Television Review: "Dexter" Season Four, Episode 11 “Hello, Dexter Morgan”

By our guest blogger, Eva Medoff

Warning: Spoilers will follow.

The implausible and boring storylines of Dexter’s fourth season are finally coming to a close--and the eleventh episode, “Hello, Dexter Morgan,” is rather unfortunately strangled in them. The penultimate episode opens on reporter Christine Hill’s interrogation, and so far she’s not willing to give up her serial killer father. However, as soon as the words “Arthur Mitchell” leave her lips, Dexter will be in the uncomfortable position of having Trinity visit his place of work and figure out his true identity. Thus, Dexter embarks on an elaborate mission to lead Miami Metro to a fall guy and save Trinity for his own dark passenger.

Here is where the stupidity comes in. If Dexter hadn’t gotten so involved with Trinity for his own learning opportunities, hadn’t exposed himself to Arthur’s family and hadn’t lied so thoroughly to create the persona of “Kyle Butler,” everything that happened in “Hello, Dexter Morgan” could have been avoided. At the end of every season, Dexter is involved in a web of treachery and his dark side is always dangerously close to exposure. The difference is that Dexter usually doesn’t cause these things himself--they come from clever, outside plot constructions. “Clever” is not a word that describes season four.

As Dexter plants evidence to convict his fall guy, Trinity is busy going through the phone book and making visits looking for “Kyle Butler.” One unfortunate Kyle annoys Arthur and winds up dead--making him collateral damage of Dexter’s personal project. Dexter spends some time chasing Arthur, some time on the phone threatening him and, well, blah blah blah. More filler that added up to nothing in the end.

As for the episode's love storylines, they come twofold. Batista and Laguerta, despite promising the police chief that their relationship was over in order to keep their jobs, are exposed as lovers. They decide to get married, and somehow insinuating that discriminating against the institution of marriage would make the department look bad manages to save their jobs. This in no way makes sense. If two people in a relationship could not serve in the same department, especially when one was the boss of the other, doesn’t it make it even worse if they’re married? If the writers agree to box up this dud of a storyline once and for all, I won't argue.

Meanwhile, Rita admits to Dexter that she kissed the neighbor, Elliot. He doesn’t care too much and Rita notices. Then, when Dexter returns home one night, Elliot is sitting on his stoop and Rita is looking out through the kitchen window. Whether he actually felt angry, was simply juiced from his killing earlier in the day (he killed the fall guy, who was a murderer himself, after planting the Trinity evidence at his place), or knew that Rita was watching, Dexter goes over and punches Elliot. Rita, who has reverted into some sort of Southern belle, is impressed by her man protecting his territory.

Miami Metro falls for Dexter’s setup about Trinity. Deb isn’t completely convinced and believes Christine will still crack. Christine is released due to lack of evidence, and promptly calls Arthur, who promptly tells her he wishes she was never born. This is all Christine and her daddy complex need to tip over into the deep end. She calls Deb, who arrives just in time to hear Christine’s confession and see her put a bullet in her head.

Arthur cunningly lures Dexter to a location, and when Dexter is called away to be by Deb’s side, he follows him back to the police department. Swiftly, he realizes Dexter is not “Kyle Butler,” and in a scene ripped from “Public Enemies,” Arthur waltzes into the homicide department and gazes, like John Dillinger, at a wall full of information about him and his victims. He makes his way around the corner, where he’s spotted by Dexter. The two slowly approach one another, and Arthur mutters the title of episode, “Hello, Dexter Morgan.” John Lithgow is certainly chilling as Arthur--if only the rest of this season could hold its own weight. Unfortunately, Lithgow is swimming alone.