Dexter - Part 5

[TheBat812]

Dexter didn't HAVE to be there but Dexter used to be the most careful person on Earth and would have at least injected him to get rid of any slight possibility that Saxon could overpower her.

Well they have been establishing all season that he can't straddle both worlds, and wanting so badly to be with Hannah makes him super sloppy. In fact, he's been sloppier and sloppier ever since he started caring more and more about others and being more aware of it. Conveniently coinciding with the dip in quality, lol, but still, it's not like this hasn't been established.

Batlobster, I agree with ya. Although I think the tone they're going for is just very different than what we expected, especially compared with BB's concurrent ending. It's really been a season that's like him slowly giving away what made him who he was, hoping he can just ease into a new life. I really wish that Batista had been more affected by LaGuerta's death and had actively seeked him out. But I really need to see what the ending is to see what their intention truly was before I judge it completely. I still have enjoyed seeing what happens at the end of his journey, but I don't think anybody can say they didn't miss some opportunities.

 

[JJJ's Ulcer]

It'd have to be one helluva brilliant finale to turn around all the ill will generated by this season. And "fight during hurricane" probably won't cut it.

 

[BatLobster]

The problem for the most at the beginning was definitely that feeling of lacking. I think the problem has grown, though. Mainly it's just so convoluted and muddled that it lost all of it's focus. It seems to have found it for the last two episodes, but it still feels like a stumble.

I get this vague impression that they were trying to do everything Dexter has ever done as a show previously (from the protege, to the love interest, to the doubt from Deb, to facing a killer similar to him just without the code, etc.) and cram it into a single season. I don't know if that was intention or not, but I think it probably is the real heart of the problem.

I got that vibe too. Kind of like a "Dexter: This is your Life" sort of thing. I think it was just a bit misguided. I truly don't think the writers gave up or tried to screw this up (of course they didn't), I just think they wanted to cram as much as possible into the season and pay tribute to all the various aspects of the show's history, while creating a bunch of twists and turns to patch all the disparate plotlines together and the result was, yep, muddled.

I appreciate what they were going for but hey, I mean it happens. Something sounds good on paper but then in reality it's another story. I'm sure everyone wanted to do the show justice with the final season. Nobody ever intends to the jump the shark. It just happens.

I'm still curious about the finale. Lot of loose ends still. I haven't read the spoilers, but I know people have been going on and on about this storm. I just hope it isn't some ridiculous Dues Ex Machina that magically solves everything. I'm gonna try to go into Dexter next Sunday with an open mind and just reflect on the whole journey of the show in general, rather than just this season.

 

[HighFivingMF]

It'd have to be one helluva brilliant finale to turn around all the ill will generated by this season. And "fight during hurricane" probably won't cut it.

He'll fight off the hurricane. With murder.

 

[JJJ's Ulcer]

He'll strap the hurricane to his kill-table. (and then suddenly let it go, so Deb can find it )

Hopefully it's a sharknado. Can't be any more ridiculous than what's happened already.

 

[HighFivingMF]

He'll strap the hurricane to his kill-table. (and then suddenly let it go, so Deb can find it )

Hopefully it's a sharknado. Can't be any more ridiculous than what's happened already.

"I'm not the old Dexter, Hurricane. I've changed."

 

[RetroNaz]

Dexter, the show, was unique. It had a great hook, interesting characters and the bad guys were quite enjoyable. IMO, the show died with Rita.

I can't think of another show that climbed so high only to fall this hard at the end.

 

[AnneFan]

Surely now he loves Hannah, with Harrison, - he has something he really wants to protect. As well as wanting to wrap up his Miami life, and leave no loose ends. So Saxon would be dead as a doornail. That's why he hadn't left already for crying out loud.

Say for example he did lose his hunger to kill, I think he would at the very least put Saxon away as a last act. I felt Dex walking away, leaving his knives there was just rushed and sloppy. It was like, oh, I'm leaving anyway so whatever. They've forced this 'character arc' onto Dexter and I don't buy it. Nor how the marshall had no clue about Saxon being all over the news, thus cutting him loose.

Overall, I'm disappointed where this has gone.

I would have preferred something more epic and tense, not pedestrian for a solid chunk of the episodes. Like Laguerta's death being the first step into darkness for Deb and Dex. Batista investigating - finding out the truth, and Dex again put into a position where it's about killing a good person who just happened to find out, or being publicly outed.

In any case, I really feel things could have been so much more.

 

[RetroNaz]

If I could start the show over, I'd delete season 2.
Rita would still die and bring about the fall of Dexter, then implement the season 2 storyline of discovering the bay harbour butcher is Dexter, Doakes on his tail until the very end.

Rita's death should have rattled Dexter so much he'd become sloppy and make mistakes.
Doakes was a character that should have stayed on board to provide the "will he get caught" tension the entire time.

Deb should never have accepted Dexter after finding out - that killed her character, if her screwing every male didn't already.

 

[JJJ's Ulcer]

Dexter, the show, was unique. It had a great hook, interesting characters and the bad guys were quite enjoyable. IMO, the show died with Rita.

I can't think of another show that climbed so high only to fall this hard at the end.

I was going to say True Blood, but that show was never as good as Dexter in its prime. Oz had a big decline. There's been a couple, but few as steep as Dexter's.

 

[Teelie]

All of the things Dexter has done over the years culminates in this... and this is a poor showing for a series that had a lot of great story telling in it. If it were like this any sooner I'd have quit then. I've quit watching other series for lesser declines.

