Dexter S4 Premiere Recap

The fourth season of the highly acclaimed and immensely popular Showtime series Dexter began last night and it didn’t waste any time introducing the main arc for the season. It will center around the “Trinity Killer”, a man who has killed in sets of threes moving to a new city each time over the last 30 years. As is stated in the show, that makes him the most successful serial killer ever to have never been caught.

“Trinity” is played by John Lithgow who certainly had the creepiness factor down in the premiere and appears to be a deeply troubled but ultimately very smart killer who knows how to cover his tracks. That peaks the attention of Dexter upon discovering the detailed nature of the killings but how he has been able to leave the bodies and crime scenes to be discovered while Dexter has always disposed of them.

The external factors are making it difficult for Dexter on a day to day basis as he learns to cope with his new role as a dad. In an amusing touch there was a semi re-creation of the opening of the show only with ‘new dad’ touches like his exhausted look and stain on his shirt. Lack of sleep has already resulted in a couple screw-ups both at work and while hunting and eventually taking care of his target for the episode. What I noticed most about this is how it really got across a new feeling of vulnerability with the character that maybe has never been there before. Outside of his original body drops into the ocean you’ve never really felt that Dexter’s process could get him caught. Now, with him questioning himself and making mistakes, that becomes a real possibility.

By the end of the episode that vulnerability has already been capitalized on. With the remains of his kill still in the trunk and beginning to fall asleep at the wheel he gets startled and crashes the car. That leaves him in a compromised position that will carry over some suspense in the coming episodes as to how he will avoid being discovered. Even though it seemed clear that something along the lines of an accident or getting pulled over was coming, it was a sense of dread during the drive rather than predictability. Eventually he’ll get around this situation, clearly “Trinity” is the main draw of the season, but it’s still an unsettling feeling as a viewer because he won’t be in control of what happens next.

Special Agent (and now retired) Lundy has returned to attempt and catch “Trinity”, which throws a wrench into an already troubled Deb and Anton relationship because of her past relationship with him. Also mixing things up is a secret relationship between Batista and Laguerta which seemed to come out of nowhere. We’ll see where they go with both of these side stories but at this point I’m not interested in them.

While Lithgow started strong and appears to make for an incredibly creepy serial killer I will be shocked if he can top Jimmy Smits from season three. I thought he provided one of the most supreme acting jobs I’ve seen on a TV and the character of Miguel Prado was completely fascinating.

Overall it was a great start to the fourth season. The premiere did a great job of setting everything up without feeling like that’s all it was designed to do (which can happen with season premieres). One of the great things about Dexter is how each season has had a different feel and different threat while keeping the show’s premise grounded. Anticipation is high going forward to see how Dexter can adapt to parenthood while overcoming his current dilemma and digging into the “Trinity Killer”.