S1.E08: Unfair Game

[Snazzy Daisy]

Synopsis:

Dexter fights for his life in the woods of Iron Lake, leading to a confrontation in an abandoned summer camp. Is there a better place for a serial killer to confront another violent killer? Harrison finds himself at a crossroads between two father figures who can lead him down two very different paths. Meanwhile Angela starts to make some disturbing discoveries of her own.

Air date: 26 Dec 2021

 

[paigow]

This episode could have been called "Hard Target" ....

Manhattan!Matt: Wanna know how I got these scars??? Why So Serious???

[Snazzy Daisy]

When Dexter ran over his gun, Kurt fled and quickly disappeared. Based on his circumstances, he can’t be that fast. He must have some kind of underground shipping container nearby the cabin where he does the embalming rituals and/or displays his trophies.

I hope Kurt is not “processing” Molly in this scene…😬

[aghst]

Didn't take long for Dexter to escape that truck but he was thrown out of the vehicle, which is usually not a good ending.  So he bled all over the forest and made it to that cabin way ahead of the henchman, showed him that he took a knife.  Guy got cocky about taking a knife to a gunfight but a rifle is not as advantageous in close quarters as a shotgun, especially in the dark.

Yikes, not a good ad for iPhones with FaceID.

You knew Dexter was always going to win, since he's going against a yokel who listens to hillbilly music.  But it took half the episode to beat him and then very long drive to get to the secret cabin.

Kurt's not the mastermind that he appeared to be.  He hired a goon who got bested by a bleeding fish and game salesman and his plot was to buddy up to Harrison, ply him with liquor and venison and shoot him down with a rifle and a scope?  And then having him beat up by the pitching machine, that was just filler.  But why not spike the drink or the food?  How sporting is it to have a scared kid try to run away from a rifle with a scope?

Plenty of DNA left in his cabin too.

Sure revenge for Dexter killing Matt but it has to be the same custom, shoot down a fleeing kid in the back.  That just bought Dexter time to escape and come to the rescue.

Meanwhile, local yokel Angela is piecing together Dexter and the Bay Harbor Butcher's MO of injecting ketamine in the neck.  OK I thought he chose to use a substance which wouldn't survive autopsies?  Of course he didn't expect that the Miami PD would eventually retrieve all those body parts and then autopsy them.  Would they actually tell the media that his MO was to inject ketamine into the neck though?

Surely Dexter knew that leaving the same mark, using the same MO would be the surest way to get noticed by law enforcement?

So like Kurt, maybe Dexter's fatal flaw is strict adherence to ritual and repetitive process.  

Angela is going to have to die, either by Dexter or someone else killing her or her being involved in some lucky accident, unless they intend to tell the story of Dexter's demise by the end of this season.

Ratings are said to be strong so I can't imagine them ending it in two more episodes.

But Dexter came clean to Harrison, so he's going to be his guide in possible future seasons or is Harrison going to die somehow?

Can't have future seasons in Iron Lake again can they?  Once they get rid of Kurt and discover his secret hiding place with all the girls he killed, what's left in IL for Dexter (and Harrison)?  Maybe that oil billionaire is also a killer.  But there are only so many targets for The Code in such a small community, so maybe they migrate to a big city again.

 

Edited December 26, 2021 by aghst

[arachne]

Unless I missed something, Dexter was not wearing gloves when he stabbed Kurt's goon. All he did was cover the body with a tarp and run off, leaving the knife stuck in with his prints on the handle. If Dexter doesn't come back to the body later, he'll have some 'splaining to do.

[Morrigan2575]

I'm going to LMAO if Angela figures out Dexter is the Bay Harbor Butcher and catches Kurt as the Iron Lake Serial Killer. 

I'm back to thinking Harrison doesn't have a Dark Passenger, he's just a kid with anger and attachment issues. 

I really thought Harrison was going to die, I was legit worried for him. Guess I'm one of the few that likes/cares about him.

While I enjoyed the Harrison/Kurt stuff and obviously we needed the Angela "investigation" storyline I can help but, feel like this was dragged on a bit too long. 

[cmfran]

Ugh, this ep was a slog. I'll be sticking it out till the end, but I still can't believe this was the best they could come up with.

