Dexter s1:10 review

This has to be one of the least consistent shows ever to grace television. How is it possible for some episodes to be so clever, so subtle, so funny, and generally so enjoyable, and then for other episodes to be so painfully bad? It only took about ten minutes for this episode to break my will to live. Or at least, my will to continue sitting in front of my TV.

Remember how, last week, Rita smacked Paul around the head with a baseball bat instead of calling the police? Or even calling Dexter, who’s both her protective boyfriend AND associated with the police? Well, turns out she’s now being charged with assault. Even though supposedly Dexter filed a police report because Paul broke in and threatened her, somehow that got lost in the system and instead Rita’s being charged with assault.

Despite the fact that Paul has a history of spousal abuse and has just got out of jail for drug dealing.

But no, they’re going to arrest Rita and possibly award Paul custody of the two children. Honestly? I nearly switched the TV off, or at least screamed in rage. There is no way, even assuming the entire Miami police force is as incompetent as the homicide department have been proven to be, that this would happen. It’s just stupid. Cripplingly stupid.

So there’s that. But if I spend any more time worrying about that, I’m going to go completely insane, so let’s move onto the plot thread that makes me less angry: a jar of blood has been mailed to the Miami police’s homicide department, and inside the jar is a key. And inside the room that the key leads to? Lots of blood. Lots, and lots of blood. Into which Dexter promptly falls face first, because the sight of all that blood is stirring up long-buried memories in his sociopathic little head…

It seems that this whole season has been a case of the Ice Truck Killer playing games with Dexter, trying to provoke him to remember something about what happened prior to his adoption. And it’s all gone a bit weird now: the clues are getting more obvious, with the killer flagging up several instances of the number 103, as well as just sending Dex the key instead of letting him find his way there of his own accord. (We know it’s the Ice Truck Killer, by the way, because all the blood came from the five bloodless victims… actually, why am I still calling him the Ice Truck Killer since a) the ice truck was a complete irrelevance, and b) we know who he is now? Old habits die hard, I guess.) 10:3 is blatantly a date, by the way. It’ll either be October 3rd, or March 10th; probably the former, since this is American. Maybe I should become a police officer?

Meanwhile, Mousaka and Angel have gone out clubbing to some club that doesn’t exist anywhere on Earth except on TV, and they’ve uncovered another lead: a prostitute with a prosthetic hand, and all the fingernails have been painted different colours, like one of the Ice Truck Killer’s previous victims. She remembers servicing a client who painted her fingers those colours in the first place – a lead! Hurrah! One that doesn’t even depend on Dexter!

And also meanwhile, Deb is really annoying, and Dexter’s using power tools to spatter blood all over some walls. Hee. Rudy/Ice Truck Killer does some good skulking about, generally being suspicious when Angel comes calling and by bringing over some steaks to Dexter’s house (why does Dexter keep one knife in a drawer all by itself? That’s not suspicious at all, Dex…). Something’s gone wrong with him, and he’s stopped being all charming and nice and started just being a creep. Maybe that’s because we know who he is, now, but I think they’ve also changed the way he’s being written. And not for the better.

The final five minutes were a bit packed, weren’t they? Paul’s back in jail – despite, um, Dexter’s completely random stupidity – and Angel’s been stabbed. Noooooo! Angel’s the only character I like! Damn you, Dexter, damn your eyes.