"Dexter: Season One" Review: An incredibly engaging first season

I have been completely addicted to Dexter recently. And I can't think of the last time I found a show that impacted me so much to the point where I binged through it, one episode after the other. In my first impressions post I mentioned that Dexter was a show that I had endlessly heard of throughout the years, from gaming magazines to discussed on the Internet. But it's a show that I just never bothered to check out myself until now. I have been really missing out on this one, it's an incredible show so far with a very different central premise: our protagonist is fundamentally broken. It's rare that we get the perspective of a killer in anything, and it's even more so rare when we get the perspective of one that is trying to be good. In a way, Dexter is a vigilante in a world where so few would understand his ways. Grown up with a thirst for blood, a young adopted Dexter is trained by his police officer father to learn to utilise his killing urges to do good. To ensure he doesn't cause harm to those who don't deserve it. This leads to Dexter growing up into a killer capable of somewhat controlling his urges, and seeking out the worst of society to punish in the process.

Dexter works in forensics with the Miami police force, which is a fitting career choice for a man with a love for blood. Taking advantage of the resources he can obtain from medical side of things to use for his own killings. We get a lot of narration from Dexter which gives us insight into how he thinks and how he struggles to feel. Mixed with scenes of the past throughout different episodes which showcase his upbringing and attempts to learn about himself. I quite liked how Dexter's character is one that we sometimes struggle to connect with, after all he is crazed killer and with a constant intent to kill. But sometimes we see the human beneath all that, the person that does want to learn to understand and feel, to have a simple life and connection with people. We see his attempts to fake a normal lifestyle, the interactions he has with people where he tries to maintain the idea of a normal person with nothing particularly strange about them. Though this is a struggle for someone that can't feel empathy when it's needed. It's really engaging seeing these moments within the show, where Dexter is challenged with something more simple than finding people to punish, but instead struggling with the inner turmoils of trying to live a normal life.

This is mixed with Dexter's own fascination with serial killers and how he has something to connect with regarding them. He understands them, especially in the emotional sense. But the main thing that disconnects the two is the way Dexter finds his prey and how others go about targeting the innocent. Dexter's pretty clear on only punishing those who deserve it, though who deserves it can often be questionable. This is mixed with the personal life he leads and the work life he holds in forensics as new victims for him come into equation. One might think that Dexter as a show often bends and allows him to win every time, but that isn't the case. There are moments and episodes that showcase his mistakes, how people do in fact find suspicion in him. The first season focuses a series of murders, with the main coming from a serial killer that somehow manages to freeze his victims and kill them with no blood. This particular killer becomes a central part of the season as it's clear he's toying with Dexter directly. The 'Ice-Truck Killer' concept grows into something much larger as the season progresses while remaining an engaging primary story.

One thing in particular I enjoyed about this first season is how it's shot. It's directed really well, often with a creative style to it in moments. I find it interesting that Dexter is often shown with a lot of up-close perspectives. Camera angles and framing that show him from the shoulders up, very close to his face which covers much of the image. For a serial killer with a lot of things to hide, getting this up-close look into his eyes and blank expressions due to the lack of empathy really heightens the atmosphere one can get around him, especially if you are familiar with his actions as we, the viewers, are. This isn't always the case in how Dexter is seen in the scenes, but compared to other characters, there is a large difference in how often we see their faces up-close. The rest of the directing differs in camera movements that have us watching a character engaging with the environment by following them throughout. Or fixed perspectives with zero movement in the camera with depth in the framing. I quite like how often it mixes things up, rarely does it feel too similar to previous episodes or with a structure that is repetitive. Even despite these episodes often serving up flashback scenes that detail Dexter's past and have some relation to the episode's general theme.

It's certainly the idea of Dexter making mistakes and getting caught which makes the series so interesting though. I can see the excitement in how the tension grows with the idea of people catching up and starting to notice things, or other killers toying with him directly. Even the other police officers seeing straight through Dexter's attempts to look normal, one of which is introduced from the very first episode. I liked that there is someone immediately that doesn't follow Dexter's narrative of normal. Always calling him a weirdo, a freak, knowing he's actually excited at the idea of blood and killing. I don't think the show would be this interesting had it not been for these moments. Dexter being invincible would make things a little stale for sure. I think the show handles Dexter's personal life decently too, adding in the moments of regular life that he has to adhere to in efforts to maintain that general front. How he holds a relationship with someone but doesn't really feel anything. The emotion he has to still protect the innocent even if it goes against his notion of making himself seem a bit too out there.

I'm still completely hooked on this show. And I'm really excited to see how it progresses, with no doubts that Dexter's ability to maintain hidden grows in difficulty. Though I hope there isn't a major transition from film to digital in these upcoming seasons, given the film grain and darker tones in the colours is what makes the atmosphere here. Even down to the lighting with harsh shadows and dark reds which are used in more theatrical ways to highlight Dexter's blood thirst. Either way, this first season was incredibly strong.