Well, to be fair no matter how good it was, PD never got good enough ratings to be kept on the air. ... Dollhouse hasn't been anything but mediocre, it's cancellation wouldn't be any big loss.
Couple things. First of all,
Pushing Daisies got great ratings during its first season- it was a breakout hit. The writers' strike is what derailed the ratings. Second,
Dollhouse started poorly, but has improved week to week.
Buffy was, as Junior said, mediocre (at best, imho) in its first season. Definitely nothing much to write home about. This may be blasphemous to some, but I think, should
Dollhouse continue to improve in the same manner, its first season could surpass
Buffy's. Don't forget-
Buffy season 1 gave us an internet demon, preying mantis lady, hyena possession, and several other memorably bad standalone (ish) episodes. While I look back on those episodes now and really enjoy them, that's only because I can see where the characters came from and where they eventually grew to. Whether or not it gets it,
Dollhouse could grow exponentially, dramatically, in its second season, just like
Buffy did.