(US) Dexter Season 5 Episode 8 - "Take It" (SPOILERS WITHIN)

Amtmann

From Wikipedia:

Dexter and Lumen take the opportunity to track a vicious murderer while attending a self-help seminar; fallout from the Santa Muerte homicides puts Debra in hot water and places Batista in a difficult situation. Things tense up between Quinn and Liddy as Liddy begins to grow more obsessive and greedy.

MJRS

Great episode! I'm not entirely sure whether it's great in the context of the show or just this rubbish season, but I enjoyed it a lot. What an ending too, although it was a bit familiar, it's the first time this season I'm dying for next week's episode, so I won't be complaining yet!

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar

thought it was awful myself. don't like lumen at all, any scene with her is a chore to get through.

Prowetod

Definitely one of the better episodes this season. The last scene was pretty good. I'm looking forward to next week's episode.

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar wrote: »

thought it was awful myself. don't like lumen at all, any scene with her is a chore to get through.

The actor or the character? I don't think you should be judging the episode just on her. I quite liked all the other characters roles this week.

I was rather bored by it all to be honest. The self empowerment bits were uncomfortable. The investigation of Dexter is proceeding kind of slowly. The hunt by Dexter of Lumen's tormentors is a bit dull at the moment. Only noteworthy bit was the informant's mother I think being Batista's real life wife....yes I was that bored!

missingtime

**** you Julia Stiles. **** you.

Good ending though.

tvnutz

I could never understand the hatred for Julia Stiles. It has not just been here since she joined the cast of Dexter but even some friends through the years would go on about they hated her from movies she was in. She is an amazing actress? No,but I personally think she is ok,not one of the worst. I think she is pretty good looking as well,not supermodel stuff but people give out about that as well.

I don't think the storyline with her this year has been great,again its ok,but not great so far anyway. Howver I don't think that has anything to do with Julia Stiles. I think why this season hasn't seemed amazing is because there is a lack of a "big bad",instead we have this evil group thing which dilutes what a main bad guy usually brings to a show.

Also,last season was amazing.So right away this season was probably never going to feel as good compared to it. However in the last 4 episodes they could throw some great twists at us that could turn everything around.

the_monkey

Good episode, a huge improvement on last week, great ending makes me really look forward to next week's episode.

I like Peter Weller in this season.

Julia Stiles is her usual shiit self, again like I said before when I read in the summer that she would be in season 5 - I knew she would be shiite.

And how come Dexter doesn't have any conversations with Harry anymore ?

Amtmann

tvnutz wrote: »

I could never understand the hatred for Julia Stiles. It has not just been here since she joined the cast of Dexter but even some friends through the years would go on about they hated her from movies she was in. She is an amazing actress? No,but I personally think she is ok,not one of the worst. I think she is pretty good looking as well,not supermodel stuff but people give out about that as well.

I don't hate Julia Stiles as such, but I think her character is strange and a bad decision by the writers. I know that she is a way for Dexter to 'atone' for Rita's death, and I can see why they thought that might have been a good idea in theory, but in practice it has been lame. I would have much preferred a more introspective Dexter immersing himself in his day job, with the Trinity investigation honing in on Kyle Butler, all the while with Quinn and Liddy on his tail. That should have been the primary story this season, I think: Dexter under enormous pressure. Sure, you could say that it would be too much like season 2, but it's natural that his antics would come under the police spotlight again sooner or later - that would be realistic.

I think why this season hasn't seemed amazing is because there is a lack of a "big bad",instead we have this evil group thing which dilutes what a main bad guy usually brings to a show.

I don't think it has anything to do with the lack of a main adversary: there was no big bad in season 2, and it was the strongest in my opinion, in terms of suspense and witty dialogue.

Also,last season was amazing. So right away this season was probably never going to feel as good compared to it.

The way to fix that would have been to make season 5 an absolute follow-through on season 4. That's why episodes 1, 2, and 3 of season 5 were so good: it looked like the Trinity investigation would lead straight to Dexter, and that was an enticing prospect. Instead they seem to have dropped the whole Trinity angle and gone for this Julia Stiles/atonement motif - VERY disappointing.

