Dexter Review: “Scar Tissue”

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Though I’ve been a fan of this season of Dexter so far, I have to say that last night’s episode was rather strange, and a few issues are starting to crop up with the show that perhaps I’ve neglected to mention before.

I think the show is starting to suffer from the lack of a strong villain this season. The best seasons of Dexter have always revolved around a strong adversary, which reveals new and important things about his character. The best seasons, 1, 2 and 4, I would argue, also had the strongest foes, Brian, Doakes and Trinity. Bad villains make for bad seasons like Travis in season six, but NO villains? I’m not sure what kind of season that makes.

You could argue that there are villains here. The most obvious choice is this mystery brain surgeon, tentatively identified as this Yates person. The brain surgeon has never been a particularly pressing threat however, as he’s always remained in the shadows and hasn’t really targeted Dexter directly. Meanwhile, I’m not convinced that Yates is indeed the killer in question, as despite his research materials (which could be about his own surgery, obviously), it doesn’t really seem plausible that he has two completely different murder MOs, abducting and killing girls and taking their shoes as trophies, and killing random men and cutting open their brains. I just don’t buy it.

Episode 804

Dexter’s final Big Bad? Yeah, right.

You could then say that perhaps the villain this season is Vogel. It’s perhaps the most plausible theory, as the full extent of her manipulation of Dexter isn’t clear yet. The “big” reveal this week is that, surprise! She’s been keeping notes on her sessions with Dexter. A breach of his trust perhaps, but hardly shocking or an immediate threat to him. That said, there still could be more to her character than meets the eye, and I’m convinced it could have something to do with this Yates person being a red herring for the surgeon killer. (Side note: Dexter drops off a serial killer victim at the hospital. No one is checking the security camera footage for his car  make and model or plates?)

Lastly, we now have the possibility that Deb could be the season’s villain. She did, after all, just try to murder Dexter at the end of the episode. But fortunately, she did it in literally the dumbest way possible, meaning neither of them will actually die. She could have easily killed Dexter or herself in any number of more effective ways, but after the fact, I did realize that perhaps she was trying to stage it as a “car accident” so that Dexter’s kids wouldn’t grow up knowing he was a monster, or realizing their aunt killed him in some unexplained grisly murder-suicide. But when Deb survives, she realizes that though she was ready to die with him, she’s not ready for her to live without him.

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“Just a fun little drive with my sister…OH GOD WHY?”

But no, Deb won’t be the villain, and this will just be another step in the process of her coming to terms with her weirdly undying love for Dexter, and he’s slowly coming to the conclusion that he feels the same way about her. It’s still bizarre that this is probably going to end up being romantic love on both sides, but I suppose we can’t escape that now as those horrible wheels are already in motion.

I’ve liked Vogel’s character based on what she brings to the show, actual analysis of Dexter’s condition, but I worry that she may be becoming too “explainy.” What I mean is that the show is now laboriously telling us how Dexter came to be, and how he and Deb feel about each other in explicit detail, and what each means to the other literally, metaphorically, etc. They’re telling us this instead of simply showing us, and the result is a lot of scenes where Vogel is spewing out word vomit about things that we should learn naturally as part of the show. It’s like if a character was introduced to Breaking Bad to explain to the audience in great detail the nuances of the complicated relationship between Walter and Jesse. It’s like TV Cliff Notes, and it’s starting to feel out of place.

Additionally, the show is starting to get cluttered up with sideplots, which is disturbing considering I hoped they would tone those down this year considering this is indeed the last season. Now we have A) Dexter flirting with a new neighbor, which is weird since there wouldn’t really seem to be time for casual romance right now in his life, and Hannah is still returning at some point, B) Quinn and Batista are still doing the stupid “should or shouldn’t Quinn be sergeant” dance like it even f***ing matters to anyone else on the show besides the black woman who now suddenly has lines this season, C) Deb’s Boondock Saint boss subtly hitting on her/giving her a beverage in nearly every scene and now D) Masuka has a daughter because Masuka has had nothing interesting to do for a solid season and a half now. If any one of these plotlines has any significant impact on the larger plot, it will be a miracle. It’s too late in the game now for this kind of filler crap.

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I’ll never forgive Masuka for his role in the should-have-been-awesome-but-ultimate-useless Lewis plotline.

