‘Dexter’ recap: Don’t be sorry your darkness is gone

Those who tuned in to the “Dexter” finale hoping to see a jaw-dropping cliffhanger to top last season’s may have been disappointed. I admit I am not necessarily always a fan of “full circle” season finales (so neat and tidy), but despite my initial “That’s it?” reaction, I realize it was actually a very solid finale. In some ways, like with the finale of the show “The Big C,” I liked the finale more than the majority of the season.

The episode begins with Dexter tracking down Jordan and Lumen, but before he can even leave the apartment, his entire family shows up to surprise him with Harrison’s birthday party. It was a rather ridiculous scenario but it set up a theme for the first half of the finale: Dexter’s going to have to let a lot of people down. Astor, suddenly friendly and polite, asks Dexter if he’ll have breakfast with them, and if she and Cody can live with him for the summer.? Sorry, Astor, Dexter doesn’t have time for your love — he needs to find Lumen.?

Dexter gives Jordan Chase a call and the two have a sassy little conversation, just two smooth criminals, that reminded me a little bit of the give-and-take between Sherlock and Moriarty in PBS’ “Sherlock.”? Dexter doesn’t know where they’re going but a fruit vendor hears Lumen kicking and hollering in Jordan’s trunk as he zooms off in his jerky black BMW.?

The next scene tied more of the season’s story lines together, as Dexter finds Deb, back at work, watching the torture videos from Jordan and Co., obsessed because she too had experience at the hands of a psycho — Rudy, Dexter’s brother. Dexter ponders, again, “Is this what I do, curse everyone around me?”

Before Dexter can go find Lumen (now letting her down in addition to Deb and the rest of his family), the Miami police are called to the site of Liddy’s murder. Right before they leave, Dexter and Quinn exchange a little glance: the “I know you’re involved, but how…?”? interaction between Dex and Quinn was amusing. This was a great scene in general, not just because of the cool police speedboat (how come they don’t take that all the time?) but because Dexter had to examine one of his own murders, praising the genius of the killer.

At the crime scene, Laguerta figures out that Quinn’s likely connected to the murder thanks to the blood she sees on his shoe.? Quinn requests to speak to a lawyer, and he’s taken away, giving Dexter the opportunity to smash the window of a shiny red car (the better to crash in slow-mo with), which he hot-wires in order to get Lumen.? At this point in the finale I was really excited: Not a scene of the show had been wasted.

Jordan finally pulls Lumen out of the trunk so he can torture her at the old summer camp where Eugene Greer found himself and his new name.? They get reacquainted; he notes that she’s braver than she used to be, and while he just used to “like to watch,” like her, perhaps he changed.? Right after Jordan? makes as if to bite Lumen’s face like an apple, she kicks him and runs off, but he speedwalks after her and grabs her. Jordan’s character and Jonny Lee Miller’s personification of him here reminded me of Patrick Bateman in "American Psycho," compelling and unpredictable and frightening. Miller really stepped it up as Jordan Chase in tonight’s finale.? I had been enjoying him as the bad guy all season, but in the finale he showed us a really engagingly twisted psychopath. He was creepy and charming at the same time, and a little funny too. He clearly seemed to think that he, Dexter and Lumen were part of some ménage-à-trois of blood.?

Dexter, having found the camp, crashes his red car spectacularly. He climbs out, and just when all signs point to him not being able to get to Lumen in time, Jordan steps in to save the day to bring Dexter to Lumen for him and tie them both up.? See, Jordan didn’t care that much about Lumen on her own: he wanted her and Dexter.

Everything looks dire for Dex and Lumen, when along comes Deb, thanks to the tip from the fruit vendor.? For a moment I thought Deb would have to save Dexter and Lumen, but they get the best of Jordan before she arrives, with Lumen stabbing Jordan herself (I liked how Jordan was unimpressed and unafraid up until the end).

Instead, Deb arrives in time to see Jordan’s dead body on the table, but, spotting Dexter and Lumen through a translucent screen, decides to give them a head start before she calls in their murder, assuming they’re the vigilante team that’s been taking out Jordan and Co.? I liked that Deb was still a cop but got to use the pain and damage she’s gone through for good.?

Newly lightened, Deb gives Quinn the benefit of the doubt and decides to believe him when he says he didn’t kill Liddy. Later, seeing how much his sister loves Quinn, Dexter fudges the bloodwork.? Did Quinn know Dexter did that on purpose? And did Deb know that Dex and Lumen were the vigilantes?