Placing the season 2 storyline as the final season would have made more sense but no one could have planned this far ahead to know that.

 

[Ghostvirus]

"I'm not the old Dexter, Hurricane. I've changed."

Hurricane - "I have too, I am now a just a tropical storm. I promise. NOW LET ME GO!"

 

[Ghostvirus]

If the spoilers are 100% true. Then next week should be interesting considering people have suspected for a long, long while.

 

[JJJ's Ulcer]

All of the things Dexter has done over the years culminates in this... and this is a poor showing for a series that had a lot of great story telling in it. If it were like this any sooner I'd have quit then. I've quit watching other series for lesser declines.

Placing the season 2 storyline as the final season would have made more sense but no one could have planned this far ahead to know that.

Right. Planning seasons ahead.... *pfft*... it's not like this show is Breaking Bad.

 

[Ghostvirus]

I do like that Harrison developed his 1st code. Don't put the monkey in a box.

 

[Tron Bonne]

I really don't get why people are saying such about Batista investigating Maria's death and finding out about Dexter. It seems like something people bring up all the time, as if it's something natural to happen. It's like people watched season 7, but filtered out the stuff about how people actually looked at what she was doing, including Batista. I guess it could've made sense on one level, but considering how everyone was shaking their head at her, and then fearing she'd went to deep by essentially teaming up with a known serial killer, I don't think it's something anyone would want to touch.

 

[squeekness]

Dexter, the show, was unique. It had a great hook, interesting characters and the bad guys were quite enjoyable. IMO, the show died with Rita.

I can't think of another show that climbed so high only to fall this hard at the end.

True Blood anyone?

 

[Teelie]

Right. Planning seasons ahead.... *pfft*... it's not like this show is Breaking Bad.

Most series don't even know if they'll get another season let alone a full seven or however many they want to have.

There are always exceptions of course but most of the time a series so ambitious it plans ahead 3-5 years or more into the future isn't guaranteed to make it.

Then of course you have series that surpass their planned finale. Babylon 5 was planned as only four seasons. It ended up going for five and the fifth season showed it. Similarly Supernatural was only planned ahead for roughly 5 seasons and is heading into season 9 and still going strong despite some rough patches.

 

[BatLobster]

Seriously, comparing this show to BB jumped the shark before this season even began. BB is the exception, not the rule. It's brilliant on a level that few shows can ever hope to attain.

People need to just leave Breaking Bad out of this already, seriously. Damn Gilliganites.

 

[JJJ's Ulcer]

Seriously, comparing this show to BB jumped the shark before this season even began. BB is the exception, not the rule. It's brilliant on a level that few shows can ever hope to attain.

People need to just leave Breaking Bad out of this already, seriously. Damn Gilliganites.

Does that mean I can compare it to the Sopranos, The Wire, Mad Men, Boardwalk Empire, Game of Thrones, The Shield or the dozen of other non-BB shows it doesn't hold up against?

 

[JJJ's Ulcer]

Most series don't even know if they'll get another season let alone a full seven or however many they want to have.

No excuse. Breaking Bad did not know it'd get its full five seasons when it was in season 1 or 2. The show only became popular over the last year or two. Dexter had a much more certain future during its early days. It was just sloppy and short-sighted not to plan ahead.

 

[StrainedEyes]

I just don't think Dexter was ever on the same quality level as Breaking Bad, Boardwalk Empire, or The Wire. The first three seasons were good but they all had problems.

The same could be said for Weeds too... maybe it's a Showtime problem.

 

[Deserana]

I think some are forgetting just how good this show was in its prime. It was unmissable with such an intriguing premise and characters.

 

[Upset Spideyfan]

I really don't get why people are saying such about Batista investigating Maria's death and finding out about Dexter. It seems like something people bring up all the time, as if it's something natural to happen. It's like people watched season 7, but filtered out the stuff about how people actually looked at what she was doing, including Batista. I guess it could've made sense on one level, but considering how everyone was shaking their head at her, and then fearing she'd went to deep by essentially teaming up with a known serial killer, I don't think it's something anyone would want to touch.

Debra called to ask where Maria's car was the night she was murdered, that should have been logged and should have raised enormous red flags. Not to mention that they both vanished from the party during the time of murder and then reappeared afterwards. This is a party full of cops, somebody should have noticed that.

Presumably they had to go and dig Deb's bullets out of her to prevent ballistics from determining that her gun did the killing so if forensics was even SLIGHTLY in competent they should have either found bullet fragments or found evidence that somebody removed them which points to another person in the cargo container.

And this is the what the 3rd or 4th, person to die around Dexter? Doakes, Rita, his best friend Miguel, his girlfriend Lila trying to kill his family, his sister nearly marrying a serial killer. But nobody even thinks about conducting even a proper police investigation because Dexter is such a nice guy. The fact that Deb made the call and that they both vanished from the party should have thrown huge suspicion over them and that the forensics of Dexter's scenario where upset by Deb's arrival should have sunk them.

This only works if everyone is insanely stupid or willfully blind to the possibility that it could have been Dexter.

 

[georgec]

Seasons 1 and 2 were amazing. There was tension, there was urgency, there was humor, there was sharp social commentary.

3 was still good but ended in a whimper. 4 had similar issues as 3 but had a great villain and shocker ending.

The sad truth is that after season 2, nothing really has any consequence. Rita's death was completely wasted.