Poor sad insane Alpha.
He's in love with Whiskey, but he's so messed up he can't really be in love. Doesn't know how. And still, he tries...

I love this story!
Actually, I love every piece of this story. You make Alpha's mind seem so simple. First of all, I've really appreciated the way you've used words to describe the doll state: simple terms, a few names hard to be remembered... Yes, a perfect solution for such a particular condition. Then I've loved the contrast between Alpha and Karl and also the fact that is Karl the one who loves Echo, because he knows that she was Caroline before.
The final part is simply beautiful. I've always wondered about this possible "reunion" between Alpha and Whiskey, as well as I've always been curious about the interaction between them before Echo joined the Dollhouse: you've answered both of my question ;)
Very nice fic!

P.S.: please, forgive any mistake in this review. I'm not very used in reviewing in English and I should probably write less than this, but your story was so good I couldn't help myself ;)

Wow, that was very good. I like how you wrote Alpha's mindset and I was moved by the ending.

This was really good. I liked your characterization of Alpha and the ending just broke my heart.

Dear God. This is such beauty. I love Alpha's voice here, switching from the childlike simplicity of a Doll's to the deranged, developing awareness of a mind pulled to pieces. And it slides neatly in with the canon facts we know. I always did wonder what was going on deeper down with Alpha and Whiskey when he went back to "save his princess" but lingered with a former, surviving victim and mused that she'd always wanted to be a doctor. There was definitely an unexplored story there. And then Karl and Karl's love with Caroline being the trigger for the psychotic break and thus the motivation for smashing Karl - really great ideas.

For some reason I can't wrap my head around, there's one line that bothers me. "He may be a serial killer, but even he dreams of simpler times." I guess it's the placement of that line. Because the ones before it were so poignant: "She will smile and say, 'I think you're the best.' She will say, 'Will you sit with me at lunch, Alpha?' She will say, 'I like sitting in the sauna with you, Alpha.'" These are the moments that truly MATTER to Alpha, at the end; they're the bits that set Victor and Sierra's love aglow. Following up with "...but even he dreams of simpler times" seems repetitive and unnecessary and almost like an excuse for the former - for something he knows he doesn't have to justify, not to us, not to himself.

But anyway, I'm being nitpicky because everything else is just gorgeous and really resonates with my perception of this character. Thanks for another wonderfully thoughtful character study.

I think this is really sweet, in a very broken and tragic way. but I enjoyed it-I hope you'll write more Dollhouse, because I'd definitely read it.

Oh, wow. This is amazing. You manage to do this odd pairing, using the canonical events of the series and managed to make Alpha's insane perspective written so well. I am VERY impressed.

I would have liked some more insight into what he was thinking when he and Whiskey/Saunders meet in "Briar Rose," and I was sort of under the impression that the Butchers and Whiskey DIDN'T die, they got knocked out and then Alpha wiped them...but anyway, this is great! Excellent work!

This is great!

This is great! I love how you explore Alpha's state of mind (your use of brackets seems to fit with the way that Alpha talks and thinks) and which parts are Alpha and which are Karl. The redemption scene at the end is very haunting and the description of Whiskey is particually lovely yet creepy.

This was so awesome! I have a major love for Alpha/Whiskey and am glad to see some fic about them, especially ones that are as good as this! I particularly liked the last section with Epitaph Alpha finding Whiskey and knowing that she's dead, but still wanting her not to be and wanting her to wake up because that would be the perfect redemption - I was close to shedding a tear there at the end! Amazing work!

*adds to faves*