I still have high hopes for this season, but my outlook is dimming a bit. Without a strong villain, Dexter is sort of aimless, and twelve episodes building to he and Deb sleeping together or something fully weird like that is not where the show should be heading. It’s weird that going back to season two, that plotline felt more like a “last season” storyline than this one, with Dexter’s crimes unearthed and him about to get caught every other episode. Now we’re just sort of meandering around absent any sort of real threat other than Deb’s borderline psychosis. But hey, at least she’s not drinking anymore.

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12 Comments

  1. I dont know. I kind of like how this season is going. Im really not sure where its heading which makes my anxious to see what happens. Of course it could all lead to a let down but we wont know that till we get there.

    I get what your saying about how Vogel can be too “explainy” But when Deb first said she was in love with Dexter most fans flipped out saying “how the hell is this possible and where did this come from” Now Vogel is explaining how these feelings evolved (probably just for the audiences benefit) and it makes a little more sense even if I dont agree it should have went there. Dexter always seeing himself as a monster and Deb being a mirror showing him his good side has some logic to it. After two lackluster seasons Im now excited to see how it will all end.

  2. i agree with this season (and the last 3 really) being dexter cliff notes….i like what they’re saying/explaining but the fact they’re having to say it and not show it is what’s keeping dexter from being brilliant instead of just a good show (only seasons 1, 2, and 4 were brilliant)….

    i think the whole flirting with the neighbor thing is just a way for them to re-introduce hannah…which i’m not excited for, her and dexter didn’t have any chemistry and he was always saying “she understands me and sees me for who i am”, etc…uh, did you not have that with lila???

    i’m starting to wonder if the quinn/sergeant subplot will lead to him catching dexter…he was always a good cop even if he was a screw up sometimes. his relationship with deb could make this theory SERIOUSLY INTERESTING. maybe he finds out dexter’s secret but spares him for deb?

  3. Can’t wait until dexter truly jumps the shark and we find out HE is the brain surgeon killer. Bum bum BUM!!!

    For real though, this season bores me, as did last season. Kinda glad its the last one.

  4. This season of Dexter is an endless exercise in watching the plots get more moronic with each episode. Forget just jumping the shark, the cast is taking turns on the motorcycle. If I’m not mistaken, Quinn already knows Dexter is a piece of crap and killer, (remember Liddy anyone?) but Dexter squashed that by threatening him with evidence of his payoffs and corruption, and Deb constantly on his ass, so poof he just forgets it.

    Now we’ve got Deb trying to confess, and Quinn stands around like he’s had a lobotomy and calls Dexter to come get her?

    Dexter has been a genius to this point in figuring out what is really going on behind the scenes, and eluding/capturing other killers, but he can’t figure out Vogel is using his dumbass all of the sudden?

    Deb decides to kill Dexter and herself, only, after being saved, and having the opportunity present itself to watch him die, she dives back in and rescues him?

    I understand we need to suspend our logical minds for shows like this, but when they absolutely pummel you with plot devices that border on egregious, it’s tough to watch.

    I feel like I ordered one of those sushi deals with the all you can eat condition that says you have to pay for all the food individually if you don’t eat everything you order. At first it’s fantastic and you feel like you could eat sushi forever, but then you look up and see 3 volcano rolls sitting there and you aren’t hungry anymore. That’s how Dexter is now. I’m just cramming these episodes down, even though I know I’m gonna be sick when it’s all over.

  5. THANK YOU for mentioning the security footage/checking for who dropped the girl off at the hospital. This show used to be SO SMART when it came to explaining how Dexter covered up everything he not/how he didn’t get caught. It was what made the show good and realistic. Now, we’re just supposed to assume it’s all happening? Or maybe that no one checks these sort of things anymore. It’s so annoying; the show took such a dive in quality just by skipping these details completely.

  6. I am actually getting angry watching this show every week. The time given to the side plots is ridiculous especially that this is the last season. Who gives a shit if they get promoted or have a daughter? NO ONE WATCHES THE SHOW FOR THEM! I wish they all would have been killed in a bus accident going to the annual Miami PD picnic in the premiere, anything in order to keep all focus on Dexter. They obviously are going to bring Hannah in as the one behind all this and will that be a big enough shock for fans? Nope. Dexter will have to choose between Hannah and Debra again? really again? This is sizing up to be the worst season of the show.

