S01.E03: Miami Vice

[AnimeMania]

Dexter targets a loan shark connected to Batista. Meanwhile, Deb hosts a party hoping to gain favor with her volleyball teammates.

Premiere Date: December 20, 2024  Paramount+

[Snazzy Daisy]

Sofia mistakenly thinking Dexter’s fascination with her earrings as a sign of affection, what a nuisance. 🤦🏻‍♀️

Dexter’s second killing is sloppier than the first — he chooses to kill Tony Ferrer at the jai alai arena, it’s too exposed. Then there is Tony’s floating arm with a unique ring still attached to it. 😬

[ajsnaves]

Three episodes in, and I’m enjoying this. It’s been a long time since I’ve watched the original series, so I find myself trying to remember some of the back story. I think we knew Dexter’s mom was Harry’s CI. But was there anything else going on between them?

When Angel asked Harry if they should take Masuka with them is that much like a hippy, never go with Vince Masuka to a second location  

We’re not supposed to trust Patrick Dempsey, right? Or is that just me?

[Elizzikra]

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We’re not supposed to trust Patrick Dempsey, right? Or is that just me?

I think he is supposed to be at least a little sleazy but maybe that's just the pornstache?

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Three episodes in, and I’m enjoying this. It’s been a long time since I’ve watched the original series, so I find myself trying to remember some of the back story. I think we knew Dexter’s mom was Harry’s CI. But was there anything else going on between them?

Me too, and I wasn't predisposed to liking it. We did know that Dexter's mom was Harry's CI and that he felt responsible for her death and Dexter's subsequent... maladaptation? I can't recall if there was something more to their relationship and whether or not they ever acted on it. I also can't remember why Harry took in Dexter but not Brian.

[Snazzy Daisy]

Postmortem | Ep. 103 | Miami Vice | Dexter: Original Sin

 

[Chicago Redshirt]

On 12/23/2024 at 12:14 AM, ajsnaves said:

Three episodes in, and I’m enjoying this. It’s been a long time since I’ve watched the original series, so I find myself trying to remember some of the back story. I think we knew Dexter’s mom was Harry’s CI. But was there anything else going on between them?

When Angel asked Harry if they should take Masuka with them is that much like a hippy, never go with Vince Masuka to a second location  

We’re not supposed to trust Patrick Dempsey, right? Or is that just me?

During the original series, Dexter found out that Harry was indeed boning Laura. I confirmed by looking up a wiki that mentioned that Harry was also boning another CI of his. 

I just watched New Blood, which was decent. I might be tempted to rewatch S1-5 of the original series.

Since we see him through Dexter's fucked-up viewpoint, we often forget that Harry is pretty objectively a ***********. Instead of getting Dexter the mental health he so obviously needs, he puts him in a home with his own daughter, putting her at risk. One of the things I'm curious about is if we're going to get more first-hand insight into why Harry came up with the Code and how much Actual!Harry knew about what Dexter was doing. Up till this point in Original Sin, he knows about Dexter's first two kills and he was not really in a position to stop the first one because the nurse had him on death's door. He said that Dexter wasn't to make a move without running it through him, but the kill was super-sloppy. I wonder if Harry is going to be critiquing Dexter or going to his crime scenes, helping him cover things up, etc.

I feel like the show was out and out lampshading when it had one of the characters say that Masuka is best in small doses. I do wonder why the SMG character hasn't bothered to shut down that one-person sexual harassment campaign.

With famous guest stars like SMG and Patrick Dempsey, it seems like there's a good possibility that they are either victims of the Big Bad or the Big Bad. In the case of a prequel in particular, where we never AFAIK heard of either SMG or Patrick Dempsey's characters before, it seems especially likely that their fates will get wrapped up by the end of the season. (Especially if they are going to not do a S2 with Young Dexter and instead focus on Dexter: Resurrection).

My money would be on Dempsey's character being a killer behind a bunch of the NHI cases and trying to parallel other crimes (such as the similarity that Dexter noticed that were not actually the same killer) and SMG being one of his victims when she notices something that points to him.

