Of all the ways Dexter's attempted to refresh its formula over the years, few things work as well as a simple change of venue. Don't get me wrong, bright and shiny Miami's an inspired setting for a show about inner darkness, but after six seasons the turquoise horizons and wafting Latin rhythms have grown slightly tired. While the appropriately titled "Nebraska" took a major turn into self-mythologizing territory by bringing back two familiar faces from past seasons, the newer, dustier visuals of Nebraska were just straight-up refreshing. Seriously, something about seeing Dexter Morgan in the heartland just worked, and it elevated a medium-quality episode into something much stronger.
If you recall, last week's mixed-bag episode nonetheless ended with a heaping dash of crazy: The surprise reappearance of Dexter's estranged, now-murdered, serial killer brother Bryan. I think we all agreed he'd end up being merely a figment of Dexter's imagination and this episode established that fact right away. (Now if only we can just come to some agreement about Professor Gellar's continued existence...) "Nebraska" opened with Dexter and Bryan enjoying some quality body-dumping time on Slice of Life, with Dexter's voiceover intoning that after having felt so lost for so long he'd "finally been found." And it was true: For at least a few scenes the presence of Bryan helped energize Dexter somewhat, pushing him far closer to loose-cannon status than he's been since the wild-eyed boat trip he took right after Rita's murder. Unfortunately Bryan's intriguing devil-on-your-shoulder influence ended up being pretty one-note for the remainder of the episode, as he mainly just chanted a variation of "Go on, do it" over and over and over. Still though, it was pretty nice seeing a familiar face, particularly one that hearkened back to such an amazing first season.
The main plot kicked off when Deb called Dexter into her office and informed him in measured, sympathetic tones that the Trinity Killer had struck again, this time finishing off his wife and daughter who'd been living in witness protection in Nebraska. Dexter knew he'd personally murdered the great John Lithgow character, but Deb and everyone else believed the killer had gotten away after murdering Rita. Deb's empathetic instructions for Dexter to take the rest of the day off resulted in Dexter taking four days off so he and his ghost brother could cruise over to Nebraska and confront the lone surviving Trinity Killer kin, his troubled jock son Jonah (Brando Eaton). While Season 4 established that Jonah was a frightened, ineffectual victim, Dexter immediately came to believe that the kid's killer instinct had kicked in, which seemed to have grim implications for Harrison, Jr.'s future as well.
As I said earlier, the new scenery was a welcome change, and more importantly it coincided with a few personality shifts in Dexter as well. For one thing, he was a bit of a player, managing to score a backroom quickie with a convenience store clerk. It turns out ladies love pickup lines that involve murdered parents. Yeah, I know, the ultimate objective was to steal the cashier's revolver, but still: Dexter was kind of a stud? Later on Dexter also ran aground of his hillbilly motel proprietor when he stumbled upon a hidden pot farm and the hick retaliated by stealing Dexter's knives. Now, generally when I break into strangers' trunks and find elaborate sets of unusual knives that only serial killers would use, I just leave them be. Unfortunately this guy tried to ransom them and ended up with a pitchfork to the chest (again, at Bryan's urging that Dexter not be so methodical with his murderin'). This spontaneous killing broke basically every rule of Harry's code, but even Dexter admitted he'd gotten a thrill from it.
The main storyline came to a head when Dexter investigated Jonah's story and concluded he'd definitely lied about his supposed run-in with the Trinity Killer, and a few homemade forensics tests bore out that Jonah had altered the crime scene. That was enough for Bryan to urge Dexter to take care of business, but it turned out Jonah's story was more complex. His sister had committed suicide and he'd only attacked his mother out of anger for having essentially put the sister up to it. The clencher was when Jonah begged for Dexter to kill him too, to put him out of his psychic misery over what had happened. The fact that Dexter declined and let the kid go was probably the strongest link to Brother Sam's final words yet. Dexter not only had to force Bryan out of his head (and indeed caused him to disintegrate), he had to find it within himself to empathize with Jonah's actions and then, sort of, forgive him. It was a nice moment, if ultimately pretty anticlimactic. As if to tie everything up with a big, blunt, metaphorical bow, on his drive back to Miami, Dexter stopped to pick up a hitchhiking Harry. Dexter was done with his darker impulses and ready to embrace the code once again.
