| " "You remember what you promised me?" "I'm sor-I'm sorry. You, uh... you needed help." "What I needed was my family. My brother." "I, I uh...I did what I thought was best for you and your brother, Brian." "You promised me, you wouldn't separate me and Dexter." "I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." "But you did. So...now...I'm gonna separate you!" ~ Brian before killing Barb with a chainsaw" |
Brian Moser is a character and the Secondary Antagonist in Dexter: Original Sin.
He is the eldest son of Joe Driscoll and Laura Moser and the biological older brother of Dexter Morgan. During the Estrada Case he is seen around Laura Moser’s House and witnesses the developing relationship between his mother and Harry Morgan.
As a result of a terrible tragedy during the Shipping Yard Massacre, Brian would eventually grow up to become the N.H.I. Serial Killer and the Secondary Antagonist of Dexter: Original Sin. Later in his life he would also go on to become the Ice Truck Killer and the Main Antagonist of Season One in the original series.
Background[]
Brian was born on July 17th, 1966 to his mother Laura Moser. According to a psychiatric report, his father is Joe Driscoll (who would have been incarcerated at the time Laura of his intake) and he would eventually get a younger brother when his mother gave birth to baby Dexter Moser. As he grew older with Dexter in the house he would spend a lot of time with his little brother, likely influencing him into some of his own disturbing hobbies such as removing the tails on lizards.
The Estrada Case[]
Early in the 1970's his mother and his father were low-level drug dealers working for the Estrada Organization. With Miami Metro Vice wishing to get a mole in the organization, Detectives Harry Morgan and Bobby Watt sought out Brian's father as part of an undercover sting. Harry approached the pair, pretending to be an addict needing drugs. Joe sold him some of his Columbian product and Harry proceeded to bust him, with Laura attempting to run only for Bobby to cut off her escape. Back at the station Joe was uncooperative despite facing a hefty sentence so Harry tried another angle - he met with the girlfriend Laura Moser. Initially she refused to talk until Harry was able to determine she had at least one kid from a bracelet she was wearing and she corrected him saying that her sons were home with a neighbor and she was meant to be home hours ago. Harry cuts her a deal if she helps him - that she can go home today to her boys as long as she helps them in their case and he'll drive her there himself.
Later that day Harry got approval from Lieutenant Aaron Spencer to utilize Laura as his contact within the Cartel and as promised he drove Laura back home. After she thanks him for the ride Harry gets out, letting her know that he's appreciative of her decision and that he will keep her safe - telling her how they need to learn to trust each other. Suddenly the young Dexter calls out to his mom and runs down the stairs into her arms, with Brian remaining on the porch with the neighbor. He would move over to the side, standing at the railing as Laura introduced her sons - first Brian who stares at him as he hangs on the railings and then Dexter who was in her arms. The two smiled warmly at each other and Laura went passed him with her young son while Brian remained on the porch still staring at Harry, baring his teeth almost like a dog while Harry caught the odd glare...offering a light smile before he left.
With his mother now moving up the ranks within the Estrada Organization, she eventually gets a meeting with the number two in the Cartel named Zenny Hernandez. With such a big move, tensions were high with Harry as he and Bobby walk up to her house - worried for her safety among the type of dangerous men she had to deal with. When he knocks on the door Dexter can be heard screaming at Brian to give back a toy. Laura answers the door exhausted, trying to call off the day because her babysitter cancelled and the boys are "on a tear". Bobby tells her it's not the kind of appointment you can just cancel, with Harry suggesting if the neighbors can watch the boys. Laura says "they won't watch Brian anymore. They say he's too much to handle" and she apologizes, saying she can't just leave them alone. Harry speaks up, offering to watch them both while she goes with Bobby...which shocks the both of them as she agrees and lets them inside.
Brian can be seen sitting next to his brother on the couch with a toy tank, turning the gunner's cockpit as Laura tells Dexter that she's going to leave them with "Mr. Morgan" and that she wants both of them to show him that they can be good boys. Dexter nods in enthusiasm while Brian stays focused on his tank, Laura gets up and kisses both of them on their heads as she goes to talk to Harry. She tells him that both of them are to be in bed by 7 P.M. and Dexter would like it if Harry read to him. Harry assures her that he's got this and she goes to put on her wire while the boys remain seated on the couch watching TV.
