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Dexter Review: The Return of Who?!?

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I remain very down on this season of Dexter. But it's no fun for me to write, nor for you to peruse, consistently-negative reviews.

Therefore, allow me to quickly list my main problems with the season, all excaerbated by "Just Let Go," and turn it over to readers to see it they agree.

Dex in the Lab

ONE: Dexter has no connection to the main serial killing case. He's barely charing the culprits, they don't know anything about him. I say it every week, but that's only because these episodes are failing to deliver it every week: Dexter is at its best when there's some kind of cat-and-mouse chase going on, not when Dexter is simply pondering his belief system.

TWO: I don't understand why Dexter has not turned what he knows about Doomsday over to the police department. He's often worked with them on cases, unless he has a personal reason not to. But... see Issue Number-One.

Dexter doesn't really care about Doomsday. He has other business to attend to this season. So why wouldn't he just tell the crew about Travis being at the crime scene and end this thing? He's simply responsible for every murder carried out by Travis and Gellar now, something that goes against his character. Dexter has never courted innocent deaths by any means. He aims to punish those who get away with their crimes.

THREE: Travis and Gellar are a snooze. They have the same conversation every week, with the former hestitant and the latter claiming this is God's will and then Travis acquiescing and doing something grotesque to thei latest prey.

FOUR: We've done this "Who Am I?" dance every season. The show is just couching it in religious terms now. Instead of wondering about "faith" and "light," Dexter has spent past years asking whether or not he can live a "normal" existence while still carrying his Dark Passenger. That's what he struggled with when he dated Rita, when he married Rita, when Harrison was born.

Go back and watch the final scene of the season five final again. Dexter realized, once again, that he's a monster. So fast forward a few season six episodes, he drowns Nick (someone who very much fits the profile of every other Dexter kill)... and this is meant to be some transformative murder? A realization on Dexter's part that he's such a dark individual that he's akin to his brother, hence the vision? I don't buy it. I see this as the same Dexter he's always been, both in viewer's eyes and in his own.

So that's where I stand on the season so far. It's repeating the same themes as past seasons and, above all else, it's simply boring. Do you agree? Are you fascinated by Dexter's internal struggle? Or, like me, are you hoping the back half of episodes raises the suspense level and significantly increases the story's urgency?


Editor Rating: 2.4 / 5.0
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User Rating:

Rating: 3.8 / 5.0 (111 Votes)


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    I think he more saw his brother out of grief for losing brother Sam, not because of what the reviewer said.


    I feel like this season is more about the inner struggle that dexter is having, he wants things to be better for harrison so he finds out how to do so with brother Sam, then realizing that his dark passenger is way more evolved than he thought. i get the whole religious way that they are trying to go with this season, for dexter to find the light within, but honestly if you think about it dexter is trying to do what the DDK is doing but in a totally different light.


    I hope this inst a repeat of season 3..


    Well, this season hasn't been as bad as 3, but it still hasn't been great. Like a lot of other commenters have said, Dexter as a show keeps going round in circles, with Dexter dealing with some aspect of his psych, only to emerge at the end of the season exactly in the same state as he was at the start of it. I guess that's kind of to be expected, and it is still interesting to watch, if progressively less so.

    I'm surprised at the general love of 'Brother Sam'; I really couldn't stand him, and the over the top cheesy religious messages that came along with him. Why did Dexter care about him so much having seemingly known him only for a few weeks, and only having him round for a beer like once? Imaginary Harry gave a pretty feeble explanation that I didn't really buy. I think the writers were hoping this death would stir up more of a emotional reaction than the audience actually felt, and were trying to remind us why we should really care. Also, how did Brother Sam know about Dexter's darkness? I don't remember there really being any situation where he might have realised it, apart from Dexter's proficiency at hand to hand combat and his mention of the fate of his mother.

    As for the rest of the characters; they've become very soap opera-ish, although I do like the addition of the new detective from Chicago.

    Some other thoughts:

    * No one noticed Dexter's vehicle sitting outside that guy's house before the police came in to arrest him. I understand that it was a pretty frantic situation, but surely afterwards someone might have noticed and questioned how he had got there so early.