My wife and I were talking about other ideas for this season (hello, writers), and she said it would have been much more interesting if Kurt had tried to get Harrison to come over to his side, then try to kill Dexter/Jim. That (or almost anything else) would be better than this.

And yeah, the oil billionaire is never coming back. Figures.

[aghst]

30 minutes ago, cmfran said:

And yeah, the oil billionaire is never coming back. Figures.

Because he realized "I'm an oil billionaire, why am I living in the frozen tundra in the middle of nowhere?"

 

[Shriekingeel]

This one went on forever. The standoff between Elric and Dexter took up 3/4 of the episode, not a good sign for those of us who were hoping for plot advancement. 

[WaltersHair]

I must not have been paying attention, because I was sure Kurt was trying to win over Harrison so Harrison would kill Dexter. Kurt would have a new 'son' to start over and kill runaways together.

[preeya]

[WTF] A bran new, shiny, stainless steel, knife set in an abandoned summer camp cabin. 

[WTF 2] Nicely folded up, clean, bright blue tarp right next to stabbing victim.

[WTF 3]  Underwhelming police officer, 1500 miles away, on the brink of solving Bay Harbor Butcher cold case.

Edited December 27, 2021 by preeya

[Morrigan2575]

24 minutes ago, preeya said:

[WTF] A bran new, shiny, stainless steel, knife set in an abandoned summer camp cabin. 

[WTF 2] Nicely folded up, clean, bright blue tarp right next to stabbing victim.

Assuming this is the same camp the teens keep breaking into to party, I would say it's not out of the realm of possibility, even if it's a little to convenient 

[Snazzy Daisy]

1 hour ago, preeya said:

[WTF 3]  Underwhelming police officer, 1500 miles away, on the brink of solving Bay Harbor Butcher cold case.

With help from Google… 🙄

[AngelaHunter]

So, Dexter's blood is all over "Ulrick/Elrick"'s(??) truck, on the snow in the forest, with this footprints leading to a cabin with more of his blood and a dead body. Surely even the Iron Lake precinct of the Keystone cops could solve this.

The cop telling Angela, "Well... no, I didn't bother mentioning I brought Jim in after his violent public assault because you might get mad at me for saying bad things about your boyfriend." and "Err, yes - there was a dead drug dealer, but I didn't mention that either. I figured you'd never bother looking at the reports. I guess he O.D'd? Who knows?" *Shrug*

When you're the Chief of police and don't know what everyone else knows, might to time to change professions or get a new staff.

The forensic examiner/coroner didn't see the prominent needle mark on a body. Dr. G, he ain't.

I was surprised that Ulrick wasn't as dumb as he looked.

5 hours ago, aghst said:

Meanwhile, local yokel Angela is piecing together Dexter and the Bay Harbor Butcher's MO of injecting ketamine in the neck.

He used to use M99(etorphine), but I guess ketamine was all he could get at the vet's dispensary. Even the local yokel vet seemingly has more sense than to keep that stuff around free for the taking, if this vet has even heard of it.

 

5 hours ago, aghst said:

 Would they actually tell the media that his MO was to inject ketamine into the neck though?

From what I recall, there were no bodies found on which needle marks could be seen, or blood could be checked, ever, so no one knew about it. When all the bodies were retrieved from the ocean, Dexter sabotaged the cold storage and they all rotted.

I found Kurt and Harrison's little get-together reasonably tense and intriguing enough to keep me interested, although I wasn't sure of the purpose of the extended baseball thing. Where on earth did Kurt waddle off to? Must be some underground lair, maybe where he keeps the bodies or heads of his victims? I am enjoying Clancy Brown's sinister performance.

So is Dexter going to give Harrison the Code to be a successful murderer, just like Harry did for/to him, instead of helping him and taking him to a psychologist for therapy? Dexter finally figured out that what Harry did was dead wrong but wants to do the same to his kid? No "Father of the Year" awards for you, Dex.

4 hours ago, Morrigan2575 said:

I'm back to thinking Harrison doesn't have a Dark Passenger, he's just a kid with anger and attachment issues. 

I sort of think the same thing. Being abandoned by a parent has to mess up a kid badly since they can't see it as anything other than rejection - "My own father didn't want me". Does Dexter really think it will help him to learn his daddy is a prolific, predatory serial killer with a trail of bodies a mile long? I bet he won't tell him he was responsible for Rita's murder, though.  He'll probably continue the lie that he killed Arthur Mitchell for revenge.

