“Dexter” — The Dark Defender
In a series so full of repressed emotion, it can be genuinely startling to see our (anti?)hero really act out. Michael C. Hall can play silently creepy better than just about anyone, but this week we really got to see him act big, maybe for the first time (I was never a Six Feet Under die-hard, so perhaps others have seen this from him before). Acting big isn’t enough to make a good performance (though it can fool many), but Hall brought so much pain to his performance — I’m specifically referring to the scene where he confronts his mother’s killer — you absolutely had to sit back and say, “Yes. This is it. This is awesome.” More after the jump…
Dexter has always had problems with secondary characters, either in that they are written too flat or too broad or too — I don’t know — bald? Lila, on the other hand, is a revelatory presence for the series. And while her behavior often leans a tad too close to the I’m written as what some staff writer thinks a cool, quirky, hot chick would be like mold she also has a very sympathetic and dark side that perfectly plays off Dexter’s displeasure with emoting in front of others. Because of this we finally have a character that allows Dexter to be himself. Last season I wrongly predicted the character’s confrontation with his also-killer brother left no room for the series to expand emotionally, that the one obstacle Dexter couldn’t overcome was discovering his own past and once this transpired we were left with a character now existing without purpose (aside from his general interest in murdering murderers). This year the battle is much more about rehabilitation and fighting with oneself over their ultimate fate, perhaps even richer ground for drama.
Last year it was wildly fun learning about how Dexter had gotten by all these years with his endless rules and monologues and curious justifications and his feeling of general powerlessness in doing any sort of course correction in his life whatsoever, and (as unsettling as it may have been) living vicariously through these killer instincts. This year the series has brilliantly maneuvered an invisible one-eighty, now denying us our own bloodlust as the character finally achieves a relationship that asks him to do a little legwork and show a little trust. Perhaps most surprising is he has responded.
The rest of the show is still a bit of a mixed bag. I appreciate Deb’s story this year as it gives her character some depth and rounds the edges a little and makes her more than a damsel in distress, but week to week it’s still wildly uneven. I think we all saw “The Ice Princess†reveal about a mile away. The character is interesting, just not written particularly well or given enough to do. The biggest asset to Deb’s presence this season has been Lundy, whose calm presence masterfully counters her frantic, sometimes illogical, nature. While I hated her scenes with Gabriel and her incessant snooping, I absolutely loved the stuff with her and Lundy on the dock.
Doakes and LaGuerta is still a bit of a waste for me. I don’t care about them as characters and see their presence as nothing more than plot obstacles for everyone else. Here is hoping over the second half of this season they’ll be given something more worthwhile to do.
Lila, on the other hand, I’ll take as much of her as they’re willing to give.
