My first impression was that I wanted more from this episode than it gave me. I relented a bit after watching the second time.
See, we all knew Dexter would outwit Kurt's minion because it's Dexter, even with a bullet wound and no weapons. That kind of certainty cuts the tension and it made the chase scene through the woods run a bit long. And Elric just didn't seem that terrifying. Maybe it was the Elmer Fudd hunting duds juxtaposed with the Joker-esque blood grin.
What I mostly got out of that chase was how hard it will be to cover up. Dexter left his own blood everywhere, all over the woods and the campground, not to mention his fingerprints are on the knife that is still in Elric's body. How badly was Dexter shot? Yes, he's strong, in good shape, and has a will of iron, but a bullet wound in the leg should have brought him down. Was it just a graze?
While Dexter was staggering through the woods evading Elmer Fudd, Kurt was alone with Harrison making me nervous. I kept expecting Kurt to physically attack Harrison, to lock him in a closet or something. If Kurt was planning to kill both Dexter and Harrison, why spend so much time buddying up with Harrison and not so subtly trying to make Dexter look like a bad father?
But then I remembered that this is Kurt's MO. Super friendly. Shows sympathy for and interest in his victims. Offers them food with a great big smile. The batting cage scene was just so weird, though. The mechanism looked like a meat slicer, and I'm sure that was a deliberate choice by the director. Why did Harrison deliberately punish himself with those baseballs? Yes, he's messed up, he was punishing himself for his mistakes, but it kinda made me more annoyed than sympathetic.
Harrison may have an obvious deep need for a father's love and approval and he's been using Kurt as a substitute, but what is it about this smile that didn't creep Harrison out?
Harrison told Kurt that he had come to Iron Lake and Dexter for answers, and it looks like he's about to get some. Dexter is going to tell Harrison "everything." How much everything? Even though Harrison just saw Dexter drive into a hail of bullets to save him, I'm betting some of those answers might be too much to take.
Meanwhile, prints on a knife might not be an issue because clever Angela may have just figured out that Dexter is the Bay Harbor Butcher. My first reaction was "that's improbable," but again, I thought about it and changed my mind. Dexter is seriously out of practice after ten years. This would have never happened way back when because Miles and Jasper would have been in pieces at the bottom of the ocean.
And maybe dating a bright, tenacious cop like Deb wasn't the best idea Dexter ever had.
Bits and quotes:
— This episode took place on Christmas eve.
— Deb's ghost only appeared twice and was appropriately dressed in a parka and scarf.
— I liked that Dexter used the titanium screw Kurt sent him to free himself from his bonds. Nice detail.
— Going to Matt's games in high school was what Kurt loved most about being a dad? Kurt also went on and on about the "sins of the father." There are still things we don't know about why Kurt kills, and why he is so unmoved by Matt's death.
— The dream Dexter had about Harrison killing those boys from the previous episode said a lot. Dexter has decided that Harrison must be a killer. And again, I think Dexter is wrong.
Kurt: "Sometimes it feels good to be bad. Don't you think?"
Harrison: "That kind of tastes like a Band-Aid." I'm so with you there, Harrison. Never liked the taste of Scotch, no matter how good it is.
Can't wait to see what happens next with Harrison. Angela, too. Two more to go. Come on, New Blood. Don't disappoint me!
Billie
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Billie Doux loves good television and spends way too much time writing about it.
Considering I was left mostly with disappointment, the episode breezed by really quickly. So I won't say it sucked, but I didn't really like it except for the ending (and beginning with the murder sequence) and only for the promise of a proper conversation. I don't know why Kurt got away, there must still be something interesting in store concerning him.
ReplyDeleteAs rusty as Dexter is, I still feel like Angela is catching on a little too neatly. I feel none of the typical satisfaction I ought to feel from this kind of thing.
>>"— I liked that Dexter used the titanium screw Kurt sent him to free himself from his bonds. Nice detail."
Oh yeah I liked that too.
One thing I'll say I like about Kurt is that he actually uses his gun as a distance weapon. All the other shows I've been watching lately have them practically pressed up against the target's person lol. I'm not a gun person at all, but this really annoys me for some reason.
Harrison prefers to be a punching bag just to share a "father and son moment", that was so heartbreaking T-T
ReplyDeleteThe mirror with the phrase "You're beautiful", makes me laugh so hard XDDD.
Dex left so many clues behind (are there cameras like in the Seneca reservation?), He needs to go back to clean up the "crime scene" how is he going to disguise the leg injury?
I don't remember the episode, but "Deb" is talking about Harry teaching Dex "the code" was child abuse and only caused tragedy (Harry's suicide, Rita and Deb deaths), I think it's "Sins of the Father" it's about Dexter being honest and taking the blame for all the losses. He needs to break the cycle with the dark passenger and not pass that burden on to Harrison