More and more, Dexter is turning into a compilation of things I really, really like about the show and things I really, really don't. Here's a list of those that are practically perfect, followed by a list of those are far from it.
Love:
- The opening of Sunday night's episode, Deb's fake-out nanny interrogation. Ha!
- Jennifer Carpenter as Deb Morgan. She is so good at portraying a Deb that grows stronger each day, despite the sometimes-still-visible baggage we know she's saddled with.
- Baby Harrison's super smiley face. What a gem!
- Quinn's longer hair.
- The therapist addressing the fact that Dexter was way older than Harrison is when he had a traumatic mommy-died-in-front-of-me experience. He was 3; Harrison is 10 months old.
- How worried Dexter is about Harrison, his paternal instincts. See: the checklist he typed up for his new nanny. Precious.
- Dexter's fake names (this time "Darryl Tucker") /accents. They are always trashy, scruffy men from the South.
- Stepson Cody calling Dexter. Are he and his sister ever coming back?
- Quinn's investigation into Kyle Butler/Dexter; it could be really exciting.
- Seeing more of Masuka now that Dexter is taking time off of work. He's not an overused character so his quirks are still fresh and amusing.
- "I want my wife back." —Dexter
- How unsuspecting Dexter's victims are. The fact that Boyd Fowler shot Dexter with a tranquilizer after he injected him with his special Dexter knock-out drug.
- The possible return of Arthur Mitchell's (aka Trinity) family as Quinn prepares to show them a picture of Dexter. The creepiness of last season lingers!
Hate:
- How thin Quinn is. I mean, he's practically gaunt, isn't he?
- Dexter's emptiness; Rita's death. I'm still not sure if I think that was the right decision for the show to make. How much more interesting can Dexter as the lone wolf get?
- The new nanny, Sonya. Come on. She clearly isn't as good as she seems. I think it's the accent...or that she told Dexter she "likes watching [Harrison] sleep." Uh.
- On what planet would a guy who scrapes dead animals off of the road recognize a guy who called in a dead animal and join him for lunch ... and then offer him a ride-along/job? I smell a lame plot-forwarding moment.
- Angel/Maria's fights. REALLY? The news that Angel is being investigated by internal affairs for hitting another cop is a slightly interesting twist, but the fact that it all stems from a middle school-ish bar fight over pride and men being intimidated by women in power is simply ridiculous. These two are big wigs in the Miami police department; surely there's something more scandalous they could talk/argue about?
- Deb's latest conflict. The Santa Muerte mystery has promise, but if it's just a way for Deb to interact with yet another partner she doesn't like (and how come? That Hispanic lady is rather delightful), I'm not on board. Because that's lame, and not a good use of Deb's awesome character.
- I may be getting sick of Dexter's delusional conversations with Father Harry. We already hear Dexter's thought in voiceovers; I'm not sure if we need his interaction with Harry anymore. I do like seeing the pair together, though it's just a little strange that Harry's, well, dead.
"Practically Perfect" was a pretty exciting (though still lacking some of last season's steam), standard Dexter episode: Police station stuff, Dexter stalks his latest victim, more police station stuff, Dexter kills his victim. Sunday night's episode ends with Dexter killing Boyd Fowler, in an attempt to get back to his normal "routine." It's his first kill since Rita's death, but it doesn't make him feel any better. "Nothing feels different," he says. The kill does do something very important, though. It sets up what seems to be the big Dexter story for this season, and gives him a new companion: Julia Stiles (barely recognized her) as I'm guessing Boyd Fowler's would-have-been next victim.I'm not sure whether I would put this encounter on the "Love" or "Hate" list; it's too soon to tell. It was a pretty surprising twist though; if not odd. I knew she was set to appear in this episode (thanks to an unhealthy does of Entertainment Weekly reading) but I never thought it would be in such a vulnerable fashion. I also shudder at the idea of Dexter possibly holding her because of what she saw. Hey, at least it's more entertaining than the myriad mediocre subplots Dexter is usually so great at developing.
See you next week for "Beauty and the Beast."