  7. I’m pissed off that we just NOW get a Masuka sub-plot, and yes Kong, I DO remember Liddy and I remember Quinn being the ONLY ONE who connected Dexter to “Kyle Butler” and ALMOST got Jonah to confirm it was Dexter.

    That being said, Debra was drunk when she confessed to killing LaGuerta, so OF COURSE Quinn wouldn’t understand and would probably be like “Dex, come get your sister.”. Debra never actually wanted to confess, if she did, she wouldn’t have been drunk. But I digress.

    Paul, you’re 100% Right. The LAST few seasons have had a SERIOUS lack of Strong Villains. I’m very distraught that the last villain isn’t a cannibal as I’ve wanted Dexter to go toe-to-toe with a cannibal. The thing is, the past villains have MATCHED Dexter’s intelligence, skill and drive to survive.
    Brian (his brother, the ultimate villain), Frank Lundy, James Doakes (The Heroes), Miguel Prado (The Failed Apprentice), Trinity (The Ultimate Mask), and to an extent Jordan Chase (The Man Behind The Curtain). After that, the bad guys have just been kinda “There”.

    I like Vogel, she can be explainy, BUT she’s a shrink and when Vogel explained WHY Debra shot LaGuerta, I was glad that someone said it out loud, SHE WILL ALWAYS PICK DEXTER! That being said there are some things left unsaids that should be shown. That being said, I’m still on board with this season, but I KNOW the MINUTE Hannah shows up EVERYTHING WILL DERAIL! Unless Dexter f*cks up in a BIG WAY that gets heat put back on him, I don’t see this show being anywhere NEAR it’s glory days of Seasons 2 and 4. That’s my 2 cents =D

  8. I don’t think the strong, smart villain is essential to this show. The important thing is Dexter’s relations, how they make him evolve and find out about himself. Brian was his brother, who he had to kill to save his sister (Dexter chosing Debra1), Miguel Prado was the first person he trusted with his secret and showed us how Dexter needs to share his secrets and come to light a little bit, Lumen (I liked her season) succeed at being her murder partner and when she left we saw how painful was to be alone all over again, back in the shadows. Then Debra finds out he is a serial killer and he won’t kill her (Dexter choses Debra2) to protect his secret and then sends Hannah to prison for trying to murder his sister (3). Trinity was to supose to show him how to be a serial killer and father and husband and ended up killing Rita, but it was Dexter’s fault, who wouldn’t commit to his family. Rita herself was important to bring him out of his shell because in season 1 he used to say that he didn’t have emotions at all but he reacted angrily to her abusive ex-husband, and he showed us that he does care. Every season has a theme, not a villain. Besides, who needs villains when the main character is such a conflited serial killer?Even in this season, Dexter doesn’t seem to have learned that Trinity lesson because he brought Harrison to the site where he murdered the man Debra was investigating and fucking. Dexter is the big bad himself, he is enough to make shit happen.

    And I think Vogel is not explaining too much. She offers her point of view, which is sometimes accurate, sometimes is not. It is up to the viewer to decide which case it is at the moment. For instance, she keeps repeating to herself and to Dexter that he is just a sociopath and therefore cannot have emotions but he constantly proves her wrong. He loves her sister and was prepared to die if she chosed to kill him, he loved Hannah, he wanted to talk about Harry’s death, about his feelings or the lack of it. Sure his love can be very selfish, but this a common trait among humans. The simple fact that he questions his value and purpose in the world and gets so angry with the possibility that his emotions may not be real to me is enough to me to descrit Vogel’s opinions. I think she may be lying to herself so she wouldn’t face the possibility that she turned a very damaged but otherwise normal child into a serial killer. Also, I think she is sociopath herself just not the killing kind, see how she manipulates dexter with all that “I am your intellectual mother” crap.

    I agree with the filler subplots though. I just hope that they somehow connects to the main storyline or at least connects with the season theme.

  9. I get the feeling all these filler subplots will just sorta fizzle out like about 80% of last season.
    In general I like subplots to give the other characters more depth. I care about the other characters too and something like this Masuka subplot would have been nice in one of the previous seasons.

    I also feel they are getting sloppy and illogical. Dexter always sneaks up to people like a ninja with his syringe. But now suddenly he does something stupid like this with Yates? Dexter has had his sloppy moments due to being to eager in the past, but he was never stupid..

    Seems like they are straying further and further away from what Dexter used to be..

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