As for the Doomsday Killer (now referred to by the detectives as "DDK"), the once awesome plotline continued its descent into don't-caresville. Travis continued to have cold feet about his involvement with Professor Gellar and even quit their little club. Unfortunately, this week's episode didn't offer anymore major clues as to whether or not Travis is imagining the continued existence of his possibly dead professor, and in fact attempted to make us believe otherwise by having Professor Gellar appear to be doing things independently of Travis. He didn't do anything more tangible than anything, say, Tyler Durden might have done in Fight Club, but still. This was a good episode for people holding out hope that Professor Gellar's real. I definitely don't think he's real and for that reason alone this whole plotline has become a total snooze for me. But I don't know. Prove me wrong, show!
Around Miami Metro, more progress was made on the DDK case when the escaped "whore" gave a harrowing account of her nightmarish blindfolded experience in their lair (including hearing two distinct voices but never actually seeing their owners). Masuka's handsome dork intern Louis then successfully cyberhacked (?) a list of possible DDK accomplices to a more manageable 200, including Travis. These developments were particularly heartening for Deb, who'd just been publicly humiliated by LaGuerta for her high rate of unsolved murders (despite the fact that most were on LaGuerta's watch).
Probably the best non-Dexter Morgan scene this week was Deb and Quinn's highly emotional yet amazingly mature breakup scene. Yes, they were already technically broken up, but this one really finalized it in a mature way. Both acknowledged their mistakes, apologized, kissed a little, and then agreed they should only be friends. It seriously made Quinn and Deb instantly more sympathetic and was one of the better written scenes on this show all season. Credit where credit's due!
Finally, how awful does this video game look??
A videogame ABOUT Miami Metro? Is it called Failure: The Game? Louis, don't quit your unpaid day job.
All in all, a strong, if not mind-blowing episode. I don't know about you, but seeing Dexter out of his element was a pretty exciting change of pace. Maybe Season 7 will be one long road trip? Fingers crossed!
RANDOM BLOOD SPLATTERS:
... What did you think of the Ice Truck Killer's return?
... How weird was it seeing Dexter speeding up the freeway shooting at street signs?
... What are your updated theories about Professor Gellar's realness? Did anything change your mind this week one way or the other?
... LaGuerta: The Worst Ever or The Worst of All Time?
... What state should Dexter visit next?
People were wondering if Bryan was something more than a figment of Dexter's imagination? Seriously? Come on, people - the guy was dead. How could he possibly have been anything else?
I enjoyed this one - liked the callback to Trinity - but there were few surprises. I figured Jonah wouldn't really be a stone-cold killer and there was more to the tale. I got bored with Bryan early on and was pleased to see him go by the end of the episode - if he'd continued beyond this one I'd have been miffed. And, yes, I'm also getting a little bored with Geller and Travis. They definitely don't have the sinister charisma of previous Big Bads. Perhaps it's the fact that they're acting independantly of Dexter, whereas the others were engaged in a battle of wills with him. There's no connection there.moreless
I hated this episode. Yes, it was great to see Bryan/Rudy's return, but it just made me think Dexter is as psychotic/delusional as Travis.
It was great to see Dexter give in and admit that it's the thrill of the kill, to see the light die from his victim's eyes that gets him going, rather than his "I need to do it because I saw my mom die" BS (okay, granted, it's more complex than just that...)
Dexter...using a gun? Really? Let's go back to knives, please.
LaGuerta should just die. Like she did in the books.
This episode was just plain sucky.
