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Dexter: My Bad

Rita: "I felt up in the air, the way things ended. Like we never said a proper goodbye."

Wouldn't it be ironic if causing Rita's murder turned Dexter into a human being?

This entire episode was a farewell to Rita, and Dexter was unable to handle it. For most of it, he was absolutely numb, unable to feel anything at all. Or he certainly would have registered that he told Rita's children she was dead while wearing Mickey Mouse ears. Wow, that really bothered me; I kept saying, "Take the hat off, Dexter!" Those kids are going to hate cute cartoon mice forever now, and they're certainly never going to Disneyworld again.

Cutting his ties and running away made sense, too, since Dexter was running away from what he felt. And it was really interesting that he finally lost his legendary cool and committed an impulsive crime of passion. It was hard to feel sorry for the victim, even though his only crime was being in the wrong place at the wrong time. And acting like a total jerk. Being a jerk got him killed. A lesson for us all.

The flashbacks to Dexter and Rita's first date were moving, as well as creepy. He always put murder before Rita, right from the start; I couldn't believe he actually killed someone on their first date. (Geez, foreshadow much?) He even cracked a joke about being an axe murderer, like he was warning her away from him. Burying her in the dress she was wearing when they met was so obviously Dexter's way of trying to take back ever meeting Rita at all.

Quinn has turned into Doakes. Only he might be even more dangerous, since he already believes that Dexter killed his wife. What did Elliott tell him? And what possessed Deb to sleep with Quinn? Yes, we do stupid things when we grieve – Quinn's girlfriend just committed suicide, too – but I kept feeling like she was cheating on Dexter. (Real life, fiction, there's a difference, Billie!)

What next? Trinity is in a watery grave and will never be found, and I don't think Dexter has an alibi. Maybe LaGuerta should have kept the case, but how could that have helped? Now that Dexter has completely gutted the Code of Harry, pun intended, what now? Anything goes? If so, Quinn had better watch his step. He might be next.

Bits and pieces:

-- Loved the episode title. Just loved it.

-- Julie Benz is no longer in the cast. No guest star was given in the opening credits.

-- We finally got a number. Dexter has killed 67 people. No, 68 now.

-- Nice little homage to Six Feet Under, since Michael C. Hall played a mortician for five years. Dexter said about the mortician, "How does he do that?" I rather expected Rita to open her eyes and talk to him, too.

-- Angel told Quinn not to forget that LaGuerta was the boss. Don't tell me that marriage is in trouble already? They've only been married for five minutes.

-- Harry disappeared for most of the episode, and came back when Dexter finally lost it in the bathroom. Odd, considering it was the moment when Dexter broke the Code of Harry.

-- The episode began where last season's finale left off, and nearly everyone looked the same. Except, of course, there was a different baby playing Harrison. I think there were different actors playing Paul's parents, too. Michael C. Hall looked the same when I expected him to look a bit different, considering his illness. Desmond Harrington was the one who was suddenly a whole lot thinner.

-- Gold acting stars for Michael C. Hall, of course. When Dexter finally expressed his grief, it was really something.

Quotes:

Dexter: "What if the least you deserve is a real human being, and what you get is me?"

Masuka: "I imagined her naked plenty of times, but never like this."
Masuka is nothing if not inappropriate.

Deb: "FBI? Fucking Bunch of Idiots."

Dexter: "Not now. She's in the shower." At least he didn't say she was in the tub.

Deb: "How did it go, talking to them?"
Dexter: "Astor's upset. They got me a hat."

Four out of four sets of Mickey Mouse ears,

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

7 comments:

  1. I read that MCH was wearing one hell of an expensive wig, but it fooled me.

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  2. Another strong entry in the Dexter canon. Dexter's admission that he had in fact loved Rita was a massive revelation. And I agree, his first date with Rita was bizarre. I loved the way the car boot (trunk?) popped up in the car park outside. Perfect timing.

    This was a painful episode to watch at times. The intensity of Dexter's grief was summed up perfectly in his screams of anguish.

    And Dexter now realises how it feels to be on the other end of a serial killing. Fair enough, his victims usually deserve to die. But their families don't deserve the suffering he indirectly inflicts upon them.

    They've set up this season perfectly. Great review, Billie.

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  3. i was thinking what alibi dexter might have for the time when rita was murdered and the only time that might fit is when the police was busting Trinity's house and Dexter was hiding in the coffin... not the wedding like Laguerta said because it happened two or three days ago...

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  4. Yes, I could tell the difference with his hair, it kind of sat high on his forehead and away from his neck. It was a good one though because he could swim in it and perform difficult movements,(like fighting with Lumen) so it was pretty good and worth the expense.

    MCH has such wonderful natural hair, it kind of acts with him and helps to create his characters. It can be very repressed, like the severe and parted do for David Fisher, or loose, fluffy and natural for Dexter. His 10k hairpiece was good, it didn't detract much from his portrayal of Dexter, but I could tell it wasn't the hair I'd come to know him for and love.

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  5. A great start to the season. Heartbreaking but also darkly comic at times, like a lot of Dexter episodes. You're not the only one who loved the car boot popped up, Paul.

    Don't know why its taken me so long to get started on season five. Guess I was so burned out from racing through seasons 1-4 so quickly that I needed a breather. Well, better late than never.

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  6. All I can say is that I rarely cry at TV shows and I lost it in that last scene

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