[Zonk]

I fast forewarded through most of this. I think that about sums up how good the episode was.

5 hours ago, Morrigan2575 said:

I'm back to thinking Harrison doesn't have a Dark Passenger, he's just a kid with anger and attachment issues. 

Yeah, me too.

But then, Dexter himself never seemed like a real psychopath and my theory was always that Harry made an innocent boy into a serial killer. He likely could have lived a normal non-murdery life with the right kind of help. I was sure the last season was going for something like that, with the psychologist, Harry met with, projecting her issues with her own son onto Dexter, but then: Nope! Lumberjack Ending!

[aghst]

I thought in the original series, Dexter had these physical urges to kill.

Like he had problems suppressing them so The Code was absolutely necessary to keep him under control rather than give in to the urges and go wild.

Maybe Harrison doesn't have the Dark Passenger.  But we have to admit Dexter does have a track record in recognizing those who have the Dark Passenger.

It would certainly be an interesting twist if the kid didn't and Dexter spilled EVERYTHING to him.  Would he have to kill Harrison then?

I don't think Harrison's facility with hurting people is just an angry and confused kid.  Don't forget the kid he framed.

 

[Zonk]

7 minutes ago, aghst said:

I thought in the original series, Dexter had these physical urges to kill.

Like he had problems suppressing them so The Code was absolutely necessary to keep him under control rather than give in to the urges and go wild.

But were those urges inborn and inevitable or were they ingrained into Dexter by Harry and just a bad outlet for his violent urges, that could have been channeled into something much more healthy?

Dexter never displayed the other signs you'd expect from a psychopath. He genuinely loved other people. We know that because we heard his inner monologue. He always acted more like an addict. Often hurting the people he loved in the process of getting his next fix, but he still loved them. So would he have been addicted to killing if Harry hadn't trained him that way? I don't think so.

[AngelaHunter]

57 minutes ago, Zonk said:

. He likely could have lived a normal non-murdery life with the right kind of help.

I agree. Harry was also misled by the nutty doctor who didn't even suggest Dexter could be turned around even as a young child. Lots of kids are cruel and violent or abused and traumatized, but most grow up to learn to live in a law-abiding way and don't all turn into serial killers. Dexter remained a child with some of the characteristics of a sociopath (but not a psychopath), hence the running gag of Angel calling him, "Socio".

Harry wanted "bad people" to be punished and turned Dexter into his own personal tool of vengeance.

3 minutes ago, Zonk said:

He genuinely loved other people.

I can't think of a single person he genuinely loved. He was fond of Deb, but never hesitated to screw her over, sabotage her on the job when it knew how much her job meant to her,  and lie to her about everything, if it benefitted him.

[Zonk]

8 minutes ago, AngelaHunter said:

I agree. Harry was also misled by the nutty doctor who didn't even suggest Dexter could be turned around even as a young child. Lots of kids are cruel and violent or abused and traumatized, but most grow up to learn to live in a law-abiding way and don't all turn into serial killers. Dexter remained a child with some of the characteristics of a sociopath (but not a psychopath), hence the running gag of Angel calling him, "Socio".

Harry wanted "bad people" to be punished and turned Dexter into his own personal tool of vengeance.

  Yes pretty much. Although not even sure if Harry conciously knew that that was what he was doing.

I thought they'd go much more in depth into it with the doctor coming back in the last season, but then they just didn't and lumberjacked it instead.

6 minutes ago, AngelaHunter said:

I can't think of a single person he genuinely loved. He was fond of Deb, but never hesitated to screw her over, sabotage her on the job when it knew how much her job meant to her,  and lie to her about everything, if it benefitted him.

Yeah, like an unchecked addict would. He still loved her. He also seemed to love Harrison, before he suffered an aneurysm in the last season and sent him off to south america with a serial killer.

[AngelaHunter]

4 minutes ago, Zonk said:

Yeah, like an unchecked addict would

Or a child who cares only for his own needs would. He did terrible, hurtful things to Deb, exploited her trust in him and used her, and felt no remorse.

 

10 minutes ago, Zonk said:

Although not even sure if Harry conciously knew that that was what he was doing.

