So we begin the episode with a recording of Harry meeting with Vogel, confiding his fears about what Dexter may be and from there we learn that she was the architect of the code that has guided the show’s action from the beginning. It’s the sort of convenient retcon that television relies on all too often but I don’t find it particularly offensive here. It makes sense that Harry, being just a cop, would rely on professional advice to devise such a subversive moral code and after 7 seasons of stand-in fathers, brothers, lovers and even spiritual guides (the less said the better) it’s amazing the show has only now decided to tap into the bountiful storytelling well that is the surrogate mother. Laura Moser was always just a narrative device and Harry’s wife contributed fuck all to the story so the show gets some credit for introducing someone to fill the one void in Dexter that hasn’t really been explored. Apart from being a mother figure, Vogel is also given the predictable task of asking whether Dexter is truly psychopath, and if so is there any worth to him? The show has fluttered around this question pretty much every year but seeing as it comes up with a different, entirely inconsistent, answer each year I’m happy to see it being explored again.
Vogel’s storyline is also revealed to tie in to the Brain Surgeon, the newest Miami serial killer, and Jesus they come around every year like Christmas. As messy as last season was I’m now glad that they didn’t build it around another serial killer as it is starting to look downright ridiculous. Those shots of the forensic team finding the first uniquely-dismembered corpse have become so familiar that I feel like the crew could shoot them in their sleep. But by tying the Brain Surgeon and Vogel together, the season is already feeling less annoyingly sprawling and more focused. The idea that the killer is an ex-patient is also appropriate for our final ‘big bad’ as it implies that this is Vogel’s failed experiment, the mishap that Harry’s code could have theoretically created. Sure, the ‘what if Dexter was worse’ role was comfortably filled by the Ice Truck Killer all those years ago but we’re eight seasons in for god’s sake and I’d rather see the show repeat the good stuff then pull pointless crap out of their ass. We’ve got a potentially great villain in the Brain Surgeon, maybe they’ll even be a familiar face, and with Vogel whispering morally ambiguous encouragements in Dexter’s ear this could be a surprisingly satisfying character-driven finale.
We also check in with Deb who’s still feeling shit about herself and looking tired and dehydrated (her boss even gives her some weird electrolyte concoction). Jennifer Carpenter is so good at this side of the character that it took me a while to realise I was actually watching “Gritty Ex Cop Deborah Morgan Tracks Down The Missing Jewels”. Of all the low-stakes meandering bullshit that Dexter has filled air-space with this has got to be up there. Thankfully it’s all resolved tonight with the revelation that it was indeed Deb who killed her pursuer. My fears have largely been laid to rest as it turns out that this two-episode plotline was really just a means to illustrate the shitty life Deb currently leads. As inelegant as it was, at least it was short. Hopefully Deb will now be dragged into the Vogel/Dexter story that is at the centre of the show now, and easily the most compelling material.
My apprehension about this season has let up a bit now as pieces are moved into place for the final push forward. As sprawling subplots die down and are merged together, Dexter seems to be finding a cohesive trajectory for its final year.
Some other stuff worth mentioning
• I cringed when Vogel said she was his ‘spiritual mother’. I really didn’t need it spelled out like that.
• I’m not even giving the Angel/Jamie/Quinn plotline a mention in the review it’s that fucking pointless and uninteresting.
• Having said that I was sort of amused by Quinn drinking the tea… sort of.
• How did Dexter escape the house when Batista and Quinn showed up, did I miss something?
On the next Dexter
• So Deb will indeed be drawn into the Dexter/Vogel relationship and as I said above, good!
• I’m not looking forward to Hannah Mckay, there’s not enough room in the narrative for her.
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