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Dexter: That Night, a Forest Grew

Dexter: "You really have a way. You know that?"
Lila: "A way of what?"
Dexter: "Whatever the hell you want."

Raucous sex. That was different.

Lila just destroyed an $18,000 windfall, burned up her apartment, and endangered lives because Dexter didn't answer his cell phone. Lila is not a sane person. She must have killed her boyfriend. And Dexter can't see her for what she is. Yet. That last scene with the light bulb made me think he was starting to get it. Dexter will figure it out. If he's not distracted by the three zillion other crises in his life.

Much of this episode was Dexter struggling for control with Doakes and Lundy, as well as Lila. Dexter took back control of the investigation with his "presto manifesto," but Lundy figured it out way too soon and now he knows that the Bay Harbor Butcher is in law enforcement. Backfire. (Lundy is good.) Doakes was looking for the police file on the cargo container bloodbath; he's getting way too close. What Dexter did to Doakes was just priceless, like Paul and the frying pan, but on purpose. Doakes is out of the picture... for now. But I can't imagine Doakes will just accept defeat. Will this backfire on Dexter, too?

Dan was theorizing that this season would end with Dexter getting caught. I didn't think so, but I'm starting to reconsider. Will Dexter have to kill Doakes? Or – thought – now that suspicion is on someone in law enforcement, will Dexter pin the Bay Harbor Butcher murders on Doakes? There would be some synchronicity to that, for sure. Except that Dexter doesn't harm the innocent. Doakes is a pain in the ass, but he's a good cop, and Dexter knows it. But if he's desperate, who knows what Dexter will be forced to do?

Deb's May-September romance with Lundy is apparently about to take off. (Deb was listening to Chopin and Lundy was swearing; it's clearly only a matter of time.) And it might be really good for Deb. Lundy makes her feel strong and empowered, and she's calmer and more in control with him. But it just feels so incestuous to me. Not that there's anything wrong with May-September, because there isn't. But Deb is so obviously using Lundy to work through her Harry issues. Unconsciously, I'm sure. At least Lundy won't try to kill her, like Rudy/Brian did. I assume he won't, anyway.

Rita just got rid of her mother, and can you say, hallelujah. Gail turned out to be a liar, like Lila. (Although I doubt Gail ever went nuts with a blowtorch.) I really loved Rita telling Gail to "Shut the fuck up." Dexter desperately needs to drop Lila and go back to Rita, and Gail's departure means one more obstacle is out of the way. The scene at the school with Cody's presentation made it clear that Rita and the kids make Dexter feel connected to the real world. They don't make him feel like a monster, as Lila suggested.

But how can Dexter get free of a woman like Lila? What am I saying? All he has to do is prove to himself that she killed her boyfriend, and so much for Lila. Right?

Bits and pieces:

-- Loads o' symbolism. When Dexter and Lila were having wild and crazy sex, there were shadows on their bodies that looked like spiders. The light bulb probably symbolized that Lila was keeping Dexter in the dark. Either that, or that Lila's lights are out and no one is home. And the burned "cannibal" sculptures looked like dead bodies.

-- Dexter revealed another one of his hidden skills to Lila: housebreaking. And she loved it.

-- Chopin's nocturne no. 2 in E flat major was my sister's favorite piece of classical music. I'm more of a Mozart woman.

-- When Cody was talking to Dexter on the phone, Dexter's voice was childlike. He relates so strongly to kids. Emotionally, Dexter is something of a child.

Quotes:

Dexter: "You really know what you want, don't you?"
Lila: "I hope you don't mind. Some men do."
Dexter: "No. I've always found instruction manuals quite useful."

Deb: "You and Rita fuck quiet, too."
Dexter: "And she's off, right out of the gate."

Deb: "Who is she? And are you trying to fuck her or set her on fire?"
Dexter: "I didn't do this to you when you were riding the square-jawed guy with the handcuffs."

Doakes: "Your past is a bigger mystery than fucking Jimmy Hoffa."

Lundy: "He knows how we work. Look how he hits every major theme: political, environmental, religious. In one section, he manages to weave together Julius Caesar, Berlin Germany, the Pittsburgh Steelers and Gandhi."

Another excellent episode. Three stars,

Billie
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Billie Doux loves good television and spends way too much time writing about it.

2 comments:

  1. I thought at the end when Dexter saw she got her light fixed he realized that she really does always gets what she wants. At the same time, the light went on in his head about who she really is.

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  2. Lila always seemed arty and eccentric; now she's crazy. The fire and the making Dexter promise he will never leave was just creepy.

    Like Mark, I saw the lightbulb at the end as a metaphor for Dexter seeing the light. Or, maybe that's just too obvious.

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