This is the episode that offers a glimpse of a life Dexter could lead, embracing his dark side with a walk on the wild side, far from the code he knows so well.
Dexter is a father, and he is concerned with Harrison’s future, but the lure of a banded group of like-minded folks could prove impossible to resist.
As he says, “It’s a dinner party for serial killers. An all-you-can-eat buffet for the dark passenger.”
As thrilled as Dexter was stepping into Red’s shoes, thankfully, a part of him couldn’t let go of the code.
We’re not out of the woods yet. When’s the last time we’ve seen Dexter so damn… happy? “Who’s got a fake print and passes for red? This guy,” he said with a hint of a smile hiding far greater glee.
He was practically vibrating with excitement, like a kid at Disneyland — if Disneyland had a kill room. It’s a chilling reminder of who Dexter could have been without Harry’s code leashed around his throat.
And while we meet a group of very successful serial killers who have had reins of terror lasting years, for every one of them, there are probably many more Reds out there who get caught up in the net.
Nobody misses them. Crimes go unsolved. They disappear without a sound after a life led in the shadows, without love or friendship.
It’s hard for this girl to wrap her head around choosing such a lonely existence.
This is the Dexter: Resurrection episode where Showtime blew the guest star budget like it was Black Friday at the Murder Mall.
Leon Prater (Peter Dinklage) is the oddball billionaire who collects serial killers and their trophies as if they are the trophies themselves. Sure, Prater doesn’t kill with his own hands, but he bankrolls the body count like it’s performance art. It’s literally blood money.
I had to laugh when Prater showed Dexter one of his dearest passions, and Dexter appropriately responded with, “Clowns?”
You know the difference between a collector and a killer with that simple interaction. While Dexter was always eager to find another mind like his own, he didn’t spend a lot of time looking into it.
Serial killers aren’t exactly known for networking. Most don’t trade LinkedIn profiles. They’re more into ligature marks.
There’s just not enough time to scour the world looking for more killers when your own victims await. It’s not like there’s an app for it.
Still, once he realized it was John Wayne Gacy’s clown suit, it dawned on him what was before him. “You really like serial killers.”
Prater figures he spends his time looking for the best of the best, so why not serial killers, too?
Someone like him, who walks amongst them, though, needs someone like Charley at his side to ensure he’s not the next on any one of their lists.
I’m still not impressed with Uma Thurman’s Charley. She’s far too good of an actress to be playing a henchwoman/butler combination.
I do find it interesting that, despite having Dexter’s slides, he didn’t do much exploring into the Miami PD during that time.
Dexter’s name came up more than once among members of that community. Wouldn’t he recognize his face or name or both?
For longtime fans, the return of Dexter’s slides feels like flipping through a bloodstained photo album. Comforting, in the most horrifying way possible. It’s like Dexter is really back.
From Arthur Miller to the Ice Truck Killer to Dexter himself, he was intertwined with many of those who provided trophies for Prater’s museum. And they were far more menacing than Ponytail Guy, aka Rapunzel and the Tattoo Killer.
Dexter’s always had a wicked sense of humor, sure, but it’s usually wrapped in razor wire. These other clowns? They’re giggling through body counts like it’s murder camp. Honestly, it’s giving community theater for serial killers.
Maybe it’s the environment. They feel safe. And Prater has the place protected to the hilt, a code of his own he works by, and a public profile that would make it tough to take him down.
“I know it takes one to know one, but this guy’s fucking nuts,” is how Dexter sees it, and I can’t argue the point.
Dexter’s no stranger to dangerous women—or at least women who flirted with the darkness without fully marrying it. Lila, Lumen, Hannah… they dipped a toe in the blood pool.
But Mia? She dives headfirst without even checking the depth. Mia stands apart — calculated, composed, magnetic.
The rest? They’re like knock-off Joker variants, high on their own chaos. Heightened, yes. Dangerous, sure. But also childish. It’s like someone invited a frat party to a hit list.
We’ve got Father of the Year candidate Al, aka Ponytail Guy (Eric Stonestreet), FaceTiming his kids while casually heading to a serial killer dinner because nothing says work-life balance like squeezing in a little murder before bedtime stories.
Dexter is interested in his dynamic and how he calls his side action self-care, so he can better show up for his family.
Hey, if that’s what gets him through the day, sure. But I suspect that if any of his dinner companions honed in on one of his family members, he’d see things differently.
Next up is Lowell, the Tattoo Collector. Neil Patrick Harris leans full-tilt into the smarm, and it works — he’s all swagger, no soul. The kind of guy who thinks serial killing is an edgy brand strategy.
He’s also the first to go at Dexter’s hand. No wonder he didn’t participate in press day. He was in and out in a jiffy!
You can practically see Dexter’s brain rewiring in real time — equal parts amusement, curiosity, and that simmering “I should kill all of them” glint in his eye.
