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Revision as of 02:29, 30 January 2010

Portrayed by Reed Diamond, Laurence Dominic is a recurring character in Dollhouse. Dominic is the Chief Security Officer of the Dollhouse and was originally written as one-episode character for "Echo", the original pilot. In October 2008 Joss Whedon announced that Dominic will become a recurring character: "Laurence Dominic (played by Reed Diamond), who was written just for the now-defunct first ep, has stuck like fly-paper, and Reed is very much in the family for the present".[2]

Dominic's Role

Laurence Dominic is head of security for the L.A. Dollhouse and at the same time undercover agent with the National Security Agencyy (NSA). He also appears to be responsible for the dolls when they are on an engagement, and running background checks on prospective clients. He also seeks to maintain the secrecy of the Dollhouse. He believes Agent Paul Ballard to be a threat and advocated killing him. During Alpha's composite event he personally directed the response, weapon in hand.

The mission paramters Dominic has received from the NSA are ambiguous. It is revealed however (in A Spy in the House of Love) that he, contrary to what one might think, is instructed to aid the dollhouse in sustaining control over the imprinting technology. This suggests that the NSA estimates the uncontrolled dissemination of the imprinting technology to be a greater threat to society than the controlled distribution of the technology by the dollhouse's doings.

Dominic has shown hostility toward Echo on several occasions, which appears to be partly a result of security issues resulting from her engagements and partially because he doesn't like dolls. He has twice tried to kill Echo, by knocking her unconscious in a burning building in "True Believer" and attacking her outright in "A Spy in the House of Love".

Albeit, after having been uncovered as an NSA spy in the latter episode Dominic, in the face of being to the Attic, seems to be comforted by the thought of Echo bringing down the dollhouse, suggesting that this would be his own course of action. Whether his attitude indicates that Dominic has some information about Echo that foreshadow the events of season two or whether this is simply wishful thinking remains unclear. In "the Attic" and "Getting Closer" Dominic is consistently trying to help Echo, stating that he is "glad [he] didn't kill [her] after all." To which Echo ironcially replies: "dont't get sloppy."

Biography

On Topher's first day on the job, Dominic resents Topher treating the job like "a dorm room" and his humorous, light-hearted attitude towards the job. The scene ends with DeWitt ordering Dominic to retrieve Topher a fridge, a request that was made earlier in the scene.(S1: "Epitaph One")

In "True Believer",  Dominic raids the building along with other officials, renders Echo unconscious and leaves her there hoping she will become another nameless casualty, though Boyd managed to intervene and saved Echo.  When confronted by Adelle, Dominic claimed he only did it because Echo was going down the same road has Alpha and he wished to avoid a repeat performance to save the Dollhouse's interests.

In the episode "Echoes", Laurence gets affected by an inhibition-relief drug while on a mission in Rossum lab. While there he encounters Echo, in the Alice personality, who is off-mission and trying to infiltrate the lab. He apologises profusely for trying to kill her, and begs of her to understand that he is a person underneath the persona he carries at work. Not recognising Dominic, Echo "forgives" him, in an attempt to humour him.

In the episode "A Spy in the House of Love", Laurence is found out to be spy for the National Security Agency. He sent Sierra out on a mission that he set up so that he could frame Ivy as the spy, but Topher had engaged Echo as a spy hunter as well. Once Echo was around him long enough, she figured out that he was the spy using deductive skills and he attacked her. While tied up after the fight and questioned by Adelle he said that he was protecting the Dollhouse and "If it weren't for me, Paul Ballard would have found you already.", which came true shortly after. Adelle then sent him into the lab to give him a "mind suck." He stole a guard's gun and attempted to shoot himself in the head, then tried to shoot Adelle, grazing her abdomen. His mind extracted, he was sent to The Attic.

In "Briar Rose", an encrypted message is sent by Alpha to Dominic. DeWitt has Dominic's consciousness imprinted in Victor, and Dominic provides the password. While on sedatives and truth drugs, he refers to Dr. Saunders by the Active name Whiskey, although this is dismissed as a request for alcohol.

In the Attic Dominic was trapped in a mental loop, working for the NSA, but he later broke free of that and spent much of his time hunting the Attic's internal serial killer, "Arcane". Dominic was able to mentally link with Echo, Sierra and Victor, helping them fend off Arcane. They later discovered him to be Clyde Randolph, one of the two founders of the Rossum Corporation, who was also trapped there. Dominic decided to remain behind to help free people from the Attic.(S2: "The Attic (episode)"). In the second last episode of season two Getting Closer Dominic is show to have escaped from the attic, when he runs into Echo apparently barely managing to walk down the stairs. Dominic at that point is in very bad condition probably due to the constant adrenalin overdrive induced stress in the attic, he however stil is able to produce his message to Echo "Clyde is dead. They are coming for you now." before he collapses. It is notable that in order to escape Dominic must have died in the attic only to revive himself by willpower. A feat that until this point had seemed to be confined to Echo, as Priya had to be revived through CPR after having died inside the Attic. Dominic is subsequently being treated in the infirmary, where Dr. Saunders, Paul and Adelle debate about how to keep him stable. Adelle rules to return Dominic to the attic in his own interest, which he vehemently refuses by saying: "I'd rather die!"

Dominic returns to good health sometime in the near future. It is unclear whether and how DeWitt saves him, though there is reference to DeWitt sending for him and someone briefing him on the world-wide catastrophe. Here, Dominic conveys both contempt for DeWitt for his time in the Attic and satisifaction that the Dollhouse has fallen apart, its technology allowing the world to fall into chaos and anarchy. In particular, he said seeing the face of the now-crazy Topher was "almost worth the price of the ticket."  He lords the situation over DeWitt, even shooting a decanter of whisky out of her hand.  At the end, DeWitt told him that the technology for a "cure" from imprinting exists and belongs with Caroline, prompting Dominic to ask, "Which one's Caroline?"(S1: "Epitaph One") The plot of Getting Closer and The Hollow Men suggests that the time frame for the above encounter is in the aftermath of the destruction of the Rossum Headquarter in Tucson, since the series finale Epitaph Two: Return is bound to be set in the post-apocalyptic future of 2020.

Notes & references