Agree it wasn't a conscious decision and he was taking proper instruction from that quack but once he saw the potential for Dexter to do what he couldn't or wouldn't, he went with it, starting with obliquely telling him to kill that nurse.

 

6 minutes ago, Zonk said:

before he suffered an aneurysm in the last season and sent him off to south america with a serial killer.

😄 That episode should have been titled, "Dexter has a Brain Fart". I wish we could find out what life was like for Harrison, being raised by a ruthless murderer. Gee, will Dex ever get curious enough to ask maybe a question or two about his child's life? Probably not.

 

[Kristi800]

The woods part had me thinking about the woods scene from The Sopranos but that was so much better. If I'd been Dex, why not take all of the knives - or stick him from behind while the guy was looking at the knives - but no, he had to be cute with the mirror. 

So random with the baseball stuff. Just trying to get Harrison's trust by hitting him repeatedly with the baseballs? Trying to say that Dex beat him? What was he going to say about why Harrison is missing? Didn't Kurt pick him up from downtown and people see them go off together? Super sketchy. The ski mask stuff sort of reminded me of Patrick Bateman from American Psycho, popping up wearing the plastic raincoat and talking about Huey Lewis & the News!

Angela's getting smart...watch out, Dex!

Dex is definitely at least a sociopath, the question for the TV series is - is he a psychopath? Didn't he try to see a therapist (Tony Goldwyn) and he turned out to be a killer as well? I don't remember specifically, but I do remember Tony Goldwyn was a therapist. Dear therapist, my son has urges to kill how do make those stop? Harry definitely used Dexter to fulfill his own agenda - to get bad guys who have skirted the law. 

Quote

😄 That episode should have been titled, "Dexter has a Brain Fart". I wish we could find out what life was like for Harrison, being raised by a ruthless murderer. Gee, will Dex ever get curious enough to ask maybe a question or two about his child's life? Probably not.

He's probably afraid to find out. But why not just ask, especially if Hannah ever said anything about him - but apparently not. 

Edited December 27, 2021 by Kristi800

[anoninrva]

I don't know that they've established that the camp is abandoned so much as off-season.  If it's just closed for the winter, because who wants to camp in upstate New York in subzero weather, that may explain the knives in the kitchen.  Maybe I'm giving the show more credit than is warranted.

Harrison's review of peated Scotch was great.  I'd think that maybe that would not lead to him finishing half the bottle (I'm not sure it was full to begin with - if it's a favorite Scotch, he probably drinks it regularly), but, then again, he's a teenager with a substance abuse problem, so probably.

 

I was thinking since we're only two episodes away from the end, and there's already a keystone cop to Sherlock Holmes transition with Angela, it seems possible that Dexter may end the season in jail.  If you wanted to end the show ambiguously, there's plenty of room to revise, and if you want a Sopranos-esque ending to enrage the audience, that works too.  I was surprised that Kurt kidnapping Harrison ended so quickly and easily, but there's too more episodes, so he may capture him again.

[BeatrixK]

12 hours ago, aghst said:

Didn't take long for Dexter to escape that truck but he was thrown out of the vehicle, which is usually not a good ending.  So he bled all over the forest and made it to that cabin way ahead of the henchman, showed him that he took a knife.  Guy got cocky about taking a knife to a gunfight but a rifle is not as advantageous in close quarters as a shotgun, especially in the dark.

Yikes, not a good ad for iPhones with FaceID.

You knew Dexter was always going to win, since he's going against a yokel who listens to hillbilly music.  But it took half the episode to beat him and then very long drive to get to the secret cabin.

Kurt's not the mastermind that he appeared to be.  He hired a goon who got bested by a bleeding fish and game salesman and his plot was to buddy up to Harrison, ply him with liquor and venison and shoot him down with a rifle and a scope?  And then having him beat up by the pitching machine, that was just filler.  But why not spike the drink or the food?  How sporting is it to have a scared kid try to run away from a rifle with a scope?

Plenty of DNA left in his cabin too.

Sure revenge for Dexter killing Matt but it has to be the same custom, shoot down a fleeing kid in the back.  That just bought Dexter time to escape and come to the rescue.

Meanwhile, local yokel Angela is piecing together Dexter and the Bay Harbor Butcher's MO of injecting ketamine in the neck.  OK I thought he chose to use a substance which wouldn't survive autopsies?  Of course he didn't expect that the Miami PD would eventually retrieve all those body parts and then autopsy them.  Would they actually tell the media that his MO was to inject ketamine into the neck though?

