Dexter: Original Sin – Season 1 Episode 4 Recap & Review

Fender Bender

Episode 4 of Dexter: Original Sin begins with a new murder, as a kid is found hanging from a bridge. Murdered children is the one thing that gets under Dexter’s skin and it would appear as if it could be a case for the cartel.

Harry organizes traffic, sending Dexter over to Coconut Grove to work on a different murder, and reassuring him that what he’s feeling – fear and disgust – is completely normal. However, while Harry pours all of his time and effort into Dexter and his feelings, he neglects Debra, who’s pissed when she finds out Harry has taken the truck to work. The same truck she’s supposed to be using to take the team out with.

Given the plan is a bust, Debra is abandoned by the girls so she decides to do something different. They score some coke and decide to get high. 

Down on Coconut Grove, Dexter is thrown into the thick of it as the spotlight turns to him, as the forensics expert, to investigate a body on the beach. In a POV shot, Dexter recounts the story of how the killer did his work, before the deceased is eventually bagged and tagged.

The hanging boy case makes the mainstream news, while Dexter tries to figure out who killed the kid. We do know that an ice-pick was used as the weapon and the boy killed 8-10 hours before being strung up, but beyond that there’s not much else to go on.

Dexter is a man possessed and determined to get justice. He realizes he needs to het his feelings out and decides to divert his attention and kill again to make himself feel better. And he has just the guy.

Dexter has been searching through the archives and found records for a man called “Mad Dog”. He has previous connections with the mob as a hired hit-man and addresses dating back to Chicago, New York and Boston. Mad Dog been a person of interest in over two dozen mob-related murders in the 70’s. He claims he’s just a retired fisherman but since being here in Miami, he hasn’t been charged with anything.

Harry allows the murder, but he wants proof, so that sends Dex out to his house. There, he finds some shredded documents which he puts back together and realizes that there may be evidence surrounding Mad Dog’s next hit.

At the Miami PD, there are two cases being looked into here. The Coconut Grove murder is for a guy called Blake Kersten. He was kicked out when his parents found out he was gay. Now, it would appear that Blake was already dead before his head hit the ground, given the distinct lack of blood spatter. The killer wanted to feel the light leave him, and he wasn’t robbed either. This was all about a personal kill; something intimate.

While all this is going on, Deb continues to rebel. She heads to the club with her friend and even manages to get herself a guy’s number too. This is Gio, an accountant, and as Harry and Dex get closer together, she ends up drifting away from her family.

In the past, we see more flashbacks with Harry. Given his ties with Laura, and his growing feelings, they’re about to go after a big fish – Zenny Hernandez. Harry is concerned but he plays babysitter while Laura heads out on her meeting. However, Bobby can see exactly what’s happening here and looks at his partner sternly on the way out.

This is where Dexter and Harry first connect, stemming from Dex being out in the yard and cradling a dead lizard. Brian and Dex both bury it together, but this also sets everything up nicely for their relationship to grow.

When Laura returns from her successful meeting, she and Harry end up kissing, despite him trying in vain to turn away.

As the episode closes out, Dexter bites off more than he can chew. He attacks Mad Dog, and decides to begin the murder session. However, Mad Dog manages to get away in the middle of the night and rushes up the street. However, he ends up hit by a car in the process, leaving Dexter shocked.

The Episode Review

Seeing more of the past, we finally see Laura and Dexter first properly get involved with Harry personally, and exactly how all of this ties together. Harry gives in to his desires here and to be fair, it has been coming for a few episodes now.

At the same time, we see the drama involving Deb and how the ties with Harry and Dex have negatively affected her. It’s clear that things are not going well and Harry doesn’t even seem too bothered, especially at the end with his exasperated claim that she’s not even lying well.

Meanwhile, Dexter appears to be in over his head with this latest kill and how on earth he’s going to explain this one is anyone’s guess. The entire scene is going to be a complete mess and unless this is a hit and run, or Dexter kills multiple witnesses, I can’t see how he’ll come out of this without things getting messy. All of this is now left on a knife-edge ready for next week’s episode!