http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/entertainment_tv/
December 13, 2007 By Maureen Ryan Another gripping season of 'Dexter' comes to a close TV is full of serial killers and cops chasing monsters. But Showtime's "Dexter," (8 p.m. Sunday, Showtime), which delves into these often overworked subjects, is unique. This deeply compelling series has made the "whys" of Dexter Morgan's murders much more interesting than the "hows." It's easy to see why the show, which wraps up its second season Sunday, has been attracting record viewership for Showtime and a lot of media buzz (so much so that CBS, which is in the same corporate family as Showtime, is considering airing the show in 2008). "Dexter" does what cable dramas generally do best: Use wit and intelligence to examine the more disturbing but fascinating corners of the mind and heart. [The next part of the review discusses aspects of Season 2 of "Dexter." If you haven't seen it yet and plan to watch it on DVD, you might want to stop reading now.] The writers for the show took a real chance in Season 2. Early on, Dexter (Michael C. Hall), who kills criminals that the cops can't keep behind bars, was confronted by the fact that the bodies he had dumped in one of Miami's harbors had been found. Soon Dexter, who'd also discovered shattering information about his tragic family history in Season 1, was flummoxed and had lost his nerve. He was a serial killer who couldn't kill. How many other dramas would have been content to have Dexter stay the same as he was in the early part of Season 1 it would have been much easier for the writers if Dexter had remained an emotionless man- child who aped human behavior and made dry observations in the show's narration. It was surprising and refreshing that in both seasons, the show's brain trust took Dexter on unexpected and complicated journeys. This season, Dexter had to scramble to cover his tracks with the police (lucky for him that he works for the Miami Police Department as a blood-spatter expert). But just as he feared discovery, he also was attracted to a new character, Lila (Jaime Murray), who was comfortable with Dexter's dark side what she knew of it, that is. Dexter both feared being found out and longed to be honest with Lila, and that tension gave the season both emotional heft and a sense of urgency. There were several other rewarding strands that were layered through the second season: Dexter's cat-and-mouse game with not only his own colleagues but also with a crafty FBI agent, Frank Lundy (well played by Keith Carradine); an even more suspenseful game of evasion and denial with a colleague, Sgt. James Doakes (the enjoyably intense Erik King), who always thought something was off about Dexter. There have been other things to appreciate too, from the filthy mind of fellow crime-scene tech Vince Masuka (C.S. Lee) to the growth of Dexter's gawky sister, Debra (Jennifer Carpenter). In the first season, both the actress and the character seemed too uncomfortable and raw, but Debra's growing confidence was subtly drawn and it made her relationship with her brother more interesting. To speak volumes through a character who's not supposed to have feelings, you need a masterful actor, and "Dexter" is lucky to have Hall as its star. I can't think of any other actor who would have been able to switch so smoothly from vulnerability to murderous intent. Most of all, what I appreciate is how the writers went for broke this season. They didn't hedge and delay and repeat; they acted as if the second season might be the show's last (it's not; Showtime plans a third season). But where does Dexter go from here? Much of the show has been predicated on the idea that he doesn't feel emotions, but it's been pretty clear, especially in the second half of Season 2, that he actually does. Next season will he just be a man who learns to enjoy not just life but the pleasure that vengeance or as he calls it, "taking out the trash" can bring? Who knows? After two emotionally intriguing, surprising and darkly comic seasons of "Dexter," I don't know what to expect. And I guess that's how it should be.