Meanwhile, Harry’s poking at him from the sidelines like a coach watching his MVP warm up at the wrong basket.
There is but one rule of the group, and we have already seen it in action. Never turn on the group. The Canton Clubber was killed with his own Negan-style bat earlier in the season.
There is a downside to playing someone other than yourself, other than the fact you can’t claim your own trophies and brag about your kills (not that bragging about taking down fellow baddies would be welcome with this crowd).
Dexter has to play vegan. God help a voracious meat lover like himself. We feel your pain, Dex!
David Dastmalchian is Gareth, the Gemini Killer, the quietest of the bunch, which likely means he’ll last the longest. If he’s like Dexter, holding his cards close to the vest even amongst “friends,” then he’ll be the one to give Dexter trouble.
The rest of the dinner was uneventful. Dexter soaked it all in, but imagining himself presenting a slideshow of Red’s kills gave him some hesitation.
He returned home to see Blessing and his family enjoying a family romp in the living room, and the juxtaposition of his lives was more obvious than ever.
His inner battle between doing what’s right but still oh, so wrong, and getting to know people like himself is raging. But when Lowell moves up his timetable to desleeve his new favorite tattoo from its owner, Dexter uses his code as motivation to take him out.
And really, it’s kind of gross that all that turns on Lowell is a tattoo he likes. Get your own, dude. Shopping for someone else’s tattoo and ripping it from their body is a lame reason to kill.
There’s no power dynamic, no twisted psychology, not even a DIY ethos. It’s just garden-variety bloodlust over a tattoo. The banality of baddie-ness, folks. Yuck.
You’ve gotta love that Lowell asked Dexter to do him a solid and knock him out first, but still managed to chit chat and watch curiously while Dexter enjoyed his ritual.
It didn’t even dawn on him when he saw Dexter taking slides that he was the Bay Harbor Butcher, and we didn’t get the benefit of knowing what a fellow killer might think when they discovered that juicy nugget. Dex plunged the blade into his chest during the reveal.
Dexter’s deepest connection is with Mia, and killing her will be rough, if he can do it. She seems to have somewhat of a code herself, even back to childhood. Someone had to be mean to her before she retaliated.
The relationships Dexter has had along the way have been just as important as his own journey. Yes, he has Harrison, but he always had family and some interesting flair on the side. We need a well-rounded Dexter now, just like we did in the past.
If it ends up that he and Mia forge a longer bond, it doesn’t mean he can’t be a father to Harrison or a friend to Blessing. But how will she feel knowing he kills others like themselves? Could his code benefit her, too?
At the end of all of this, Dexter admitted to Harry that he’d rather have a relationship with Harrison than any of these others.
And don’t worry. I haven’t forgotten about Harrison. He’s got his own set of problems, as his victim haunts him whether he likes it or not.
And he’s also being hunted. Dexter isn’t around, but Angel is trying to track him down. Following his truck leads him straight to Harrison, who I do not think is ready for the kind of scrutiny Angel is likely to bring down on him.
At first, it seems like he’s only there for Dexter, but Angel isn’t stupid. He will eventually figure out that Harrison has some of his father’s predilections.
And God bless Elsa for thinking she’s helping Harrison by repeatedly telling people he didn’t chop up a guest. Her heart is in the right place, but sheesh.
But Harrison doesn’t know as much about his father’s activities as Angel thinks. Oh, sure, he was more open with him during New Blood than he had ever been, but hearing him named as the Bay Harbor Butcher took Harrison by surprise.
He’s buried Dexter’s past in drawers and glove boxes, but emotionally? He’s standing out in the open, begging someone to see him.
He didn’t mistake Elsa’s affections. She’s cautious, maybe even scared, just like Harrison. Two people circling each other gently, hoping the other might fill in the broken parts without breaking what’s left.
But he’s wrestling with his inner demons, too. The last thing he needed was for Angel to claim his dad killed his mom and Deb, let alone insinuate he’s becoming like him.
As it weighed on him, he called Claudette. Thankfully, she didn’t answer. And even better, Dexter appeared like a ghost with impeccable timing — right before Harrison could confess, collapse, or both.
If he questioned whether his father was real before, that moment made it heartbreakingly clear.
Father and son are finally face to face, but with Angel closing in, serial killers circling, and a code barely holding them together, the sunshine’s fading fast, and the storm’s about to start.
And who knows what the other killers might get up to if they discover Lowell was killed? Mia might forgive. But Rapunzel? He strikes me as the hold-a-grudge kind.
This was one hell of a long episode, but it set up the rest of Dexter: Resurrection Season 1. Are we ready for what’s ahead? Hell yeah!
What did you think of “Call Me Red”? Was this a fun respite in the middle of the season, or do you want to see more of this gang of killers?
Drop below and share your thoughts!
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The post Dexter: Resurrection Season 1 Episode 4 Review: Call Me Red appeared first on TV Fanatic.
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