Really, all that was accomplished this season was for Dexter to realize it's theoretically possible for someone to accept him for who he is (but didn't he already know that, or did he think Harry was some huge, unrepeatable exception)? And Deb has inched a bit further to accepting the vigilante concept, but that's not an entirely new development, just an incremental one. When they killed off Rita last season, I was assuming (hoping?) that there was a damn good reason for it, and the payoff would be the show going places it otherwise couldn't, such as Dexter doing a total meltdown for the whole season, or using the Lumen plotline to set up Deb finding out the truth. But the minimal payoff this season makes Rita's death seem unwarranted in context. Did the writers just get sick of the "baggage" of having to write around Rita and the kids, and decided to shove them all rudely aside? Anyway, there better be some upshot to the progress made this season. Dexter should be taking the initiative to get people to accept him for who he is. We've passed the point where it's interesting to bite my fingernails worrying that Deb might stumble across the truth. Let's see how creative Dexter can be in setting up circumstances so he can tell her the truth, and not have it be an accident at all. And maybe he'll also try to sway Astor and Cody to his side. Maybe Astor should be the first family member to learn the truth? Otherwise, what do they have on tap for next season? Not more status quo, I hope. I was okay with the idea that the writers were taming Dexter down because I thought it was part of a master plan to keep Lumen in the story (but not on a regular basis, maybe she goes to prison but she and Dexter maintain their relationship). But since that didn't pan out, meh. If Dexter is going to become domesticated, they better have a damn good reason!!! Lumen might be damaged enough that it would "win her heart" but the real point of it would be to return this show to the idea of S1-S2, when Dexter was portrayed as someone who was not any better than those he killed, and the only reason he was limiting himself to "bad guys" was out of blind reverence for Harry's Code. That Dexter was perfectly capable of killing innocent people - he almost killed Deb in the S1 finale. He'd certainly be capable of drugging and manipulating Lumen. So yes, if this show were still written that way, Dexter could be portrayed as someone who is really no better than Jordan Chase. He's just operating under different constraints, that's all. I miss that Dexter. He's getting way too domesticated and the show is getting too conservative and cowardly. It's not on network TV, so what are they afraid of? I think there was some writer who left at the end of S2, wasn't there? And after that, I noticed the show lost a lot of its wit and terrifying edge. I don't think the current writers really "get" Dexter at the core, or they're afraid to write for a character like that. Get that S1-S2 guy back, drug him, I don't care!
I really like that idea, actually. It would be a nice change in the general story arc that all 5 seasons have (more or less) followed. Rather than Dex being on the run and focused on covering his tracks, have him actively setting a trail for her and nudging her along, without being obvious about it. Would lead to a good payoff in the end, too, so long as her reaction ends up being worth the buildup.
That's not stupid, but an incredibly smart move, as I believe that it was her intent to help the vigilantes kill Jordan Chase, or to off him herself, and backup would have made either of those ideas impossible. Remember, we've seen Deb express understanding, sympathy, and even admiration for her theoretical vigilantes, and her "affection" for them seemed to increase every time she broached the subject, particularly in her conversations with with Dexter. So much so that the idea of Deb directly exacting justice is certainly something that I could see her exploring. It's been clear to me for several episodes now, that Deb would either insure that the vigilantes would get away with it, or actually take part in their act of vengeance against Chase, particularly when/if she realized that Dex was involved. In fact, the only problem I've had with the season is that they telegraphed this so early on, and that when Deb actually did let them get away with it, it came as absolutely no surprise to me whatsoever. I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop, expecting that this obviously telegraphed revelation was designed to distract us from an even bigger revelation, which unfortunately never came.
Well, in the spirit of my last few posts, I figure that Deb will learn Dex's secret, (and vice versa) when they both show up to exact vigilante justice on the very same perp.
I dunno, the way Carpenter played it, I got the impression Deb had no idea what she was going to do, and only decided on the spur of the moment, after giving her speech from behind the curtain, to let them go. She's always been impulsive, especially in high-pressure situations, but I don't think she had really fully convinced herself by that point that she would help them. She was still deeply conflicted. Even as she left and let them go, I got the impression she was still doubting whether she was making the right call.
Point of order: Harry killed himself shortly after he actually saw Dexter kill someone, so Harry doesn't really count as someone who completely accepted him.
Maybe Deb will find out about Dexter when she and Dex are put into a situation where they will be forced to kill someone, outside of the law. I hope they put Doakes into all of this as well. When LaGuerta finds out... that too will be interesting.
