DEXTER: THE COMPLETE THIRD SEASON-; DEXTER - SEASON 01 (06/07) -
ALL SHOWS-; DEXTER - SEASON 02 (07/08) - ALL SHOWS-
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Review for Dexter - Season 1:
An interesting and original idea that's very skillfully executed,
Dexter is never less than watchable, often quite compelling and
sometimes thoroughly riveting. As the 12 episodes from the show's
first season reveal, it's also the epitome of "high concept," a
kind of Silence of the Lambs for the C.S.I. generation.
Creator-executive producer James Manos Jr.'s title character, one
Dexter Morgan (played by Michael C. Hall of Six Feet Under
renown), works for the Miami Department as a blood spatter
analyst, visiting crime scenes and helping figure out what
happened. He has an avocation, too: during his off hours, he
tracks down some very, very bad people who for various reasons
have eluded the proper authorities. Seems his adoptive her, a
cop himself, taught the kid how to channel his dark side in a
'positive' direction and so, having captured these evil doers
(including a child molester-murderer and a recidivist drunk
driver with a trail of bodies in his wake), Dex dispatches them
with clinical precision, thus making him a serial killer who
snuffs serial killers.
But there's more--much more, as it turns out. By his own
description, Dexter is 'a monster,' an empty shell who fakes all
human interactions and admits to no real feelings for anything or
anyone, including his foster sister (Jennifer Carter) and his
nominal girlfriend (Julie Benz), a former crack addict and
battered spouse who's as uninterested in sex as he is. There's an
explanation for Dexter's weirdness, of course, one so deep and
traumatic that even he isn't aware of it. It's gradually revealed
over the course of the season as he and the cops (who include
Erik King, Lauren Velez, and David Zayas, all first-rate) track
down the so-called 'Ice Truck Killer,' a fellow monster whose
grisly m.o. both fascinates and taunts our hero, leading to a
genuinely shocking and squirm-inducing finale. Dexter can be a
bit arch, with an ironic, too-hip-for-the-room tone that get a
little old. Still, it's a safe bet that anyone who views this
first season will be salivating for the second. --Sam Graham
Review for Dexter - Season 2:
Dark and sinister is the new sexy, thanks to Dexter, which in its
second season has proven to be the most successful series
Showtime has offered up yet. Remember how much you squirmed in
your seat during the season one finale? Believe it or not, the
premiere of season two felt like it could have been a season
finale--because jaws were on the floor when the credits rolled.
For being a supposed sociopath, Dex is pretty broken up about the
gruesome events that concluded last season. The one and only
person who could possibly understand him is six feet under, and
it seems our unlikely hero is losing his homicidal grip. He’s
even having a little trouble slicing up a few of his latest
victims (from a murderous gang member to a chainsaw-wielding
fiend from his past). Enter Lila (Je Murray, Hustle), a lady
with a sweet British accent and a few dark secrets of her own.
She seems to accept Dex for who he really is, and he finds
himself feeling relaxed for the first time in his life. In
contrast, his relationship with his girlfriend Rita (Julie Benz)
has been stretched almost to a breaking point. The problem is, he
should be anything but relaxed. Someone picked a poor place to go
scuba diving off the Florida coast, and came across an underwater
graveyard: Dex’s primo spot for dropping dismembered bodies
wrapped in heavy-duty t bags. Word about the "Bay Harbor
Butcher" gets out quick, and the F.B.I. sends the best of the
best, Special Agent Frank Lundy (Keith Carradine, Deadwood) to
work alongside the to sniff out Miami’s latest serial
killer. This guy is no schlub, and Dex may have met his match.
And, yes, Dexter gets to work with Lundy on a daily basis, which
provides some wonderfully awkward moments. It certainly doesn’t
help that the intuitively paranoid Sergeant Doakes (Erik King,
Oz) is hot on Dex’s trail. Season two of Dexter is all about
decisions. Lila or Rita? Old code or new code? Run or fight?
Right or wrong? Well, one thing’s for sure: When it comes to
writing, casting, acting, and production, the makers of this show
made all the right decisions. Michael C. Hall is simply superb as
the title character. You’ll never find yourself more willing to
genuinely root for a serial killer. It’s bloody liberating.
--Jordan Thompson
Review for Dexter - Season 3:
Showtime's breakout hit series Dexter, about a lovable
psychopath, a serial killer who targets only the scummiest of the
scum, hits its stride in season 3. Dexter Morgan, played with
nuance and glee by the outstanding Michael C. Hall, begins the
season somewhat chastened by the events of the previous
season--where whiffs of his secret life became known to others
and he was nearly found out. "I need to find out what it's like
just to be normal. If that's something that's even possible for
me," he muses, as he tries to settle in to domestic life with
girlfriend Rita (the baby-voiced Julie Benz) and her kids.
Yet Dexter is soon back to his compulsion for seeking out
criminals who've somehow escaped traditional justice. Hall, one
of TV's most talented actors, manages to make Dexter's off-kilter
moral compass totally believable, if not quite sympathetic. The
rest of the cast is stellar, including Dex's sister, Debra,
played by Jennifer Carpenter as the seemingly more combustible
Morgan--a hot-tempered Miami detective in the same division where
Dexter toils in the background as a blood-spatter spet. Deb
wears her heart on her sleeve, as a cop and a sister, and her
deep love for her brother is a key part of what makes Dexter so
human. (And Carpenter's chemistry with Hall is amped by the fact
that in real life, the actors are married.)
Season 3's breakout guest star is the amazing Jimmy Smits, who
plays District Attorney Miguel Prado, a polished pillar of the
community, an ambitious politician--and a guy with a secret every
bit as dark as Dexter's. As Miguel and Dexter peel away each
other's unsavoury layers, Dexter tries to tamp down Miguel's
blistering desire for revenge, and Miguel begins leading a double
life--one that could threaten Dexter's life and family as much as
the growing list of bad guys in Miguel's crosshairs. The other
main star of Dexter is the city of Miami, its teeming beauty and
corruption celebrated in equal measure, and its blistering sun
without tempering. The city is so integral, visually and
viscerally, that it's impossible to think of Dexter being
anywhere else. It's a killer season. --A.T. Hurley