On 12/23/2024 at 5:25 PM, Elizzikra said:

I think he is supposed to be at least a little sleazy but maybe that's just the pornstache?

Me too, and I wasn't predisposed to liking it. We did know that Dexter's mom was Harry's CI and that he felt responsible for her death and Dexter's subsequent... maladaptation? I can't recall if there was something more to their relationship and whether or not they ever acted on it. I also can't remember why Harry took in Dexter but not Brian.

Brian being older was more freaked out and was sent to a mental hospital.

Maybe this show will establish if Harry even tried to look out for Brian or what was up with him. I think someone speculated about how the person who wondered if there was space at Dexter's table (ha! Always room for one more) may have been a young Brian.

[Elizzikra]

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I do wonder why the SMG character hasn't bothered to shut down that one-person sexual harassment campaign.

I suck at math. What year is this set? I think it was well before anyone called out sexually harassment, especially in a male dominated environment.

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Instead of getting Dexter the mental health he so obviously needs, he puts him in a home with his own daughter, putting her at risk. 

I don't know that we have great mental health care for sociopaths now and we definitely didn't way back when. I think that Harry figured his knowledge of criminal behavior but him in a better position to "treat" Dexter than the mental health system could. I think Harry's motivations are complicated, including that he has tremendous guilt over his bio son's death and Dexter's mother's death and he is trying to replace his dead son with Dexter. 

It's also possible that Deb was born after Harry and Mrs. Harry had adopted Dexter. Isn't she about five years younger?

Did we know in the original series that Harry and Mrs. lost a bio child or was that a new revelation in this series?

I remember in the original series, in one of the first episodes (or maybe the first episode) Dexter says that he isn't capable of love but if he was, he would love Deb. It's interesting to see their sibling relationship develop and it's clear that they have affection for each other, though neither of them are the demonstrative type.

I hope Deb gets Mom's pearls back. I'm sentimental that way.

[Chicago Redshirt]

4 hours ago, Elizzikra said:

I suck at math. What year is this set? I think it was well before anyone called out sexually harassment, especially in a male dominated environment.

I don't know that we have great mental health care for sociopaths now and we definitely didn't way back when. I think that Harry figured his knowledge of criminal behavior but him in a better position to "treat" Dexter than the mental health system could. I think Harry's motivations are complicated, including that he has tremendous guilt over his bio son's death and Dexter's mother's death and he is trying to replace his dead son with Dexter. 

It's also possible that Deb was born after Harry and Mrs. Harry had adopted Dexter. Isn't she about five years younger?

Did we know in the original series that Harry and Mrs. lost a bio child or was that a new revelation in this series?

I remember in the original series, in one of the first episodes (or maybe the first episode) Dexter says that he isn't capable of love but if he was, he would love Deb. It's interesting to see their sibling relationship develop and it's clear that they have affection for each other, though neither of them are the demonstrative type.

I hope Deb gets Mom's pearls back. I'm sentimental that way.

We're in 1991 -- Dexter just graduated as part of the Class of 91. so more specifically we are presumably in the summer of 1991. And while we certainly had strides to go, and one of the watershed moments to push sexual harassment discussions to the forefront is still about a year away in the Clarence Thomas/Anita Hill hearings, there was some awareness of and consequences for sexual harassment back then. But then again, Masuka's sexism was played for laughs mostly in the original series which IIRC is basically set against the time it ran starting in 2006. Then again, of course it's not like we have eradicated blatant sexual harassment in 2024. 

I know that there's no easy solution to Dex's mental issues but surely a realistic version of Harry would have tried other avenues before "I guess I'll teach you how to murder other serial killers and get away with it." With OG Dexter you sort of had to handwave why anyone, let alone a cop, would do that. And it sort of didn't matter, because Harry was only a character in Dexter's mind. Dexter could be lying to himself about what his Harry thought and did. By choosing to focus on this time, it makes Harry's decision-making more central. 

