“Logo text [This story contains spoilers from the first seven episodes of Dexter: Original Sin.] Three years after concluding with Dexter: New Blood, Showtime’s favorite serial killer is back in action with Dexter: Original Sin. The prequel series stars Patrick Gibson as a younger version of Dexter, with Michael C. Hall providing narration (and a surprising on-camera”, — write: www.hollywoodreporter.com
[This story contains spoilers from the first seven episodes of Dexter: Original Sin.]
Three years after concluding with Dexter: New Blood, Showtime’s favorite serial killer is back in action with Dexter: Original Sin. The prequel series stars Patrick Gibson as a younger version of Dexter, with Michael C. Hall providing narration (and a surprising on-camera return as well). Set during Dexter’s earliest days working alongside Miami Metro, Original Sin comes packed with returning characters, tropes and Easter eggs aplenty for fans of the original show.
“We had this canon of lore from nine seasons of the show from which to draw,” Dexter franchise veteran and Original Sin showrunner Clyde Phillips told The Hollywood Reporter when launching the prequel series, which is now seven episodes into its 10-episode season. “If people like Easter eggs, this show is going to be an Easter egg hunt. We would write the shows and start shooting them. Someone would come in and say, ‘Oh gosh, I have this great story about an Easter egg,’ and we would go running down to set and put a picture on somebody’s desk or whatever it is that the fans are just going to love.”
Throughout the season, THR is chronicling all the Dexter Easter eggs littered across Original Sin, updating as the episodes roll along. During a midseason check-in chat, Phillips said he’s been enjoying following along with the online reaction to his egg hunt. “It’s also so fun because this season is a period piece, within a period piece. We have all of this great imagery we get to use from the ’90s, but also from the ’70s, with Harry’s storyline. We get to lay in all these wonderful wall phones, the first car phone, whatever it is. We’re having so much fun watching people watch out for all of that.”
Spoilers ahead through season one, episode seven (“And in the Beginning…,” “Kid in a Candy Store,” “Miami Vice,” “Fender Bender,” “F Is for Fuck-Up,” “The Joy of Killing” and “The Big Bad Body Problem”).
Dexter…lives? Let’s start here. It’s not exactly an Easter egg, but we definitely need to get one thing straight right at the top. If you only watched the original Dexter run and somehow didn’t watch Dexter: New Blood, then it’s possible you thought Dexter was still a lumberjack somewhere. Nope! Not even close. The serial killer returned for a sequel a couple years back, and in the finale of New Blood, Dexter — wait for it — dies. Dies! Shot to death by his own teen son, Harrison. So, if you were wondering why Dex was sitting in the back of a car, bleeding out, but still alive…so was every single person who watched Dexter: New Blood. Expect…no, demand! more answers when Dexter: Resurrection premieres this summer, starring the resurrected Michael C. Hall as Dexter Morgan. (Phillips explained the decision to THR.)
Dexter Rides OK, the wildest part out of the way, let’s dig in. The very first scene of both Dexter and Original Sin share one thing in common: Miami Metro’s deadliest blood spatter analyst is riding along in a car. Big differences, of course, include the original Dexter’s self-confidence as he drove through the night stalking prey, while the Original Sin Dexter’s just been shot dead in the chest and is somehow still alive. Sorry, still not quite over it!
Introducing Dexter Morgan Whatever shock still exists from Dexter’s miraculous survival is quickly replaced by a big hit of nostalgia. The Original Sin opening credits are not exactly a shot-for-shot re-creation of the original series’ iconic version, but it’s pretty darn close — from bloodied breakfast to that knowing smile at the end. Applying Dexter’s familiar morning routine to Dexter successor Gibson gives the whole thing a well-worn feeling while making it clear we’re in for something new.
A Shaggy-Hair Story Shocked by young Dexter’s long-haired looks in his first scene of the series? It’s straight from the original show, which often featured flashbacks starring an aged-down Hall. And by “aged down,” I mean wearing a ridiculous long-hair wig to make him look like a teenager. It works better on Gibson for sure, but we’re thankfully out of this era before too long.
Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow Speaking of hair, let’s talk about one of the show’s returning characters. Forensics expert and confirmed pervert Vince Masuka returns in Original Sin, this time played by Alex Shimizu, and this time, boasting a whole head of hair. Please tell me we’re going to get a Masuka hair loss Origin Story episode.
