Monday, December 14, 2009
Darkly Deeming Dexter (quasi-spoiler free)
[Disclaimer: This review contains allusions to moments which are spoilers but that are not spoilers themselves. Doing such a thing refrains from revealing major plot points, but may provide vague hints to what happens. This is done in many reviews, but most reviewers tend not to have the courtesy to warn readers.]
I'm not a big fan of television, but there's a handful of shows I still watch, even if most of the shows I watch have to be... obtained. One of those shows is Dexter. I found out about it around three years ago while roaming the aisles of [Pages] and harassing customers. I saw a picture of Michael C. Hall who I knew as the homosexual mortician David Fisher from Six Feet Under with his head being propped up by a dead hand and thought it was some weird spin off book. Then I looked further to see the title Darkly Dreaming Dexter and was charmed enough by the title to look at the description. The words "darkly comic" jumped out at me, and I liked the premise enough. It is about a likable blood spatter analyst who kills his spare time by killing people who kill people. A quasi-moral serial killer. Then I saw "Now a series on Showtime!" on the back and decided to make a point to check it out. So after that shift, I made an effort to... gain access to the 10 or so episodes which had already aired. It took two episodes for me to get into it, and the rest is history.
I really like the show because of its titular character. Next to the protagonists of Murakami novels, Dexter is one of the few fictional characters I can relate to. Like me, he's emotionally empty but pretends to be more charming and likable than he is. He is also a detached introvert who is at his best during his time alone to work on his craft. He is also immensely secretive, though he at least has better reasons to be. And while we don't have the same hobbies, who wouldn't want to play chop suey with the scum of society? It's a well done show, but one that isn't without its flaws. Each season brings something new to the table, but obviously, there are certain similar things to expect in each one. It's entertaining, and the stories are well told, but it's not without its plot holes, but that's fine, it's entertainment. Anybody who thinks of this as a slice of life needs to open a window and get some air.
Season one is still the most perfect, and surpasses the book it was based on. It was about a serial killer whose MO is slightly similar to Dexter's but he leaves the bodies out in the open, and bloodless. Eventually, the killer begins leaving hints in Dexter's apartment and at crime scenes which speak to him alone. It was great. It created a formula and got everything in it just right: Dexter's introspection (which I can never have enough of), Dexter's hunts, revelations of his past, Dexter befriending a serial killer/homicidal maniac who he relates to, learns to be more human from and then winds up being disappointed by. And of course, also the mystery, plot twists, and melodramatic side plots involving the other characters of the show. While not a puzzler, it was the most cerebral season of the show.
Rating: 9/10
Season two, I don't think I will ever watch again. It's my least favourite season of the show. It is still a cut above most television programming, but I was irritated with the direction it went in. It was a direct continuation of the first season. And from this point on, none of the seasons follow the books (which isn't a bad thing). It starts with Dexter feeling off his game, being pursued by a rival cop, telling his girlfriend Rita that he is "an addict" to cast off suspicions of what he really is, and an investigation is lead by FBI agent Frank Lundy after the bodies Dexter disposed of are discovered. It had all of the ingredients of the first season, but the poorly measured balance of quantities affected the quality. There was too much melodrama and personal bullshit. There is nothing wrong with personal drama, and I would rather have the characters have some form of depth rather than just act as tools for solving the cases. But they cranked it up a few notches too high, and it became more of a soap opera than anything else. Dexter and his girlfriend Rita's character also jumped the shark a bit from what they were like in the last season. Especially Rita though, who all of a sudden became a nag. It also had a few plot twists which I found to be a bit contrived. Especially ones involving initial perceptions of Dexter's adopted father, Harry. And the main premise seemed to be trying too hard to hook people. Not that that's a bad thing, at all, but it did set into motion one of the major problems I had with the fourth season, this desire for the writers to keep viewers going "OH SHIT, WHAT IS EVERYBODY GOING TO DO ABOUT THIS NOW?!" The explosive finale more than made up for it, and is probably the only episode I'd look at again if I decide to watch anything from that season.
Rating: 5.5/10
Season three got the formula right again, and even toyed around with it a bit. It involved Dexter befriending a DA whose brother he killed spontaneously. There was also a side mystery about a serial killer who skins victims. He was the most uninteresting serial killer for the show so far. As I said, it got the elements of the formula just right, as Dexter would say, "It followed the code." I enjoyed the bizarre bromance between Dexter and Miguel, the DA. The series doesn't have that much black humour in it, though it is present, but I have to say, that season got it down the best. Their relationship reminded me of the one between Henry and Otis in Henry:Portrait of a Serial Killer, though not as disturbing, and maybe not as funny. Excellent season overall, and the most well done next to the first.
