Dushku) can be imprinted with any number of abilities — such as martial arts or foreign languages — for a given mission or job. Despite having her memory wiped between each job, Echo begins to become self-aware.

Example(s) from Whedonverse past: “Buffy”: Buffy is a slayer and keeps company with the odd witch (Willow) or vengeance demon (Anya). “Angel”: Cordelia – visions, briefly a higher being; Jasmine – deity who could control minds; Fred – super-nerdiness, once possessed by one of the Old Ones. “Firefly”: River Tam – child prodigy, super-human combat skills; Zoe – career military and second-in-command

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One of the first reviews for Dollhouse has come out and it’s not a very good one.  I’m only going to post the part that pertains to Amy but you can click on the source link above if you’re interested in reading the whole review.  Be warned – it’s pretty spoiler filled.

Other promising characters include Amy Acker (Buffy TVS) as the disfigured Dr. Claire Saunders who gives Echo physicals and suggest she get massages at the end of each assignment; Tahmoh Penikett of Battlestar Galactica, plays Paul Ballard, an FBI agent obsessed with unveiling the Dollhouse; Fran Kanz plays Topher Brink, a geeky and cheeky tech-wiz charged with physically doing the memory implants and wipes.

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What if you could be anyone?

What if you could do anything?

If your memories were erased, again and again, would there be anything left of you?

These are the questions to be examined in Joss Whedon’s new TV show “Dollhouse,” starring Eliza Dushku, premiering Friday, Feb. 13 on FOX. Other, equally important questions to be answered are: Can Eliza Dushku convincingly play several different people every episode? Will viewers tune in and follow a storyline guaranteed to be as psychological as it is action-packed? Will viewers tune in at all on a Friday night, in enough numbers to satisfy FOX?

My quick review, for those “don’t tell me anything, la la la I can’t hear you” people who are avoiding even the slightest hint of plot: It’s good. It’s going to get even better. Watch it.

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