    * Dexter's general lack of work is beginning to get to me. Does no one ask why he's always saying 'i'm kinda busy right now', yet can surely be getting very little actual police work done? He seems to spend the majority of his time at the police station carrying out private investigations on potential victims, and only tells the rest of the police about 50% of what he knows. I'm surprised he wasn't fired about 4 seasons ago.

    * The two (or one) big bad(s) are utterly boring at the moment. They seem to be reading from the same script every week.

    Based on the above, I don't know why I'm still watching anymore really. I think it's just because of Michael C Hall.


    I think some folks have been redirected to the wrong website. This is for reviews, comments, and opinions about the TV show, Dexter. I've never heard of the Matt Richenthal TV show (must be on PBS).

    Anyway, if your opinion differs from the reviewers or a commentor's, just tell us why. Add something to the discussion. Don't simply hurl insults around. That's the way politicians and cable news networks handle differences of opinion. And how does pointing out someone's spelling errors or typos support your opinion about a TV show?

    Now stepping off my soapbox...


    I didn't like the episode either. I think they've hamstrung Deb. I am not feeling the partnership of Batista and Quinn. That's a general thing.

    But, as for the episode. They telegraphed who the killer was the second time they showed the dog. Were we supposed to be surprised later? Dexter does his "rock star" blood analysis...Then we discover it is nothing like he says. The blood doesn't match what happened on the tape. Dexter is sleep walking through everything. And it makes no sense that he wouldn't be helping the cops along here. The best thing about the show is there's far far less LaGuerta.

    I will say that Brother Sam's final scene was good.

    As for the neverending "Who Am I?" stuff. I agree it's been beaten into the ground. I think the show feels it needs it or the hero becomes just another crazy murderer. I gotta guess that the showrunners believe that it's the possibility that Dexter can turn himself around that keeps the show moving forward. They ain't wrong there, because every other element is virtually the same. I really hope they are working toward some real resolution at the end of this series, because they're really struggling.

    On another note> Is this the first time we've seen the Deadwood chick on this show? She must be coming up to be one of Gellar's victims or she wouldn't be here.


    Yeah, it does seem like Dexter is going through the same series of emotions and doubts as we've seen in the previous five seasons. It should feel stale, but strangely, I really don't mind it at all. Maybe it's because in each season he has someone different with whom to compare/contrast himself.


    this reviewer is awful, change him now! he ruins hart of dixie too.


    You're supposed to look at Travis like a parallell to Dexter. He doesn't affect Dexter directly, but he's living exactly with what Dexter is going through. He has a Dark Passenger (in his case, he manifests it as an imaginary professor who he probably killed), he has a loving sister who he doesn't want to disappoint, and he has a desire to turn on his Dark Passenger, but an incapability to do so.

    They're both TRYING, but failing. Travis is showing the most spunk by actually letting the girl free, but he'll eventually succumb to his Passenger's wishes.

    The show is becoming a little redundant, but I am interested in the Doomsday case. One of three things will happen:

    1. Travis eventually "kills" the professor and effectively merges with the Dark Passenger.

    2. The Professor "kills" Travis effectively taking over and becoming the dominant personality.

    3. Or three, the most likely scenario... Travis actually "sees the light" and TURNS helping Dexter see that their is light in every monster BUT... he managed to get on Dexter's table anyway. Dexter will thank Travis for helping him see the light, but he'll point out he's rejecting the light and accepting that there is no Dark Passenger behind all of Dexter's evil desires. He IS the Dark Passenger and because of that, Travis has to die.

    Like that, the season would actually have served a purpose. Dexter is always going on about his Dark Passenger, but when he realizes he IS the Dark Passenger and ACCEPTS IT, that's when its about to get real. I want to see Dexter go back to being a full-fledged serial killer.


    See after the end of season 5, which equate to a bare ass fart into my mouth, I completely agree with you. It's going no where and they push the reset button every season... I think they're just hanging on to a thread instead of growing a pair with the writing team and just taking a risk! Kill someone off, twist the story, have Dexter get caught, I don't care, just move the story.

    Even if it turns out poorly, at least they tried unlike the drivel we're forced to watch now... And I used to absolutely LOVE this show...