Dex and Lumen have a little smilefest after they deposit Jordan’s body parts into the sea, but you know Dexter can’t be content and happy for too long. The next morning he putters around in the kitchen, excited for the family party, talking about how he’s something of a “breakfast connoisseur” (“Really, you should check out the intro to my television series,” he said).? Lumen then bursts his bubble: Now it’s time for her to go home. Since she’s killed Jordan, her dark passenger is gone and she’s a different person, different from Dexter and so they must separate to his dismayed understanding. Later, at Harrison’s birthday party, Dexter eyes all the happy couples and blows out Harrison’s birthday candle for him, wishing for the chance to be human.

Part of what I liked about this episode was that it was just easy on the eyes: It was one of the most beautifully-shot episodes of "Dexter," clearly with a gigantic budget — boats, swooping crane shots, an extremely unnecessary and over-the-top but still-cool-looking car wreck.? I especially enjoyed the seaside scenes, which looked more natural than a lot of the sometimes overlit and oversaturated “Hey, this show’s set in Miami!” episodes.?

In some ways the finale was totally predictable in that Dexter and Lumen had their final showdown with Jordan and Lumen disappeared into the sunset. I initially felt a little disappointed that the season ended on such a tidy note, but some things have to come full circle, I think, and perhaps it’s more promising to think of Dexter having a fresh set of issues next season rather than picking up something that happened in Sunday’s episode.? Maybe the writers just didn’t want to try to top last season’s over-the-top finale, which I respect (“It was all a dream!”)?

Plus, Dexter’s finally broken a chain of relationships that end in blood and death, partially thanks to Deb learning, with Laguerta’s help, to be merciful and have faith and not just barge around expecting the worst from everyone.? So this “clean slate” thing may open up the next season as Dexter actually has the chance to figure out on his own what to do next, and not have his destiny foisted on him by someone else’s death.?

Were you happy with the finale? Was there anything (within reason) that you hoped would happen that didn’t? Did anything surprise you?

-- Claire Zulkey (Talk to me: @Zulkey)

Michael C. Hall as Dexter and Angela Bettis as Emily Birch. Photo: Randy Tepper/Showtime

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'Dexter' recap: Pretty messed up but kind of beautiful too

Last week’s episode of "Dexter" wasn’t my favorite, but I had no complaints about Sunday night’s, which was thrilling and tense with just a touch of creepiness and humor, which is the ideal Dexter formula. ?

Of course, the thrill came from the hunt, of which there were several. Dexter became aware that his apartment was being bugged, and he first suspected Jordan Chase, but when he realized that the equipment came from the Miami Police Department (and after Deb told him about Quinn’s now-dead suspicions of Dexter), he figured it was Quinn. After trying to chase Quinn down, though, Dexter ultimately stumbled upon Liddy, who managed to trap Dexter until Dexter was able to free himself and murder him.

?Was I the only person who sort of wanted Quinn, who was responding to Liddy’s phone call to come and bust Dexter, to discover Dexter with Liddy’s body, just to see how he’d react? ?Since Liddy’s blood ended up on Quinn’s shoe, he may get an idea of what went down after all. ?In the meantime, Deb was on Jordan Chase’s tail for the rape-club murders, but before she could get to him, Jordan used Emily to lure Lumen to him, which left us with Dexter chasing Jordan down for the season finale. All this made the episode fly by with thrilling tension. ?

But what I really liked were the surreal little touches to the episode. ?Let’s start with Jordan Chase, who actually used to be a fat kid named Eugene Greer but lost weight, changed his name and his life and had plastic surgery to become someone else. ?I hope we find out exactly why he underwent the drastic transformation and that the reasons why are appropriately creepy. ?

I also enjoyed Liddy’s rationalization that if he made the right bust on Dexter, he’d get his job back as a cop. First of all, I don’t think that blackmailing various people and breaking several lines of protocol is how you do it, but moreover, why would he want to become a legitimate cop again when he was so good as a nasty P.I.? ?Finally, I strangely enjoyed the sick relationship between Jordan and Emily. After Emily lured Lumen over, Jordan was upset with her that Dexter didn’t come too. Emily whined, “Are you mad at me? It’s not my fault!” ?After proclaiming the situation “profoundly distasteful,” Jordan took a poker to her and beat her to death. ?Even though their interaction together this season was brief, the relationship was perfectly relayed as sick and twisted (can someone say Stockholm Syndrome?), and I wish we had seen a lot more. ?Dexter and Lumen’s relationship didn’t bother me as much this episode as it has previously, but oh, what if it were as nasty and disturbing and codependent as Emily and Jordan’s? ?