Well, this season finale was one hell of a reset button episode. Deb fails to find out about Dexter in one of the most contrived ways possible, Lumen is probably gone for good, Rita's kids are back with Dexter etc. Very disappointed compared to Season 4's game-changer finale (plus, it had John Lithgow whose sheer brilliance made Season 4 one of my favorite Dexter seasons besides Season 1 ).
I'm very disappointed. I could write a big long post about everything wrong with the finale. And there's so much I could complain about (Like what about the car crash!? ANOTHER one? Really!? What happened to that fresh car accident? Did Deb just drive by it? Did the police just ignore it?! Are you seriously telling me Dexter didn't possibly leave blood behind?!), but it's late... Blech. By far the worst season.
Well, it wasn't great, but I find it funny that people say "let Dexter go out on a good note, this is a great season", then "I'm never watching again" in the span of a week. It wasn't THAT bad. I know a lot of you (I can't do it personally, my imagination is lame), sit around and think up how shows are going to end episodes or years in advance, and when it actually comes time for season finales, there's something awesome built up in your head that makes anything that airs seem lame. Everybody wanted Deb to find out this season, so now that she hasn't, the season is the worst ever?
The sloppiness of this season can be redeemed if they actually use it to fuel the plot. Dexter was careless even within the unlikely confines of the show's premise. All these things he did wrong or badly this year would be the perfect fuel for a reveal next season. Having Lumen 'cured' was lame, no real argument against that. Having her remain damaged but refusing to go down that path any further, trying to drag Dexter with her out of the dark as he deals with coming under increased suspicion from all his fuckups this year and the slow boil of pressure from his 'dark passenger'. . . that would be a good story, especially if it reveals him in the end and sets up a final blowout season. .
Holy fuck if I went on a rave every time some ignoramus posted "could of", "had of" or "I liked it better THEN...." or, the worst offender "I could care less..." that's ALL I'd be doing on the damned boards!!! I post ONE inappropriate use of a latin term and some pedant calls me on it! Yeah, yeah I know what a deus ex machina is. I was just trying to find the nearest term.....I guess what I really meant was "convenient plot device".
I do think that Season 5 was probably the weakest so far. This hasn't much to do with Deb not finding out about Dexter to do though. Not per se anyway. As far as Deb/Dexter are concerned, I don't mind so much that Dexter managed to keep his secret... I do mind that it was done in a very lame "WTF??" kind of way. Which of course contributes to the overall lameness of this season.
I got the impression (admittedly based on a single line) that Debra might know. At the party she told Dexter he must be happy that this is all over. I can't figure out what else she could be referring to.
Well, Deb delibaretly choosing to not look behind the curtain (because she suspects Dexter behind it) would probably the only way to save this episode.
Okay? A grammar mistake and using a term to describe something that I disagree with are not the same thing. You said it was a deus ex machina; I thought otherwise and argued my point. Forgive me for attempting to create discussion on this discussion board.
Yeah I wasn't crazy about this season either. The basic idea was a good one I thought, but I was just never able to buy Stiles as that character, and I never found the Jordan Chase character remotely threatening either (at least the lackluster Season 3 had the physically imposing Jimmy Smits for a villain). And then you have all the contrivances, such as Quinn deciding to ignore very incriminating photos of Dexter and Lumen just so he can be with Debra, or Liddy conveniently not witnessing more than he did. And by this point, Debra is just starting to look like a complete idiot for not at least having a SUSPICION about Dexter (and despite what others are trying to read into the finale, I still don't think she does). My biggest problem though is that Dexter himself has lost almost all of the edge he used to have. Perhaps it's only natural that he slowly become more emotional and human as time goes on, but it's that dark, slightly creepy edge that made him so compelling in the first place. I miss the cold, emotionless killer of the first couple seasons who had to put on an act wherever he went. Now he's just another bumbling dork who sometimes says the wrong thing at a party.
Apparently Michael C. Hall and Jennifer Carpenter have split and are filing for divorce. http://news-briefs.ew.com/2010/12/13/michael-c-hall-jennifer-carpenter-divorce/ I wonder how that will affect next season, if it even does. Probably will be alot of tension on set. Which is where that plot of her finding out would have been awesome. That added tension of their troubled relationship translating into the tension of their onscreen relationship, possibly falling apart. Who knows maybe they split up amicably and production doesn't even start until next summer anyways.