Spoilers. Dexter's third season finale is undoubtedly the weakest in the show's short but illustrious history, but it still contained a handful of great moments and some exciting sequences. What sustained it, beyond the typically excellent performance of Michael C. Hall, was a thirst to see everything resolve itself. And it does, in a slightly underwhelming fashion...Miguel Prado (Jimmy Smits) is dead; garrotted and left sprawled in a park to be discovered by a jogger, with patches of missing skin leading police to believe The Skinner has struck again. Dexter assumes his frame-job has put events to bed, meaning he can concentrate on his wedding, but it appears that Miguel's brother Ramon (Jason Manuel Olazabal) suspects our blood-spatter analyst of foul play…
For Deb (Jennifer Carpenter), her recent successes on the Skinner case results in her finally being given her detective's badge, after Angel (David Zayas) recommends her promotion to Lt. Laguerta (Lauren Velez). Unfortunately, Deb's secret tryst with criminal informant Anton (David Ramsey) is revealed soon after, and looks likely to make Laguerta change her mind.
Secrets and lies are the backbone of this episode, really. Dexter's whole life and interactions are based on a lie, but it soon becomes clear how many other characters have secrets to keep: Deb's unprofessional relationship with a man involved in her case, Angel's low ebb search for a prostitute, Laguerta knowing venerated A.D.A Miguel was actually a murderer, Ramon keeping his brother's "darkness" in check behind-the-scenes, the fact Harry (James Remar) slept with Dex's biological mother Laura Moser (a secret Deb is close to discovering, next season most likely), and the unexpected news that Rita (Julie Benz) was briefly married in her teens (making Dex her "third charm" husband, not her second.)
Involving Ramon in this finale was one of its few surprises, as it became clear Miguel had asked his brother to protect him from Dexter. And, following Miguel's death, Ramon naturally assumed Dex was behind it (which he was) and causes a few shockwaves -- having Dex's apartment searched, before aiming a gun at Dex in a crowded restaurant. One of the finale's best scenes was a simple two-hander between Dex and the arrested Ramon in a prison interview room, with Dex managing to annul Ramon's threat in a non-violent way, by removing his emotional thorn.
The big event of "Do You Take Dexter Morgan?" was the inevitable return of The Skinner/Mr. King, whom Miguel had acquired the services of. Believing Dex knows the whereabouts of Freebo (the missing murder suspect of Oscar Prado, who stole money from King), Dex is captured and tied to a wooden table by scrawny rope. It's a table-turning moment fans have been waiting for, so it's a pity it was reduced to a mere ten minutes of screentime. Having Dex at the mercy of another serial-killer could have fuelled an entire episode or two, but this finale squandered that potential.
Still, it was a tense ten minutes. In a memorable and tender scene, the Jimminy Cricket-style Harry appeared to Dex as he lay helpless, more plausibly existing as a subsconscious figment of Dex's imagination. Here, despite feeling inordinately calm in this situation, Dex realizes he wants to fight to live (for his fiancé and fatherhood), and even sheds a tear -- albeit through the artifice of his paternal hallucination.
Acting on some forensic evidence, Deb and a police squad construe where The Skinner is hiding and race to the warehouse where Dex is being held. Concurrently, Dex puts his escape plan into action: rocking the wooden table over, to break his hand and allow him to slip free of his bonds. Once free, Dex manages to fake King's suicide by pushing him off a balcony into an oncoming police car, before making his escape and fleeing to his wedding.
Once the nuptials are over, surrounded by friends, a portentuous droplet of blood seeps from Dex's hand wound as he dances with Rita, staining Mrs. Morgan's pure white dress behind her back…
Overall, I enjoyed this episode a fair amount, but there was a noticeable lack of tension without Miguel around -- such was the brilliance of Jimmy Smits this year. The Skinner hasn't been a terribly effective villain (his alliance with Miguel still doesn't make much sense, either), and it was a shame there wasn't a thirteenth episode to sustain the tension of Dexter's capture. It would have been nice to have Deb rescue her brother, too (reversing the roles of season 1's finale), and for Rita to grow anxious over her fiance's lateness at the church -- but the plot took a more truncated, lacklustre route.
Fortunately, there was enough good to ensure this finale wasn't a total dud. The Ramon situation was unexpectedly good (I particularly liked the reveal that Miguel's abusive father anecdote was stolen from his brother's life, and how Dex helped Ramon find peace), and the Skinner/Dex situation was short-but-sweet. It was also easy to share in Deb's joy over getting her badge, as that's been one of season 3's stronger threads. It's a shame I can't say the same over Angel and Barbara's boring love-match -- or Quinn (Desmond Harrington), whose back-story was disappointingly tedious and limp.
Unlike season's past, there wasn't a final sting to get you excited about what the future could hold for Dex, but several plot-strands are left flapping in the breeze at pointers: Deb will likely join the dots over Harry and Laura, to realize Dex is her half-brother, not just an orphaned adoptee; Rita's first husband can't go unmentioned (is Rita a bigamist? Is her first husband the father of her kids?); the Angel/Barbara and Deb/Anton couplings look likely to continue; and, of course, Dex is about to become a father. So he'll have to juggle his killing with the demands of a family. Will Rita be less forgiving of his unexplained absences now he's made a real commitment to her? Where's he going to keep his box of blood slides?
Season 3 is my least favourite of Dexter's tryptch, but it certainly found form half-way through, and was unquestionably thicker with characters and incident. It just lacked the spark, vitality and darkness of season 1 and 2. Maybe the loss of exec-producer Daniel Cerone had an effect on story-breaking? Or maybe Dexter's premise will inevitably dilute as time marches on? Whatever the reason, I'm still excited about season 4 -- but I don't envy the writers having to think up a worthwhile story to sustain another dozen episodes.
14 December 2008
Showtime, 9/8c
Writer: Scott Buck
Director: Keith Gordon
Cast: Michael C. Hall (Dexter), Jennifer Carpenter (Deb), C.S. Lee (Masuka), Lauren Velez (LaGuerta), David Zayas (Angel), James Remar (Harry), Julie Benz (Rita), Desmond Harrington (Quinn), Jason Manuel Olazabal (Ramon), Christina Robinson (Astor), Preston Bailey (Cody), Tasia Sherel (Francis), Jeremy Overstreet (Deputy #1), Jane McLean (Tammy), Jimmy Smits (Miguel), Mary Alyce Kania (Karen) & James Moses Black (Sgt. Whitaker)
