We open on Senator Perrin and his wife Cindy awaiting an apparently-imminent press conference. After Perrin assures her that Rossum isn't dumb enough to make a public attempt on his life, he tells her he's still nervous, as he's about to put "an innocent woman up against one of the world's largest corporations, and I have no idea how they're going to react." Well, I'm guessing they're not going to be toasting you at their Christmas party. Cindy, seemingly non-sequiturishly, asks him to remind her why she loves him, and there's an exchange about beautiful damsels and white knights, the silliness of which is raised from its already ample level by Alexis Denisof's unrelenting tan. The two of them kiss, but a bespectacled male aide earns points with me by appearing and breaking them up...

...and then Perrin is addressing a room full of reporters and using an awful lot of words before he gets to the one of interest: Dollhouse. He theatrically tells the crowd that he has a woman who lost three years of her life to said entity, and I know it's been a while but we can assume that this is the "name" he referenced when he got that mysterious packet of materials oh so many weeks ago. Anyway, the woman is Madeline ("Costley" is her surname), and she takes the stage and tells the group that the Dollhouse stole three years of her life, preying on her when she was at her weakest and forcing her to do unspeakable things. I won't argue that point, but let's not forget she got a couple rolls in the hay with Ballard and his abs, right? She goes on that she wouldn't have believed the stuff she did if Perrin hadn't shown her evidence of it, and it is rather odd that Perrin isn't at least a little suspicious of the source of this material, no? Anyway, Madeline goes on that there are people in the Dollhouse that don't even know they need help, so it's up to them to provide it, prompting the reporters to go all McLaughlin Group again, but distinguishable is the question of what they're planning to do, which is certainly a reasonable inquiry...

...but we don't get to hear the answer, as we pull focus back to see Keith Carradine (Harding) watching the whole affair on TV in Adelle's office, with Ballard and Adelle in attendance. Turning to Adelle, he asks why it was again that she released Madeline from her contract early, and then brushes aside Adelle's mealy-mouthed response by answering his own question, saying it was to avoid Ballard exposing the Dollhouse to the public. With a sardonic smile, he adds, "Well, that worked out." Between Keith Carradine, Summer Glau, and Ray Wise, they're supplying a hit parade of actors I personally think are awesome, which is making the lame-duck recapping situation a lot more fun. Adelle somewhat hotly tries to defend the Dollhouse's protocols, saying nothing could have indicated Madeline's sudden rogue turn, but Keith Carradine silkily says he's not blaming her protocols -- its her judgment that's at issue here. He goes on that there's speculation she's developed a soft spot for Madeline, just as she did for Sierra, and Adelle, recognizing that another mention of the early retirement plan is getting uncomfortably close, asks how he'd like her to proceed. He tells her to do nothing -- Rossum has a plan to deal with Madeline. Ballard doesn't like the sound of that, but all Keith Carradine will say is that their house will be covered before taking his leave to go on a damage-control PR tour. Adelle tells his departing form that she'll be sure to watch, but Keith Carradine unsurprisingly gets the last word: "Oh, we'll all be watching."