"Dexter" Born Free (2006)

User Rating:

9.2/10   

Director:

Michael Cuesta

Writers:

Daniel Cerone (writer)
Lauren Gussis (staff writer)

TV Series:

"Dexter" (2006)

Original Air Date:

17 December 2006 (Season 1, Episode 12)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Plot:

Dexter races against the clock to find Debra when she is abducted by Rudy, the Ice Truck Killer, which leads the two psychopathic killers to have a fateful showdown, and who finally reveals his connection to Dexter.

Plot Keywords:

Brother | Learning Identity Of Mother | Brother Sister Relationship | Sister | Fratricide

Cast

Michael C. Hall	...	Dexter Morgan
Julie Benz	...	Rita Bennett
Jennifer Carpenter	...	Debra Morgan
Erik King	...	Sergeant James Doakes
Lauren Vélez	...	Lt. Maria Laguerta (as Lauren Velez)
David Zayas	...	Angel Batista
James Remar	...	Harry Morgan
Geoffrey Pierson	...	Capt. Tom Matthews (as Geoff Pierson)
C.S. Lee	...	Vince Masuka
Mark Pellegrino	...	Paul Bennett
Christian Camargo	...	Rudy Cooper
Judith Scott	...	Lt. Esme Pasquale
Scott Atkinson	...	Bob Hicks
Christina Robinson	...	Astor
Daniel Goldman	...	Cody

Runtime:

56 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

USA:TV-MA | Japan:Unrated | Japan:R-15 (DVD rating) | Netherlands:16

Company:

Colleton Company, The

Trivia:

While Dexter and Rudy was sitting around the table, Rudy drinks a beer which has a skull logo on it. Brand of the beer is "Jekyll Island" which resembles the book "Dr. Jekyll & Mr Hide ".

Goofs:

Factual errors: Dexter finds the story of Laura's murder in the October 3rd edition of the newspaper. The October 3rd paper would report on what happened October 2nd. Brian would have known that they were actually "born free" on 10/2, not 10/3 (leaving aside the fact that if they were found on 10/2, then the murders actually occurred on 9/30).

Quotes:

[first lines]
Dexter Morgan: I've lived in darkness a long time. Over the years, my eyes adjusted until the dark became my world and I could see. But then Rudy turned on the light. He flooded my memory and now I'm blind.

Movie Connections:

References Born Free (1966)

Season 1: Weirdly humorous, violent, moral, engaging and thrilling – a show with a lot of consistent strength

When Dexter came out a few years ago I decided not to give it a try. I'm not sure what subscription channel had it in the UK, but that did play a part in my decision as well as the subject matter and the fact that it had not been too long for me since I had just finished Six Feet Under and felt I would struggle seeing Hall play such a different character from David. Recently someone put season 1 in my hands and suggested I try it and, after a few months delay, I did.

I was glad I did. From the very first episode I was hooked by the factors that the show managed to repeat for the remainder of season 1. Although Hall has rightly been picked out for praise, this is not a show that relies on its star to work (in the way Shark, for example, relied on James Woods) but rather one that has strength across the board. It starts with the writing initially. The narrative produces an engaging and quite thrilling season long story which will appeal to those of us who do not like the "case a week" type structures of CSI etc. At the same time though we have cases within this that do lend itself to making each episode enjoyable on its own terms while also moving us along the main thread of the Ice Truck Killer. Not that this is the "big picture" though, because that is the development of Dexter as a character in terms of his struggles, his memories, his "code", his desires etc and in this way the show also engages.

I do not think that Dexter is the most complexly written character as some do, but he is certainly a very interesting creation and he is very well delivered by Hall. His performance is a big part of it working because he manages to be a monster bound by an artificial code so that he can be seen as "good" or "moral" but yet also be a dark character who is no different than those we see as "bad" in the plots. He links in very well in his narration with the overall "weird" air the show has in the tone, shot framing and general "feel" of the show.

Normally with TV shows, we get the supporting characters opened out and utilised in the second and third seasons as the show tries to grow and keep things varied, however here we have the supporting characters very well used in terms of narrative and performances. Although we never move far from Dexter as the focus, there is plenty of interest in the threads involving Rita and her ex, Dexter's sister, Debra and the other characters in the squad room. Again I'm not suggesting they are the most engaging or well-written characters ever, but their stories and characters do create more of interest within the show and when they are the focus it never feels like the show "dips" or is filling time with them. The supporting cast are all very good aside from the distraction of having so many Oz actors in there (or even HBO generally) – at one point I counted four in one episode. To their credit this is only distracting for a minute or two but then you forget who they played before and focus on who they are. Carpenter was initially a bit annoying but she grew on me as a character as I accepted her for who she was playing. Vélez started out as an obvious turn but got more interesting as her material did while King is engagingly tough and Zayas adds a comic air to things without undermining his character. Remar is impressive considering what he manages to do with limited time and flashbacks only.

Season 1 of Dexter is great television. The subject matter will put some off and that is fine but it is not unnecessarily unpleasant and it doesn't revel in the violence and the blood in the way some other shows would. The season long narrative threads are engaging and thrilling, while the more episodic material adds layers and feeds the main flow well. I wasn't sure I would like it but I really did and, while the US may be about to start season 4, I am very much looking forward to borrowing season 2 later this year.