‘Dexter: New Blood’ S1, Ep. 1 “Cold Snap” Recap & Review

After sitting through the good, bad, and ugly of eight seasons of Dexter, the back end a mash-up of inconsistencies and just truly dreadful and disappointing television, I was happy to see it end. For most fans, the finale is still a tough pill to swallow, sort of the icing on the cake to show how a once great and interesting series could end so horribly. When I heard Dexter coming back, I thought, “Why?” After watching the first episode of Dexter: New Blood, titled “Cold Snap,“ I still don’t have an answer to that question.

We find Dexter Morgan (Michael C. Hall) in the fictional small town of Iron Lake, New York, under his new name, Jim Lindsay, working at a hunting goods store. He seems happy, settling into the quiet life with his girlfriend Angela (Julia Jones), also the town’s Chief of Police. He hasn’t killed in ten years, keeping the inner Dark Passenger at bay, but like all things in Dexter’s life, they never last when things are going well. Two people do, indeed, turn Dexter’s life upside down, one in the form of an obnoxious rich kid, the other a face from his past in Miami.

In the original series, we had Dexter’s adopted father, Harry (James Remar), guiding him and his Dark Passenger and acting as his conscience. This time, that role falls to his deceased sister Deb (Jennifer Carpenter), who appears to remind Dexter what he has gained and how proud she is of him. It is an interesting choice and, of course, a great way to bring Carpenter back again. But, as always, the key here is Michael C. Hall, who is still terrific in his amused and cold observations of human beings and their behaviors. Something he will never understand, except for the dark parts, of course.

Besides the familiar faces and the creepy theme, which I still enjoy, some immediate differences here tell me this might not be a return to the glory days of the first four seasons. The tone is very serious and stays that way, save for a joke that doesn’t work about a dog being named Garfield. The dialogue is missing that weird, strangely-placed humor, and part of that, too, could be the characters that are involved this time around.

Also, setting the show in a snowy little town might work well for the dark parts, but it is hardly a good contrast to what Jim/Dexter really is, which is what we saw within the glitz and glam of Miami. Perhaps future characters will help add that special something, but with only ten episodes to work with, it needs to be sooner rather than later.

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After watching “Cold Snap,” I’m still not convinced it was a good idea to bring the show back. Michael C. Hall is still compelling, as is his struggle with the Dark Passenger, but there seems to be little else new or exciting being offered here. Original showrunner Clyde Phillips, who was around for Dexter’s best seasons, is also back, so maybe there is hope. It would be great if subsequent episodes prove me wrong, as we all dearly want something to remember Dexter, other than how it signed off in season eight.

New episodes of Dexter: New Blood premiere on Sundays via Showtime.