Dexter 4x01

...And so we move on to the fourth season of our serial killer series. Dexter Morgan is happily married, with kids, living the dream in suburban Florida – blood splatter analyst at Miami Metro Homicide by day, vigilant murderer of those deserving to die by night. His new baby, though, is keeping him up at all hours – and the sleep deprivation is hurting his job. For, when he has to testify in court, he accidentally brings the wrong file, and so a killer goes free. Meanwhile, Deb is still with Anton, although she is already fretting something will go wrong soon. Even more wrong is that Lt. LaGuerta and Sgt. Batista are hooking up, without telling anyone. Crazy! But, oh, lord who art in heaven, what is really sick and twisted is the murder of a young woman in her own bathtub by strangulation and severing of her femoral artery. When Special Agent Lundy arrives on the scene, we know we are dealing with another serious case. Because he meticulously kills in threes, Lundy has dubbed him the “Trinity Killer,” and he has been working on this case for fifteen years. Another special treat: we already know who the killer is and he is performed by none other than John Lithgow! Some nice piece of ---, well, a nice looking reporter, Christine Hill, also shows up on the crime scene, asking Det. Quinn lots of questions. It doesn’t take long before they talk dinner. Dex has a difficult time getting any rest. On his one night off, his lovely Rita wants to make love. In fact, his exhaustion is also hurting his killer instinct, as he falls asleep at a stake out – and when he has finally caught the killer who got off scot-free in court, he can barely stay awake. When he is driving home from his bloody ritual he falls asleep at the wheel and totals his car!

So, we are off to a very good start. Of course, Lithgow is a wonderful addition to the cast. We soon learn that another young woman was killed in the very same bathtub thirty years ago. Keith Carradine’s return as FBI Agent Lundy is sure to throw Deb’s life into utter confusion. She has had so much bad luck with her relationships that I can only hope for the best for her. First she fell for Dex’ biological serial-killer brother; she had a fling with a writer she met at the gym; then she fell even harder for Lundy; last season she found her soulmate in Anton; and every time her heart broke when things didn’t work out. Now she is going through her father’s files searching for an informant he may have had an affair with – hoping to prove her legendary father wasn’t all that perfect. We already know who the woman is: Dexter’s biological mother. Then we have LaGuerta and Batsita, both also unlucky in love. I do not know what to make of their affair. Somehow it makes sense, but I am afraid it is going to end up disastrous for both of them – what with their history. I am sure Quinn is going to offer an interesting plotline with this gorgeous reporter. I can only hope our foulmouthed perv Vince Masuka is getting more screen time. He’s hilarious! “Blood bath,” he quips when he finds the victim of the “Trinity Killer.” Obviously, the real question is how Dex is going to cope with his married family life. I am very curious what story arc this season has in store for us – especially since he just had a car accident. In all, this was an exciting season premiere. (Incidentally, I started watching season 4 in late last month.)