646 replies to this topic

[TWoP Dietrich]

Got a theory about what's going to happen, even though you don't know any spoilers? Wanna talk about the next episode's promo? This is the place!

[sunnyzwei]

Well I must say after watching promo for what's in store for us the rest of the season, I'm a tad worried. The fact that there will be another "love interest" for Dexter kinda bugs me. I'm finding it difficult to accept that Dexter would get involved with anyone else since he admitted to dating Rita cause she was "safe". I really enjoyed the fact that his secret was his, and only his evil brother knew what he was all about. But, hey I'll be watching no matter what with bells on cause I'm hooked! LOL!

[vallegirl]

But Rita isn't safe anymore. She stopped being safe about halfway through the first season. She's become far too demanding and entitled and certainly has an idea that Dexter's not exactly as he appears. Since Dexter's a homicidal sociopath, it's in his best interest to cut her loose. Of course he won't because she "humanizes" him, but I can dream.

But since I've always had issues with the Rita/Dexter relationship from a story perspective, I just love that she actually pushes him toward his smoking hot "sponsor." Be careful what you wish for, Rita. I love the shot of her in the previews where Dexter points out his "sponsor" like he's pointing out his teacher to his mom, and we see this slamming brunette followed by a zoom in on Rita's slack-jawed response.

[Stormyweather]

I love the shot of her in the previews where Dexter points out his "sponsor" like he's pointing out his teacher to his mom, and we see this slamming brunette followed by a zoom in on Rita's slack-jawed response.

I like Rita and her relationship with Dex but even I enjoyed that moment.

[luvdave]

I'm looking foward to seeing exactly what Rita's mom doesn't like about Dexter. I'd be surprised if she turned out to have Doakes-strength intuition, but it'd be fun to pile it on.

But whatever it is that Mom doesn't like, I predict Rita will still turn a deaf ear to a suggestion that Dexter has bigger problems than his need for rehab.

I've read a couple of critics confirm that they received the first 4 episodes of Dexter for review; I can see everything that happened in last Sunday's promo taking place in the space of those same 4 episodes, since the writers have a tendency to get to the heart of some matters really quickly, making you wonder what's next. I can't wait for episodes 5 and beyond assuming that by then they'll have established a pattern of victims, and they'll have the enthusiastic Deb and the meticulous Masuka gunning for the BHB.

[the fresh maker]

I haven't seen the promo for next week yet, but I read that Masuka's made a big discovery. I'm guessing that he's identified the Coyote's body, and he had been right about that case to begin with. It will then be obvious that he didn't murder his wife. Since the Coyote's one of the newer victims, the body's probably not that decomposed.

[mswyrr]

I've been wondering if there's even the slightest chance Deb wouldn't tell if she realized that Dexter's the BHB.

On the one hand, the fact that he kills "bad guys" would definitely play in his favor, but on the other hand, she'd probably react badly to having another close relationship with a serial killer, and she's building up loyalty to Lundy really quick and may find herself unable to keep it from him...

((ponders))

[silverangelaunt]

Buying a minivan, contemplating how much Rita and the kids mean to him, this seems like male nesting behavior. I predict the second season will end the same way as the second book, with Dexter and Rita engaged. Hopefully Doakes will not end up dead or worse.

[vallegirl]

Lord I hope not. I can't stand Rita and her whiny, entitled smurfiness.

Although, it does dovetail with my theory about the two women. Since season one came down to the decision between living the lie and choosing to save Deb or becoming his "true self" and choosing Brian, season two will come down, once again, to the lie of Rita and the truth of Lilah. And he'll probably choose the lie because it prolongs the series.

I think that Lilah has been put on the show not to be any kind of actual threat to Dexter, but her innate understanding of him and lack of judgment will both frighten and attract him. In the "this season" promo he's shown telling her, not Deb or Rita, about witnessing his mother's death. That's a bond she shares with Dexter that neither Deb nor Rita have, and when he's threatening someone's life she's the one talking him down.

