Presto Manifesto

So the tension between the assertive, uninhibited, Lila-loving new Dexter and the cautious, kindly (except for the serial killer thing), Rita-loving old Dexter is about to snap. Lila literally plays with fire; I suspect that her figurative fire-play soon will find her in a Hefty bag at the bottom of the ocean. Doakes, too, may see the inside of a Hefty bag, or maybe a gurney and a needle if he can be framed as the Bay Harbor Butcher. Dex's set-up of Doakes to get his nemesis suspended was brilliant, especially the vicious head-butt in the lab that lead Doakes to attack our favorite anti-hero in the middle of the police station. I loved the "presto manifesto" that Dexter sent the newspaper after he cribbed a bunch of junk from various blogs. The fact that the ploy backfired doesn't make it any less funny, though it does show how reckless Lila's Dexter has become.

"I own you."

This show is fascinating in the psychological discoveries of its main character. He used to have a sort of Manichean view of himself, with most of himself being dark and monstrous. Last season, he slowly started to exhibit some of the good human emotions he denied were possible. This season, he's letting himself see that at least some of what he viewed as dark just is, and is neither good or bad. At the same time, he has been given every reason to doubt his foster father and the Code of Harry that has dictated almost all of his actions. It's almost like he is in psychotherapy.