However in the last 4 episodes they could throw some great twists at us that could turn everything around.

I hope so. I mean, the whole scene with the blood slide was very significant. The Bay Harbour Butcher case would have been national news and Lumen would probably have heard about it at the time. The blood slides (thought to be Doakes's) would also have been in the news, so for her to see them should mean that she knows he's the butcher. That, plus Liddy now has photos of Dexter loading a strange cargo on to his boat - the butcher's MO. Then again, this is Dexter post season 2 and plot holes are overlooked.

Big plot holes in this episode. Dexter and Lumen would have been all over the hotel's CCTV footage, and Cole did smash the door that connected his room to Dexter's. Cole is clearly a missing person now, and Dexter is blatantly connected to Jordan Chase's seminar in that hotel. Outlandish if this doesn't come back to bite Dexter in the ass, but like I said, plot holes abound. The absence of Harry to keep Dexter from making mistakes might be consequential to the season's overall arc, but three-quarters of the way into the season, the writers will have to pull a rabbit out of the hat to save this one.

For a change, I must say that the LaGuerta, Deb, Batista (read non-Dexter characters) had something interesting going on.

MJRS

Good post Furet! The only thing I really disagree with is your interpretation as Lumen just being a bid for atonement for Dexter. I definitely see where you're coming from, but season 4 was the only season without a character that could potentially become the accomplice Dexter has been vying for (and even season 4 could see Trinity interpreted as an accomplice in a different way, more an idol/father-figure). While Lumen is a bit one-dimensional in her relationship to Dex, I reckon they're also (a bit ham-fistedly, mind) giving Dex what he's been searching for all these years.

Also, tvnutz, I don't think this season is lacking a Big Bad, I think it was. This Chase chap, he's got to be the most high-profile (and therefore difficult) kill Dexter has ever had to deal with. But it seems they introduced him too late on a personal level, and have completely diluted his effect with the introduction of Santa Muerte and Liddy.

Really disappointed with this season as a whole though. It'll be a shame if it's the last.

Dr. Baltar

I loved the last scene.

With a bit of luck the whole Bay Harbour Butcher storyline is going to come into the light again. Also, I wouldn't be surprised if this season ends with Deb finding out the truth about her brother. He lack of feeling from her own kill is similar to that of Dexter.

bizmark

Very boring i really considered turning it off half way through the only saving grace was the ending but unless this is building up to lumen attempting to **** over dexter for some reason i don't see any purpose in this at all she has to die or leave as i for one cant watch a full season of some weird buddy cop semi sit com rubbish that this is turning into

Tristram

tvnutz wrote: »

I could never understand the hatred for Julia Stiles. It has not just been here since she joined the cast of Dexter but even some friends through the years would go on about they hated her from movies she was in. She is an amazing actress? No,but I personally think she is ok,not one of the worst. I think she is pretty good looking as well,not supermodel stuff but people give out about that as well.

I've kinda gotten past my hatred of her I think. Writes are not doing her any favours with this role!

Tristram

"Not the plasma!"

inforfun

Tristram wrote: »

"Not the plasma!"

Yep, Quinn definately has his priorities right.

J-blk

MJRS wrote: »

This Chase chap, he's got to be the most high-profile (and therefore difficult) kill Dexter has ever had to deal with.

Given the crater-sized plot holes in some episodes so far, Dexter could probably kill him on stage at one of those seminars and still get away with it... The Cole-kill was even worse than the dentist and the perv from a few episodes ago... As it has already been said, there would be footage of Dexter at the hotel and going in to that specific room, the broken dividing door, Cole gone missing around that time and Robocop has pics of him taking some bulky luggage out into the ocean... There is simply no way he could get out of all that clean.