But Dexter likes the lie. It's safe and comfortable. No matter how freeing and exhilarating, he can't give it up. It's like the reverse of "The Short, Happy Life of Francis Macomber." When given the opportunity to experience the thrill of being his true self, no matter how short-lived, he'll always retreat to the facade he's developed.

Of course, his true self is a brutal monster, so I guess I should be glad.

[lanakila]

I'm sure this speculation has been posted somewhere but, thanks to a few days off work I've been watching Season 1 episodes again, and I'm leaning ever closer to the theory that Doakes will be blamed for the BHB murders. One of the show's impressive strengths is its continuity in the story-telling, and the Season 1 episode - Father Knows Best - has just reaffirmed a lot of this continuity. We learn the history of Dexter's scar, first seen way back in Episode 1; we learn that Dexter's biological Dad was a darn good bowler - a talent Dexter discovers in himself in Season 2; we learn about the chips given to rehabing addicts at the AA meetings; and we learn something of Doakes history in "special" ops. Could it be that Doakes strange behavior towards Dexter, his propensity towards vigilantism, lying about his actions, and even perhaps the implied admission to Dexter that he knows something about addiction, plus behavior in any upcoming episodes, will be used against Doakes and set him up as he leading suspect?

[vallegirl]

The only "kill" he had was the exact opposite of the profile, though. It was a rash action triggered by recognizing the man as a Tonton Macoutes who escaped prosecution and was done in broad daylight with another police officer as a witness. It was impulsive not the act of a serial killer.

Lundy's supposedly the "greatest" profiler at the FBI, he detailed all the ways the BHB is different from the ITK. He should be able to recognize that Doakes is not a serial killer and certainly not the BHB.

[Hyzenthlay]

we learn that Dexter's biological Dad was a darn good bowler - a talent Dexter discovers in himself in Season 2;

I had forgotten about BioDad and bowling.

I posted a speculation about why Doakes may not be framed for BHB deeds in the thread about last weeks ep., but the above reasons just add to Doakes's background perhaps being a red herring.

I think that some one with a history of "bad deeds" will be selected to take the fall. Just a guess...

[Silver Angel's Mom]

Buying a minivan, contemplating how much Rita and the kids mean to him, this seems like male nesting behavior. I predict the second season will end the same way as the second book, with Dexter and Rita engaged. Hopefully Doakes will not end up dead or worse.

OK, but I go one step further and say that Lilah becomes threatening to Rita and the kids, perhaps overtly. In the final scene of the season finale we see Dexter (and perhaps Rita) having it out with Lilah while she brandishes some weapon. Suddenly we see an edged instrument blossoming forth from her mid-section. Her face registers surprise while she drops out of the frame. Focus in on Cody's face. "I TOLD her not to do that..."

Maybe I have too much time on my hands...

[lanakila]

Maybe I have too much time on my hands..

As do I ..... Whilst shopping for hair color this morning, I thought back on a post by vallegrl telling us that Julie Benz had become a brunette. No-one asked whether it was changed during the filming for Dexter or for another reason. So I'm thinking about Dexter as I'm roaming the aisles - what if Rita changed her hair color because she fears losing Dex to the dark-haired seductive Lila? With her demanding and somewhat demeaning mother in town, Rita's obsession with being the sweet, kind, nurturing, I-want-to-be-the-one-who-saves-you girlfriend is being undermined. She tries to bring back the sexy Tomb-Raider look!

Yep, its Sunday - I'm bored, and 9pm is way to far away!!!

[silverangelaunt]

Just rewatching "Dark Defender" wonder when we will see Camilla, the file lady soon. Wonder how well she knew Harry, and what exactly she knew about Laura Mosely's and Harry's relationship?

[vanityflair]

Does anyone else think they are dropping some hints to indicate that Harry is going to turn out to be MUCH darker than we originally thought?

I thought the hints about Harry sleeping with Dexter's mom...Harry admiring Dexter in a meeting with Dexter's mom where Dexter's mom frantically tries to tell Harry she is going to be killed...and then, of course she IS killed....well, these could be leading to a dark place.

