If you were in charge of Dexter...

[Joe Washington]

Would there be anything you would have differently with the show, character-wise, storyline-wise, or casting-wise?

 

[Checkmate]

I would have found some way to keep Doakes around. He was a really good character, and one of the few that I hated at first but quickly grew to enjoy despite his unlikeability.

'Course doing so would have been very problematic. He would either have had to "break bad" and actively help Dexter (even if just by ignoring his activities), or the tension between them would have worn out really, really fast. Killing him off was probably the best decision, but I would have preferred seeing more of him anyway. Damn catch-22s.

 

[Mojochi]

^I feel the same way about Lundy

My big one would be No Batista/Laguarda relationship. It just seemed like they hit a dead end on both their personal stories, & decided to make due. Other than that, this last season may have been the best since the 1st

I might also return to some of the novel ideas, like Rita's kids being taught the "Code Of Harry" by Dexter

 

[Temis the Vorta]

I usually have 1001 opinions about any given show, but I respect the Dexter writers and producers enough to just leave them be. What they did in the S4 finale demonstrates that they understand where the series needs to go, and have the guts to do it.

I would have found some way to keep Doakes around.

They were right to get rid of him, and by doing so, demonstrated their discipline. The easy and tempting thing would have been to hang onto him. The right thing: kill him off.

He would either have had to "break bad" and actively help Dexter (even if just by ignoring his activities),

They signalled that this was not a possibility in the S1 finale - before then, Doakes was vaguely defined enough that they could have had him team up with Dexter for a while.

I might also return to some of the novel ideas, like Rita's kids being taught the "Code Of Harry" by Dexter

To be blunt, the novel has some silly ideas or maybe I should say that the novel series is being written from a far more fantasy based and stylized perspective than the TV show. You don't just create serial killers by teaching kids bad things - in a fantastical novel series, maybe you can make that part of your worldview and get away with it. But the TV series has always been based in a recognizable real world where something like that just wouldn't pan out.

 

[Checkmate]

They were right to get rid of him, and by doing so, demonstrated their discipline. The easy and tempting thing would have been to hang onto him. The right thing: kill him off.

That's probably why I said the same thing in my original post.

 

[Mojochi]

To be blunt, the novel has some silly ideas or maybe I should say that the novel series is being written from a far more fantasy based and stylized perspective than the TV show. You don't just create serial killers by teaching kids bad things - in a fantastical novel series, maybe you can make that part of your worldview and get away with it. But the TV series has always been based in a recognizable real world where something like that just wouldn't pan out.

No one ever said it had to pan out. Lord knows things haven't been panning out, lately

I see what you're saying, but it might still be possible. It's very likely now, that Dexter will be tossed into the role of parenting 3 kids, kids who may very well be quite disturbed

 

[Obiwanshinobi]

I'd give Masuka a little bit more depth than just bumbling creepy perverted sidekick, even though it kind of works for him.

 

[tharpdevenport]

Masuka always seemd a little odd to me, and it seemed like the show was setting him up for something, like maybe a serial hooker killer or some such. And he easily gets away with it. It would be a turning point for Dexter, because for the first time he has to kill one of his co-workers, and getting caught would be a very real problem.