Dexter: Justice League (recap)

By: Jen Smith
Fancast.com

Previously on Dexter, Miguel changed his mind about the whole “let’s kill Ellen Wolf” thing, Deb slept with the help, and Dexter took Miguel under his wing. This week… well… it’s pretty much the same thing. A lot of filler, but the ending is totally worth it. I’m talking the last ten seconds here. So I guess it pays off having to sit through an hour long show to see the last few seconds, but at least we got a couple zingers from Deb and some clues as to who the Skinner is.

Miguel (Jimmy Smits) and Dexter (Michael C. Hall) are still engaging in manly social activities like beer, pizza, and football. Our new apprentice has been doing some homework, though. A man named Billy Fleeter is a good candidate for the dynamic duo. He used to play sports, but now is more into gambling on it. Except he’s not very good, and reimburses his bookie by means of murder. He’s taken out some innocent people, but has left little evidence. Miguel drops the bomb shell that he wants to be the one to take his guy out… as in killing the s.o.b. Dexter doesn’t think he’s ready to share the reigns quite yet, but promises to think about it. The next morning at Rita’s (Julie Benz), the impregnated mommy has morphed into a monster. She creates the Great Waffle Debacle of ‘08, and then snaps at Dexter for daring to breathe. Who wants to guess she’ll blame the rages on the pregnancy. I’m not buyin’ it, sweetheart.

Deb’s panties make a quick cameo while she’s getting ready for work. She’s at Anton’s place having breakfast, after what was apparently a fruitful night, and stumbles upon a bag of weed in the cereal box. That sounds like a good hiding place to me, but Deb (Jennifer Carpenter) isn’t so happy. She storms out of there like a bat out of hell. At work, she’s gathered all of Miami’s tree trimmers for questioning including a man named King. King confesses that one of his workers is known for his temper, and rumor has it he killed someone in Nicaragua. Deb’s interest has perked. She puts a call in to Anton to find out his CI number, but according to him, he doesn’t have one. Quinn pays him in cash. This is kind of a big deal for many reasons: Quinn initially made the deal with Anton after he was busted for a felony. Quinn is supposed to file charges, but with Anton’s spy work, he could get it lessoned to a misdemeanor. Since Quinn is doing this all under the table, Anton never had charges filed and therefore doesn’t owe the station anything. If he knows this, he could sue.

That night, the deadly duo head to the casino to watch Fleeter in action. Dexter has to pull Miguel back from getting too close; tonight is just about observation. Dexter spills that his dad’s expertise, matched with his own, has given him plenty of knowledge about the correct way to kill someone. Miguel takes his word for it and they head home. The next morning, Dex is confronted with Rita again, who’s yelling at him for not buying their wedding bands already. She’s stressed that she’s planning this wedding by herself, but notes that Dexter would be useless anyway. Once at work, he asks Deb if she knows anything about wedding rings, who which she replies “Yeah, wedding rings and nuclear fission are, like, my specialty.” At least she’s good for a one-liner. Quinn calls Dexter a dweeb, and Deb threatens to break his legs. Apparently the little sister is the only one allowed to make fun of him. That’s when Deb confronts Quinn about the whole Anton thing. Quinn said it was easier to do it that way, and then figures out that Deb’s sleeping with him. She’s such a bad liar.

Breaking and entering is one thing that usually took days to accomplish when you follow the rules. Dexter has his own code though, so all it takes are some rubber gloves. They find some blood on a baseball bat and Miguel gets all excited. Dexter explains that they have to first compare the blood to the victims’, and then they have to establish that he’s likely to kill again. They also find proof that he’s 30 Grand in the hole. That’ll do it. Dexter takes his pupil to the store to start his own “Murderer’s Starter Kit,” complete with rope, tarp, and tape. It’s kind of like a father/son camping trip, but with fewer marshmallows and more butcher knives.

Over with the 40-something table, Maria LaGuerta and Ellen Wolf are at a random bar, trash talking a social event they’ve just come from. It was boring, so Ellen backfires by getting kind of drunk. She even asks the bartender for a foot massage. How ballsy. Ellen says that the secret to happiness is chocolate and flirting with unattainable men. You know, I’m actually inclined to believe her. She also hints that Maria should let loose a little more often. No kidding.

Deb and Quinn are now on the hunt for this Mario fellow from Nicaragua. While they’re on the lookout, Quinn finally shares his story about why the annoying IA chick won’t leave him alone. It’s a dumb story, so I won’t repeat it. In a nutshell: Quinn broke the rules in order to protect another cop. That’s when they spot Mario when he shows up for work, and the guy tries to make a break for it. That’s not a good sign. At the station, he admits nothing. Deb pulls the deportation card on him, and he still swears he doesn’t know anything. When they mention King, however, he freaks out. He’s scared to death of this guy, and there’s bound to be a good reason. Perhaps they’re looking at the wrong tree trimmer?

Dexter and Miguel had an unsuccessful evening when they tried to kill Fleeter. They were just about to corner him when someone recognized Miguel. Dex now wants to call the whole thing off, saying that he’s not ready for it. Miguel spouts some crap about having his own dark passenger inside him, and Dexter caves. This won’t end well. That night, they’re waiting for Fleeter when he comes home. They take him to the kill site and explain to Fleeter that he’s been a bad boy. “Who are you?” Fleeter asks. When Miguel replied “We’re justice,” I had a nice eye roll. Dexter has never witnessed this scene as an outsider before. He’s curious about whether Miguel can actually go through with it. Well, doubt no longer. He jams the knife in pretty deep, and it’s safe to presume he killed the bastard. Then Miguel gets this feral look on his face and exults that it felt fantastic. Dexter talks him into going home so he can clean up, which is probably a good idea.

Deb has made an error in judgment, it seems. She told Anton that he’s no longer a CI, and suddenly he’s gone missing. She drops by his club, but he never showed up for work. She goes to his apartment, which is suspiciously unlocked, but doesn’t notice anything out of place. Oh yeah, except for the lovely trimmed palm trees outside. It seems the Skinner has caught himself some fresh meat.

After the clean up, Dex heads to Rita’s, who’s still pissed off at the world. He then flashes the bling… a big-ass engagement ring. She melts like a snow cone on a summer day. She apologizes for being such a bitch, but claims that she’s always like that when she’s pregnant. She feels like she’s got a little monster growing inside her. Oh, Rita, if only you knew the irony of that comment. The unborn baby isn’t the only monster Dexter has created—it seems Miguel never quite made it home that night. He ends up at the door of none other than Ellen Wolf. And she actually kind of smiled when she saw him. Were they having an affair?! As we learn from next week’s previews, it seems Ellen has gone missing and Miguel doesn’t have an alibi. Did Miguel use Dexter just to learn how to dispose of a dead body? If so, well, I gotta give the guy props. It’s not like Dexter will tell on him.