Later that day Harry fixes a couple of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for the boys, noticing a drawing likely made by Dexter depicting Brian, their mother and himself in front of their house. He brings the food to the front porch where Brian can been through the screen door sitting with a lizard. As the lizard squirms in his hand he yanks off its tail and places it next to a collection of 11 tails (one of them still moving) and places it down beside the moving tail as Harry walks out with the sandwiches. He sets them down asking where his brother is and Brian reacts with disinterest telling him he ran off and he doesn't know where he went. As Harry starts to panic, calling out for Dexter, Brian watches him calmly as he goes back into the house. Harry's panic reaches a higher level when he sees the back door open - having a flashback to when he had lost his own son Harry Morgan Jr. due to his negligence. He storms into the backyard and finally finds Dexter, who is holding a dead lizard. The boy remarks in a sad tone how he tried to save the lizard...and Harry embraces him, holding him close telling him he'll be alright. After things cool down he has all the tails placed into a hole he dug, along with the body of the lizard and Brian smirks saying "You really messed him up, Dex!" with pride. Harry says his name sternly, before telling them both that death is a part of life. All these dead lizards are in a better place now, with Dexter asking if their tails also went with them and he smiles saying yes even their tails. He then has Brian and Dexter help bury the bodies with dirt.
Later that night Brian can be seen sleeping in his room while Harry is seen sleeping beside Dexter with a book on his chest. Laura walks in, seeing Brian asleep and Dexter with Harry and the two have moment while the boys sleep soundly.
Laura had been undercover for Harry for almost a year now and their relationship had developed into a romantic one. Due to strain from his home life (his actual wife Doris Morgan found out about the affair and wanted it to end after their daughter Debra was born) the two of them had grown further apart and everything was boiling down to how long until she could get free of her dangerous mission. He promises her that it's almost over, that once she gets a meeting with Hector Estrada and he can be caught talking about his business, she'll finally be free of it. Under the stress of it she asks what happens if she just says no, walks away now. Harry tells her that she will go to jail and the boys be put into foster care...to which she is forced into a corner and has to comply for the sake of her boys. Dexter comes out of the room, calling Harry "Daddy!" while Brian remains in the shadows watching them all. Laura, upset, tells him that he is not his Daddy and tells him to say goodbye to Mr. Morgan before walking off. Brian can be seen lurking in the dark observing the display as Harry heads out the door, leaving them behind.
Sometime later as Laura is walking to her front door with a bag of groceries a limo shows up behind her, with Santos Jimenez exiting the car. He demands that Laura come with her, to leave the groceries outside her house and come with him. She obliges, leaving the kids there as she heads into the limo and is taken to Hector Estrada's Mansion. Here she finally meets with the man himself...and he has a calm conversation with her. He noticed her strong rise within his ranks and asks what drives her, to which she says her family and providing for them. Estrada then mentions both her boys clearly "Brian! and um, what was it? Oh yes, Dexter!", which paints a worried yet confused look on Laura's face before she throws on a smile to not lose her composure. He says that family is a noble cause...but there are many other ways to provide that are far less treacherous. Laura, intent on gaining a foothold with him, adjusts her story to talk about what he has - his wealth, everything within his grasp...that she wants that, to experience that. Estrada decides to inform her of his desire to expand his business Northeast and that a big shipment is coming in the next week - that he would like her to be there. When she asks if he'll be there he says "We will see each other soon" and she smiles, getting up to leave. As her back is to him a look of shock that she just had the meeting crosses her face as she leaves and Hector can be seen telling Jimenez to "keep an eye on her", who then follows her out.