Finally, the humor, which basically consisted of Dexter and Lumen finding the flatulent, burping cat at the same time on Quinn’s computer. ?It was such a random little throwaway gag for Dexter, but I liked it, especially the mental image of Quinn enjoying the video at home. ?I also thought it was humorous that Dexter’s street just happened to be lined with vans and RVs once he realized that his apartment was bugged and he needed to find the source, but I don’t think that was supposed to be funny.

After Sunday night’s strong episode, I have high hopes for the finale. ?I think the straightforward, rather predictable plot would be for Dexter to kill Jordan and then for Lumen to finally head home, but my fingers are crossed that the season will end on a much more twisted note, like perhaps Deb learning the Lumen killed Alex Tilden, or as I said, Quinn finding that Dexter offed Liddy. What do you hope happens in the finale?

-- Claire Zulkey

Photo: Michael C. Hall as Dexter and Jennifer Carpenter as Debra Morgan. ?Photo: Randy Tepper / Showtime

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Jennifer Carpenter Talks About Her Brotherly Love on 'Dexter'

November 25, 2010?|?10:03 am

Michael C. Hall and Jennifer Carpenter, who play half-siblings on Showtime's "Dexter," knew they were taking a risk when their off-screen relationship a few years ago started developing into a romance.

"We were just friends, and it was very easy to be friends," Carpenter said. "We were both surprised when this other thing happened. We did a lot of talking about it -- can we kiss, what will that mean, will we damge the credibility of our characters? We were very practical."

She smiled: "But in the end, the heart wanted what the heart wanted."

For more on Carpenter and how she has helped make "Dexter" one of TV's top dramas, check out this feature.

?--Greg Braxton???

Photo: Jennifer Carpenter and Michael C. Hall of "Dexter." Credit: Matt Sayles/AP

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'Dexter' recap: Whatever it is, it’s big

Although I initially was a fan of Julia Stiles when she appeared in this season of "Dexter" (I thought she portrayed "wild with fear" well), I haven't been especially enraptured with her the last few episodes. Maybe after the days of Lila I am overly suspicious of women in Dexter's life. Or perhaps I got a little tired of the stiff pattern of "I want to do murder with you" followed by "You can't; you still have a clean slate!" (although after Sunday night’s episode, that might change, as Dexter finally starts viewing Lumen as some sort of partner after they double-team a bad guy). Or maybe I just miss John Lithgow, all-time best guest star. I definitely miss John Lithgow.

Fortunately, although the Dexter/Lumen story line isn't currently gripping me, I thought the other plots in Sunday night's episode were especially compelling -- the show is exciting when Dexter must compete with the police department to get his man, and that's what's happening now. After a truck containing the barrels of Boyd Fowler's dead bodies crashes, the police are on the hunt for the murderer. The truck is registered to Jordan Chase, the same "Take it!" motivational speaker whose tapes Boyd listened to.? Dexter and Lumen and the detectives are all on the hunt for Cole Harmon, Jordan's chief of security, until Dexter throws them off the trail by alerting the police to Boyd's existence, a move that does not go unnoticed by Jordan and Cole.

In the meantime, the detectives are ready to bust the Fuentes brothers in a stakeout, but it goes horribly awry, ending with a dramatic shootout at the club, which Maria takes the flak for -- but at least she looked sexy in her going-out clothes. Plus, Quinn (who wore an especially heinous sweater this episode) has second thoughts about having Dexter trailed, until his crooked private eye, Stan Liddy, (played deliciously by Peter Weller, stealing all the scenes he's in, not unlike Lithgow) shames him for having second thoughts on account of Deb, who he is trying to pressure to move in with him for some reason. (Liddy has discovered the existence of Lumen, and thus so has Quinn).

As if that's not all enough, Dexter and Lumen realize there's something more to her rape and torture than she realized: Cole, Jordan, Boyd, Dan the Dentist and a few others have all known each other since they were teen-agers -- what are they exactly, some sort of death cult? Or the worst fraternity in history?

Speaking of which, although Stiles hasn't been gripping me as Lumen, I am excited to see more of Jonny Lee Miller as oily Jordan (I hope I get the chance to ask him if he had a good time recording those "Take it!" motivational tapes). "Trainspotting's" Sick Boy has grown into a potentially very Sick Man.

