Amph [Showtime] Your favorite serial killer, Dexter!

I think the opening sequence of the last episode was filmed in one of my favorite places, Coral Castle. And everytime I see the Miami Metro set, it reminds me the real Miami Metro is under the I95 overpass, like the immigration camp in Scarface.

 

Poor, poor Dex, he dropped his box.

The Tooth fairy rocked when he pulled out his gun.

 

So, um, this season of Dexter is ****ing amazing so far. Mos Def, Colin Hanks, EJO... they're all fantastic, and the regular cast is better than ever.

 

It is very good so far. And now it seems that it may really start to move next episode.

 

I actually thought that this season was fairly mediocre so far, but holy **** @ last night's reveal. The season just got a hundred times better, and now I'm tempted to go back and re-watch all the episodes.

 

What, you didn't figure it out by the second episode like everyone else?

 

I didn't know either, until Rachel told me several episodes back. I'm amazed that I didn't notice at all until then, but I guess I wasn't the only one. When I think back, it is incredibly obvious...kind of odd that Dexter didn't figure it out until now or even have suspicions?

 

I think what we've learned from this is that Rachel understands serial killers better than Dexter does.

 

Maybe it's just because I love Psycho so much, but it was super, super obvious to both me and Evan as we talked about this season from the 2nd episode what was going on. So last night's episode, while good, had absolutely none of the intended suspense for me.

It just was really clear to me. Gellar never talked to anyone else. No one else interacted with him. He wore the same outfit the whole time. He could magically appear. No place settings were out for him when Travis was at the restaurant... have none of you seen The Sixth Sense??

Seriously, for me it went like this:

Episode 1: Huh, there's something weird with the way Gellar and Travis interact, but I can't put my finger on it.

Episode 2: Oh, it's because Travis killed Gellar and has assumed Gellar's personality as a secondary one. Ok. So... when's Dexter gonna figure this out?


Yeah.... *kills people*

 

I may be stupid, but I did get to enjoy the intended suspense.

And now the series has the same "ooooh" replay factor of the Sixth Sense. Yay!

 

Honestly, I thought it was so obvious that I was really hoping the twist would be that Gellar actually existed.

 

Looking back at how obvious it was...I'm kind of surprised there was supposed to be suspense during that last scene.

And again, Dexter seemed totally oblivious to how weird it was...seemed off given how quickly he tends to figure things out.

EDIT: I agree with Darth_Guy

 

Yeah, same here Sorry I, er, spoiled it? for you Tyler.

 

I'll say it, this season is pretty awful so far.

For one thing, "Gellar" not being real was painfully obvious, and the way the show beat the audience over the head with it became irritating-- like, I distinctly remember Batista saying, "Gellar went underground." I groaned out loud at that. I would've been much less upset at figuring it out if they hadn't been so sloppy with it. Like, Gellar appearing in places such as Travis's bathroom and hotel room while leaving no sign of a break-in. Walking out in the open when his face is on the front page and nobody recognizing him despite EJO having a very distinct appearance. C'mon.

I mean, I knew the twist of Breaking Bad's fourth season finale the week before because I saw a YouTube vid with a theory that made perfect sense and used fairly subtle-- but obvious in retrospect, which is the best way-- clues that were in the show, but it didn't ruin anything for me. It was still amazing.

There's also the implausibility of someone like Travis being a one-man show. The horses, him overpowering that atheist professor so quickly and being able to drag him away to some hiding place, the engineering knowledge that went into the contraptions and that he was able to construct them fairly quickly... and having inexplicable abilities like being able to stop an elevator without being inside it. I've been trying to find an explanation for that but the best I see is "Maybe he got to a control room... ?"

Dexter is also dumbed down. He should've been able, at the least, to figure out that something was not right with the supposed Gellar/Travis team scenario. He just accepts that a man IN HIS SEVENTIES and not in the best shape could make a quick getaway from a second-story window? There's also the fact that he doesn't even wait for murderers to "escape justice" anymore. And he actively sabotages the Miami Metro PD's investigations. At first I thought it was an intentional evolution of Dexter on the writers' part-- making him more evil-- but I think it may just be sloppiness and unintentional inconsistency. They certainly haven't drawn attention to the change in his MO at all. The "Brian" diversion was pointless and stupid and had plenty of ridiculous moments (Why does "Brian" need to eat? Why is Dexter a supernaturally good shot?)

The secondary characters' stories, as usual, are boring and stupid. LaGuerta is as unsympathetic and soulless as ever, the Matthews "reveal" may have managed to be more obvious than the Gellar twist. The nerdy intern dude is going to try to imitate the Ice Truck Killer or something, I guess. Quinn is on a downward spiral and is going to die so Chicago dude can take over.

Dexter has always had cartoonish, bad, inconsistent stuff, which is a major reason it has never been my favorite show. I think Season 6 goes far beyond the limit.

Between this and The Office's fall from grace (I thought Season 7 was mostly good) and Community's potential cancellation, this is a depressing TV season. For now, I'll keep watching out of habit and some vain hope that it will drag itself back up. Argh.