This episode confirmed in my mind what I had suspected for some time now, Professor Gellar is not "real" - my only remaining concern was the ability of "imagined" influences to physically alter/interact with the real world and specifically the characters. Seeing Bryan wield the pitchfork and in a change of POV we see Dexter is really holding it.
renewed for 2 more seasons bitches.....!!!! yea.........!!!!!!!!!!
this season definitly needed this episode..... enjoyed it a lot.....
and as for LaGuerta....... the worst of all time......hands down......!
That was an extremely silly episode. Much of this season has been silly, come to that. But I'm enjoying it.
Worst. Episode. Ever.
funny.......
As for Gellar, I'm still leaning towards the fact that he died some time ago and is now in the mind of Travis -- based on the voices the "whore" heard, he may have some sort of DID/MPD. The funny thing, of course, is that if the writers show a scene in the next couple episodes where it really seems like Gellar isn't real, rather than say "Ha! I knew it," I'd probably hop the fence and start believing that he's real. I'm either smart for thinking that serial dramas usually have a twist in the final few episodes (and therefore, a twist in the middle is just a bluff), or I'm just crazy.
Despite my dislike for the reappearance of Bryan, for a second there I was kind of hoping that Bryan would actually convince Dexter to abandon his moral code (at least for a few episodes) and that it would result in him somehow killing LaGuerta. It doesn't make much sense to the plot and would probably harm the characterization of Dexter, but I was willing to take that chance at the hope of seeing LaGuerta killed. I HATE her. She is the worst of all time, ever.
What is this obsession of Gellar being already dead and "imaginary"? I follow Dexter episodes very closely, watching for small details; what the writers hint at... And, I was SO confused reading this recap, until he clearly stated his opinion that Gellar was dead (and, therefore, that made the episode a "snooze" for him). What?!! NOTHING I've seen has pointed to this. Watching the show with this in mind is a waste of time, and you're setting yourself up for disappointment. I'm not going to say it's impossible-- I leave anything up for a possibility until the story's over. BUT-- literally nothing points to this!
Don't hate on a show just because it isn't adding up with your made-up stories. Instead of getting mad because it doesn't "mesh," how about, realize it's not meshing because you're off-track.
Just allow the show to happen. Let it unfold. Gellar is Travis' mentor. His "elder" and "Pope"... Travis viewed him as the one who could talk to God. But, now he's questioning. Travis is on his own individual quest, and Gellar is a living, outside force representing the bull-headedness of extremist religion. The judgmental, spiteful, vengeful parent. Someone who puts the blame on "God," when it's really his actions.moreless
There is only one thing that points to that: the fact that in the seven episodes so far nothing points to the fact that he is real.
I think of it as a commentary on religion. I'm not sure if the writers meant it that way, but so far, there is no way to prove Geller is real but also no way to prove he is not. It is (as of now at least) an accurate comparison to organized religion.
Apparently they meant it exactly that way - as interviews will testify to. And I don't think you really need to read the interviews - it's hardly been subtle. You have a killer (or killers) who have a religious motivation for their crimes. You have Dexter wrestling with his son's religious and moral education. And then you have the introduction of Brother Sam, who can have intense regliious debates with our hero. As an athiest, I have to say, it's not been my favourite plotline.
LaGuerta: Please get rid of her already. She makes women in the workplace look so bad! It is as if the writers at the start sat around the table and tossed around the worst work cliches of all time about women as middle managers and LaGuerta was born. The only thing more repulsive than her manipulative power-plays are her smarmy moments of insecurity and vulnerability. I am normally not one for catfighting but does it make me a bad person that I want to see Deb scratch her eyes out?
"does it make me a bad person that I want to see Deb scratch her eyes out?" LOL -- Nope.
Who knows, she may be the replacement for the Whore of Babylon...
