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It seems like an ominous case of deja vu. Joss Whedon has been persuaded by Fox to come up with a new, different first episode of upcoming new television series, "Dollhouse." Is this "Firefly" all over again?

Fresh from the sensation created by online musical miniseries "Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog," and on the heels of Comic-Con International in San Diego, Whedon posted a message on Whedonesque late Sunday night sharing the news that the first episode of "Dollhouse" will look a little different than originally planned.

"The fact is, I'm very proud of the [episode] we shot and the series is making me crazy with the excitement," Whedon said. "But I tend to come at things sideways, and there were a few clarity issues for some viewers. There were also some slight issues with tone ? I was in a dark, noir kind of place (where, as many of you know, I make my home), and didn't bring the visceral pop the network had expected from the script. The network was cool about it, but not sure how to come out of the gate with the" episode.

But it's not Fox's fault that a new episode was needed, Whedon said.

"It was mine. I understood their consternation, and saw the gap between my style and their expectations, and I suggested I shoot a new [episode] and make the one I'd shot the second," Whedon said.

The "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and "Firefly" creator went on to reassure fans that the new show "isn't going to be buried, like the pilot of Firefly. It's simply coming after another, slightly cleaner [episode]. And because unlike 'Firefly,' it isn't a two hour-epic which introduces everyone to each other, the onus isn't on the new [episode] to explain a million things."

In 2002, Whedon encountered numerous problems with Fox on his short-lived series, "Firefly." He had filmed a two-hour pilot meant to introduce viewers to the characters and the beginning of a carefully planned-out saga. Fox wasn't pleased with the pilot, and insisted a new pilot be made to start off the series. According to Whedon, he and Tim Minear had to write a new pilot within a weekend, and by Monday, they had the script for "The Train Job," which aired as the first episode of the series.

That was not the end of the grief that Fox caused Whedon and company. They scheduled the science-fiction western for the television death slot, at 9 p.m. on Friday nights. Fox aired the episodes out of the order Whedon intended for them to be shown, airing some episodes at odd hours after sporting events, never aired three episodes, and aired the original pilot, entitled "Serenity," last.

The final insult was the cancellation of the series, leaving frustrated fans wondering where Whedon had intended to go with the series.

"The fact is, Fox ordered the series before we shot a frame and then, after the strike, I had literally two months to write and prep the whole thing," Whedon said of "Dollhouse." "Which means simply that the network has to figure out what they might want to tweak after it was shot, unlike a pilot. 'Buffy' didn't make the fall [schedule], 'Angel' got shut down when they saw the second [episode] outline? it's birth pangs."

Fox does understand what Whedon is trying to do with "Dollhouse," however.

"The network truly gets the premise (this is a whole new crew, as you know), loves the cast, is excited about the show ? but they're also specific about how they want to bring people to the show and I not only respect that, I kinda have to slap my forehead that I didn't tailor my tone and structure to the network's needs, since that's something I pride myself on," he said.

Whedon also said he just turned in a new pilot script, but there will be no teaser for it to show at Comic-Con, because filming won't begin on it until the gathering is over.

"People will have to settle for chatting with Eliza [Dushku] and Tahmoh [Penikett]. But they're likeable folk," Whedon said, joking that Penikett -- who played Helo on "Battlestar Galactica," only "speaks Canadian." However, Penikett will have a "translator" in the form of Isabelle Rosselini, he said.

"We'll still rock the panel, but showing clips is kind of a tradition, so my emoticon doth frown," he said.

"Dollhouse" is slated to premiere on Fox in early 2009.

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