Dexter: Original Sin is not a killer prequel

You can’t kill Dexter Morgan. No, seriously. Remember how important his death was to the end of 2021’s Dexter: New Blood? How the whole series really led up to that emotional moment? Well, the first thing that the prequel Dexter: Original Sin does is to diminish all of that emotional weight by resurrecting present-day Dexter Morgan (Michael C. Hall). That’s right: Dexter survived being shot by his son, as he’s seen being rushed by snow-covered cop car to a hospital, where he’s shocked back to life. As he lays in a hospital bed, he narrates how you really do see your life flash before your eyes when you’re close to death, leading us into what will apparently be a flashback show, although one wonders if we’ll also get a bit of current Morgan timeline every now and then à la Better Call Saul. Call this one Don’t Call Dexter.  

Of course, while that prologue is likely to get the most attention, the premiere of Dexter: Original Sin is all about introducing younger versions of characters we already know and (mostly) love. One of the interesting things about Original Sin is that we already know a great deal about Dexter Morgan from the original series, including how his father Harry shaped his control over his “Dark Passenger” and how the murder of his mother shaped his personal demons. So seeing it all played out sometimes feels a bit like watching a community theater version of a play you know by heart. It also doesn’t help at all that several of the major players seem miscast or poorly directed at best. It’s hard to judge casting/performance on one episode alone, but there is notable reason for concern after one hour.

Part of the problem is that Patrick Gibson is stepping into the shoes of one of the most memorable characters of the Prestige TV era. Michael C. Hall’s performance as Dexter Morgan is truly phenomenal, nailing the layers of a man who believes in justice while also being an antisocial serial killer. Patrick Gibson just doesn’t have it yet. He plays a young Dexter as more of a socially awkward blank. Where Hall had depth of sociopathology behind his eyes and sly smile, Gibson more often feels like he’s doing apathy. There’s a big difference.  

To be fair, Gibson is a victim of plotting here, as creator Clyde Phillips and his team of writers use the premiere to pretty much just get Dexter’s first kill and hiring by the Miami P.D. checked off the “Prequel List.” Who was Dexter’s first victim? An “angel of mercy,” a nurse who was treating his father when Dex discovered she was also killing patients. When he learns that a post-heart-attack Harry (Christian Slater) is the next on Nurse Ratched’s list, he finally has an outlet for his Dark Passenger, even getting approval from dad first to do the deed.

Harry’s heart condition—brought to its potential deadliness when he realizes that Dexter’s homicidal urges won’t be satisfied by hunting anymore—is the connective tissue that really brings Dexter into the world of policing. Of course, Harry works for the department, but Dexter’s investigation and the support of Harry’s colleagues lead to a paid internship offer for young Morgan, and it means we get to meet more Dexter Babies characters! Alex Shimizu plays a young Vince Masuka and James Martinez takes on a thirtysomething Angel Batista. (Christina Milian will portray a young Maria LaGuerta.) The premiere also introduces a few new players at the Miami PD, including a detective named Aaron Spencer (Patrick Dempsey) and his superior Tanya Martin (Sarah Michelle Gellar). Seeing Slater, Dempsey, and Gellar show up to investigate a home-invasion homicide scene feels like catnip for fans of ‘90s pop culture.

The sense that this is at least partially a nostalgia minefield is amplified in “And In The Beginning…” by some of the weirdest needle drops of the year. If a viewer were to ever forget that this show is set in the early ‘90s, the music supervisor is there to remind them, often under the oddest conditions. George Michael’s still-banging “Freedom” is one thing, but “Ice Ice Baby” while cops in SWAT gear are going to arrest a suspect in the home invasion murders and Poison’s “Nothing But A Good Time” for 30 seconds while Dexter kills his first victim are choices. 

Of course, there’s another major character in the world of Dexter that has to play a role here, but neither the writers nor Molly Brown seem to know what to do with Debra Morgan, at least not in the premiere. She’s sassy in a manner that feels like an echo of Jennifer Carpenter’s portrayal, but it has a shallow register, in part because Brown seems miscast but more because her involvement here feels like fan service more than character-driven writing. It’s also another case wherein we know well what Carpenter brought to this role, and just as the premiere doesn’t close the deal that Gibson will turn into Hall in fifteen years, neither does it convince anyone that Brown will become Carpenter. Of course, it doesn’t help to have the shadow of what they did with these characters regarding borderline incestuous attraction either. Still ew. Forever ew.

To be fair to this awkward premiere, the final scene of “And In The Beginning…” feels like the real start to Dexter: Original Sin. Dexter Morgan arrives to his first day on the job at Miami PD, ready to help solve cases in a way that satisfies his vengeful inner psychopath. And Gibson comes to life in this scene a bit, as if he’s finally becoming the Dexter we know after saving both his father and sister, taking a murderer off the streets, and finding the job of his dreams. 

Should what’s basically a prologue to a prequel have been more memorable? Undeniably. In a few episodes, most people won’t even remember Dexter’s first kill when it should have been truly formative to the legacy of this character. And that’s what will make or break this show: whether the writers want to just check off “prequel show” boxes or actually dig into what makes Dexter Morgan tick. Do they want to do what everyone expects them to do and take no risks, which is how this episode plays out, or could they take what we know and love about Dexter Morgan and go somewhere…original?

Stray observations

• • The credits! One needs to look no further than the replication of the original credits with a new performer to realize how content this show is to echo instead of redefine. However, it’s still a jolt to hear that theme music and even to see Gibson playing out many of the same Dexter moves from the Showtime classic.
• • There’s an important flashback to Harry losing a child by drowning and his wife Doris returning to find the horrific scene of her kid being taken away by the coroner. It’s a defining moment in Harry’s life and something that one hopes will be used for dramatic resonance. He couldn’t save that boy. Can he save Dexter?
• • Of course, we all know key things about Dexter’s background, including how his mother was murdered and how Harry found him at the bloody scene. Will we learn more about Laura (Dexter’s biological mother who was one of Harry’s informants)? Will we see Brian, Dexter’s biological brother? What about Dr. Vogel, who helped Harry shape young Dexter’s “code”? 
• • We also know something that feels essential to this season: Harry Morgan died when Dexter Morgan was 20, the age he is in this episode. Don’t get too attached to Christian Slater. Although after this premiere, he may be happy to jump to a better show sooner rather than later.