City of Angel Continuing in returning characters territory, Angel Batista is back, and so is his hat! James Martinez plays a young version of the original show’s iconic detective, complete with his signature look: immaculate hat and tropical shirts aplenty. Could be worth paying particularly close attention to Angel’s story this season, as in the modern timeline, David Zayas’ version of the character just learned Dexter is the Bay Harbor Butcher, with sparks sure to fly when Resurrection revs up.
Evil Urges We get to see the full Morgan family enjoying dinner together in the first episode, including Molly Brown doing a very good Jennifer Carpenter as Deb, and Christian Slater doing a very good Christian Slater as Detective Harry Morgan. The scene does a great job making you forget Deb was in love with Dex for a season or two, while also dutifully reminding the audience that when this show begins, Harry already knows all about Dexter’s dark passenger.
Goodnight, Nurse The Original Sin premiere follows Dexter as he makes his first kill, and it’s not the first time we’ve seen these events dramatized. We originally saw Dexter’s first kill back in the first season of the original show, in an episode called “Popping Cherry.” Obviously, Nurse Mary’s death is elaborated upon here in Original Sin, and appears to serve something of a launch point into the rest of the season.
Rough Start After killing the nurse, Dexter makes a couple of sloppy moves. For one, he deposits her body in a swamp, leaving her to be devoured by alligators. For another, he took the nurse’s earrings as trophies. Expect the rest of the season to delve deeper into why both of those choices were very bad, and why they’ll ultimately lead to Dexter’s use of the Bay Harbor as a burial ground, not to mention collecting blood samples as trophies.
You Spin Me Right Round Original Sin‘s very first episode ends with Dexter Morgan, newly appointed Miami Metro forensics intern, spinning around and around in a lab chair — exactly as he does throughout the first Dexter series.
Full Masuka There’s a lot of fantastic recasting in Original Sin, but Shimizu as a younger version of Masuka may take the cake. It helps that the writing feels incredibly Masuka, what with calling Dexter “Dexedrine” and “Dex-Mex” in episode two. But it’s also little things, like perfectly imitating the original Masuka’s laugh.
Full Michael C. Hall In that same vein, “Kid in a Candy Store” reinforces all of Hall’s work imbued in Gibson’s turn as Dexter. The actor’s physicality as Dexter mirrors Hall, with his dramatic crime scene gesticulating, not to mention nailing the original Dexter’s donut habitat with note perfection.
“Anyone Sitting Here?” Did we just get an Ice Truck Killer Easter egg? The jury’s out, though we have at the very least seen the season one villain in flashback form already, what with Harry’s trip back home to Laura Moser’s house and seeing baby boy Brian on the porch. But there’s another moment in episode two where a lanky, brown-haired young man asks Dexter if he can sit with him. Dexter says no, and the character moves right along off the screen, as if it never happened at all. Is Dexter: Original Sin a secret Ice Truck Killer origin story? Stay tuned.
Angel and Christian’s Hair Episodes two and three of Dexter Original Sin continue one of the show’s developing traditions: notable hair. Specifically, Slater undergoes the rite of passage involved with having horrible flashback hair. Additionally, Martinez’s young Batista shows he has a full head of hair under his classic hat. Are we getting an Angel’s hair loss origin? Original Sin really does have everything!
Familiar Faces Episodes two and three introduce two classic Dexter characters into Original Sin for the first time. First, there’s Sarah Kinsey as Camilla Figg, the Miami Metro records worker played in the original show by character actress Margo Martindale. Then comes Maria LaGuerta, played here by Christina Milian, taking over the role originated by Luna Lauren Vélez.
“Hello Darkness, My Old Friend” The Dark Passenger returns! Succumbing to his desires to kill again, Dexter closes out episode two with those haunting words: “Hello darkness, my old friend.” It’s almost Hall winking directly at us as he references Dexter’s “Dark Passenger,” the name given to the killer’s killer instinct.
The Rental Cop Deb buys drugs outside of a Blockbuster, which is an Easter egg for two reasons. For one, Deb starts the original series as a vice cop, and we could be seeing some of that energy in her storyline here. For another, Blockbuster no longer exists, and it is featured here as a reminder that those of us who went there *and* watched the original Dexter are, without question, old.
LaGuerta Makes Enemies It’s just a thing she does! In the original series, Maria was a cutthroat political animal willing to do most anything to rise to the top. She’s not so cutthroat here, but she’s already butting heads with Patrick Dempsey’s Miami Metro chief, signaling the earliest parts of her ambitious path. Also, she doesn’t like Dexter much at all. Yet. That will change soon enough (before it fatefully changes again).
