Tonight’s the night. Television’s favorite fictional serial killer is back with the two episode premiere of Dexter: Resurrection, the fourth series in this franchise. This article will be full of spoilers for the first two episodes, “A Beating Heart” (written by Clyde Phillips and Scott Reynolds) and “Camera Shy” (written by Scott Buck), with both episodes directed by Marcos Siega. If you haven’t seen the episodes, proceed with caution. Both are currently available to stream on Paramount + and will air Sunday evening on Showtime.
Past, Meet Present
For many Dexter fans, there were several burning questions headed into the premiere of Dexter: Resurrection. How would the titular character be brought back? What would his dynamic with Harrison be like? Has Harrison gone completely down his father’s path, or is he just an emotionally damaged young man who can still pull through? Would there be much retconning of the previous series’ narratives? Then of course, there were questions about the tone of this new series.
To start with tone, there is a heaviness to Dexter: Resurrection that I personally rarely felt with the other series in this “Dexter-verse”. In the first two episodes alone, concepts such as aging, the notion of our own mortality and multigenerational parenting are addressed. Dexter has always had a pretty fast paced narrative throughout all its incarnations, and while it is still moving quickly here, some of the underlying themes resonated more strongly. The story had more time to linger over the details.
Much like how the character of Dexter Morgan is now firmly middle-aged, so is the core fan base. Throughout both episodes, Harry is frequently seen talking to Dexter, critiquing his parenting skills and offering input. Dexter isn’t typically a show that makes me think about my own life, but multiple times I found myself thinking about my father, talking to me about my kids. Sometimes us middle-aged people appreciate the advice. Other times we want the older generation to back off. Dexter went through both of those feelings with Harry in these episodes and it felt very true to life. In a show as fantastical as Dexter, we don’t often have those moments.
The Plot
I assumed going into Dexter: Resurrection that I wouldn’t be fully happy with how Dexter was not only resurrected from what we thought was a fatal gunshot at the end of New Blood, but also how he would escape arrest over Deputy Logan’s death and Chief Bishop’s assertion that Dexter was in fact the Bay Harbor Butcher. It’s a lot to back away from narratively. But I was also determined to not allow my appreciation of the New Blood ending to hamper my enjoyment here.
The results were mixed. I could rationalize Dexter’s survival due to the extreme cold. Even the idea that the gunshot fired in his jail cell implied self defense with Logan’s murder made sense. But Chief Angela Bishop not only taking the rap for shooting Dexter but also saying that she was wrong about him being the Bay Harbor Butcher is what didn’t sit well with me. She could have taken the blame for shooting him to protect Harrison without letting Dexter off the hook for all his murders in Miami. But if that’s my only sticking point with the story, I suppose I can let it go. But if we don’t see Chief Bishop again, I for one will be disappointed. She’s easily one of the best and most well rounded characters in this narrative universe.
I did like Dexter seeing all of his ghosts at the beginning of the first episode of Dexter: Resurrection. There was a fan service element to seeing the Trinity Killer, Miguel Prado and James Doakes, but their appearances were used for a purpose: Trinity and Prado (the bad guys) reminded Dexter that innocent people get hurt when he’s trying to be more than a killer, and Doakes (the cop) was there to tell Dexter that he has it in him to save his son. Dexter’s conflicting thoughts and morals were on full display here. Even his ghosts that visit him are just as conflicted as he is.
But one face from Dexter’s past was very much alive and well when he came to visit, and that was none other than the now Chief of Police at Miami Metro, Angel Batista. Angel’s return was teased to the point of frustration in New Blood, but all signs point to his role being much larger in Dexter: Resurrection. Angel visited Dexter in the hospital, asking his questions and walking the thin line of old friend and highly motivated officer. It doesn’t take much to deduce that Angel is going to be the background of this new series, following Dexter’s every movement, waiting for the chance to bring him to justice.
Harrison The Killer / Victim
Perhaps what intrigued me the most about these first two episodes was Harrison’s story arc. He’s clearly haunted by his past. He sees visions of the violence 10 weeks prior in Iron Lake. He’s reminded of Kurt Caldwell’s victims. He’s reliving watching his father kill Kurt. He replays shooting his own father in the snow that fateful day, after his father reminded him to turn the safety off.
Harrison works at a hotel in NYC where a maid helps him find rooms to sleep in each night. He helps babysit for her and she pushed him to get his GED. In the city that never sleeps, they seem to have each other’s backs out of necessity. Much like his father, Harrison puts on a public face of being friendly and social with his co-workers, but his inner turmoil is eating him alive. He constantly has his earbuds in, to perhaps drown out the voices in his head, filling his mind with a plethora of troubling thoughts.
Harrison kills a wealthy mover and shaker, who according to the newspaper just got out of another sexually related crime. Harrison’s victim fit the code but he didn’t know that—Harrison just knows that he saw this man almost rape a woman and that pushed Harrison into a blind rage. He couldn’t let that happen. Which perhaps makes him somewhat different than his father, whose thoughts were typically on the criminal and not the victim.
Harrison was very detailed cleaning up the mess of his murder, but he wasn’t perfect. Dexter is stalking his son, trying to keep him safe from a distance, but the NYPD has a detective who seems to be part Rust Cohle from True Detective and part Dale Cooper from Twin Peaks. Translation: This cop is good and borderline psychic. Best of luck Harrison.
But to get back to a previous point, Dexter: Resurrection is giving time for the emotional gravitas to sink in. As an audience, we spend enough time with Harrison to have our collective hearts break. This young man has had a truly traumatizing life. He really has nothing but his own desire to keep moving forward. NYC has given him a platform to do just that but his own baggage is in the way. There’s part of me that wants Dexter and Harrison to reunite because Harrison needs something good in his life. Someone who loves him at the very least. But part of me wants him to make it on his own and to escape the cycle of violence this family continually live through.
Other Beats
Dexter went from being high strung and self-reflective to being completely comfortable once he found a “big bad” to chase. A ride sharing serial killer is certainly an unsettling thought but a unique enough construct to make Dexter: Resurrection feel modern. Of course, this serial killer being called the Dark Passenger is hilarious to everyone but Dexter. His tantrums over the name are funny but also serve as a reminder that his need to kill has already become just as important to him as keeping his son safe. Dexter might be evolving to some degree, but his urges and needs are still animalistic. He hasn’t changed as much as perhaps some wanted him to.
Uma Thurman’s character is a fun layer to the story. So far, she’s been in her own lane, but once she integrates into Dexter (or Harrison’s) story, she should be a formidable foe. Right now, she’s a mystery, but a welcome mystery bound to make this story more complicated and compelling.
I can’t shake this bad feeling that Dexter’s new friend Blessing isn’t long for this world. When that happens, look out. Dexter will snap.
Final Thoughts
Dexter: Resurrection feels like an evolved version of the story many of us have loved for years now. So far there seems to be a maturity to it, an introspective quality almost and a meditation on the life we want for ourselves versus the life we have. The morality questions of whether what Dexter does is acceptable or not have been put to rest. We’ve had those conversations before. The question at hand now is if Dexter can be himself and a good father at the same time. What does being a good father in this situation even look like? While most of us can’t relate to an insatiable desire to kill, we can relate to questions of our desired identity and wanting to be many things at the same time. How will this play out for Dexter? Only time will tell.