I recently re-watched one of Showtime’s biggest hits, Dexter, and wanted to share a few thoughts on it. This review contains spoilers, so be warned.
As you may or may not know, I have never been to keen into drama series, or any type of series other than comedy. The first time I watched Dexter, it was a heavy snowstorm weekend in which my girlfriend at the time was visiting me. Surrounded by feet of snow, she persuaded me to watch this new series about a serial killer of which she was already on the fourth season (Dexter was about to air season six finale, and she wanted to catch up to watch the season ending episode live). With not many options available at my disposal, I tagged along. That said, I will share my experience as I lived it during that dark, snowy and romantic weekend.
I found the first season pleasantly surprising. The series start a bit clumsy, as it normally happens with most series, with main characters trying to find their way through the plot. Dexter himself is a very strong character, whose motivations are easy to understand, which makes him appealing to a lot of audiences. His love interest Rita, starts off well, but unfortunately becomes generic, predictable and downright boring. I did not anticipate her being for too long in the series. I liked Debra and Sgt. Doakes, easily two of the best characters, and arguably the only ones who can go toe-to-toe with Dexter. Generally speaking, I acknowledged the quality of the series.
In terms of flaws or weaknesses, I have to refer to the main antagonist, Brian Moser. I did not see the need of him having to be romantically involved with Debra. He could have been part of the circle, and still be a major menacing presence that overshadowed Dexter’s side gig as a serial killer, which leads me to say that I also did not like that he was killed so early. It would probably have been better if it was written that he was able to escape from Dexter and remain looming Dexter’s life as the seasons went on. My guess is that the writers were not counting on the season being renewed, so they planned the series to have a fitting ending after the first season, which is why the second season starts so abruptly as if it were a brand new series.
More on the second season in a next entry.
HR