EDIT: Oh, and the sloppy, confused themes. I don't think anyone can begin to explain what this show is trying to say about religion, faith, or whatever.

 

Dexter is, for the past two seasons at least, the kind of show that I often watch "in the background" while doing other things. This is largely because I'm bored during the secondary character plotlines and during Dexter's predictably repetitive and unsatisfying philosophical voiceovers, leaving little time where I actually feel compelled to watch the screen. I'm guessing this is a big reason why I was so clueless as to the reveal, because I never bothered to pay attention to details like Gellar's clothes or table settings.

Still, doesn't change the fact that the writers managed to surprise some people, and that twist alone was better than anything that happened in season 5 IMO. If they had been more careful about it, I think it would have been the right kind of jolt to the Dexter formula. But I'll hold my judgment for this season, because the last few episodes are usually the best.

Not sure how they can drag the show out for two more seasons, but I assume Deb won't find out until the very end...

 

I've only ever watched reruns "in the background," and with all the shows I watch new and Netflix and videogames and books and a modicum of a social life ( ) I don't even do that anymore. I don't really understand. Why watch it if you're not really going to pay attention? Sometimes I get distracted and miss stuff, sure, but I don't start watching a show with the intent of only paying half attention. Seems like a waste of electricity.

 

It's never my intent, it just almost always happens that way when I start watching Dexter (again, the past two seasons, anyway). I don't like half-watching a TV show but the show just can't hold my attention anymore. I just don't care about the secondary characters, and I'm starting to get tired of Dexter, too.

 

Yeah, the thing about Travis being able to do all this stuff alone, especially the Bowls of Wrath tableau, kind of reminds me of the Joker in TDK, except the Joker's shenanigans are substantially more believable because had a bunch of stolen money to use and a bunch of thugs to help him. So, major fail on that, writers.

But what annoys me more is I'm almost positive we saw Dexter see Gellar, in last night's episode and last week's. First, there was that moment when he was upstairs in the church and Dexter, down on the first floor, turns around and sees him up there right before he disappears. Then last night, Dexter saw him walking into the faculty office building. Unless all that was supposed to be Travis's point of view, or I'm just completely misremembering things.

I almost thought for a split second that Travis had killed Gellar right before Dexter entered the church and then put him in the freezer, but Gellar was too, well... frozen. Not to mention, it would be a leap for Travis to do all that before Dexter came in and saw him lying down faking unconsciousness, but the way the writers made Travis all-powerful and omnipotent in the episode prior, at least it would be consistent. Consistently stupid, but consistent, nonetheless!

I, too, was annoyed by Brian eating a hamburger. In general, this season has shown a lot more of Dexter talking with his dad or Brian in the presence of other, living characters. Maaaaybe this and Travis are gradual preparation for Dexter having his own round in the ring with insanity? That reminds me... how do crazy killers fit in the Code of Harry? Has Dexter killed a crazy person before? Will this be considered when he starts going after Travis? Am I crazy for thinking that religion playing a prominent role in a season about insanity is way too big of a coincidence?

 

I've got to second Even here. It stresses me out and makes things unenjoyable when I try to multi-task in that fashion. The only sort of entertainment I can successfully enjoy while doing something else is listening to the radio. Otherwise, I more or less have to give the whole of my attention to one thing at a time.

 

I'm with Terr. I used to set aside a special time where I knew I wouldn't be disturbed and watch it with such an absurd focus that I'd be on the edge of my seat even when he was just chilling with Rita. But now I find myself losing interest and browsing the internet during parts when I'm just 5 minutes in.

 

Depends on your definition of "crazy." Sociopaths and serial killers are crazy in the sense that something is very wrong with their minds and it robs them of normal function. But I don't think Dexter has ever killed someone who's unaware of roughly half of his actions. (I didn't bring up my problems with the medically-dubious-at-best, made-up-at-worst notion of multiple personality disorder because that's typical Hollywood.) I imagine they'll get around it by having "Gellar" cause Travis's death. Certainly can't let the antagonist survive the season in any way, ever.

 

Two things, maybe for the next two seasons.

Whay have the last two interns been interested in the Ice Truck Killer?

Is Debras therapy going to lead anywhere, esp Dexter?

 

I actually liked a lot of last season, the killer plot and Deb being so sharp she nearly caught Dexter. The scene where she lets him and Lumen go without finding out their identities was one of the best of the series, IMHO.

However, overall I think the best seasons are 2 and 4. I like this season, actually I like the computer geek. Although I am sick of Quinn. And the LaGuerta/Matthews thing just doesn't interest me that much. I appreciate that Masuka's gotten more character development this year, though. It's just that I already knew the twist so it's hard to say how it would have been without that. Also, Mos Def was freaking amazing. They were bold to kill him but I missed his presence on the show when he was gone.

I must be the only one who loved the Brian episode. I think it showed for one thing that Dexter really does kill people because he likes it. Harry just redirected it into a slightly more acceptable form. It also showed that Dexter is crazy, something we sometimes forget

 

BTW, a word about the casual viewing some of you partake in.... could any of you explain to me why a chair needs to be a table?

One of the best parts of last night, IMO.