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Wow. I liked this episode enough to watch it twice! There was sweetness, action, humor and a few mysteries unraveled and spun.

At the opening and after each commercial break, we are treated to "man on the street" interviews of people sharing their opinions on the urban legend of the Dollhouse. Some think it's cool. Others, an abomination. One interview, with a college professor, suggested that the human race would cease to exist if the legend were true.

Sweetness: Internet mogul, Joel Mynor (Patton Oswalt) hires the Dollhouse each year to re-live a moment he was never able to live in reality -- showing his wife of seven years that his business had made good. She was killed a horrible car accident just blocks from the house he was about to show her.

Action: Paul Ballard (Tahmoh Penikett) beats up on bodyguards before after interrupting Joel and his Dollhouse wife -- Echo (Eliza Dushku) -- living out the moment. Later, he comes face to face and mano a mano with Echo programmed to be "beautiful but deadly." Lots of throwing of iron pans, tossing each other around the kitchen and about a car parked in the alley.

Humor: Echo, as Ms. Mynor, is horrified to think that her husband got his latest riches from online porn. And, "can I borrow a cup of sugar" takes on a whole new meaning when Ballard and his neighbor Mellie (Miracle Laurie) consummate their budding romance.

Mysteries Unraveled: Well, I guess the theory that Mellie is Ballard's handler is firmly discounted. Mellie is a Doll. Also, it turns out that Sierra's (Dichen Lachman) dick-wod of a handler, Hearn (Kevin Kilner) is even more of a dick-wod than I thought. He's been having Sierra pleasure him in dark corners where the cameras can't record the dirty dead -- and even tried to get Victor (Enver Gjokaj) framed for it! Luckily, Boyd Langdon (Harry Lennix), Echo's handler, is good at solving such cases.

Mysteries Spun: When Echo is sent by Adelle DeWitt (Olivia Williams) to off Ballard, a mysterious insider programs her to give a special message to Ballard: He's going about this the wrong way and he is causing problems for an undercover group that is trying to find out what the purpose of the Dollhouse is. Is this why Echo seems to be more aware than she should be?

What Worked

There was so much about this episode that worked, at least for me:

1. At first, you think that Joel Myner is just some looser trying to live out a sexual fantasy. But no, he's a love-lorn widow who wants to show his wife that he made good -- even though she died before he could. That whole story was touching, but especially at the end of the episode when Echo tells DeWitt that "it isn't finished" and goes back to fulfill the mission that Ballard interrupted.

2. The growing romance between Ballard and Mellie was filled with tenderness, humor and the typical awkwardness of such neighborly romances. Their banter was very entertaining and moved the story along well -- especially how "can I borrow a cup of sugar" became a double entendre.

3. Hearn gets his just rewards. DeWitt sends him to kill Mellie. Then, while he's throwing Mellie about Ballard's apartment, DeWitt activates Mellie who turns into a crackpot fighter and ends up breaking Hearn's neck.

4. Victor is so adorable in his doll state. He's so child-like and oozes innocence when he says to Echo, "I did something very bad."

5. Langdon can't help being a cop. And the way he uncovers Hearn's little secret not only angers DeWitt and Laurence Dominic (Reed Diamond), but also helps develop his character.

"What is it?" she replies.

"No one will tell me."

6. Topher Brink (Fran Kranz) is the quintessential "Einstein." While creating the program for Echo's encounter with Ballard, he has a little interchange with his assistant, Ivy (Liza Lapira). Then realizes he's hungry and asks her to go to the cafeteria to see if they have any crusted salmon. She replies, "I live to serve lunch," and walks off.

What Didn't Work

As much as the "man on the street" interviews were interesting and entertaining, I never quite got the connection with the rest of the story. They just seemed thrown in there to fill up airtime and provide nice need breaks for the commercials.

I'm not sure if this is a "what didn't work" or just a question that will be answered in future episodes. But, why did Tanaka (Mark Sheppard), not follow the obvious clues to the Dollhouse that Ballard found in his closed files?

Giving Credit Where Credit Is Due

"Man on the Street" was written by Joss Whedon and directed by David Straiton "Dollhouse" airs on FOX, Fridays at 9 p.m. ET.