Warning: If you haven’t seen Season 4 (2009-2010), the following information may prove to be spoiler-worthy.
Rarely have I seen such high expectations for the next season of a drama series. Entering its fifth season on Sunday night, Showtime’s Dexter has a lot of pressure on its shoulders: After Season 4’s finale cliffhanger, how can the show about everyone’s favourite serial killer pull off another attention-grabbing season? Who could surpass John Lithgow (last season’s guest star) a scene-stealer extraordinaire?
For those in the dark, Dexter is a popular TV show starring Michael C. Hall as Dexter Morgan, a blood splatter specialist who kills other serial killers. His sister Deb also works at the Miami Police Department, and in the past few seasons he entered into a romantic relationship with Rita, having a child of his own with her.
After viewing the first three episodes of the fifth season, I can safely say Dexter keeps the thrills coming. But no, there’s no one to rival Lithgow’s talent. And now as a single dad due to Rita’s savage death, Dexter battles his Dark Passenger now more than ever.
The first episode takes us right into the action: Dexter is shocked by seeing his wife murdered in their home’s bathtub, eventually kneeling on the lawn in full view of police and muttering, “It’s me.” The FBI get interested in Dexter and soon he’s not only fighting guilt but also maneuvering around FBI agents trying to find out if he committed the crime.
In this season, Dexter and his sister share many more emotional scenes. Funny enough, Hall and Jennifer Carpenter, who plays Deb, are married in real life, so it’s interesting to see how they play off each in Dexter as platonic siblings. There are some touching moments when Deb tries to comfort Dexter when he spits venom at itself, once again blaming himself for Rita’s murder. Deb has been there before — her ex-lover was killed in the fourth season.
Another storyline developed in season five relates to the romances blossoming in the police department. Newly married Bautista and LaGuerta fight over money and bar brawls, while Quinn enters into a dalliance with a co-worker. This storyline feels rushed, and often detracts from Dexter’s inner crisis, but perhaps the writers wanted some love to bloom when all is blood and guts with the serial killer.
And rest assured, fans, Dexter delivers with his kills. If you ever wanted to see the slow pleasure he gets from making his “kill room”, the third episode won’t disappoint.
To be honest, something is missing from the first few episodes of this season. Nothing truly keeps us riveted like the Trinity Killer of season four. Dexter’s target is ho-hum compared to Trinity. Instead, Dexter’s personality shines through a bit clearer and his appetite for murder becomes more apparent with each episode. While it’s too early to make a definitive statement about season, it’s safe to say season five should pick up the pace and introduce us to a storyline that can be as exciting as any on the show. Otherwise, we might find this season somewhat…bloodless.
Season five of Dexter debuts on Showtime on Sunday Sept. 26, 10 p.m. ET
