8 Reasons Joss Whedon's Dollhouse Deserves Another Look

By Stephen Reynolds /

8. Topher Brink

Fran Kranz offers a master class in humorous sidekick in his lived-in portrayal of arrogant scientist Topher Brink. As the man responsible for creating and imprinting customized personalities in the namesake "dolls", he fully inhabits the ego and giddy exploration of a virtuoso pursuing the potential of his brain studies. His performance showcases a sense of humor more sophisticated than the material he is given, and his ability to rattle off the unending tongue-twisting list of neuroscience terminology each week with ease is a thing to behold. But the boy brings more than just the funny, and his character was rewarded in Season Two with more worthy material to sink his teeth into. Over the course of the show, Topher's slow burn transformation from goofball genius to moral martyr is devastating in its' heartbreak, while never losing the comic center that made you fall in love.