Surely Dexter knew that leaving the same mark, using the same MO would be the surest way to get noticed by law enforcement?

So like Kurt, maybe Dexter's fatal flaw is strict adherence to ritual and repetitive process.  

Angela is going to have to die, either by Dexter or someone else killing her or her being involved in some lucky accident, unless they intend to tell the story of Dexter's demise by the end of this season.

Ratings are said to be strong so I can't imagine them ending it in two more episodes.

But Dexter came clean to Harrison, so he's going to be his guide in possible future seasons or is Harrison going to die somehow?

Can't have future seasons in Iron Lake again can they?  Once they get rid of Kurt and discover his secret hiding place with all the girls he killed, what's left in IL for Dexter (and Harrison)?  Maybe that oil billionaire is also a killer.  But there are only so many targets for The Code in such a small community, so maybe they migrate to a big city again.

 

That's been my speculation for a few epi's now - God knows the kid playing Harrison is solid enough he could carry a series - I don't wanna get too speculative but this is definitely my hunch, and last night's episode - with two left - didn't sway my hunch in another direction,

Did anyone else - when he let Harrison 'go' and Harrison started to run away from Kurt - think of Rikon Stark and start shouting 'ZIG ZAG, HARRISON....ZIG ZAG!'

[paigow]

Angela will see Dexter killing Kurt. However, Dexter will be wearing a white hunting outfit and mask. So Angela will misidentify Dexter and kill him.

 

[SunnyBeBe]

I really hope they don’t kill off Dexter…..then have him guide Harrison in ghost form like Harry did on the old series.  Ughhh….that doesn’t appeal to me at all.  The actor playing Harrison might be a nice kid, but I don’t see him as a lead in a show at all.  I can’t see me watching that, even with Michael C. Hall as the side kick.  
 

I didn’t understand the point of the baseball scene.  Why did Harrison continue to get hit? Was Kurt setting up a false abuse case against Dexter?  Will Kurt or Dexter survive this season?  Certainly, video would show Harrison hanging with Kurt earlier in the evening ……then he goes missing or is murdered?  Sounds like poor planning by Kurt. 
 

When Kurt tells them to run, why don’t they run for cover like to a tree, behind the building, or run zig zag?  It just seems off to run in a straight line right into the open area.  His plan to hunt human prey just seems ill conceived and silly.  
 

So, is Dex heading back to town to report what happened to the police and get medical attention or will he and Harrison just pretend it never happened? Kurt has to be taken out right?  It seems to me that either Angela will be killed or Dexter and Harrison hit the road and disappear together.  

 

 

[Morrigan2575]

29 minutes ago, SunnyBeBe said:

didn’t understand the point of the baseball scene.  Why did Harrison continue to get hit? Was Kurt setting up a false abuse case against Dexter?

Harrison was stepping into the plate. Looked like he was punishing himself, by taking the hits. Every time he got it, it flashed to some emotional scene. To me it was like a teen cutting themselves

[SunnyBeBe]

35 minutes ago, Morrigan2575 said:

Harrison was stepping into the plate. Looked like he was punishing himself, by taking the hits. Every time he got it, it flashed to some emotional scene. To me it was like a teen cutting themselves

I see.  Good point.  

[anoninrva]

1 hour ago, SunnyBeBe said:

I didn’t understand the point of the baseball scene.  Why did Harrison continue to get hit? Was Kurt setting up a false abuse case against Dexter?  Will Kurt or Dexter survive this season?  Certainly, video would show Harrison hanging with Kurt earlier in the evening ……then he goes missing or is murdered?  Sounds like poor planning by Kurt. 

 

 

I don't know anything about sportsball, so take that for what it's worth, but the motivation of the character seemed to be just to hurt him.  There's an element of the "I'm a better dad than your dad" arc of grooming Harrison, but , in my mind, this works against that.  I'm also a bit skeptical there's a "curveball" feature that works like that on the ball shooter.

[SunnyBeBe]

Kurt doesn’t seem to be too broken up over his son’s disappearance/death.   I suppose he’s distracting himself with his hobbies.  
 

