‘Dexter: Resurrection’ Season 2 Episodes 1-2 Are A Messy, Entertaining Start

Dexter: Resurrection Season 2 Episodes 1-2 have a lot to live up to. Dexter: Resurrection Season 1 was a welcome refresh for the show, reconfiguring the story of Dexter Morgan, the iconic serial killer who kills killers, into a campy blast of event television. While Dexter: Resurrection Season 2 Episodes 1-2 carry the same spirit as the previous season, the cracks are starting to form. Still, an overly silly tone, too many balls in the air narratively, and a slower pace can’t outweigh the infectiously fun performances and the promising setup for what the season can entail.

After taking down Leon Prater and his secret society of serial killers, Dexter Morgan (Michael C. Hall) has gone back to business as usual, working rideshare and taking down New York City killers in equal measure. His double life becomes more difficult to manage when he struggles to be there for his son Harrison (Jack Alcott), who embarks on a new career in the New York City Police Department. Meanwhile, The Five Borough Killer (Dan Stevens) lurks in the shadows while the inactive New York Ripper Don Framt (Brian Cox) continues to avoid punishment for his crimes.

The new villains introduced in Dexter: Resurrection Season 2 Episodes 1-2 are enticing.

What works most about Dexter: Resurrection Season 2 Episodes 1-2 is what’s always worked about the series: Michael C. Hall. Hall has lived and breathed this role for so long that he could do it in his sleep. It’s impressive how Hall and long-time Dexter showrunner Clyde Phillips can always find a new angle into this character. If Season 1 saw Dexter finally able to accept who he is, Dexter: Resurrection Season 2 Episodes 1-2 sees him trying to reckon with getting older, with a bit of a return to the original series’ struggle to juggle multiple responsibilities. Even when Dexter isn’t as tortured as in the past, he still feels like Dexter, just continually evolving.

Of course, there’s not as extensive a rogues gallery as last season. That said, the new villains introduced here are enticing. The social media-based Five Borough Killer is genuinely terrifying and mysterious, weaponizing the chameleon-like talents of an unnerving Dan Stevens (Onslaught). Furthermore, a brief introduction for the Sleepy-Eyed Stranger, Gabriel Luna (The Last of Us), is a standout, bone-chilling moment of the season’s openers. And of course you can’t beat Brian Cox (Succession) hamming it up as The New York Ripper (or is he?) openly flaunting his crimes in public.

For the most part, Dexter: Resurrection Season 2 Episodes 1-2 remain highly entertaining.

When Dexter: Resurrection Season 2 Episodes 1-2 shift their focus elsewhere, they falter. I’ve grown fond of Jack Alcott as Harrison, but his NYPD storyline is a snooze in its current form at best, borderline copaganda at worst. The NYPD station is filled with overdone archetypes who lack the nuance or memorability of the Miami Metro squad. At this juncture, every development seems like it can be seen coming from a mile away, and not even the involvement of a veteran actor like Bokeem Woodbine as the Homicide Department captain can muster more than a shrug.

The tonal shift that worked so well in Dexter: Resurrection Season 1 also feels imbalanced in Dexter: Resurrection Season 2 Episodes 1-2. The proceedings are simply too light-hearted, with eye-rolling needle drops and implausible- even for a show with a secret society of serial killers- plot developments feeling like the series has become a parody of Dexter at moments. For the most part, Dexter: Resurrection remains highly entertaining, yet it seems like entertainment value is taking precedence over the narrative.

New York City is starting to feel like a true character in Dexter: Resurrection Season 2 Episodes 1-2.

We’re not quite jumping the shark, but the show’s dark heart has softened a bit too much. What always made Dexter special was that it felt like every brush with a new serial killer could be his last if anything went awry; so far here it feels like there’s pronounced plot armor keeping him safe. The glacial pace the season is moving on also feels considerably less propulsive. Setup after setup after setup clogs the narrative while the audience waits for the good stuff.

Of course, this could always change, as the seeds for a ferocious season are there. The aforementioned trio of new serial killers has potential to really shake up the narrative. New York City is starting to feel like a true character, as Miami did during the original series’ run, or as Iron Lake did in New Blood. Dexter’s changing relationship with Charley Brown (Uma Thurman) raises some eyebrows in the right ways and, of course, when Dexter has a victim in his kill room, it’s like he never left. It’s maybe a bit too much going on, but other seasons of the show have started off spread out and focused up in the back half.

Dexter: Resurrection Season 2 Episodes 1-2 continues on the promise of Season 1, albeit with some kinks to work out. While Harrison’s plotline is a dud, the humor and implausibility are overdone, and there are a lot of questions about how all these plotlines could work, the intrigue is still there. How the rest of the season shapes up remains to be seen; however, there’s enough good here that there’s reason to keep the faith.

Dexter: Resurrection Season 2 starts streaming on Paramount+ on October 30.

Previous Episodes | Next Episode

Catch up on Dexter: Resurrection Season 1