Dexter, Season 8 – Wow.

Spoiler Alert – Do not read this if you have not seen Episodes 1-4 in their entirety.

My father-in-law disagrees with me (the family who watches together stays together!), but I think this season, the final season, of Dexter is one of the finest. Right up there with the first few seasons. Let’s face it, even I started to get disinterested by the sixth season. Halfway through season 7, I looked at my partner and declared that if there was a season 8, it would be the last. There is no way they could have carried on with Deb knowing that Dexter is a serial killer. I was a little relieved, to be honest – I really love the Dexter story, and I am a big fan of sympathetic monsters; I didn’t want the story to end on a low note, which was really where I felt it was headed.

I have to get this piece of annoyance out of the way right away, so I can move on from it: WHY does he seem to be now the lead forensic investigator??? This change in character has been annoying me since last season (click here for a refresher). Dexter is a BLOOD SPATTER ANALYST. As a true-crime buff with a more-than-unhealthy interest in forensics, I know that this places him relatively low on the investigative totem pole. Dexter himself has even said, this season “Why me? I’m just the blood guy.”. So, starting last season, Dexter is all of a sudden a total crime scene and crime reenactment expert?? I am absolutely on board if Dexter had taken some courses during the hiatus between season 6 and 7…but no! Along comes humble Dex, just a blood guy – from the same writers who are making him a crime scene aficionado. I demand that the writers explain themselves. It is a very sore point with me, which is saying something because I rarely get so annoyed about plot holes or character inconsistencies.  It irks me to know that they either are oblivious, or that they see the inconsistency and just don’t give a shit. Either way, that is a very irresponsible way to end a very successful series.

SO!!!! What the royal hell, right?? I am loving this season so far, my previous rant notwithstanding.

Deb/Dex love/hate, with the hate flowing like lava. With their marriage and divorce playing out, is it just me or do you feel the actual rage towards MCH that Jennifer Carpenter must feel?? I see some serious ‘tapping into existing emotion’ happening there. Of course, no one will ever know what happened between them other than them – that is the only truth we know. That being said, I can’t help but feel like the anger Deb feels towards Dexter  is pretty close to the surface. And the dialogue between them outside the Deb/Briggs motel room? I felt so uncomfortable, like it was a private conversation they were having under the surface. Not so much loving the Deb/Dex love story thing…but again, I have said before that if a show makes me uncomfortable then it is doing it’s job in drawing in the viewer. I love the Deb storyline – did anyone see that coming? I surely did not, but now that it is happening I don’t see how it could possibly have gone any other way. I thought it was pretty suspect when she got on board so quickly with Dr. Vogel (is Charlotte Rampling not the PERFECT casting for this role???), but of course that explains itself at the end of episode 3 when she tries to kill herself and Dex.

Jamie/Quinn, if only because I love Quinn. I miss Quinn and Deb; I really liked them. Since both Jamie and Quinn factored into the season from the first episode, that means they will factor pretty heavily in the ending. Not sure how or why, but I know there are lingering feelings on Quinn’s side for Deb, if not on Deb’s side for him. Jamie is already the long-suffering new girlfriend, with Quinn being Deb’s new go-to guy. I wish I could see into the future, but aside from knowing something is going to happen here, I have no theories on what that will be. Yay??

Dr. Vogel as Creator. Of course Harry didn’t do it alone!!! We have to let Harry off the hook somehow, and what better way to do that then blame someone else? I have a few theories about this line: 1.) Vogel is killing off all the ‘patients’ she has ‘created’, and using Dexter to do it, before it gets out that she has created this legion of killers that could potentially go off the rails and out her; 2.) that’s really my only theory – as I was organizing them, I decided that was my best one. I love to be right, so here’s hoping!

I really hope they leave Harrison out of it. I had a heart attack in season 7 when Travis Marshall took him.

And really? Masuka with a kid? Not seeing the point of that storyline yet, but I guess there will be some loose-end tying as we go along..?

Let me know what you think, and I would love to hear your theories!