One sunny day in a park Brian and Dexter can be seen playing in the park together, having fun as their mother sits on a bench nearby. Harry arrives, sitting beside her but facing the opposite direction with a newspaper. They talk about the upcoming Estrada shipment and how this can finally be over - until Dexter runs up to Harry and Harry can't help but play with him. As Laura watches on, Jimenez can be seen watching from afar which verified Estrada's suspicions. Later on...on that fateful day...Brian can be seen alongside his brother helping paint his mother's nails each of the iconic colors she wore in the original series. She compliments Brian as he painted her nails neatly and he smiles wide, as she asks what Dexter thinks of her nails - he just says they're pretty. Brian then goes on to paint another nail, enthusiastically going for green as the final color finishing up just before her front door is busted in. Juan Pablo Aliso bursts in with Santos Jimenez and another thug, grabbing Laura while Santos holds Dexter. The third man tries to grab Brian but he grabs a sharp object off the table and jams it into his thigh; twisting it which causes the man to scream out in pain. Brian gets loose and Laura bashes a vase over Juan's head, until Santos pulls out a gun aiming at Laura. They're brought to a shipping container, where three other people can be seen in the container with them nearest the doors. Laura holds her sons close as two people against the wall are revealed, one of which had been shot and was actively bleeding while the third man rocked back and forth mumbling to himself. Laura comforted Dexter while both boys stayed in her arms, worried about what was going to happen.
The next day they're awoken by the doors sliding open and Santos Jimenez, holding a chainsaw, walks forward standing over the man closest to the door who had fallen back in a panic. Laura had woken up her sons and held them close as they stood back...watching when Hector Estrada walked into the container followed by Juan Pablo Aliso. They stood at the doors as Hector made his way to Laura, with her boys behind her as she looked at him - Brian's arms wrapped around his mother's right arm. Hector taunted her, telling her that he knew all about her talking to the police, Sergeant Morgan and the boys. She pleads...crying as she begs for her boys to be spared that it isn't their fault; Hector says "...but the sins of the mother". He then looks back to Santos, giving him the go-ahead to start the chainsaw while Juan and Hector himself go to hold each of the first man's arms. Santos starts by sawing into the man, cutting off his right arm while Laura and the boys watched in terror - every bloody detail being seared into the boys' minds with their eyes wide open.
Harry Morgan convinces Lieutenant Spencer to arrange a search party, though he's forced to do so as a uniformed officer due to his romantic involvement with Laura causing her disappearance (and the potential collapse of the Estrada Case). The officers fan out, checking container by container throughout the Shipping Yard.
Their mother's remains, which sat there in front of the boys for three days. Brian's intense focus on her form in this moment influences his later years...
Three days passed since everyone in the container was murdered - except for the boys, huddled in the corner behind their mother's dismembered corpse. Hector Estrada and his men had left them alive - though the reason remains unknown. While they sat Brian held onto Dexter, singing him nursey rhymes as they sat in the darkness...surrounded by blood and body parts. Dexter's eyes were left in a state of shock and Brian's were filled with similar shock, holding a deep festering rage behind them. At some point over the course of the three days Brian would bang repeatedly on the inside of the shipping container, trying to get anyone's attention but no one found them. On the third day as he's seated with his brother, telling him about the Three Little Pigs, Dexter tries to stand up reaching out to his mother in the dark, calling her name - Brian calms him, pulling him back into his arms saying that "Mom is busy right now" and tells him that they'll finish the "Three Little Pigs". Finally an officer hears Brian's low singing to his brother and Harry busts in, a mess of blood spilling out onto the pavement. Inside are the bodies of four people, including Laura Moser...and Harry searches through until he sees the boys, moving over to them picking up Dexter from Brian's arms. As Dexter's pulled away from him, he looks over to his mother's corpse remaining in the blood for a short while (which to Brian feels like an eternity, being left alone) until Bobby runs in to lift him up, escorting him out. As Brian walks out he looks back to the dismembered remains of his mother...something awakening within Brian as he was led out of the nightmarish container.
Brief Stay with the Morgan Family[]
Dexter and Brian are assigned to the state following the incident, where child services agent Barb Plimpton]] talks with Harry and Doris over the prospect of adoption. As they talk Brian can be seen playing with a red firetruck next to his brother who stares silently into the abyss. Barb says that they want to avoid separating the two (a promise that she made to Brian) and she works with convincing both of them that he's been "remarkably resilient" despite the circumstances though Dexter...has remained mute since the incident. Doris asks how the boys came into state custody and ultimately Harry explains the situation about their mother being an informant. When asked about the father (Joe Driscoll), Barb states that he currently sits in prison and has given up all parental rights to the boys - showing that the boys are on their own. Barb goes to see what Brian's up to while Doris and Harry talk - with the full situation being explained, how he had been around those boys for the past year since his informant was the woman he was sleeping with. Doris stands up and goes over to the boys, talking to Brian asking if he likes firetrucks to which he nods. She then picks up Dexter and looks to Harry saying that "these boys need a mother" as she takes on the task of wanting to foster both of them.
