I’ve been anxiously awaiting the premiere of Joss Whedon’s little project for months now. I followed its progress, word-of-mouthed it to death, and read every tidbit I could get my hands on. It just sounded cool, you know? Despite all of that, I really knew very little about the plot. This is all I knew;
- It would be a musical.
- It starred Buffy/Firefly alum. Nathan Fillion (Evil Priest Caleb on Buffy and Captain Tightpants on Firefly, and Felicia Day, who played a potential Slayer in Buffy’s final TV season and currently enjoys much success with her web series “The Guild”) and much-admired actor of mine, Neil Patrick Harris.
- Joss and Co. (including brothers and wives of brothers) wrote the story during the writer’s strike and found a way to release it online. Something that’s become highly touted and “groundbreaking” - although there have been a lot of popular web series available online for some time. Perhaps not one on this scale though. Still, it’s not exactly new, is it? Someone clue me in on this.
That’s it. That’s all I knew. The power of Joss and the draw of the actors was enough to make this highly anticipated for me. Finally, though, artwork started to appear. Then Joss found a way to release it and we had some Real Live dates to look forward to. Oh happy day!
I think a lot of the hype centered around the way this thing was being released. It’s an experiment. An idea to perhaps release something for free, for a limited time online, and then make available to own through iTunes for a small fee (it ended up being a mere $3.99 to own all three acts), and then if it does well enough, try to capitalize on it by merchandising and putting out a soundtrack and DVD with extras.
So far it’s working. I watched it for free, loved the ever-loving crap out of it, plunked down my 4 bucks so I could take Dr. Horrible with me (indeed, I watched it on the ‘pod waiting for Batman to start yesterday 
) and by God I will buy the soundtrack and DVD. Why? Because I am a fan. I’m in this Whedon fandom for the long haul and part of being a fan is supporting it. Plus I think that maybe the cast and crew would like to get paid
So! The show itself. I already mentioned I loved it. Yes indeed I did. I’ll refrain from a full-blown recap because you can find those anywhere with a little Googling (or, you know, iTunes. 4 Bucks. That’s all I’m saying.) Instead, my basic reactions following each Act ranged from, “Oh my God Nathan can sing!” to “Noooooooooooooo!”
I found myself feeling strange about rooting for a “bad guy” and disliking the superhero. Dr. Horrible’s quest to join the Evil League of Evil was alternately hilarious and tragic. Ok, I guess I can’t talk about it without some kind of recap. Here goes (SPOILERS - LOOK AWAY NOW IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN, FOR WHAT HAS BEEN SEEN CANNOT BE UNSEEN):
Dr. Horrible keeps making attempts to join the Evil League of Evil run by ultimate bad guy, Bad Horse - the Thoroughbred of Sin. Every time, he is thwarted by his arch-nemesis, Captain Hammer. On one of his attempts, he inadvertently introduces Penny, the girl of his dreams, to Captain Hammer and they begin to date.
Bad Horse informs Dr. Horrible that the only way he will be allowed into the ELE is by murdering someone. Dr. Horrible is conflicted. He’s got morals, and doesn’t think murder is a line he wants to cross. He only wants to rule the world and cause social change. And get the girl. Until Penny introduces him to Captain Hammer, who recognizes him, and taunts him, and suddenly, Dr. Horrible has found his victim. In one of the best songs in all three acts, Dr. Horrible decides Captain Hammer must die.
In the final act, Dr. Horrible carries out his plan to kill Captain Hammer. But things go awry, as they always do, and Penny is the accidental victim. His death ray explodes and shrapnel gets her. Her death is what gets him into the Evil League of Evil (where he joins with the likes of Fake Thomas Jefferson, and Dead Bowie) and his grief causes him to just give up on any semblance of being good. Presumably, he goes on to perform true acts of evil, fueled by that grief.
Okay, so there’s a quick recap. But watch it anyway, because there’s so much more to it than that.
The first two acts left me singing and tapping my foot. I enjoyed the sweet, gentle songs from Penny, a do-gooder who is trying to get funding for a homeless shelter. Captain Hammer was obnoxious and arrogant. Who might be gay. Jury’s still out, but he does enjoy lacy, wafting curtains I really wanted Dr. Horrible to do him in by the end of it. Hammer was only interested in dating Penny so he could do the “freaky” stuff and because he knew Dr. Horrible loved her. Jerk.
And the Doctor. The Doctor who put his blog and plans out there on the intertubes for all to see, not realizing the LAPD and Captain Hammer watched it and therefore were able to thwart him and toss cars at his head. Bumbling, inept Dr. Horrible who can’t get his foot in the door with Bad Horse, and who loved Penny terribly, and maybe should not use pie as a metaphor.
After I saw the final act, I have to say I was scratching my head a little. Joss, who seems incapable of going for the happy ending - not that there’s anything wrong with that, angstaholic here, kills Penny. A shocking moment in an otherwise fun and upbeat, goofball show.
This bothered me I guess. Until I thought about it.
Don’t a lot of “bad guys” in superhero stories usually end up evil because they’ve suffered some sort of trauma that disintegrated any shred of morality they might have been hanging onto? Something that pushed them over the edge? In watching all three acts, we’re really watching the evolution of a true bad guy. No he doesn’t get the girl in the end who saves him from himself and they live happily ever after and everything is sunshine and puppies. Instead we get a misguided misfit, who might actually have good intentions, has some semblance of morality, who then has every illusion he knows completely shattered all to hell. So, since he has nothing to be good for, he might as well go all out and become truly evil - something he only really ever had a vague idea about.
For me, it’s that context that makes Dr. Horrible work for me. The Evolution of a Bad Guy, with songs.
Thank you Joss, Jed, Zack, and Maurissa for writing this little gem. And thank you to your cast and crew who worked for peanuts (possibly literally) to put this together for us. I think it was a success
It’s exclusively available on iTunes now. Four dollars. Price of a gallon of gas. Less than a #3 at Mickey D’s. Less than a movie ticket. Slightly more than a gallon of milk. You probably have that much in change in your couch. Go buy it.
