Episode 402: Remains to Be Seen

Remains to Be Seen is the second of twelve episodes in Season Four of the Showtime series DEXTER, and the thirty-eighth overall episode of the series. It originally aired 4 October 2009.

Dexter realizes that he has carelessly misplaced crucial evidence that could expose his dark side to the world, while helping to investigate new slayings that Agent Frank Lundy insists are the work of Trinity.

Summary
Having just crashed his car due to lack of sleep, Dexter awakens surrounded by flashing lights. While he’s on a backboard being loaded into an ambulance, he remembers killing Benito Gomez and cramming black bags into the back of his car and panics. A cop tells him that they found a “bag” in his car, but it turns out to be Harrison’s medicine. After a few minutes, Dexter is whisked away to the hospital.

A physician, Dr. Montgomery, informs Dexter that he’s sustained a concussion and wants to keep him overnight for observation. Dexter insists that he’s okay, but admits to not remembering the accident. Despite Dexter claiming that his wife is a registered nurse, the doctor insists that Dexter needs to be monitored and he must not sleep for twelve hours. After the doctor leaves to fill out admission forms, Rita runs into the room, extremely worried, and hugs Dexter. He lies, saying that he's been cleared to go home and they quickly leave before the doctor returns.

Despite Rita pressing Dexter to take the next day off, Dexter returns to work (by cab) so that he can track down his totaled car and retrieve Benny's remains. Before he leaves, Cody hugs Dexter, causing him to groan in pain.

Maria and Angel have spent another night together and they are still keeping their relationship secret. Angel asks Maria to wear her hair down because it’s beautiful.

On Dexter’s way to the station’s motor pool to pick up a loaner car, he is intercepted by Lundy who wants to talk about the bathtub murder. Dexter says he has not run across any hair or fiber in the second blood sample from the crime scene. He advises Lundy to talk to Debra since she's the lead on the case. Lundy says it’s “kismet” that they met again. Dexter walks away, thinking, Last thing I need right now is Frank Lundy, rock star FBI profiler standing between me and Benny Gomez.

The Trinity Killer is sitting in an outdoor café, drinking coffee and solving a crossword puzzle when he notices two women walk by. One of them catches his eye and he begins to follow her.

Dexter heads to the Ray’s Tow Yard where his wrecked SUV was taken, apprehensive that S.W.A. T. is lying in wait for him. He finds his kill tools inside the car, but none of the six bags containing Benny’s dismembered body. He suspects they must have fallen out during the crash. He’s annoyed when Angel calls and instructs him to head to the Vizcaya Reef Hotel where the Vacation Murderer has struck a second time.

Debra asks Francis to bring her the files on Eddie Noonan, who was blamed for killing Vicky Noonan thirty years ago. Masuka teases Debra by mentioning her new perfume, attributing it to the return of Lundy.

Maria holds up a newspaper, irate that the Vacation Murder is splashed all over the front page. Quinn admits to knowing the reporter, Christine Hill, and Maria asks him to get her to “tone down the creative writing.” Maria takes the lead on the case which vexes Angel.

At the crash site, Dexter is unable to find any body parts, just Harrison’s teddy bear. He squats down to pick it up but, as he stands, he feels dizzy. Dexter struggles to recall where he left Benny but after Rita’s phone call, his thoughts are foggy. Work pulls him away from his urgent search.

Francis brings Eddie Noonan’s file to an appreciative Debra. She also takes back some files from Debra for Harry’s C.I’s. So far, Debra hasn't found any evidence of philandering in her father's past.

Outside the Vizcaya Reef Hotel, Christine Hill continues to flirt with Quinn, which is noticed by Maria. Quinn is sent to inventory the victim's personal effects. After Maria enters the hotel room, Masuka states that the victim was shot in the back of the neck, with Angel adding he was robbed of his wallet and watch. There is a noted tenseness between Maria and Angel as they discuss what needs to be done next.

Dexter steps outside for some air and finds blood on a cactus on the path used by the murderer.

Lundy unexpectedly joins Debra for lunch outside the station. She’s amused to see him eating sushi instead of his usual cucumber and cream cheese sandwich. Debra says it's weird that he showed up when she hasn’t heard from him in two years. Lundy apologizes, and explains that the task force he's trying to assemble is hush-hush. They begin to talk about the Lisa Bell Case, and Debra brings up how Vicky Noonan was murdered thirty years ago in the same bathtub. She says Vicky’s husband, who was convicted of her murder, is now free and being picked up for questioning. Lundy asks to listen to the interview.

Trinity is still stalking the woman when her running son bumps into him, smearing his arm with ice cream. The boy apologies and Trinity brushes it off before ominously saying, “You better catch up with your mom. You don’t want to lose her.”

As Dexter collects a blood sample from the cactus, he feels that he’s spinning too many plates.

Quinn is able to open the room’s safe by using the victim’s birthdate on his passport as the code. There are stacks of cash inside and Quinn pockets some of it for himself. As he does so, he notices Dexter watching him and they glare at each other for a moment. Dexter turns away, thinking that he has much bigger things to worry about. Dexter informs Maria that he found blood and she orders him to immediately return to the lab and process it.

With Lundy watching, Debra interviews ex-convict Eddie Noonan. The man swears that he is innocent of the initial crime and has an alibi for this new murder. Once outside the interrogation room, Lundy and Debra agree that Noonan did not commit either murder. Lundy asks Debra to dinner so they can review the case. He also wants to tell her what he’s working on. After hesitating to meet him privately, Debra agrees.

Trinity continues to watch the woman, noticing her affection for dogs.

