Dexter 5.02 Hi, Bandit
Oct. 5th, 2010 06:50 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
selenakIn which Dexter turns out to be as addicted to forensics as to more violent things, and Angel never listens to what he's told.
First of all, I do hope the absence of Cody and Aster is only temporary because I've been fearing this ever since Paul's never before mentioned parents showed up in late s4. To be fair, I can see the necessity of that plot device in that the premise of the show is the serial-killer thing, and given the show made a great deal of Dexter hardly getting any killing done early last season because of the new baby when Rita was there to take care of all three children as well, it would stretch belief that he'd manage to maintain his night life AND take care of all three children by himself. All this being said, Aster and Cody better be back by the time the season finale rolls on, because as this very episode and the entire previous show points out, these relationships are tremendously important. Incidentally, the reactions of the children - Cody wanting to stay, and Aster channelling her grief via blaming Dexter and wanting to leave - struck me as realistic and ic for them. And that scene of both of them staring at the bath tub was just... guh.
No head!Rita. I was sort of prepared for that since Julie Benz has a new show and didn't show up in the credits unlike last episode, but had hoped against hope anyway. Hmph.
I really did like that Dexter notices details again; it's been a while since we saw him do some real detecting, so not only is this a good reminder that he is smart, but it makes the interesting point that the sheer process of putting a puzzle together, of following a lead, is as addictive/important to him as the violence. Also (though I do wish the script hadn't been so anvilly and trusted us to figure that out by ourselves at the end) that when he finally has the evidence that roadkill!guy is in fact a serial killer, the old satisfaction and anticipation of killing is missing because he gets the human implication now. (We're a far cry from first season Dexter finding the body parts the Ice Truck Killer left for him and going "wow, this guy is an artist".) I just wonder whether this effect of Rita's death will be temporary or not...
Speaking of roadkill!guy, as most cases of the week, he's a reflection of Dexter himself - well, of aspects; in this case, the deceptively harmless man who nonetheless turns out to be deeply observant (the impromptu post mortem about the raccoon was great), hiding his kills by dumping them in the water. Meanwhile, the case the MYPD is working on this week seems to introduce a new character. I'm all for Deb having interactions with other women, so colour me intrigued. (And I liked that Deb while at first dismissing the officer's suggestions later remembers her and works with that.) Mind you, I do wish they'd give Maria LaGuerta some professional work again instead of limiting her to the marital storyline with Angel. (Remember when LaGuerta put that head in front of the fake serial killer and got him to blubber back in s1? That's what I'm talking about!) Not that their scenes aren't good - and btw, thank you, show, for not making their first maital argument about jealousy or something like that but about money or rather their respective attiitudes towards same - but damn it, the character is capable of so much more.
Methinks between Quinn's "you've always been the strong one" from last week and this week's conversation between Dexter and Deb about being siblings complete with Deb's "I'd never have made it without you", we ARE being set up for the Deb-finds-out-tale, aka the worst test of the strength imaginable.
Lastly, good to know that the fact the entire Mitchell clan can identify Dexter isn't dropped after last season. I do love my continuity.
First of all, I do hope the absence of Cody and Aster is only temporary because I've been fearing this ever since Paul's never before mentioned parents showed up in late s4. To be fair, I can see the necessity of that plot device in that the premise of the show is the serial-killer thing, and given the show made a great deal of Dexter hardly getting any killing done early last season because of the new baby when Rita was there to take care of all three children as well, it would stretch belief that he'd manage to maintain his night life AND take care of all three children by himself. All this being said, Aster and Cody better be back by the time the season finale rolls on, because as this very episode and the entire previous show points out, these relationships are tremendously important. Incidentally, the reactions of the children - Cody wanting to stay, and Aster channelling her grief via blaming Dexter and wanting to leave - struck me as realistic and ic for them. And that scene of both of them staring at the bath tub was just... guh.
No head!Rita. I was sort of prepared for that since Julie Benz has a new show and didn't show up in the credits unlike last episode, but had hoped against hope anyway. Hmph.
I really did like that Dexter notices details again; it's been a while since we saw him do some real detecting, so not only is this a good reminder that he is smart, but it makes the interesting point that the sheer process of putting a puzzle together, of following a lead, is as addictive/important to him as the violence. Also (though I do wish the script hadn't been so anvilly and trusted us to figure that out by ourselves at the end) that when he finally has the evidence that roadkill!guy is in fact a serial killer, the old satisfaction and anticipation of killing is missing because he gets the human implication now. (We're a far cry from first season Dexter finding the body parts the Ice Truck Killer left for him and going "wow, this guy is an artist".) I just wonder whether this effect of Rita's death will be temporary or not...
Speaking of roadkill!guy, as most cases of the week, he's a reflection of Dexter himself - well, of aspects; in this case, the deceptively harmless man who nonetheless turns out to be deeply observant (the impromptu post mortem about the raccoon was great), hiding his kills by dumping them in the water. Meanwhile, the case the MYPD is working on this week seems to introduce a new character. I'm all for Deb having interactions with other women, so colour me intrigued. (And I liked that Deb while at first dismissing the officer's suggestions later remembers her and works with that.) Mind you, I do wish they'd give Maria LaGuerta some professional work again instead of limiting her to the marital storyline with Angel. (Remember when LaGuerta put that head in front of the fake serial killer and got him to blubber back in s1? That's what I'm talking about!) Not that their scenes aren't good - and btw, thank you, show, for not making their first maital argument about jealousy or something like that but about money or rather their respective attiitudes towards same - but damn it, the character is capable of so much more.
Methinks between Quinn's "you've always been the strong one" from last week and this week's conversation between Dexter and Deb about being siblings complete with Deb's "I'd never have made it without you", we ARE being set up for the Deb-finds-out-tale, aka the worst test of the strength imaginable.
Lastly, good to know that the fact the entire Mitchell clan can identify Dexter isn't dropped after last season. I do love my continuity.
no subject
Date: 2010-10-05 02:23 pm (UTC)Did you notice the colours? The deep blue-purples for grief, the intense reds for Angel's jealousy, the way the sun would blast down, then it would cut to dark night and low visibility.
I really want to know what Dexter did with the random guy's body from the first episode.
no subject
Date: 2010-10-05 06:39 pm (UTC)Mitchell's family probably sees them as their liberator, yes. But I bet they don't want to see him again, and not just because they don't want him caught. Too many bad memories.
Colours: I hadn't noticed consciously, but now that you mention it...