Joss Whedon’s Dollhouse has been on the critical list almost since its second season was unexpectedly announced. The show’s live ratings have gone from bad to oh dear and despite a late rally from fans Fox will take the show off air during November sweeps, nowhere near confident enough to let it face the other networks’ big guns. Returning in December, the show will air as double episodes until its finale, in a move which looks like the standard burn off.

But as you might expect from a Joss Whedon show, Dollhouse refuses to go down easy. In a coincidence so satisfying you could be forgiven for thinking it had been planned, ‘Belonging’, the show’s last episode before sweeps, is an emotional and dramatic tour de force which finally throws the long-deserved spotlight onto the woefully underused Dichen Lachman. Episode four may be the first verse of a swansong, but by the end viewers and critics alike will be left asking why show featuring performances of this quality can be in trouble.

Spoilers make Jesus cry but suffice to say the hints of Sierra’s past which have been tantalisingly dangled since the start of season one are indulged here, and the reviews of the screener speak for themselves. “The most touching, heartbreaking episode that Dollhouse has produced to date” says E! “[The] Best Dollhouse episode of season 2. Dichen Lachman is terrific.” Agrees TV.com. The Chicago Tribune calls it “One of the most emotionally compelling hours the show has ever done…” And continues “Lachman does simply fantastic work “.

Indeed it seems the strongest episodes of Dollhouse are those in which the focus is pulled from star and executive producer Eliza Dushku, and where Dollhouse becomes an ensemble show. ‘Epitaph One’ was an example of how the show’s premise can stand alone, and as recently as last week Enver Gjokaj was demonstrating how a co-star can act the top billers off the screen in the Tim Minear-penned episode ‘Belle Chose’. Dichen Lachman, when she has been allowed them has had moments of true emotional depth, especially alongside the aforementioned Gjokaj. She plays ‘damaged and vulnerable’ with a strength and resilience which evokes the best of Whedon’s heroines. Her ability to convey complex emotional journeys with the minimal screen time is a talent all its own. Dollhouse season three may be off the cards but if nothing else, this season’s remaining episodes will act as the world’s best showreel for the ensemble who should have had a share of the spotlight from the beginning.

‘Belonging’ airs inthe US on Fox this Friday night, and in the UK on Nov 10th.