Dexter - "Remember The Monsters?"

by Lee Padrick, September 24, 2013

WARNING:  This review contains spoilers

Dexter has ended its run, and all I can say is .. I enjoyed it.

I watched this series finale and decided to enjoy the last hour of the world of Miami Metro.  

We dealing with the aftermath of the Saxon-Clayton-Deb confrontation, and Miami Metro is on the scene (its sad seeing some of my favorite characters over the past eight seasons for the last time).  Deb is taken to the hospital and Quinn is with her in a touching moment.  I like Quinn, his character caught a lot of grief over the years, but it was fun watching his tribulations on the force.  Deb is looking like she's going to be OK, she's cursing.

And Dex, Hannah, and Harrison are in the airport.  Elway stopped Blake Shelton's closet for today's clothes and is in hot pursuit.  But Dexter pulls a classic Bay Harbor Butcher con and gets Elway detained by airport security.  Sawyer would be proud.  

Dexter - "Monkey In A Box"

by Lee Padrick, September 17, 2013

WARNING - This review contains spoilers

Well, we finally got the answer to the question that's been on our minds since this show started.  And the answer is:

No, Ghost Harry won't be going to Argentina.

Really?!?  The penultimate episode of a once-great show, and we get THAT??  Somebody needs to put this show on a table and drive a knife through its heart.  I'm confident it meets The Code.

So we're treated to the aftermath of Vogel's death and everyone at Miami Metro is taking it pretty hard.  Her relationship with everyone must have been much closer than we thought.  The Homicide Division didn't get that upset when Doakes and Mike Anderson were killed.  Maybe they can honor Vogel with a streetlight to illuminate the LaGuerta bench?

Dexter is packed up and ready to ship out to Argentina, but that rascally Oliver Saxon is still out there, so OF COURSE our hero has to take care of Saxon himself.  Because Dex, and the viewers, were so emotionally invested in Vogel and Cassie.  We demand a revenge killing!  C'mon, its not like Saxon killed Batista, Masuka, or even Matthews.  Dude, get on a plane and enjoy your extradition-free future!

How about that ending?  Dex has Saxon on Saxon's table (nice touch!) and decided to turn him over to Miami Metro instead of giving his victim a demonstration of what his Ginsus can do.  So Debra gets to make the bust and take credit for bringing down the evil building inspector and homicidal mastermind that is Oliver Saxon.  Except the soon-to-die Marshal Clayton channels the ghost of Stan Liddy and follows Deb to the abandoned hospital, finds Saxon strapped to the table, and releases him.  Because the U.S. Marshal Service doesn't communicate at all with local law enforcement or watch the news.  So Clayton lets Saxon go, only to get shanked in the chest.  And Deb gets shot in a shootout with the now-armed Saxon.  That's our cliffhanger.      

Elway raided Nash Bridge's closet this week and dropped by Deb's house for a visit and a look around.  After his faux-apology and a good look under the sofa, Deb throws him out and moves Hannah to a motel out by the airport.  Because there's no way that motel clerks watch the same local news station as the receptionist at the Urgent Care.

I did like the "Batista sends Dexter off" scene.  Angel hasn't been given much to do this season, so it was good to see him get a touching scene with our favorite psychopath who now cries.  And Matthews got to say his goodbyes to Dex, so I'm not feeling as confident now that Matthews has known the truth all along.  Also, the Quinn-Dex exchange was nice, as the two old foes buried the hatchet patched things up.  I still think that Quinn's going to somehow figure into the end game, but I'm not sure how.

There was more WTF-ery going on, but I can't make myself care anymore.  Didn't even get to mention Sylvia Prado as the real estate agent.  

Lastly, Hurricane Laura is coming.  (Here in North Carolina, the state park dumped a lot of dead Christmas trees just offshore, and a winter storm pushed them ashore.  Wonder what will wash ashore in Miami after Laura passes?)


Random Thoughts:

- I'm so jealous of Dexter.  He must have a T1 line in his house, AND his Macbook is always on and charged up.

- When Dex had Saxon on the table and said, "I don't even want to be here," I said out loud, "I know what you mean, brother."

- As soon as Deb found the engagement ring in Quinn's desk, I thought to myself, "Deb's gonna die tonight."

- Since Dexter is "new and improved," he should have offered to refund the earnest money for the offer Saxon made on the apartment before attempting to kill him.  

- Hannah hasn't mentioned that her "Dark Passenger" is gone.  Dex may want to have a heart-to-heart with her before the expected nuptials.  "Sorry we had a fight this morning, honey.  I made dinner."

What did you think?

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Fall 2013 - What's In The TVPhile Zone?

by Lee Padrick, Friday, September 13, 2013

The mornings and nights are getting cooler, the leaves are turning brown, and football season has started.  What does that mean?  The fish are feasting for the winter ahead and TV shows are premiering.  Its a beautiful time of the year.

Fall, just a few years ago, meant the broadcast and cable networks kick-started stalwarts and unveiled new scripted fare.  That "new show/fall" mentality has been upended somewhat over the past ten years, but this is still the time of year that most networks refresh themselves. 