Dexter returns to the boxing arena to search for Benny’s remains. He’s surprised to spot a drop of blood in the ring that he missed. After removing the blood, he decides that he must have stashed the body parts somewhere until he could get them later. He tears apart the room, knocking over lockers, but doesn’t find Benny. Dexter leaves to retrace his steps from that night. He even climbs into the dumpster at First Care Pharmacy, where he picked up Harrison’s earache medicine, to no avail. A uniformed "Harry" references the fact that the murder of Dexter's mother was the last time his memory was a blank. Not remembering then had saved Dexter, but now he must remember to save himself.

Rita is shocked when she arrives at the impound lot and sees Dexter's wrecked car. She realizes the accident was much more severe than Dexter had let on.

While Dexter is looking for his I.D. to gain entrance to the station, Quinn apologizes for hassling him about the Gomez trial mix-up. He attempts to befriend Dexter and buzzes him in with his own card.

Alone in his office, Dexter briefly forgets his computer password until he tries HARRY. He then checks the daily incident reports and is relieved that Benny’s remains have not yet turned up anywhere.

Maria and Debra talk about Lundy's unexpected arrival in Miami. Debra thinks he’s trying to get next to her but insists that it’s long over, and she’s happy with Anton as her boyfriend. Debra confirms that Maria’s hair looks better down.

Dexter doesn’t find a match in the database for the blood on the cactus. He’s frustrated when Maria holds over everyone’s shift so they can work on the Vacation Murders Case.

When Maria sternly calls Quinn into her office, he looks at Dexter apprehensively. However, Quinn soon realizes that Dexter did not turn him in for stealing the money. Maria just warns him to watch the pillow talk with reporter, Christine Hill.

Debra surprises Lundy when she shows up at his hotel room. She tells him that she doesn’t want to hurt or mislead him, but they won’t be rekindling their relationship. After she repeatedly states how happy she is with Anton, Lundy informs Debra that his purpose in Miami is to work on finding the Trinity Killer. He says it’s an obsession and shows her a pinned map, gruesome photos, and some files. Debra feels foolish for thinking Lundy came back to reunite with her. She leaves in a huff, calling herself an idiot.

Rita appears at the station and confronts Dexter about the severity of the accident. She insists on taking him home, frustrated by his long hours. He convinces her to leave by bluffing a call to his doctor.

After drinking another high caffeine drink, Dexter tosses the can on the floor which annoys Masuka. Dexter finds a strain of STD in the blood sample and traces it to a man named Johnny Rose. He gives the info to Maria and is finally allowed to leave.

Quinn follows Dexter out to the parking lot and praises him for his work. When he asks Dexter to grab a beer, Dexter loudly states that they need to stay out of each other’s lives. He quickly drives off in his car, leaving Quinn standing there, offended and puzzled.

Meanwhile, Masuka is watching Angel and Maria as they open and close the window blinds in her office. Angel admits that he’s upset at the way she took him off the case. Neither of them know how to act in public around each other anymore. They suggest taking a break but decide that what they have is too good to drop. As the blinds close again, Masuka asks Quinn what’s going on in there. Quinn sullenly answers, “Who cares.”

Debra is all over Anton when he returns from home, kissing him over and over while saying that she loves him. A little perplexed, Anton tells her that it’s not his birthday, and he was only gone for two days.

In his quest to find Benny, Dexter returns to the boxing arena. While he’s there, Lundy calls him, wanting to talk about Trinity and toss around a few ideas. He’s certain that Trinity will kill a slightly older woman of two very soon. When Dexter says he’s unable to help that night, Lundy tells him that his life has changed in so many ways. Dexter replies, “I realize that now.”

Trinity intentionally runs into the woman he’s been following. As he’s walking a dog, he approaches her while she’s carrying groceries. He introduces himself as Alan and learns that her name is Tarla. She is delighted with his dog and reveals that she has a puppy that is very calm. He helps carry her bags to her house and they part ways. Having gathered the needed info for his next kill, Trinity releases the dog into the streets.

Still at the arena, Dexter notices an identical blood spot on the boxing mat  he had cleaned. The blood had obviously dripped from above. When Dexter looks up, he realizes that he had stashed the body parts inside a heavy bag and hung it above the ring. Relieved, he lowers the bag and hugs it. Exhausted, Dexter dumps Benny’s remains in the ocean from his boat and returns home. As he dozes off, Harrison begins to cry.

Trivia

 * Title Meaning: It's a double entendre. "Remains" can mean both "parts that continue to exist" or "corpse." Benny Gomez's "remains" "remain" to be seen by other people if Dexter can't locate them.
 * "H-A-R-R-Y" is Dexter's password for his computer at work.
 * The Trinity Killer tolerates dogs (even fakes to like them) as he is seen petting one at the fair and then walking one while stalking Tarla Grant. However, Dexter appears to hate dogs as he killed several of them when he was young. Dexter has also mentioned that dogs hate him because he kills their owners.
 * When Dexter is walking outside to get some air at the hotel murder scene, the dead body on the ground is breathing.

Quotes

 * “If Trinity had struck in Buffalo instead of Miami, I wouldn’t have access to a blood guy of your caliber.” - Frank Lundy to Dexter
 * "You’ve got a family to support, and people to dismember! You’re spinning too many plates..." - "Harry" to Dexter
 * “Quinn! You have a life. I have a life. Just leave it alone. Alright?” - Dexter to Joey Quinn
 * Sleep. Just one beautiful night’s sleep will make everything better.. Again. - Dexter [voice-over]

Related Pages

 * Anton Briggs' Apartment
 * Arthur Mitchell
 * The Bluewater Hotel
 * Del Rubio's Boxing Arena
 * Rita and Dexter's House
 * Slice of Life
 * Trinity Case
 * Vacation Murders Case
 * Vizcaya Reef Hotel

Gallery
Remains To Be Seen