America’s favorite serial killer returned Sunday night with the Season 4 premiere of Showtime’s original series Dexter. The season kicked off on a creepy note, with John Lithgow playing this stanza’s bad guy; he’s a serial murderer dubbed The Trinity Killer by Special Agent Frank Lundy (Keith Carradine), who was a regular during season 2.
Lundy’s retired now, but he’s haunted by the fact he could never convince the FBI that Trinity even existed, let alone catch him. Lundy has returned to Miami because he believes Trinity has set up shop there. He approaches Dexter for help because Trinity is a nasty fellow; apparently, as his name implies, he kills in threes, returning to the same spot over extended periods for a new victim until he hits the magic number.
As season 4 opens though, because of his new baby son Harrison, Dexter’s too tired to care about Trinity—or much else. He appears in court as an expert witness on an important murder trial, but because of exhaustion, brings the wrong file. Subsequently, washed-out boxer Benito Gomez (Gino Aquino), the actual defendant in the case and a nasty piece of work in his own right, goes free.
Detective Joey Quinn (Desmond Harrington), who broke the case, is livid and isn’t shy about letting Dexter know, setting up another police adversary for Dexter this season—something Dexter’s been sorely lacking since Doakes’ death in Season 2. Dexter isn’t overly concerned about his error. The mistake was hardly intentional but, as he explains in a voiceover, his dark passenger is like a coal miner trapped inside the mine shaft of his head, constantly tapping, struggling to get out; Benito Gomez, heartless killer that he is, will make a suitable addition to Dexter’s blood-slide collection. And by episode’s end, after extensive effort on Dexter’s part, Gomez indeed becomes Season 4's first victim.
Based on Showtime’s previews, Trinity won’t fly under Dexter’s radar for long. He’s far too nasty, efficient and successful. As demonstrated in Season 1, Trinity is the kind of predator Dexter admires on many levels; smart, merciless, artistic. But Harry’s code will demand Dexter put a stop to him once and for all.
Considering Season 1’s storyline and the way Dexter’s relationship with the ice-truck killer ended, I can’t help wondering if the connection between Dexter and Trinity might run deeper than is hinted at in the previews. Might Trinity even be related to Dexter by blood? Uncle? Father? Difficult to say, but interesting to speculate.
Regardless, the first episode ended on a tantalizing note that has me looking forward to what’s coming. It will be interesting to watch Dexter juggle his new son and family with his job as a blood-splatter analyst, all while feeding his dark passenger, avoiding detection and never veering from Harry’s code—even as Trinity lurks near to hand, headed, one suspects, on a collision course with our blood-analyzing anti-hero.
If you don’t have Showtime, Dexter might be worth the 12-week subscription price (whatever that might be). It’s really that good.
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