‘Dexter’ season 7, episode 9 review: Living, losing, and loving

How fantastic was Sunday night’s new “Dexter” season 7 episode? So long as you are able to suspend a little bit of belief, it may be the finest work that the writers and actors have put on the screen in a while. There were some questions answered, some other questions that formed, and even the ending left us with the feeling that Dexter Morgan’s life may be drastically changed forever.

Of course, we do have to begin with what is the sad news to come out of the hour: Isaak is no longer among the living. Ray Stevenson’s character started off slow this season, but he ended up being what Brother Sam last year was probably designed to be: an interesting man who Dexter could relate to implicitly, but could also learn something from when it came to his life. Even though Isaak never killed out of a need like Dexter does, he did realize one thing during his life: you have to love in order to find peace. He had that in Viktor, and it was almost a delightful surprise that he never killed Dexter in revenge, even though he had many opportunities, though.

With this being said, though, the man was hardly a saint: the plot that he launched in order to lure George’s thugs out in the open required Dexter’s help, and it also caused the one person he cared about to be thrown into danger: Hannah. What Isaak did not realize, though, was that she was a rather dangerous woman in her own right. While it was a little unbelievable that Isaak would not have researched what sort of woman she is before leaving her in the company of his right-hand man, her capture meant that it was Deb of all people who would be forced to come to her rescue in the end. As much as she hates Hannah, Deb ended up saving her life; and even though she does not approve of this new relationship, she is at least putting up with it.

So with Isaak out of the running, is George now the villain of the season? We hope not, since the guy really is rather lame. The same thing goes for this new “Phantom Arsonist,” mostly because you know that is really just the new Ray Speltzer, a villain meant to just be around for a few episodes (and there are only three left now). Instead, the real villain left here may be Dexter himself: LaGuerta now has the assistance of her former boss Matthews, and the two are starting to inch ever closer to finding a way to prove the Bay Harbor Butcher is still alive. If she succeeds, then everything else pertaining to Dexter does not matter. As for what makes this story so fantastic, it’s simple: LaGuerta is being seen here as a genuinely good cop and not just someone trying to weasel her way up into a higher position (which has been the case in the past), and she is proving the competency of Miami Metro by not getting anyone else involved now that Deb is off the case.

This was another brilliant hour of “Dexter” that certainly helps to further along season 7’s status as the best since season 4, even though it will probably never match the golden age that was the original Butcher plot in season 2.

What do you think about everything that happened this hour, and are you going to miss Isaak as much as we are?