What if Harry recognized himself in Dexter and was drawn to him for that reason? What if Harry intentionally (or perhaps unconsciously) allowed Dexter's biological mom to be killed so he could adopt Dexter for himself?

We can see little bits of this repeating, also, as Dexter sees bits of himself in Rita's child.

Finally, what if "Harry's Code" was developed not out of some virtuous place, but because Harry himself had similar dark urges, and had to channel them himself?

What do you think? I know it sounds like a lot to swallow, but think about what kind of show we are watching. Also, think about it as you watch the episodes...I really thought this week they dropped several big hints that they might be going this way with a darker side of Harry.

[vallegirl]

I think the show firmly established Harry's darker impulses when they showed him "lovingly" teach his son to be a vigilante serial killer. But Harry's always been presented from only Dexter's POV. So last season, when he still idolized Harry, we saw Harry doing all these horrible things to Dexter "for Dexter's own good." Now that the mask has been pulled off of Harry, we're beginning to see him and his god complex for what it really was. A mechanism by which he completely devastated not just his own family but Dexter's biological one as well.

Harry has never been a good, kind or loving person. We've only been told he was by the children who were raised by him and loved him and didn't have any idea how badly he messed them both up. But Brian saw Harry for what he was, because Brian never had to love and honor Harry.

Brought over from the episode thread:

I believe he's still suffering from just as much trauma as Deb is - but with Deb, it's manifesting itself in a more obvious way. And in my mind, while Deb is dealing with the whole abduction and attempted murder by someone she loved scenario, Dexter is dealing with much more. It's not just the fact of Brian, and the fact that he killed his brother - it's also all of his repressed feelings about what took place in the cargo hold, which are images and emotions he had repressed for 25 to 30 years. And even more damaging than that, it's the loss of his idealized image of Harry that I think is really causing him to crack. He held fast to the image of Harry as being someone not just who understood him, but who was a model of truth. Learning otherwise is causing the grip that Harry held over him to loosen dangerously, and that is what has sent him reeling.

I think this will be the arc of the season. Floodgates were opened last season that can't be closed in the 8 weeks since it allegedly ended. Sure he's put killing Brian to rest, but that was just the tip of the iceberg. Dealing with the repercussions of everything Brian's existence brought up for him is the logical arc for the second season. For him to go back to season 1 Dexter would ring hollow.

The primary flaw I saw in the first season was their cavalier attitude toward Dexter's killing. Aside from the first kill and him killing Brian, most of his other kills in the first season had some kind of jokiness involved. Like the writers wanted us to say "Oh yes, he kills, but isn't he cute?" The ITK was presented as vicious, scary and brutal, but Dexter never was. But as Lundy told us, Dexter's work makes Brian's look almost amateur by comparison. Of all the people in Miami who deserve to be killed by Dexter, he should be at the top of his list because he's been killing for a decade now and has completely escaped prosecution. He is the person Harry trained him to hunt. That realization's got to screw a guy up.

But I do expect that will change, and I expect that once the realization dawns on him that Lila is not what she pretends to be (or once he finds himself crawling back into a repressed mode for survival purposes), his reactions will be just as interesting.

I think he'll go back into repressed mode. Which I think is the more natural response, anyway. To me, it feels almost like the writers are taking the basic premise of "The Short Happy Life of Frances Macomber" but rather than give Dexter Frances' denouement, he won't ever choose the "happiness" of living a true and honest life.

Edited by vallegirl, Oct 30, 2007 @ 9:28 AM.

[Wittgenstein]

How does someone chose to go back into the repressed mode?

[Squiggmund]

Vallegirl, I couldn't agree more with your assessment of Harry. As I stated in the episode thread, I think Harry's influence on Dexter was what turned him into a killer. When Harry found him, he was a normal kid that had gone though a traumatic event and needed love and support. Instead, he was provided a horrible education and made to believe he was something he's not.

