Netflix has all 8 seasons of Dexter streaming!! Here's my own little chatter (and marketing plug to watch this show!).
Plot: In case you haven't heard of or seen the show, here you go. Dexter Morgan is a blood spatter analyst working at Miami Metro Homicide. He's also a serial killer on the side. Watch Dexter through 8 seasons as he eludes the police, the FBI, and other serial killers, while balancing dating, being a father, and hunting for his next victim. The series is inspired by the books by Jeff Lindsay, of which I've only been able to read the first so far.
The acting is great! Michael C. Hall just makes the show. Dexter's monologues and inner comments are priceless. How many characters can remind themselves "I will not kill my sister. I will not kill my sister" and you know they really mean it?? Jennifer Carpenter's great as Deb, his sister. And the supporting cast is very very solid. Lots of likeable (and unlikeable) characters very well played. And one of the fun things about the show is that in addition to the regular cast, they bring in a guest star or two for the season. I still think my favorite was John Lithgow in Season 4. It'd been so long since I'd seen him in a bad guy role, I'd almost forgotten how creepy he can be!
The timing and pacing of the show are beautiful. It's a Showtime series, so only 12 episodes in a season compared to network TV. Which means that it doesn't have lots of fluff built into season. Some story arcs might have more padding than others, but overall, it's a nicely paced story.
And watching the characters develop is so much fun. Dexter's an antihero, a serial killer who you still don't really want to see caught. And he repeatedly refers to himself as a monster, something not really human. So in each season, you see him working towards being more human - dating, finding a true friend, falling in love, becoming a parent. Despite not feeling human, Dexter grows in some very human ways, and that makes for a highly enjoyable story. His narration is relatable, as well as being entertaining.
On to the negatives...
After season 5, you can kinda see the production and/or writing crew changed. The dialogue didn't change or characters didn't start acting out-of-character or anything like that. It was more in the storylines and character development. Like, the first 5 seasons really were driven more by character development - not that there weren't major plot lines, because there were. But the character development was a more major push than it felt like it was in seasons 6-8. In the later seasons, the character development seemed more reactive, more a back seat to the events surrounding Dexter et. al. In all honesty, you could probably watch the first 5 seasons and stop there and not feel like you're missing out much. Seasons 6-8 happen, and lots happens to the characters, but I dunno, it just felt like a shift after season 5. Kinda hard to explain, but just watch it and you'll understand.
On that same thought, but without any spoilers... the series finale. The general consensus is that the finale was pretty bad. Some lists put it as one of the worst series finales ever. I'd definitely agree. Without giving away too much, it felt like the writers just didn't know what to do with the characters to end the show. Everything feels forced and over the top. That was a regular feeling of mine in season 8, honestly, but it's really overwhelming in the last episode or two. Like every formulaic Big Event got squeezed in. Really, a very very disappointing ending to an otherwise well-done and enjoyable show.
KINDA SORTA SPOILER - I'm not putting it lower on the page, since it's not REALLY a spoiler, but it does cover some later plot points, so maybe you might think it is. At any rate, I never really liked Hannah (seasons 7-8). I'd buy that she's 'not the same kind of killer as Dexter,' i.e. that she's not a psychopath, but I don't buy that she only 'did what she had to, in order to protect herself.' Yes, she was possibly dragged along on the spree when she was a teenager, overwhelmed by the older personality, but she's got several deaths on her own hands, too. One is an older woman, her mentor of sorts, who left Hannah a flower shop and inheritance in her will. Oh, and then conveniently passes away. If it wasn't for that one death, I'd buy that Hannah wasn't really a heartless killer, but that one death was driven by greed, not necessity. And that keeps me from really warming to Hannah. Just can't.
And watching the characters develop is so much fun. Dexter's an antihero, a serial killer who you still don't really want to see caught. And he repeatedly refers to himself as a monster, something not really human. So in each season, you see him working towards being more human - dating, finding a true friend, falling in love, becoming a parent. Despite not feeling human, Dexter grows in some very human ways, and that makes for a highly enjoyable story. His narration is relatable, as well as being entertaining.
On to the negatives...
After season 5, you can kinda see the production and/or writing crew changed. The dialogue didn't change or characters didn't start acting out-of-character or anything like that. It was more in the storylines and character development. Like, the first 5 seasons really were driven more by character development - not that there weren't major plot lines, because there were. But the character development was a more major push than it felt like it was in seasons 6-8. In the later seasons, the character development seemed more reactive, more a back seat to the events surrounding Dexter et. al. In all honesty, you could probably watch the first 5 seasons and stop there and not feel like you're missing out much. Seasons 6-8 happen, and lots happens to the characters, but I dunno, it just felt like a shift after season 5. Kinda hard to explain, but just watch it and you'll understand.
On that same thought, but without any spoilers... the series finale. The general consensus is that the finale was pretty bad. Some lists put it as one of the worst series finales ever. I'd definitely agree. Without giving away too much, it felt like the writers just didn't know what to do with the characters to end the show. Everything feels forced and over the top. That was a regular feeling of mine in season 8, honestly, but it's really overwhelming in the last episode or two. Like every formulaic Big Event got squeezed in. Really, a very very disappointing ending to an otherwise well-done and enjoyable show.
KINDA SORTA SPOILER - I'm not putting it lower on the page, since it's not REALLY a spoiler, but it does cover some later plot points, so maybe you might think it is. At any rate, I never really liked Hannah (seasons 7-8). I'd buy that she's 'not the same kind of killer as Dexter,' i.e. that she's not a psychopath, but I don't buy that she only 'did what she had to, in order to protect herself.' Yes, she was possibly dragged along on the spree when she was a teenager, overwhelmed by the older personality, but she's got several deaths on her own hands, too. One is an older woman, her mentor of sorts, who left Hannah a flower shop and inheritance in her will. Oh, and then conveniently passes away. If it wasn't for that one death, I'd buy that Hannah wasn't really a heartless killer, but that one death was driven by greed, not necessity. And that keeps me from really warming to Hannah. Just can't.
Finally, I have to laugh at ourselves, too. Even after all this chatter about how addicted to the show we are and how excited we have been for each season, Zach and I had a serious conversation about it when season 6 was about to begin. We actually make the conscious decision to wait until the end of the season until it's all over to watch. The way we burned through seasons 1-5 (seriously, in about 2 weeks), I think waiting from week to week over a full season would drive us bonkers! So, we decided to wait until the season's all over (and the case of season 8, the show's finale too!!), then watch it all in a weekend or so, like we did with the earlier seasons. :) The fact all 8 seasons are now available online via Netflix was just icing on the cake. We started over back at season 1 just before Christmas. I hadn't seen all of season 1 (he'd started watching the show and I got sucked in about episode 5) so we started at the beginning, thinking we'd watch season 1 and then go to season 8. Until about season 1, episode 4, when we looked at each other and said "Yeah, let's just go straight through!" So, with a break for our travels over New Year's, we worked our way right through :)
Overall: 4.5 of 5. There are moments in any season, obviously, which are a little stretched or over the top, but overall, it's one we have watched (and will again, probably) more than once. Dry, dark humor, good character development, great acting, surprise twists. Like I said above, goes downhill after season 5, but still definitely a win.
Overall: 4.5 of 5. There are moments in any season, obviously, which are a little stretched or over the top, but overall, it's one we have watched (and will again, probably) more than once. Dry, dark humor, good character development, great acting, surprise twists. Like I said above, goes downhill after season 5, but still definitely a win.
No comments:
Post a Comment