Dexter 3.0

After eight seasons of serial-killing drama, Dexter ended its original television run with a notoriously bad finale that enraged fans. Then, a few years later, the single season Dexter: New Blood arrived to "re-conclude" the story in a more satisfying way. But this show about a killer won't stay dead; this year brought us a prequel series (that I never even made time to sample before it was canceled), and an improbable new revival, Dexter: Resurrection.

Dexter: Resurrection delivers on the promise of the title, finding a way to pick up the story of "killer of killers" Dexter Morgan for yet another season of tension, drama, and blood. When Dexter's son Harrison snaps and commits a brutal murder of his own (albeit, on a "deserving" person who would very much fit "the code"), Dexter is determined to help him evade suspicion. But soon Dexter is entangled in a situation of his own: he accepts the invitation of an eccentric billionaire who gathers serial killers for intimate dinners and conversation. Has Dexter found brethren who can truly understand him... or a veritable buffet of worthy targets for his Dark Passenger?

I approached Dexter: New Blood with cautious optimism, willing to embrace more time with Dexter Morgan partly because of the eerie charisma of Michael C. Hall, and partly thinking that the writers couldn't help but improve on the ending of the original series. Dexter: Resurrection arrived in a different posture. New Blood had given me the worthy ending I craved, and I needed nothing more. And yet, I kind of had to know what soap opera-style tricks they'd embrace to keep Dexter's story going. Plus, of course, Michael C. Hall was going to be compelling in whatever story that was.

Early on, Resurrection faced every reservation I had. The show wiggled out of the ending of New Blood without doing too much damage to its dramatic heft. Jennifer Carpenter does not return -- a real loss for the new show (as I wrote in my New Blood review that you can't do Dexter without her as Deb). But at least James Remar is back as Dexter's "ghostly" father Harry. And Jack Alcott, the best addition to New Blood, returns here as Harrison and is central to the story.

But Resurrection crossed the line from quieting my doubts and into actively entertaining me with its stellar new characters and their casting. The season features Uma Thurman, Peter Dinklage, Neil Patrick Harris, Krysten Ritter, Eric Stonestreet, and David Dastmalchian -- packing as much star wattage into a single season of Dexter as any three or four seasons of the original run. (And that's not even counting the numerous re-appearances and cameos of characters from the original show.)

Each of these new-to-Dexter actors plays an indelible character, quirky but believable, that might have been the focus of any one season of the original Dexter. They're all brought together here in a sort of "leave it all on the field" approach to storytelling that works very much in the re-revival's favor. Too well, perhaps? After Resurrection reached another satisfying (if less definitive) end than New Blood, it got renewed for another season! Can there possibly be any toys left to empty from this particular toy box? I suppose we'll find out.

I'd give Dexter: Resurrection a B+. If you were burned out by the original (or sated by New Blood) and are not inclined to give Dexter another chance, I get it... and Resurrection isn't quite "essential" viewing. But it is a nice reminder of how fun Dexter could be at its peak.