It was Harry - not Dexter - that had the "monster inside."

Some posters have lamented Dexter's newfound dynamic nature, which I find baffling. First, protagonists aren't often purely static characters. Second, Dexter has obtained quite a bit of new and unexpected information that is shaking his belief system to its core.

If he were a true sociopath, maybe he wouldn't change. Maybe he'd be so isolated he'd just shrug it off and figure Harry was just one more human that didn't understand him. But since Dexter's "monster inside" was manufactured by Harry, I speculate its going to begin to crumble as he finds out more details, and Dex will continue to change. What he becomes next might be uncharted.

The question is whether Harry's influence has become so ingrained in Dex that he's unable to stop killing. Interestingly, since his predilection towards killing was learned and not from within, its technically an addiction and not a compulsion.

[FrozenBarbie]

I hate to say it, but with so much going on with Dexter on a personal level, I almost wish the BHB investigation storyline would have been saved for a (hopefully) third season. It's almost too much. He has enough to deal with, emotionally and otherwise, right now, without also becoming prime suspect number one. That they've already discovered his body of work, and the noose has started to tighten, feels just slightly rushed to me. It's a development that I'd hoped would come later. Although, I do love the concept, the suspense, and the danger, and I am grateful it brought Lundy into the picture (he makes up for Lila). But won't this take the wind out of next season's sails? More than likely, the BHB mystery will be resolved one way or another this season, and it's probably safe to assume Dexter won't be convicted. What does that mean for next season? I'm just a tiny bit worried about this. Perhaps prematurely. Anyone else been wondering the same thing? FWIW, I have not read any of the books, so I have absolutely no idea how the books deal with this plotline.

[silverangelaunt]

Frozen Barbie, the books never went there (the BHB) Silverangel said the same thing, she wonders what could possibly come after this?

[Silver Angel's Mom]

I thought I remember a post somewhere that the author was upset at where this season went. I can understand that attitude in the case of the Lilah story line. The whole 12-step thing just doesn't fit with my view of Book Dexter. As far as the BHB and Lundy, I think this is somewhere the author might have gone at some time.

[Stormyweather]

There was a post that stated the author was upset about the discovery of the bodies. I don't remember any post about the author being upset about the season. I could have missed it.

[ddkattar]

This is sheer speculation on my part, but when Dexter found out that Harry was having an affair with his mother, I immediately thought that perhaps Harry is Dexter's biological father. When we see flashbacks of Harry arriving at that bloody crime scene, we see him immediately go and remove Dexter without so much as a glance at his brother Brian. These were small children where Harry could have scooped up both kids. It was just a feeling I had, but it popped into my head immediately!

[Stormyweather]

Dexter already had a DNA test last season proving Joseph Driscoll is his biological father.

[Monkey Butler]

Would it be too soap opera-y to suggest that maybe Brian was Harry's son? The timeline probably wouldn't work (Dexter was 3 and Brian was a couple of years older than that when Laura was murdered) but I guess at a stretch it could explain why Harry took Dexter in and not Brian: he's a heartless bastard that didn't want anything to do with his soon-to-be-heartless bastard son.

[Stormyweather]

Would it be too soap opera-y to suggest that maybe Brian was Harry's son?

I was actually wondering the same thing. But then Deb and Brian/Rudy.... I just don't want to think about it.

[Monkey Butler]

Haha, wow I never even thought of the incest thing. That would be soap opera-y. But it's not too creepy if you keep telling yourself they came from different mothers. Wait. No, it's still creepy.

[vallegirl]

It would make more sense that he started having the affair with Laura when the investigation began, which was probably long after both boys were born. I mean, even if he got her knocked up with Brian the first time they screwed, that still would have been at least a 6 year affair.

Possible but not likely that Harry would continue a six year affair with a junkie.

[Silver Angel's Mom]

I dunno. Santos only said they saw Laura meeting Harry in the park. He ASSUMES there was sex involved. I just don't see an affair between them. If Harry was meeting his informant (Laura), the park would be as good a place as any.