Yesterday, I posted that FOX had agreed to a second season of Dollhouse.  Thanks to End of Show, we now know what concessions had to made in order for this to happen.

The show will return for 13 episodes, with an option for more episodes if required.  Return is seen likely for Fall.  The show budget has been slashed, however the show is moving from 50 minutes per episode to 42 minutes per ep, which should help bring down some production costs.  The move will also mark a shift in creative direction of the show.

Filming on the second season is set to begin in July.  There is still no information about the fate of Amy’s character in the series but I will continue to post updates as soon as I find them.

Today is a good day.  A very good day!  The Hollywood Reporter has just announced that ABC picked up Happy Town.  This is so amazing.  Imagine if Amy is able to be on both shows… YAY!

ABC on Friday picked up three more series, sources said.

The network gave nods to new drama Happy Town and the Courteney Cox-starring comedy Cougar Town, both from ABC Studios.

Additionally, midseason drama Castle, also from ABC Studios, was renewed for a second season.

ABC wouldn’t confirm any pickups until it unveils its fall schedule on Tuesday.

Happy Town is a small-town murder mystery from the team behind October Road, creators Josh Appelbaum, Andre Nemec and Scott Rosenberg and director Gary Fleder.

The cast of the series, which has been an early favorite of the ABC brass, includes Geoff Stults, Lauren German, Dean Winters, Amy Acker, Sam Neill, John Patrick Amedori, Sarah Gadon, Jay Paulson and Robert Wisdom.

It is possible that FOX or ABC could change their minds before the official announcements on Monday and Tuesday, but for now we can be very very happy.

Dollhouse fans can rejoice!  It was just announced that FOX gave the go ahead for a 13 episode season two which will air sometime in the fall.

In a stunning move, sources say Fox has renewed Joss Whedon’s Dollhouse for next fall.

The official announcement will not be made until Monday at the network’s upfront presentation, but sources confirm a deal has been struck for another 13 episodes. Fox plans to continue the show on Fridays next fall.

This news once again comes from the Hollywood Reporter and you can view the entire article here.  At this time, there is no information about Amy’s character returning.  I’m sure it will all depend on whether or not ABC picks up Happy Town and if the filming schedules will allow her to work on both.

Wow!  Just minutes after posting my last update, there’s been some breaking news on the status of Dollhouse.  According to the Hollywood Reporter’s live feed, FOX is “leaning toward bringing back Joss Whedon’s Dollhouse next fall.”  Very exciting, especially since it comes from a fairly reliable source.  If you’re interested in reading the full article, click here.

edit: Michael Ausiello posted this:

I just upgraded Dollhouse from “a long shot” to “prospects brightening” on my Fall TV Cheat Sheet amidst buzz that Fox is on the verge of renewing the show for a 13-episode second season. The catch? Joss Whedon will have to agree to a drastically reduced budget. (Note to JW: Dumping that annoying Topher dude should free up at least 15K an episode. Just a thought.) An official decision will be announced Monday morning prior to Fox’s upfront presentation.

There’s only a few days left before FOX makes the final announcement about the fate of Dollhouse.  For those of you that are on Twitter, here’s a couple things you can do to help show FOX that we want a second season.

First, tweet a message to @foxbroadcasting letting them know you don’t want them to give up on the show.  You can also join @buddytv and their campaign by retweeting this message:

Support Joss: Save Dollhouse. Fans get their voices heard @BuddyTV http://tinyurl.com/SaveDollhouse Please ReTweet and join the cause.

Our voices may actually be doing some good. Dollhouse‘s status on Michael Ausiello’s cheat sheet have gone from ‘could go either way’ to ‘now hearing it’s a long shot’ to ‘prospects brightening’.  And the buzz on several blogs and news sources is to not give up hope.  So get on your Twitter account and start tweeting!  Oh, and be sure to add me to your /follow list so you can keep up to date with Amy Online and all my other fansites.