OMg! My guy said the exact same thing about laguerta being the replacement whore! LOL
I know we're supposed to hate LaGuerta, but I have to say she's becoming very boring and I wouldn't mind seeing the back of her.
First episode of the the whole Dexter show that I didn't enjoy .. don't know why, but it just didn't feel right to me. I was getting bored halfway through. Maybe it was the ITK costant childish "kill him, kill him" (Seriously, they could have made his script a little bit more entertaining), or the fact that I still miss brother Sam .. maybe I was just tired. Who knows. Let's hope for a better ep. next week.
Enjoyed the episode...still miss Brother Sam.
I thought it was weird that in the aerial road trip shots Dexter's car was a bad CGI.
i checked it and checked it again......i dont kno wat ur talking about.....???
Video game screenshot looks like it's from the horrifically bad iPad/PC Dexter game: http://wireless.ign.com/objects/142/14238611.html
Laguerda showing up randomly for a quick bitchfest (with lines not witty enough to make it entertaining) is just a bore. I've never been a fan of hers, but there's more to this character that 30 seconds reminders of the pressure Miami PD's hierarchy is putting on Lt. Debra. We either need to see more of her (and learn what happened since she was promoted) or get rid of those sketchy scenes (and maybe her).
Firstly doesn't anyone think the girl Dexter had sex with on the road was really hot (and kinda young) ... ;)
At first I never even considered that Professor Gellar wasn't real until I started reading the comments here. Now I think that Travis murdered Professor Gellar at some stage since there is evidence that he did exist earlier. Where is the body though? I'm guessing that when Professor Gellar's body is revealed later on then it will confirm he was a figment of Travis's imagination.
Something that is sticking in the back of my mind though is in one of the previous episodes Travis was seen collecting jars of his own blood in the fridge. I can't help being reminded of a show or movie I saw once where the killer faked his own death by leaving such a large amount of blood at the crime scene that the police's only conclusion was that the person must be dead. Could this be it ...
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"Travis was seen collecting jars of his own blood in the fridge"
It's because they were making the 'whore' drink the blood
yea yea...
Hmmm that's true :)
Another intense and great episode into Dexter's inner journey. Last week I wrote: "While he may now seek refuge in his brother to avoid the suffering, I believe it is temporary. Dexter has to exorcise his brother through Harrison before he can move into a lighter shade of life. The Jonah story, next week, is a perfect setup for that." and that is exactly what happened.
Dexter has shown sadness, again, when Jonah talked about his sister. We saw him shook out of Brian's influence when Jonah said: "I am my father's son". I think we've never seen Dexter so tortured: "What if this were my son?" The thought of Harrison, more than his link to Brother Sam, was the main motivation in Dexter's following actions. Nonetheless, we could feel the influence of Sam when Dexter told Jonah to forgive himself.
Dexter didn't run over Brian Moser with his car... he ran over the old Dexter. He had to hit rock botttom, return to his darkest self, in order to exorcise it.
Now he his ready to meet his greatest and final test: his confrontation with Travis/Gellar...
Man, that is going to be Epic.moreless
You hit the nail on the head. I couldn't agree more that this episode really keyed in Dexter's emotional maturation. Since Dexter first began to question the code of Harry, his methods, action and purpose, we have seen Dexter taking long-held beliefs and examining them to determine their true relevance within the context of his life. Just as children are taught to "never talk to strangers," as they mature they learn this edict may have served literally during adolescence but as an adult such a worldview modifier would make for a very narrow social circle. Dexter has been examining his closely held beliefs, questioning them to determine if they still feel true, and, as we saw with him picking up Harry at the close of this episode, reaffirming those which still resonate within his more mature worldview.