Between now and the Christmas break, I'll be reviewing some select shows.  Those on my list include:

- Homeland (Season 3)

- Masters of Sex (Season 1, new on Showtime)

- Walking Dead (Season 4)

- Boardwalk Empire (Season 4)

TV shows often are at their peak in seasons three and four.  Many theories abound, but I believe that networks, producers, writers, actors, and fans have sufficiently built a world with well developed characters within the show by 24 - 36 episodes, and all are at their creative peak.  We'll test this theory over the next 3 months together.   

I'll also be talking about shows that are finishing up their seasons, like Dexter, Ray Donovan, The Bridge, and The Newsroom.  I have a few Tivos full of stuff I've been trying to find some time to watch, like Hell on Wheels, Low Winter Sun, Broadchurch, and the History Channel's Vikings (which has been sitting in a folder on a Tivo, only gotten through 4 episodes thus far). Plus, I'll be watching random stuff on Netflix and I'm sure I'll feel compelled to write about it.

So keep checking back regularly and enjoy some of the best TV that we may ever see.  The Golden Age of TV is here!


Random Thoughts:

- Had to edit Broadchurch because I spelled it "Broadchuck."  Did I mention I'm going to miss Yvonne Strahovski when Dexter ends?

- Richard Harrow (Jack Huston) deserves a spin-off.

- Jesse "Todd Landry" Plemons is cast in a potential HBO project called The Missionary.

- Scandal is going to be my guilty pleasure this fall.   

What will you be watching?  

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Dexter - "Goodbye Miami"

by Lee Padrick, September 11, 2013

- This review contains spoilers -

With two episodes left in the series, I'm left scratching my head.  How can a show that was pulling Primetime Emmy nominations as recently as last year (Michael C. Hall for 'Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series') become "True Blood?"  The difference is that "True Blood" doesn't pretend to be a serious drama.

We all know that this is the last season of 'Dexter.' So there's no reason to pull any stops or worry about setting a basis for continuation. This show should be firing on all cylinders, instead of constantly glossing over plot holes?  But what we're witnessing is arguably the worst season of 'Dexter' yet.  Keep in mind that a bad season of 'Dexter' is still above most of the stuff you see on broadcast TV.  But this is the show that gave us Season 4 and an awesomely badass Arthur Mitchell. And this season who do we get as Dexter's final Big Bad?  The underwhelming Oliver Saxon.

Looking back, I think a big part of me died with Rita in Season 4.

I had high hopes going into this season.  The first few episodes introduced to coldly dispassisonate Dr. Vogel, played by Charlotte Rampling.  This is Dexter's creator, who teamed up with Harry (before he became Captain Obvious, aka Ghost Harry) to give a young sociopathic Dexter a code to live by, that served as the basis for our favorite boat-owning vigilante serial killer.  And all season, we've waited patiently after suspending disbelief and emotionally investing in Dr. Vogel.  And what happens with just a few episodes until the end?  Dr. Vogel becomes a doting mother of another serial killer and gets a Columbian necktie for her efforts.  All at the hands and psychopathy of the previously-mentioned Oliver Saxon.  

The Dexter we knew in earlier seasons had to contend with the Ice Truck Killer, Doakes, Miguel, and Arthur Miller.  He would have dispatched Saxon as easily as he did Freebo.  Oh, the good old days!

Debra has come a long way this season.  Jennifer Carpenter has been a bright spot this season, bringing it every episode.  But she's gone from a suicidal backseat driver to harboring a fugitive in the form of Hannah.  And she's quitting Elway's PI business to become a homicide detective again.  Sadly, I don't see how Debra gets out of this series alive.

And what about Elway?  Debra's former boss (no hug?) steals alternatively every show from either Sonny Crockett's or Deion Sanders' closets as he and Clayton are in hot pursuit of Hannah, and I imagine they both will play a signficant role before the finale.  

Batista?  Not sure what he's doing right now, except agreeing with a neutered Matthews. Both characters deserve better.

Masuka somehow figures out his daughter (Becky from 'Friday Night Lights') is a pothead, which is amazing considering he has spent 8 years sharing a lab with a serial killer.  Sherlock Holmes he ain't.

And then there's Quinn.  Desmond Harrington has done a good job with a character that has never been given a primary  purpose, other than to chase women only to realize he's in love with Debra.  He dumps Jamie, which means that we've seen the last of Aimee Garcia exercising the "lots of nudity" clause in her contract.  But I feel that Quinn's buildup this season suggests something's in store for Miami Metro's perpetual dunderhead. Maybe Quinn's going to be the one to finally figure out who Dexter really is.  It would be nice if there was a least one good detective somewhere at Miami Metro.

A surprise this season is not the character of Saxon, but the actor that plays Saxon.  Darri Ingolfsson has done an exceptional job with the thinly nuanced character he's been given and he gets an A+ for selling "crazy."

Two episodes to go, and I don't have a strong feeling whether or not Dexter gets to retire to Argentina with Hannah, Harrison, and Ghost Harry.  But I've been with this show through thick and thin (lots of "thin" lately) for 94 episodes, what's a few more hours?

Quote of the night:

Debra:  Hanging out with two serial killers.  Doesn't get better than that.

What did you think?

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