With all his street smarts…wouldn’t you think that Harrison would have gotten some creepy vibes from Kurt? I mean…..I keep my venison at the out of the way cabin I rarely use? And, here’s some strong alcohol, sonny boy……..Hmmmm……If we didn’t know that Kurt was a blood thirsty killer, from the outside it would appear he’s a sexual predator.  

Edited December 27, 2021 by SunnyBeBe

[paigow]

37 minutes ago, anoninrva said:

I'm also a bit skeptical there's a "curveball" feature that works like that on the ball shooter.

The machines are adjustable for speed and trajectory... but a real curveball refers to a vertical rather than horizontal movement... and it is generally slower. So Kurt has modified the pitching machine... 

[AngelaHunter]

10 hours ago, Kristi800 said:

The woods part had me thinking about the woods scene from The Sopranos but that was so much better.

Yeah, like 10,000 times better. I remember wishing that David Chase could have taken over as showrunner on Dexter as we headed into the abysmal Lumberjacked last season.

2 hours ago, SunnyBeBe said:

Certainly, video would show Harrison hanging with Kurt earlier in the evening ……then he goes missing or is murdered?  Sounds like poor planning by Kurt. 

He did the same with Podcaster (can't remember her name) and some of the runaways. I guess Iron Lake is like Miami, devoid of any security devices and no one in the vicinity ever sees anything. Of course it seems Angela never questions anyone after the disappearances, does she? Did she ever even hang up all the posters of the missing girls in her office around town or does she just sit and stare sadly at them? Does anyone even know they are missing? Surely someone would say they saw the girls with Kurt? I guess he knows just how incompetent and clueless the Iron Lake police force is.

And why does Kurt dress as though he's going on a hunting expedition in the far North, complete with ski mask, just to stand in front of his cabin and shoot kids in the back?

1 hour ago, SunnyBeBe said:

If we didn’t know that Kurt was a blood thirsty killer, from the outside it would appear he’s a sexual predator.  

It absolutely looked that way, but I guess this grooming and build-up to killing them, being the kindly uncle/mentor figure, is part of his ritual from which he gets great enjoyment, the way Dexter got pleasure by waiting until his victims woke up so he could taunt them before killing them.

[anoninrva]

1 hour ago, paigow said:

The machines are adjustable for speed and trajectory... but a real curveball refers to a vertical rather than horizontal movement... and it is generally slower. So Kurt has modified the pitching machine... 

It seemed a bit fast for random trajectory.  Again, I don't know anything about sportsball.  They also seemed to be conspicuously missing any safety equipment, but that can probably be handwaived away by the B&E.  I was still left with the impression that that's not the way that device is supposed to be used..

[aghst]

All serial killers take their prey to the batting cages before killing them.

 

[paigow]

28 minutes ago, AngelaHunter said:

I guess he knows just how incompetent and clueless the Iron Lake police force is.

A bit of an overstatement.. Angela, Logan & Barney Fife is smaller than the BAU or a SWAT team...

More like a Police Squad

[TVbitch]

I thought the whole point of this series was to give fans a better ending than the original run? If they are just setting up a retread of the old show featuring the son, NO THANK YOU. That is not a better ending, it's a non-ending.

Hopefully Angela figures it out and in trying to apprehend Dexter, Harrison kills her, ala Deb shooting her superior, and then Dexter will murder/suicide them both cuz he realizes that, just like in his case, there really is no way to be an "ethical" serial killer.  

Edited December 27, 2021 by TVbitch

[ShadowHunter]

If Dexter had just been honest with Harrison we could have avoided so much drama. Still him saving him from almost being killed by Kurt helped as well.  I can't believe Angela might be the one to get Dexter for his crimes but it has happened in that way in real life.  My fear is though they might to a spinoff show with Harrison. The ratings are so high and I think Dexter is going to Die at the end so that leaves Harrison.

[preeya]

5 minutes ago, ShadowHunter said:

If Dexter had just been honest with Harrison we could have avoided so much drama. Still him saving him from almost being killed by Kurt helped as well.  I can't believe Angela might be the one to get Dexter for his crimes but it has happened in that way in real life.  My fear is though they might to a spinoff show with Harrison. The ratings are so high and I think Dexter is going to Die at the end so that leaves Harrison.

