Giving ‘Dexter’ A Hand (and a foot and leg, too)

By LillyKat
PTR Staff Writer

“Dexter Morgan: This is your life.”

Cue theme music.

And body parts.

Just another day in Miami Metro Homicide.

But wait a second: Dexter on the soccer team? Dexter at the beach? Dexter at the pumpkin patch? (And no, this wasn’t Saturday out with Rita and the kids.)

No, it was Dex’s upbringing, and the Icetruck Killer shared it with all of us last night – including Dex.

Total side note: Is it bad that I enjoyed watching Lieutenant Laguerta fall flat on her face when it gets revealed the hot-to-trot suspect for which she launched a statewide manhunt (Tony Tucci) turns out to actually to be this week’s victim of the IK?

Fact check much, Laguerta?

But aside from her getting burned, last night’s episode was really kind of interesting for all the other stuff that was going on simultaneously whilst the gang was trying to track down the IK – who broke pattern this week by keeping Tucci alive only to cut off his foot, leg and hand to leave an assorted trail of breadcrumbs for Dexter and Co. to follow complete with postcard pictures to commemorate each “crumb” (as it were).

No one ever said serial killers weren't clever.

So, how clever was it to have:

- the breadcrumb trail serve as the most complete look into Dexter’s past – flashbacks to particular moments in his childhood; shadowed by the code of Harry even at a young age; trying to awkwardly figure out why one should be pretend to be happy when there is no conceivable reason to do so; trying to always blend in.

- Detective Batista desperately tried to figure out what to get his wife for their 10th anniversary only to have it be revealed he’d been separated for three months, and troubles seem to be aplenty in his former household.

- Doakes getting duped into being set-up to trap that nasty drug lord who killed the cop (and his wife) a few episodes back; as they say, payback is beyotch.

- Rita stealing the spotlight with her Lara Croft Tomb Raider routine not only with that annoying neighbor’s dog, but with Dex alone in his apartment

All of this brings me to yet another aspect of genius this show does so well: there’s a lot more going on than simply the case at hand.

And it is always so clever.

The characters carry on aplenty outside the walls of Miami Metro Homicide, and their personalities are not checked at the door when they come to work. This is why we can have Dex preoccupied with the blood pattern of Tucci’s severed foot and still have him tell Batista his OX pendant may not be the coolest anniversary gift (classic).

Cold Case are you paying attention? Why are you the only show on the tube void of giving your characters something other than a case to work on?

Alas, I digress (again … to lament the zombie-like character development these days on CC), but Dexter never disappoints in this area. Ever. I love the peculiarities of the entire gang that are always on display and woven so cleverly into the existing story arc. They are funny, conflicted, curious, corny, sincere, serious, focused, clever and, most of all, real.

And devoted to the task at hand.

No pun intended.

And even when we think we know what Dex will do, he surprises us once again. He doesn’t finish off Tucci (as the IK had intended, leaving him “gift wrapped, begging for death”). It wouldn’t fit with the Code of Harry.

And so, it appears Dex’s new friend doesn’t know Dex as well as he thinks.

But we’re just getting warmed up.

The first season of Dexter airs Sundays at 10 p.m. on CBS. Check out Showtime's official Dexter Web site for the inside scoop on the series.