This series reaffirms that Deb is about 5 years younger than Dex, through showing her being eager to be recruited by college scouts. So while Dex just graduated college. Deb is a high school junior or senior. Which kind of makes Deb trying to set Dexter up with her friend a little gross. I'm tending to doubt that she's over 17 and Dex is presumably 21 at this point 

I think this is the first that we had been told about another Morgan who had died or of any difficulty of Harry and his wife conceiving. I guess that raises the question of whether Deb is the child of Harry and wife, or Harry and an affair. I don't think we have been told how wife died, have we?

I find it interesting that they went out of their way to establish Deb as a Sagittarius and Dexter as an Aquarius. As a fellow Sag, I'm like "Checks out" for Deb. Not sure if ALL Aquarius are latent serial killers, though....

[Affogato]

13 hours ago, Chicago Redshirt said:

We're in 1991 -- Dexter just graduated as part of the Class of 91. so more specifically we are presumably in the summer of 1991. And while we certainly had strides to go, and one of the watershed moments to push sexual harassment discussions to the forefront is still about a year away in the Clarence Thomas/Anita Hill hearings, there was some awareness of and consequences for sexual harassment back then. But then again, Masuka's sexism was played for laughs mostly in the original series which IIRC is basically set against the time it ran starting in 2006. Then again, of course it's not like we have eradicated blatant sexual harassment in 2024. 

I know that there's no easy solution to Dex's mental issues but surely a realistic version of Harry would have tried other avenues before "I guess I'll teach you how to murder other serial killers and get away with it." With OG Dexter you sort of had to handwave why anyone, let alone a cop, would do that. And it sort of didn't matter, because Harry was only a character in Dexter's mind. Dexter could be lying to himself about what his Harry thought and did. By choosing to focus on this time, it makes Harry's decision-making more central. 

Currently they are sort of outdated terms, but Dexter would be a psychopath. Not sociopath. he doesn’t have the in trouble with the law, substance abuse, etc, traits. 
 

I saw the original once in dvds I got from the library. I read the books. I think the confusion is the whole ‘dark passenger’ (probable bull feces). Like the vampyres in BTVS, Dexter has a demon. It rides Dexter. Harry is trying to help him appease the demon, but I think in this story DP exists, so what Harry does makes sense. 
 

the idea of the dark passenger seems like a cop out to me, but it makes the character borderline (heh) sympathetic. 

[Elizzikra]

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so more specifically we are presumably in the summer of 1991.

Except Deb is in school so maybe it's late spring? Or they are just a little sloppy with the timeline?

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I know that there's no easy solution to Dex's mental issues but surely a realistic version of Harry would have tried other avenues before "I guess I'll teach you how to murder other serial killers and get away with it."

Fair enough. Worth noting that Harry tried hunting and that maybe satisfied Dexter for awhile (I think he said it wasn't working "anymore"). Being a surgeon, I think, was also supposed to satisfy his bloodlust. Good thing (maybe) he was smart enough to go to med school even though that didn't end up happening.

[Chaos Theory]

I think the show is trying to reiterate but with more detail that the "original sin" wasn't Dexter's but it was Harry's.  Harry got too close to Dexter's mom who was supposed to just be a source.   Harry adopted Dexter and left Brian to the wolves.  Harry never told Dexter the truth and more then that went out of his way to keep the truth from him.    There must have been plenty of times even this episode where Harry could have broached the subject which may have changed Dexter's fate.

On the Deb front; we are seeing how being virtually ignored by Harry may have sent Deb in the exact other direction then we know she follows or even worse being another statistic.    At this point she seems to have no interest in the police force.  She even seems to resent it.  It will be interesting to see that change for her.

Edited December 29, 2024 by Chaos Theory

[hatchetgirl]

On 12/23/2024 at 3:25 PM, Elizzikra said:

I also can't remember why Harry took in Dexter but not Brian.

If I remember correctly, Brian talks about Harry NOT taking him in. 

Also, I think Harry and Laura were having an actual affair and that's sort of how Dexter figures out his beginnings.