Family Secrets In the original series, desk clerk Camilla is very fond of Dexter, for a number of reasons, including her fondness for his father Harry. But it goes deeper: Camilla is one of few who knows about Dexter’s beginnings, discovered in a shipping crate, covered in blood. We get to see how dedicated she is to protecting young Dex in the fourth episode, as she helps Harry out with a favor about his kid, no questions asked. “That’s what family’s for,” after all.
The Bay Harbor Botcher Dexter tries to take down a boat captain and killer named Mad Dog, played by the legendary Joe Pantoliano. Before he can cut him up in the kill room a la Tony vs. Ralphie, Dex botches the job, losing Mad Dog to the streets — only for the guy to get pancaked by a car mere moments later. Perhaps it’s not all a lost cause, though, as Dex seems to have found a boat that doesn’t exactly have his name on it but very well may soon.
Hunger Games In the original series, Dexter’s appetites extend beyond his killer instinct. Sometimes, demolishing an entire kitchen’s worth of food is the only way he can choke back his violent needs. Dex does exactly that in episode five, leading to…
Stone Cold Killer … Dex getting extremely stoned, having eaten four — no, make that six — pot brownies. Dex tells Deb he doesn’t like being out of control, which is very much a reflection of the man from the original series, who would always feign intoxication rather than get too far into the… uh… well, weeds.
Drug of Choice Speaking of Dex and drugs, episode five brings yet another example of how deep into the — yes, again — weeds Dexter: Original Sin is willing to go, as it provides an origin story for Dex’s use of etorphine when subduing his victims, complete with a classic “whoops.” Little does she know it, but Sarah Michelle Gellar’s little tip about the drug’s use in euthanasia is at least partly responsible for a whole Bay Harbor Butcher’s worth of murders.
Target Practice In a pretty clever subversion, episode five shows Dex taking the etorphine for a spin, complete with improving his kill room set-up — not by capturing and killing a murderer, but by capturing and not killing his father and giving him a front-row seat to the Dark Passenger process. The scene is staged exactly like one of Dex’s actual kills, complete with him tapping his “victim” on the forehead and delivering, in searing staccato, “What. Were. You. THINKING??”
The Older Man Episode five advances Deb’s relationship with older boyfriend Gio (Isaac Gonzalez Rossi). Add him to the list of the future Detective Morgan’s myriad love interests, including but not limited to the original older guy, Special Agent Frank “The Cucumber Sandwich” Lundy.
Throwbackpack Not a Dexter callback so much as a ’90s kid callout: Dexter’s backpack, a forest green Jansport, the spitting image of every other backpack I saw at school when I was in elementary school. Folks, why aren’t we Jansporting anymore? Can we talk about this?
Bowling Over Dexter Morgan certainly doesn’t look 45 and divorced, at least not here in Original Sin. But that doesn’t mean he can’t go bowling. The serial killer in training was a well-established bowler by the time of the proper Dexter series, and in episode six, we get to see the origins of that hobby.
Ice Trucking Along In episode six, Dexter stalks serial killer Levi Reed through the streets. During his pursuit, he’s nearly flattened like a pancaked by a truck — and not just any truck: an ice truck. And not just any ice truck! It’s the ice truck, the same one the Ice Truck Killer drove in Dexter season one. Is it the exact same truck, or is it just a shout-out to Dexter’s brother Brian? This one could be an Easter egg, or it could be a big plot development. Stay tuned!
Life and/or Death What do you call an Easter egg for something that hasn’t happened yet? Whatever phrase you want to cook up, let’s apply it to episode seven, as there’s a moment right away where Dexter openly wonders about his fate if he gets caught by Miami Metro: “I wondered if I’d get life in prison or the electric chair… I could never decide which was the lesser of two evils.” Well, considering that Dexter Morgan’s been caught red-handed by the time Dexter: Resurrections begins, we might not have to wonder that question for too much longer.
Better Angels Speaking of things to look forward to in the next Dexter show, few relationships stand to have more tension than Dexter and Angel, since the fedora-clad detective knows all about Dex’s serial-killing secret by the end of Dexter: New Blood. In episode seven of Original Sin, Dexter manages to give some very solid advice to Angel, albeit, advice pointing away from Dexter’s own crimes. Angel is grateful: “Thanks for talking me off the ledge, amigo.” Will Future Angel look back on these interactions as kindly? Odds aren’t looking so good…
This story originally posted on Dec. 15 and will be updated after each episode.
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Dexter: Original Sin streams new episodes Fridays on Paramount+, with linear releases Sunday nights at 10 p.m. Read THR‘s in-depth feature on the return of Dexter with Original Sin.