If this episode has any focus it’s on the new therapy sessions between Dr. Vogel and Dexter. This leads to a series of character explorations that fluctuate between clumsily didactic and bizarrely inconsistent. The show feels incapable of call Dexter out on his shit, we know he’s a bad guy but there’s barely any culpability laid at his feet for corrupting Deb and then tactlessly refusing to retreat from her life. Vogel’s insistence that Deb may never want him back in her life is treated as an insidious ploy to keep brother and sister apart but if Dexter or the writers had any sense of perspective they would realise that it is in no one’s interest for the two to remain in touch. Deb is framed as a shrill bitch for not wanting her brother in her life even though this is the reaction that pretty much every other person would have. We also get further exploration of what Deb means to Dexter and by further I mean inelegant dialogue by Vogel explicitly restating what was nicely placed in the subtext of last week. But this was probably the best part of the episode because it was merely redundant; the rest did damage to a so-far on track season.
So we get some potential resolution to the brain surgeon plotline and I’m not quite sure if the show is using this week’s antagonist as a red herring or if it’s actually tipping its hand this early. Either way I’m not impressed. If this indeed a fake out then we’re wasting way too much time, in a not particularly compelling way, and if he actually is the brain surgeon then this was a woeful anti-climax. The way this little plot plays out is just downright inept after last week’s trite but competently entertaining foray into Dexter’s detective work. We’ve seen Dexter be careless before but things reach a whole new level of ridiculousness when he breaks into the suspect's house, doesn’t notice the fake door or security cameras and then proceeds to have a detailed and revealing conversation with Vogel on fucking loudspeaker! We then get to the killer’s completely original kill-basement that in no way resembles one of the other numerous lairs throughout the season and would perhaps be threatening if it wasn’t lit like a Joel Schumacher Batman film. Dexter proceeds to rescue a conveniently blindfolded victim and manages to drop her off at the ER without anyone noticing. We then rush to a showdown where Dexter confronts the alleged Brain Surgeon at a nursing home where his sick father is hospitalized. The killer pulls the life support on his father to draw the attention of the nursing staff before jumping out the window while Dexter hides behind the door in a scene that is lifted straight out of 1930s slapstick. The climax is so rushed and ill-paced even when you leave aside the inherent silliness of what’s going on.
I’ve so-far refused to give any space to the secondary characters in the main review but their plots are so idiotic here and take up an uncomfortable amount of screen time that something needs to be said. Quinn passes his sergeant’s exam with the above-average score of 85 but the he is beaten by Angie Miller, who has a score of 88. Who is Angie Miller? Angie Miller is the black female detective who has been in the background of the show forever but barely ever gets any dialogue and as far as I can tell hasn’t even been named until now, she has about as much character development as Dexter’s furniture. Matthews insists that she’s given the promotion while Batista wants to hand it to Quinn. If you step back for a second you can see how utterly offensive and idiotic this scenario is. Quinn has proven himself time and time again to be inept and corrupt and Batista wants to promote him so he makes a better fuckbuddy for his sister. Leaving aside the gross nepotism on display, an incompetent white male getting promoted over a much better black female would be one of the easiest lawsuits in the world to win. If Batista’s judgement in this episode isn’t bad enough we are then treated to Quinn punching out a fellow detective for trash talking Deb. Batista’s advice? Sergeants can’t pull that shit except for that time where I did the exact same thing but that doesn’t count because I was already sergeant… What!? He smooths the situation over by bribing the other guys with a tab at his bar, the same bar that was funded my Russian drug money. What relatable characters!
And then in the most groan-inducing moment of them all we are introduced to Masuka’s sperm-donated offspring played by Becky from Friday Night Lights. It’s like someone writing a parody of a pointless Dexter subplot. Masuka’s reaction is that it can't be possible because she has curls, apparently not being aware of the influence of a second set of genes or the mind-blowing existence of hair-curling technology. To top it all off they even have the same fucking laugh. Seriously.
So the climax of the plot featuring the characters we actually care about (comparatively at least) takes place when Deb seemingly forgives Dexter and the two take a trip in the car. At the last moment she executes the most poorly planned murder suicide of all time and drives them into the water which somehow instantly knocks them out. She is rescued by a passerby who just disappears without any mention of saving the driver or calling the authorities. This is no impediment because Deb has miraculously regained consciousness after being exposed to the restorative powers of oxygen for a few seconds. She has a sudden change of heart and goes to rescue Dexter from his untimely watery grave. It was a conclusion that felt rushed, badly thought out and with no real consequences. A perfectly apt climax to a shit episode.
Other Stuff Worth Mentioning
- This review is late because I couldn't bare face the ineptitude of this episode.
- I pretty much just went ahead and described what happened because that's all you need to do to illustrate how this one gets it so wrong.
- We also get a clumsily introduced love interest who needs laundry detergent and "hits it off" with Dexter. Are we really gonna do this?
- Worst line of the night? After describing the all-purpose cable instalment offered by his suspect Dexter wonders if "murder is part of the package"?
- Dexter supposedly broke things off with Vogel as well but I think I'm trying to minimize Charlotte Rampling's involvement in this crap in my mind.
Next Time On Dexter
- Now Dexter's pissed at Deb. How wacky!
- Vogel's in troubles, looks like they won't actually get rid of the high-profiled guest star. What a surprise.
No comments:
Post a Comment