Rating: 8.5/10
Season four has been the most thrilling, and had the most intriguing moments, but was a bit of a mixed bag. I enjoyed it, but it could have been six episodes shorter. It involved Dexter adjusting to married life with Rita, who becomes even more of a nag than ever in this season. Special agent Lundy returns to chase down The Trinity Killer played by John Lithgow, who has been my favourite actor ever since I saw Raising Cain on TV when I was 8. As usual, Dexter befriends him (sort of), and learns a few thing from him. Honestly, all I liked if not loved about this season was Dexter's pursuit of Trinity. This one involves some of the worst side plots such as Dexter's family life, Debra wondering if she wants to rekindle the (over-written) flame she had with Lundy in season two, and a love affair between the two senior detectives Laguerta and Batista. Their love affair was the most brutal thing about the series. Yes, more brutal than any murder Dexter or Trinity could pull off. There was no reason for it whatsoever, their personal lives in earlier seasons were seldom delved into, except for season 3 which Laguerta's sort of had an integral role. Their romance does absolutely nothing to advance the plot or create any tension. If their scenes (which there are plenty of) were removed, nothing would be lost. The only side character who they did next to nothing with, and hardly ever do anything with is Vincent Masuka. He's one of the only side characters I kind of like. He's just the comic relief, and almost every line out of him is a smart-ass remark or a perverted joke. What's even funnier than Masuka's character is American media's lack of interest in Asian males. They can't catch a break. At least Asian women get to play the exotic romantic interests for the dashing white heroes of their movies and TV shows. But I guess anyone who wants to see Asian males as leads who are not geeks or martial arts experts can always watch Asian movies and dramas. My friend [Lotus Kai] swoons over those guys. a bunch of effeminate dandies. I think the problem is that when things are about minorities, they have to be about what it's like to be the minority, rather than a character being a character. And that writer's don't know what direction to go in with Asian American characters other than the usual stereotypes. They don't really explore the stereotypes with Masuka, and that leaves him with even less to do.
That leads me to the race-baiter who put up a video on Youtube ranting about the moral turpitude of the show and its viewers and asked if people would like the show if Dexter was black. My first thoughts were, "What a pointless question? You can ask an infinite amount of other whatif questions for any movie or TV show? What if Dexter were a hermaphrodite?" I don't think it would make much of a difference, so long as Dexter acted the exact same way and lived the exact same life. But if all of a sudden it were, Dexter the black serial killer and a good portion of the show dwelled on what it's like to be a black serial killer, then it would be a different experience. Though I admit, it could make an interesting black-black comedy if done by the right director. It's a premise that could work also, if the show didn't have a thriller element. If it were exclusively about the mundane duties of him balancing his personal life with serial killing, then fine. Michael C. Hall's character David Fisher in Six Feet Under did have to deal from time to time with the implications of being a gay mortician dating a black man. It wasn't entirely what the show was about, but it was an element, and it worked, but Six Feet Under was a different kind of show, a family drama.
Me and my tangents, I was doing pretty good too, until then... Back to Dexter.
While the premise for the fourth season was good, the writers seemed to have a hard time doing much with it. The first five episodes, Dexter avoids the Trinity case like a plague until something happens halfway through the season for him to gain a personal interest. Then the episodes are spent with Dexter stalling because he wants to hang out with another serial killer for a while and learn a few tips on pretending to be human. Then when he decides he's ready, his plans are constantly thwarted. I didn't mind all of the cock-teasing of the second half of the season, however, because a lot is revealed about the Trinity Killer's warped psyche which I quite liked.
However, the last two episodes together could have been wrapped up in a half hour. Episode 11 was an exercise in fiddling around for 45 minutes to finally reach its titular climax. And now, after watching last night's finale I have to say, the episode was sort of inert, but I can't say anticlimactic. The episode was much like the season and spent a lot of time on filler until it lead to its climax. I found it to be satisfying, though they could have spent a lot more time and sadistic glee on it after all of that wasted time in the episode. The episode had a twist which I only mention because they had been hyping for about a month. It is something that I figured out would happen only because they wouldn't stop pumping up how shocking the final moment would be. I ranted about this in an earlier post, but I will say it again, if you want to "blow the top off" of people's heads as they kept saying the ending would do, then they shouldn't have announced that there was going to be a twist. It's like telling somebody that you're throwing them a surprise party. Again, an overall good season, and I look forward to the fifth which I hope will be the final season, and which I hope doesn't figure the solution will be for Dexter to go to jail or die. And I also hope they won't hype up any twists.There are a lot of sensationalistic "OH SHIT, WHAT IS EVERYBODY GOING TO DO ABOUT THIS NOW?!" moments in this season. I think they relied too much on it, but, from a commercial point of view, I understand why. Shockers, and cliffhangers are an easy way to keep the conversation going. Ironically, the "big twist" ending didn't impact me that much and I'm not saying "OH SHIT, WHAT IS EVERYBODY GOING TO DO ABOUT THIS NOW?!". I know it's probably wrong, but, I sort of like what happened, at least the consequences and that it sort of fits. Still, the use of it, and its impact was pretty underwhelming and it seemed really forced. It would have been more surprising if they didn't use a pretty similar "OH SHIT, WHAT IS EVERYBODY GOING TO DO ABOUT THIS NOW?!" twist earlier in the season.
Rating: 7.8/10
I wish that the show could be more twisted and less twisty. What I mean is that it could take weirder routes, not necessarily like the third book which had ancient gods and spirits, but go for weirder ideas. Have more characters who are unconventional than just Dexter and the guest serial killer friend. And have more twisted sorts of relationships. An example of what I mean by twisted as opposed to twisty is the ending of Hannibal which had Hannibal and Clarice, the detective pursuing him wind up becoming lovers and eating the brains of a corrupt agent from the justice department. Something like that is not really a moment which makes viewers say, "OH SHIT, WHAT IS EVERYBODY GOING TO DO ABOUT THIS NOW?!", but a moment which makes viewers say, "WHAT THE FUCK?! DID THEY REALLY JUST DO THAT? HOW DID THEY EVEN COME UP WITH THAT ONE?" The show, while it has dark subject matter, is kind of safe and is very accessible, which of course, it has to be. I'm sure it will continue to go in the direction that this season went in, especially since the ratings are apparently way up. But, just saying, it would be a lot better if it were a little more bizarre.
See everyone in hell!