-- Claire Zulkey

Photo: Chris Vance as Cole Harmon and Jonny Lee Miller as Jordan Chase in "Dexter." Photo: Randy Tepper / Showtime

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'Dexter' recap: What a night!

A lot happened on Sunday night’s episode, but the one thing that stuck with me was a desire to implore the writers of “Dexter” to please give Deb Morgan a break already.? I was half laughing, half groaning when she asked Quinn to tell her if it was going to end badly. Memo to Deb: IT’S GOING TO END BADLY!? Although it’ll be exciting, no doubt, to see how Quinn’s vendetta against Dexter will play out in regard to his relationship with Deb, I wish the show would figure out a way to give her a love life that doesn’t go horribly awry.? Even if it means she becomes a nun, it’s time to give her a break.?

Otherwise, Sunday night’s episode is about Dexter trying to keep his life neatly compartmentalized: This part of him is a father, this is a blood-spatter expert, this is a murderer.? To celebrate a return to old times, Dexter decides to take down Lance Robinson, who kills men he meets online for casual encounters.? “Tonight’s the night,” he says as he goes, while we also see Lumen preparing for her own kill.? Dexter’s hopes for a tidy evening are disrupted when Lumen calls him as he’s wrapping Lance in plastic.? She begs for Dexter's help: She has tracked down one of the men she thinks raped and tortured her but has botched the murder.?

Dexter meets Lumen at her murder scene, where she initially blames him for not doing it for her.? She discerns that he works for the police department as they track her bleeding, escaped victim through the marina, bickering along the way like a big brother and wayward little sister.? Lumen reveals that she never actually saw her attackers’ faces or heard their names, but she knows, based on a smell, that he’s the guy.? I’ve been trying to figure out exactly how Dexter sees Lumen (I was worried that they might kiss at the end of the episode and was relieved when they didn’t), but I love this scene, the way Dexter seems so peeved and incredulous when Lumen curses him out.?

While Deb and Angel are doing a stakeout on a club to try to get the Fuentes brothers, they get a call about a potential homicide at the marina, which of course just happens to be the potential homicide that Dex and Lumen are engaged in.? Then Lumen and Dexter find their man, and a ridiculous bloody screaming match ensues (again, so much for neat and compartmentalized) in which Dan the Dentist claims he’s never seen Lumen in his life.? Dexter takes a call from Sonya to hear Harrison say bye-bye (or “die-die”), and when he returns, Lumen has her stiletto against Dan’s throat. While Dexter yells at Lumen for being nuts, Dan crawls off and is conveniently heard on the cellphone telling his cronies that Lumen’s alive -- so she has had her man all along. “They’re gonna find you,” Dan promises Lumen, and then Dexter finally dispatches him.? Lumen seems almost happy, but they need to clean up, because Deb and Masuka are on the trail.

Just in time, the M-99 wears off on Lance, who escapes Dexter’s SUV.? A great, suspenseful scene follows with Dexter chasing Lance, trailing a length of plastic wrap, around the pier while Lumen's left with Dan’s body and the police are stalking the marina. Just in the nick of time, Deb finds Dexter, who claims to have found something amazing -- he sends Lumen home to his old house and stages a death scene involving both Dan and Lance.? Masuka reads it as a homoerotic/auto-erotic crime of passion and graphically mimes what he thinks happened. “What a night!” Deb exclaims, and that’s how I felt -- almost over the top but just enough gripping, ridiculous drama.

In the meantime, Angel and Maria sort things out: He spots a comely potential source on the beheading cases and brings her to the station as a way to patch things up with Maria.? He apologizes for his temper; she apologizes for, uh, trying to be a good cop, which I guess also means being a bad wife?? Either way, I’m glad it's resolved because their marital tension isn’t the most riveting storyline.

Back at his old house, Dexter talks to Lumen, who now has figured out that Dexter is also a father.? She delivers a rather stiff monologue on how she used to live a normal life, bailed on her wedding and then ended up here, saying that she can’t help but think that what has happened to her is a punishment for trying to lead her own life.? She won’t feel peace until all her attackers are dead, and Dexter realizes she has her own dark passenger, and he will help Lumen get revenge.

So do we think Dex and Lumen are developing some sort of Batman and Robin relationship here?? Will the two of them become romantic, and are you like me and hope they don’t? And will Deborah ever have a relationship with someone nice and boring?