I don't think the actor that plays Harrison could carry a spin-off on his own. IMO, the success of Dexter is due to Michael C. Hall, although he's not as good now as he was in the original, but that's likely due to the current writers and scripts.

[aghst]

Great just what we need, a Gen Z serial killer.  

Is he going to whine and then post selfies to IG and TikTok from the kill rooms?  Or while cruising some body of water before he dumps body parts?

They have to know they'd lost a lot of Dexter viewers for a spinoff, just from the big generational shift.

[Tatum]

5 hours ago, AngelaHunter said:

He did the same with Podcaster (can't remember her name) and some of the runaways. I guess Iron Lake is like Miami, devoid of any security devices and no one in the vicinity ever sees anything. Of course it seems Angela never questions anyone after the disappearances, does she? Did she ever even hang up all the posters of the missing girls in her office around town or does she just sit and stare sadly at them? Does anyone even know they are missing? Surely someone would say they saw the girls with Kurt? I guess he knows just how incompetent and clueless the Iron Lake police force is.

This subplot has been so poorly done. It has never even been stated as to whether these are local Iron Lake girls or girls from neighboring towns (one would assume they couldn't all be from one town or as pointed out in an earlier thread, FBI would be all over this). I think the writers are copying numerous other book/movie/TV plots where the killer targets prostitutes/runaways/addicts- basically people who won't be missed, or won't go to the cops if they do manage to get away, but never really fleshed out how exactly Angela, and only Angela (as far as law enforcement) came to know of their existence. Sure, you go to some stores and they have large collages of missing kids, but these are all different ages, all different walks of life, and most importantly, all different last seen locations, and they are compiled from many different sources.

 

Hell, it's not even been made clear if these women have actually been reported missing or if any of the families are in any kind of contact with the PD as far as updates. Podcast Girl was the only one to even do anything to try and find them. I believe the extent of Angela's investigation has been to wave at them while ranting at people about how no one cares about them and no one is looking for them. (Even though she is hardly pounding the pavement herself). I think the missing girls has largely been a plot device to show that Angela Really Cares. (Except when it pertains to actually doing something useful).

5 hours ago, AngelaHunter said:

And why does Kurt dress as though he's going on a hunting expedition in the far North, complete with ski mask, just to stand in front of his cabin and shoot kids in the back?

That's pretty dumb. I can't think of any logical explanation for this one. The shot to the back is really an execution, not a hunt. Also unclear why Kurt gives some of the women a chance to get away (like Chloe, when he gave her $80 to go back home, while the first girl didn't get that chance- she was offered a room her first night in Iron Lake). Also, why was the first girl poisoned and then kept for several days, while Chloe was not poisoned and executed almost immediately?

Edited December 27, 2021 by Tatum

[Tatum]

2 hours ago, preeya said:

I don't think the actor that plays Harrison could carry a spin-off on his own. IMO, the success of Dexter is due to Michael C. Hall, although he's not as good now as he was in the original, but that's likely due to the current writers and scripts.

I totally agree with this. Michael C. Hall can be very charismatic, especially on the original run. What I liked about Dexter was that he was mild mannered in general, and it came off a lot more genuine than Jim.

 

I would not watch any show solely about Harrison. Especially not if Audrey and Angela are part of the cast. Well, maybe Angela, but only so I can make fun of her here.

[preeya]

8 minutes ago, Tatum said:

I think the writers are copying numerous other book/movie/TV plots where the killer targets prostitutes/runaways/addicts- basically people who won't be missed, or won't go to the cops if they do manage to get away,

Big Sky comes to my mind. Truck stop, hostage situation, two bumbling psychos, female cop, etc.

[ShadowHunter]

2 hours ago, preeya said:

I don't think the actor that plays Harrison could carry a spin-off on his own. IMO, the success of Dexter is due to Michael C. Hall, although he's not as good now as he was in the original, but that's likely due to the current writers and scripts.

I completely agree that's why I'm worried lol. He is too old but Evan Peters would have been a good Harrison. This kid not so much. Yes, the writing is not helping they acted like this was a regular season not a limited series. 

[paigow]

The casting director should have looked where everyone else does for typical American teenagers... England

[AngelaHunter]

18 minutes ago, Tatum said:

Michael C. Hall can be very charismatic, especially on the original run

He gave many truly outstanding performances both in "Dexter" and "Six Feet Under." The kid(?) playing Harrison is not really a very good actor. He's pretty one-note. I'm not blaming him. He got chosen for this role, so why not take it?