I still find Lumen's "acceptance" of Dexter very odd too. She is driven by revenge against that specific gang of scumbags, she doesn't have Dexter's dark passenger urges and now that she is realizing that Dexter has been killing people for ages, why would she even consider sticking around when all the scum are dead?

zimovain

Anyone think Liddy will try and blackmail Dexter rather then going to Quinn with the photo's? Crap episode me:mad:

Hyzepher

There is a strong chance that Chase won't report Cole's disappearance given the nature of their relationship and the fact that he'd be wise not to start an investigation into Cole while the Boyd thing is still ongoing.

mdwexford

This guy must be watching a different show.

http://ie.tv.ign.com/articles/113/1134166p1.html

Ron DMC

mdwexford wrote: »

This guy must be watching a different show.

http://ie.tv.ign.com/articles/113/1134166p1.html

That review is so far off the mark it's unreal. The episode was nowhere near that good.

Amtmann

From that review:

Look, this doesn't happen very often, so I'll admit it. I wept. "Take It" was an absolute marvel; suspenseful, touching and surprising. I feel like, in a way, so many of the episodes that we've already seen - so much of the series so far - was leading up to the scene near the end between Lumen and Dexter, where they both stood over Cole's dead body and Dexter unburdened his soul. I can't fully explain why I got so emotional. Looking at it objectively, it seems a bit silly, sure. But the music and the sentiment both struck a chord. I cried.

Dexter sharing his past with Lumen and coming to terms with his own shattered self was immensely satisfying.

LOL! Dexter did not unburden his soul. When he tells Lumen that Rita and her children's father are dead because of him, when he tells her that an innocent man (Doakes) is dead because of him, and when he tells her that he has murdered innocent people in the past, then he just might have unburdened some of his soul. He's lying to her as well.

DingosAteMyBaby

Woah I thought this episode was the best of this season. I@m starting to like Lumen and the scene between Dexter and Deb when she talks about not feeling anything after killing someone was intense!

missingtime

mdwexford wrote: »

This guy must be watching a different show.

http://ie.tv.ign.com/articles/113/1134166p1.html

What a load of ****. That scene was so forced.

OctavarIan

Ah come on IGN has always been ****e, they're like the lads mag of the digital media industry but without the tits.

seadnamac

Furet wrote: »

I don't hate Julia Stiles as such, but I think her character is strange and a bad decision by the writers. I know that she is a way for Dexter to 'atone' for Rita's death, and I can see why they thought that might have been a good idea in theory, but in practice it has been lame. I would have much preferred a more introspective Dexter immersing himself in his day job, with the Trinity investigation honing in on Kyle Butler, all the while with Quinn and Liddy on his tail. That should have been the primary story this season, I think: Dexter under enormous pressure. Sure, you could say that it would be too much like season 2, but it's natural that his antics would come under the police spotlight again sooner or later - that would be realistic.



I don't think it has anything to do with the lack of a main adversary: there was no big bad in season 2, and it was the strongest in my opinion, in terms of suspense and witty dialogue.



The way to fix that would have been to make season 5 an absolute follow-through on season 4. That's why episodes 1, 2, and 3 of season 5 were so good: it looked like the Trinity investigation would lead straight to Dexter, and that was an enticing prospect. Instead they seem to have dropped the whole Trinity angle and gone for this Julia Stiles/atonement motif - VERY disappointing.

I agree with all this 100 percent. And it's so bloody obvious that that should have been the direction to take in this series. Instead their choice of direction has been baffling. Another painful episode. Watching it I felt like I used to feel while watching the final season of Lost.

amacachi

Dr. Baltar wrote: »

I loved the last scene.

With a bit of luck the whole Bay Harbour Butcher storyline is going to come into the light again. Also, I wouldn't be surprised if this season ends with Deb finding out the truth about her brother. He lack of feeling from her own kill is similar to that of Dexter.

Didn't like the last scene because it could end up that some loser cop we've hardly seen is the one to catch Dexter when Doakes failed.

Also I only got through this episode tonight, fell asleep last week when I was going to watch it.

zimovain

error

Sherifu

Lumen has grown on me, I like Julia Stiles from other stuff she has done but she a rocky start in this.

osullic

Season 5 episode 9 anyone?

I liked it enough,Hate that loser cop that's on to Dexter though.