On last week’s message board, after I enthused about Dexter powering into its third act, reader “anon” cautioned:
Unlike you, I'm not a fan of the third act shift. The need to bring things to a head and also wrap them up tends to mean plot dominates over character. I don't deny enjoying the ratcheting up of the tension, but at the same time I expect that Dexter will emerge "victorious" (= not imprisoned) somehow. Expecting too much from the plot mechanics would leave me open to disappointment if they're creaky.
There were times during this week’s episode, “Resistance Is Futile,” where I could see what he was getting at. Even now, I’m having trouble figuring out what to write about the episode because so much of it involved the gears of the plot doing a lot of grinding, while leaving Dexter’s characterization on the back burner. And yet I still found it a riveting hour, partly because the thriller mechanics were mostly very satisfying and partly because the writers found ways to make them illuminate character. In his distress and scramble to tie up numerous incriminating loose ends, Dexter is still telling us a lot about who he is.
Tonight, we’re reminded that Rule #1 of Harry’s Code is “Don’t get caught.” Turns out that now is an excellent time for Dexter to return to his stepfather’s teachings, because not getting caught naturally supercedes any other concern in his life at present. It was great to see James Remar return for the first time in weeks to make plain the consequences of a killer getting found out; seeing his own reflection superimposed against the visage of someone in the electric chair definitely made a lasting impression on young Dexter. Self-preservation is paramount for an obvious reason: If he gets caught, he dies. And so self-preservation trumps any other tenet in the Code, which now makes Dexter capable of doing anything to anyone if it means saving his own ass. Heading into the final three episodes, Rule #1 helps to clarify his actions and makes him more dangerous than usual.
With Lila out of the way—at least in his heart and mind, though definitely not in reality—Dexter seems to have found his old self again, the man that was on the road to relative normalcy before Lila and revelations about his past had him lurching in an unfamiliar direction. When he apologizes to Rita on the lawn, he seems surprised by his sincerity (“I feel such regret, which is rare for me”) and reveals that he really does care about her and the kids and what they might mean for his future. He’s remorseful about his affair with Lila and he’s sincere enough that we believe Rita is convinced. This isn’t a “performance,” meant to restore the mere impression of normalcy that’s so important as a cover for his serial killing ways; it’s simply a regretful guy speaking from the heart. That’s progress.
Still, “Resistance Is Futile” had lots of narrative business to get out of the way, so let’s get to it. A gold star for those of us—which is to say, everyone—who predicted that Doakes was going to get set up for the BHB fall. One has to question the wisdom of Doakes pilfering Dexter’s slides and sticking them in the back of his car; given his suspension for erratic behavior and the fact that he’d broken into Dexter’s apartment, he had to know that the slides would incriminate him more than his nemesis. Still, it fits his character: He’s the sort of no-bullshit guy who lumbers his way to the truth without worrying about what anyone thinks of him or his freewheeling methods.