TV Review: Dexter 3.9 – About Last Night

Posted by Neil Miller (neil@filmschoolrejects.com) on November 26, 2008

Dexter: Easy as Pie

Dexter, Showtime, Airs Sundays at 9 PM ET/PT

Episode: “About Last Night” (Season 3, Episode 9)

Synopsis: Dexter starts to fear that Miguel may have strayed from the newly taught Code. This concern starts to put a strain on their friendship. And Dexter doesn’t get a reprieve from this at Rita’s either. Sylvia, noting how Miguel is never at home anymore, tells Rita that she is now convinced that Miguel is having an affair. Rita decides to confront Miguel about his indiscretions. Meanwhile, Anton is confirmed to have been taken by the Skinner, sending Debra into a furious search, not only for Anton, but also for his potential killer.

Review: I was appropriately reminded this afternoon by not one, but two reader emails that I failed to review this week’s episode of Dexter in a timely manner. Furthermore, it dawned on my that I had also failed to actually watch the episode, a double dose of, as they call it on the web, ‘epic fail.’ So here it is, my review of one of the best episodes in one of the best seasons of quite possibly the best show on television. Yes, it is one of those weeks for Dexter faithful, when we are treated to a tension-building exercise unlike anything we will see elsewhere on TV.

In this week’s frame, Dexter learns more about this monster that is Miguel Prado, played by Jimmy Smits. Coincidentally we learn that Smits is quickly becoming the perfect match for Michael C. Hall’s Dexter, a mix of depth and darkness that finally has Dexter on his heals — or in a more poignant scene, literally throwing shit all over the place. As I watched the final ten minutes of this week’s show I could feel the collective exhaling of all the most die hard Dexterites — we are seeing Dexter’s rage, we can taste his vulnerability, and we know what’s next. And leave it to Michael C. Hall to stop us dead in our tracks with a single, solitary scowl. Look out world, there is a war brewing between Dexter and another monster, a monster who is way worse than the skinner. But isn’t that how we hope that it goes? Weren’t we just talking about how the Freebo storyline (which has morphed into the Skinner storyline) wouldn’t be enough to carry the season? Now, with only three episodes to go in the season the final layers are being peeled back, and what we see below is enough to keep us glued. I’ve said it before, and I’m not afraid to say it some more, this is the best show on television. It is, quite simply, amazing.

Up Next Week: Dexter feels like he’s making a deal with the devil when he feigns civility around Miguel after his duplicitous ways. Dexter finds himself in a series of chess-like moves against his former friend, all while hoping that Miguel doesn’t get the upper hand on him

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Did you catch this week’s episode of Dexter? If so, please feel free to discuss is below.