21 minutes ago, Tatum said:

What I liked about Dexter was that he was mild mannered in general,

The way he could switch from mild-mannered donut geek to serial killer mode -  positively diabolical and sadistic - was very impressive.  "Jim" is a lot older, so I guess he had to drop that "Golly gee" boy-next-door schtick.

31 minutes ago, Tatum said:

Also, why was the first girl poisoned and then kept for several days, while Chloe was not poisoned and executed almost immediately?

Variety? Time constraints? Boredom? Maybe he was disgusted with Chloe attempting to offer sex in return for freedom (bad idea. You never negotiate with something that someone can just take, but desperation is a great motivator) -  so disgusted he skipped part of the ritual? Will we ever find out? Probably not.

[Tatum]

1 minute ago, AngelaHunter said:

Variety? Time constraints? Boredom? Maybe he was disgusted with Chloe attempting to offer sex in return for freedom (bad idea. You never negotiate with something that someone can just take, but desperation is a great motivator) -  so disgusted he skipped part of the ritual? Will we ever find out? Probably not.

I do think he executed Chloe more quickly due to her taking off her shirt, but I am not sure why he gave up the pretense of this being a safe place for her so quickly. I did though, get the impression that Chloe wasn't negotiating- she was planning to lure him in and then try to attack him. It was a long shot, but she had nothing to lose.

 

How freaking naive must that first girl have been? He offers her a place to stay and then drops off chocolates and champagne while she's showering? What I can't remember (and maybe they didn't show it) was whether or not the doorknob was missing at that point. I suppose it didn't really matter though since he likely could have stopped her either way. But it does seem to be important to him that the girl (or Harrison) likes him and considers him a personal savior/hero.

 

Totally unrelated, but are we ever going to find out more why Harrison did what he did to Ethan? Or have the writers retconned the whole thing so that Harrison was telling the truth all along? The reason I ask is when Harrison is letting himself get hit by the balls, he is flashing back to angrily asking Dexter if Dexter is calling him a liar. Uh, you were lying, Harrison! You told a stupid lie and you got caught. You don't get to be mad or hurt someone doesn't believe you when you're caught in a lie.

[bilgistic]

1 hour ago, AngelaHunter said:

The kid(?) playing Harrison is not really a very good actor. He's pretty one-note. I'm not blaming him. He got chosen for this role, so why not take it?

He's such a dweeb. When Angela's gorgeous daughter was interested in him—and then had sex with him(!), I was like, "That kid? With that haircut? Nope."

I guess he maybe has some "mad, bad, and dangerous to know" vibe because he's been out on his own or whatever, but still, no. Has no one seen social media lately?

[SunnyBeBe]

I don’t get why Dexter thinks telling ALL to Harrison is a plus.  He hasn’t proven to be reliable or trustworthy. He’s unpredictable and a liability.    He hadn’t even verified it’s Harrison.  I am not convinced. Telling all is very risky and not wise, imo.  

[AngelaHunter]

22 minutes ago, bilgistic said:

I was like, "That kid? With that haircut? Nope."

I guess he maybe has some "mad, bad, and dangerous to know" vibe because he's been out on his own or whatever, but still, no. Has no one seen social media lately?

I only noticed the bowl haircut last night. It was cute when he was three, but now, at his age? I'm no connoisseur of teen boys or their haircuts, but it's beyond dorky.

Yeah, maybe he's rebellious little Audrey's idea of sexy danger. The girl needs to get out of Iron Lake more. For all her imagined sophistication "She's just a small-town girl."

[Snazzy Daisy]

1 hour ago, bilgistic said:

He's such a dweeb. When Angela's gorgeous daughter was interested in him—and then had sex with him(!), I was like, "That kid? With that haircut? Nope."

1 hour ago, AngelaHunter said:

I only noticed the bowl haircut last night. It was cute when he was three, but now, at his age? I'm no connoisseur of teen boys or their haircuts, but it's beyond dorky.

Angela and Audrey have similar taste in men… 😂
 

[paigow]

2 hours ago, AngelaHunter said:

For all her imagined sophistication "She's just a small-town girl."

Taking the midnight train to anywhere