Dexter – Recap & Review – Hello Bandit

photo: showtime

Dexter
Hello Bandit

Original Air Date: Oct 3, 2010

Karen Belgrad – Associate Staff Writer
karenbelgrad@thetwocentscorp.com

Welcome back to week two of season five our favorite television serial killer. What a curious title to give to Dexter though. Have there been other favorite television serial killers? Sure, someone may be fascinated with Freddie Krueger, Jason Voorhees, or Michael Myers, but is Dexter the first weekly television killer?

This week’s Dexter opens with our lead character swimming, while thinking/voice-overing about the seven stages of grief. He thinks that last week’s brutal, yet gut wrenching bathroom slaying was his way of dealing with the anger stage. But he asks himself, and the viewers at large, will he have time to deal with the other six stages while being a full time dad?

Dexter finally has his FBI interview about Rita’s demise. Thanks to his being at the Mitchell residence, LaGuerta/Bautista’s wedding, and out for a midnight sail, Dexter is not considered a suspect at all. In fact, the FBI has pretty much decided that Arthur Mitchell/Trinity is the killer. Their only remaining problem is where to find him. Unlike the viewers, they think he is still alive and on the run. One of the FBI’s main priorities is finding Kyle Butler, who the Mitchell family has spoken of, and of course, we know is actually Dexter.

With the FBI stuff behind him, Dexter tries to focus on his family and moving their stuff out of the home where Rita was murdered. So, of course, with baby Harrison in tow, Dexter rents a moving van. And… this is where the show kind of lost me this week. Because, with a need to focus on being a killer to be a better father (Dexter’s concept, not mine), Dexter rents the one moving van in the city that apparently had a recent murder take place. Well, isn’t that just an amazing coinky-dink?

All entertainment requires a suspension of disbelief, but so much of Dexter has been based in its plausibility. It’s a very scientific and analytical show so when they go that far into left field, it doesn’t make for a good rest of the hour. And to some it may be a minor squabble, but I always appreciated that the reason Dexter was privy to so many murders was his proximity and access to the information, not his luck.

So… the blood in the rental truck turns out to be human, and Dexter is on the hunt. (Too) Quickly he discovers it was last rented by Boyd Fowler, an animal disposal worker for the Department of Sanitation. Some (too) easy sleuthing leads him back to Boyd’s home where he discovers that Boyd is creepy organized in his kitchen, has barrels of dead animals, and a lock of blonde female hair tied with a bow. The last item peaks Dexter’s interest and he follows Boyd to a deserted swamp and sees him dispose of it. Returning later that night, Dexter approaches one of the many bobbing barrels and is less than stunned to see a dead woman inside.

Meanwhile, we’re privy to the fact that Boyd keeps a hair sample book similar to Dexter’s case of blood slides. Clearly he is evil who must be stopped (insert dun-dun-dun…)

Over at Deb’s apartment, things are crowded. Astor is still acting out in a way that is not at all inappropriate for a preteen who has just lost her mother. But Dexter is beside himself without knowing how to appease her. When she finally says she wants to live with her grandparents, Dexter is seemingly almost relieved. He insists a reluctant Cody go with her, as the two siblings need to stick together, just like him and Deb have. Poor Harrison is left without his siblings or mother.

Deb, while the kids were in town, was crashing on Quinn’s couch. Now here’s my additional quibble… back in season 2, Deb stayed with Dexter after the Ice Truck Killer (Brian Moser, Dexter’s brother) tried to kill her. Didn’t she have her own room? She was there almost the entire season and I don’t think she slept on the couch the whole time? Now remember, Deb’s apartment is where Dexter lived before Rita’s. So why the couch/cot routine, wasn’t there a second bedroom?

Back at Quinn’s, Deb is not interested in having his fat, little, sausage fingers all over her. In fact, it takes the whole episode for her to even admit out loud that she slept with him. Uh Deb, we saw you on the kitchen floor. We know it. You know it. Quinn knows it. Get over it.

In the worst subplot in Dexter history, the boringly married LaGuerta and Bautista are having a spat. She had lots of money tucked away for retirement. He didn’t know about it. He found it. She didn’t tell him because he’s irresponsible. Seriously. We had to listen to that. No more please!!!

At the end of the hour, Quinn is staring at the FBI sketches of Kyle Butler. Each member of the Mitchell family described him a little differently, so Quinn is playing cut and paste with the features. He’s beginning to see a familiar face.

Well, that’s my TwoCents for this week’s episode. It may have been harsher than normal, but this was a poor episode in my opinion. For example, who was watching Harrison when Dexter took his late night ride back to the barrel laden swamp? Did anyone care (or remember five minutes later) about the beheaded woman and her gunshot to the head husband? I’m just hoping later episodes make this one worth going back to watch for some a-ha! moments, because right now, I’m not pleased.

What are your TwoCents on this episode? Did you like it more than I did? Share your feedback, comments, and critiques below!