-- Claire Zulkey

Photo: Julia Stiles as Lumen and Michael C. Hall as Dexter. Photo: Randy Tepper / Showtime

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'Dexter' recap: complicity

?Dexter this week? was a very clever as screen was saturated with blood red, then yellow, then green - such as the introduction of the broadcast, extracted to reveal something innocent perhaps disturbing image opening: in this case, a parachute be raised and lowered with a group of infant in a mother and class me.? Then the dark (ish) once for faster, things such as suspects Dexter Harrison to inflict a little scratch on one of the other babies to be like him. Together they "flee the scene of the crime."

This episode was left wondering how lumen is Dexter. Often when a major character appears in the show, it reflects somehow something, like how he initially was drawn by Arthur Mitchell to be able to pull off the coast of a "normal" life In episode tonight Dexter tried repeatedly to convince lumen not to kill people it claims raped and abusé, to go home and start a normal life. When they meet for coffee, it tears into packets of sugar and exports remains on the table.After that she leaves, Dexter reached about and taste the sucre.Que means something?

Try to beat him at his first victim, Dexter leads Boyd House to see if it can be seen all accomplices, but he saw that someone had already been there: it lumen, of course, and when Dexter checks in his hotel room through its wall o ' obsession, he saw she was determined to trace these men. Harry prevents Dexter lumen is not stable, and it will bring him down.

Always followed the murders of decapitation, Deb follows an advance on a possible identification tattoo on a suspect for Masuka, which of course submissions of Leopard-print and has a huge tattoo back a topless woman riding dragon and brandishing a sword, she takes her artist tattoo, which identifies design as an eye. More intriguing was of course the aggressive brightness the owner of the salon (played by Katherine Moennig "The L Word") has taken Deb. I somehow expected for the entire series of Deb to explore his side sapphic, but alas, apparently Moennig is only signed for this episode.

DEX think it on an advance of a potential co-conspirator Boyd (I loved the Visual joke of the Lady of the police department records saying: "Ooh, that face!" when referring to an image of Harrison, so that the camera on a photograph of Robert Brunner.) Dexter without fear (or foolishly) runs under the bridge, where sex offenders and paedophiles are exiled, trying to find her man and poses as a rapist to get near Brunner.DEX needles him and took him to resume Boyd kill, when Harry appears and begs Dexter not to do this, it might be the bad guy - it turns out is through a strap ankle off empty identification.Dexter Brunner monitoring under the bridge, shaken by what he almost did.

Home Dexter heads, where Deb with Quinn, trying to gutsily Kiss sister DEX in front of it. Deb or Dexter why Quinn at work now, but Dexter guard: he hates Deb dating Quinn, and I loved the confused appearance, is extended to the face when she tried to explain what they are up to. Dexter asks Deb does not provide Quinn of Harrison.

Then, Dexter has hunting lumen low back under the bridge again, where it is ready to take away the Brunner: it stops him and says its quit smoking although there is still no blood on their hands.Lumen says it wants to just feel better and Dexter finally persuaded to return to the House and Minnesota.

Angel is a really great husband.First of all, he is jealous of money makes Maria and then it is convinced that she is cheating on spyware on her by her cellphone lui.Il and busts in what he thinks is a matter between it and Jim McCourt inside, but rather they were wrapped up just a sting on a COP dirty, and Maria is simply buttoning side until after unbugged shirt. These two were still a few things to discover, obviously.

Fortunately, metro Miami "family" to scene together whole homicide Deb and Cira found have, to be early work of beheader Gets the.I liked slow music circus acts as Dexter warmly around watched as his colleagues worked to determine what happened to these two people long dead, rotting, maggoty.

Dexter takes lumen at the airport, but I think that we have all seen come and that it was not really going to go home and have the Minnesota.Il if unintentionally funny moments during the scene where lumen patted down security - I know that we were watching the character of a rape victim feel dangerous and have an attack of anxiety, but few shots big plan (many) panic face of Julia Stiles were a little strange funny.Maybe I'm just a poor person.

Satisfied with his new lead, Deb called Quinn, which is cooling his heels in the bar.Il buys the fellow beside him a drink, which is be the cop was allowed to dismantle by Maria (which comes to be Peter Weller, aka "Robocop"!)They are all two dirty, they are both monstrous, the two have released for Maria, course Quinn offered money to follow Dexter. "The... a name is Dexter?"he asked, suitable to the tache.Quinn became the person more poorly on the show, and has now an unofficial to help it carry out its work salissant.Dexter partner had better smoking mess this parachute Mommy and me and watch his back."

-Claire Zulkey

Photo: Michael c. Hall Dexter and Julia Stiles as lumen.Photo: Randy Tepper / ShowTime

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