Thursday, August 08, 2013

My Review of Dexter's 8x06: "A Little Reflection"


Written by Jace Richdale
Directed by John Dahl

Zach: “You should go ahead and kill me.”
Dexter: “Why?”
Zach: “Because if you don’t, I’ll do it again. I don’t wanna be like this but I can’t help it.”

This isn’t the first time that Dexter has been placed in a situation where he could have a killer accomplice/wingman and if history has a habit of repeating itself, then Dexter taking Zach under his wing is going to end up being even more of a disaster area than when it was Prado.

Dexter originally had the right set of ideas in this episode – stalk Zach, befriend him, get the sufficient proof that he killed his father’s mistress and then take him out and had it not been for both Vogel and Zach himself, then things would’ve gone down the usual way for Dexter. Instead he listened to both of them and it’s obvious it’ll come back to haunt him in the next few episodes.

Vogel’s attempts of wanting to emulate what she had set in place in Dexter with Harry should’ve been another alarm bell for Dexter. She clearly learned nothing from her experience with Yates and it seems to me that Vogel thinks she can somehow condition every serial killer into a productive member of society. Dexter might have been the success story but Yates was enough proof that she shouldn’t push her luck on this matter.

Then there’s Zach himself – the creepy sociopathic kid taking pictures of his victims and getting a thrill out of it too. Dexter recognised that under Zach’s protest of wanting to kill his cheating father in order to spare his mother any more shame but it was Zach admitting that he didn’t want to be a monster that spared him.

Maybe it’s possible and Zach is telling the truth but I can’t help thinking that whatever issues he has about killing will go to one side when his bloodlust intensifies. He enjoyed killing Norma, he enjoyed stalking out Sophia Fuentes (the second mistress) and he wasn’t exactly conflicted about attempting to murder his own father either. In other words, Dexter taking Zach will not end well for either of them, character wise.

The other odd thing about this partnership as well was Deb’s seemingly relaxed attitude towards it too. Dexter admitted to her face that he was taking on an intern, knowing full well she’d get what he really meant and Deb barely reacted to it. I’m glad that things with her and Dexter are good again but the fact that Deb didn’t even raise a concern still came across as extremely out of character though.

Of course, not only are Zach and Vogel problems for Dexter and Deb in their own ways but Hannah also came out of hiding and drugged the pair of them. I had been looking forward to Hannah’s return for a while now, so her appearance in the final two minutes was a good cliff hanger moment to end the episode with.

Also in “A Little Reflection”

Vogel was married to Richard Vogel for a long time. I like that Dexter shared his research on Vogel with Deb this week.

Vogel (re Zach): “It seems that we have a conflict of interest.”
Dexter: “I don’t believe this. You’re gonna work with another killer after what happened with Yates.”

Deb and Elway’s undercover subplot this week was actually a lot of fun. I actually want Deb to hook up with the guy now.

Masuka: “Welcome to Splatter land, hope you brought some extra string.”
Dexter: “Never leave home without it.”

Dexter (re Zach): “I remember that feeling – awe, wonder. It only fed the urge.”

In other plots Miller got the sergeant job, Quinn started stalking Zach, Jamie had a birthday party, Harrison broke a remote control and Dexter and Cassie were a no go area.

Deb (to Elway): “You can’t undo the past. Families fuck you up. It’s just the way it is.”

Dexter: “Should I be worried that Harrison’s lying?”
Deb: “He’s four doofus.”

I like that Nikki seems to have no ulterior motive for wanting to get to know Masuka as well as the continuity from Harrison’s bloodied teddy from earlier this season.

Dexter: “I don’t kill innocent people.”
Vogel: “But you might have if it hadn’t been for Harry and me.”

Hannah: “Hello Dexter, remember me?”

Chronology: A couple of days from where “This Little Piggy” left off.

“A Little Reflection” isn’t the best episode we’ve had this season, it’s even a little sluggish in parts with a few less engaging subplots but the final two minutes alone are some of the best that the show has done though. Welcome back, Hannah.

Rating: 7 out of 10

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