Further, Dexter has been stretched and has grown as a person thanks to his relationships with unexpected people who compel Dexter to question his views and open himself in unexpected ways, people like Harrison, Lumen and Brother Sam. It is not insignificant that each of these people represent or have a connection to the light for Dexter. Through Harrison Dexter learns that he can also create life and joy as well as death, through Lumen he learned that he truly could love and be loved for himself, rather than project an artifice as he did with Rita, and through Brother Sam he learned forgiveness and temperance and perhaps that he not so irredeemable as he thought. Throughout all of this we are faced with an undeniable reality: Dexter is neither a psychopath nor a sociopath. He is able to establish genuine relationships, experience true intimacy, and in his own fashion, has a deeply ingrained sense of morality by which he operates in the world.
I truly appreciate that the writers allowed Dexter to synthesize the impact Brother Sam had on his life and his perspective within this episode. In real life people do not have grand psychological epiphanies and integrate them into their perspective in a neat and tidy 45 minutes, and it is fabulous that the writers let Dexter sort it out in his own time and way rather than insulting our intelligence by cramming it into the last episode. It was brilliant to have Brian, who symbolizes for Dexter the wild, unfettered killer, ride along with Dexter as explores what turning away from the code completely would mean to him. I believe Dexter is slowly growing to the day when he no longer needs to have Harry or Brian because he is comfortable taking responsibility for his own life.moreless
I'm glad Dexter picked up his "Light" again, but I will miss Brian - his low key evilness made for an intriguing companion to Dexter.
DDK??! I didn't know what the hell that was until halfway through and every time Deb said it just made me cringe cause it sounded soo horrible. I thought Doomsday Killer was bad enough (horrible Superman reference ripoff) but yep, Dexter managed to bitch it up even more. Pathetic. Fail.
You got soft Price... maybe it was all that heckling from last week by deluded fans that made you soft. There was barely any improvement this episode. This whole season just seems like a huge filler and the payoff?... Guaranteed people will be disappointed.
Did anyone notice how Brian's ghost was always eating during the episode? It wasn't like Dexter was eating at the same time, just Brian. Was the actor just hungry during all that shooting or what, lol?
I thought that was just another small way to show how similar they are as brothers. Didn't Dexter (in the beginning of the series at least) eat all the time?
lol that's all I kept thinking the entire show too; are figments of your imagination suppose to eat??
You would be surprised what psychotic patients have their hallucination do... This is nothing.
This and the last episode were quite obviously fillers... if Brother Sam hadn't died Dexter would have confronted Travis by now, it's seems that the writers have just been spinning their wheels since then, so hopefully next week things will get better.
I've never had any problem with Harry's presence as a part of Dexter's 'conscience' but Brian's appearance was just plain weird, and greatly differed to the role Harry played. Since when do Dark Passengers need to eat? And buy Nebraska related t-shirts? Ridiculous!
Brian is not Dexter's Dark Passenger, he is an hallucination. So, we saw him as Dexter imagine him.
Loved it! I think the show needed the kick in the pants.
I found this episode disappointing. There was almost no progress made: Dexter turns to the dark side and comes back again, Jonah enters and exits the storyline for no apparent reason. Brian returns and leaves again. And for all that Dexter drives to Nebraska and back.
I believe the only relevant thing happening this episode is the 'whore of Babylon' talking about her abduction to Miami Metro Police.
It seems that it's getting more and more difficult for the writers to come up with exciting storylines that last for a season. I've always been a big Dexter fan, I hope they prove me wrong in the remaining episodes!
LaGuerta needs to DIE
Based on her screen time this season, I wouldn't be surprised if she did kick rocks off a cliff by seasons end.
God yes
I thought Bryan made Dexter's Dark passenger persona more tangible. He really was more of a Tyler Durden relation this time and I liked. We saw Dexter struggling at first, then accepting his brother, they where one and the same. The scene were he killed the pot armer was cool in that we saw that this time Bryan and Dexter are one and the same, even if he is being more clearly manipulated. Where Harry is just a sort of conscience and never really DOES anything for Dexter.
I really enjoyed the little detail at the beginning of Bryan responding to Dexter's internal monologue.