This decision however would prove dangerous - sometime later while Doris was home with the boys and holding baby "Debbie" in her arms, Brian stands up and walks over to Doris telling her that "Dexie's hungry" and wants a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Doris says alright with a smile, putting Deb down in the bassinet while patting Brian on the shoulder as she goes to make the sandwich. While Brian is standing there Debra starts to fuss, as babies tend to do when set down, and this begins to annoy Brian. He tells her to shut up, which she doesn't do and he demands it again angrily until he picks up a pillow approaching the bassinet. Dexter can be seen in the background, a vacant stare as he watches the scene go down. Brian stands over her, glaring down at her as he starts to suffocate her with the pillow. Thankfully Doris turns around and sees it, running over to throw Brian to the couch while she picks up Debra...screaming about how he could do that. He says "too noisy". She puts him in a "time out" until Harry gets home to talk to him about it. When Harry does return, he sits down with Brian to talk to him about the incident - how he can't do something like that to Deb, how it could have hurt her. Brian shrugs, which causes Harry to get firm and Brian snaps back saying that Harry isn't his father, though Harry says he wants to take care of him and his brother. Brian's rage starts to ignite as he says he wants to go home (back to Laura's house) and that he misses his mom which follows by him pushing Harry back with surprising strength as he runs to the front door. Harry tries to stop him, holding the boy as he lashes about screaming that this isn't their home. He then says that he hates Harry, followed by saying he hates everyone (likely excluding Dexter who is seen watching in silence). He then turns around and punches through the glass on the door - bloodying his knuckles. He then turns and swipes at Harry, scratching his face as he storms off into his room while Doris holds Dexter, comforting the boy.
Later on while Brian watches from his room...Doris alongside Harry can be seen talking to Barb telling her that Brian has had flashes of violence - that he put their baby in danger. Harry says that they're afraid they can't handle "his level of trauma". Barb asks about Dexter, which Doris says that they've grown to really love him and Harry says that they know that the state doesn't want to split siblings...but they come to an agreement which Brian starts to realize from his room. Barb then leaves with Brian, while Dexter is in Harry's arms watching his brother for the last time until they become adults. Brian looks back to see that Dexter isn't approaching the car, which prompts him to ask Barb if he's coming with them but Barb says "not this time dear" and tells him she's going to find him a new family to stay with - "one that's a better fit" (which Brian realized was a polite way of saying "someone didn't want you"). As the car pulls back Dexter asks "Daddy, where's Biney going?" - his first words since the incident. Brian reaches out to his brother as they drive off, having one last look at him before they vanish.
Attempted Foster Care and Growing up in a Mental Hospital[]
Barb takes Brian to the Kersten Family, which Mr. and Mrs. Kersten can be seen happily awaiting the arrival of their new foster child while their son, Blake Kersten, eyes the boy as he exits the car. Later one night (sometime after his hand had healed following punching the window at the Morgan household) Brian is walking beside Blake in the house when they pass by an open closet door and Blake pushes Brian inside - locking the door as he tells him to "Sleep tight, asshole". Brian pounds on the door demanding to be let out and starts to flash back to his time in the shipping container pounding on the walls...which causes him to fall back against the wall and slide down, bringing his legs against his chest as he suffers a form of PTSD from being locked in this confined space. He mutters the Three Little Pigs story again to himself as he has more flashes to the horrific container still seared in his mind, remembering Dexter all the while. Eventually Mrs. Kersten opens the door asking how he got in there and Brian charges out, pushing her against the wall as she tries to calm him down by bringing her arms around him. He then retaliates by biting down hard into her forearm...which ultimately leads to his removal from the Kersten household.
Next Barb takes Brian to a group home filled with at least six other young boys, with the oldest appearing to be Felix Woodard who was seated next to Brian. After the man who helms the household sets down each boy's plate for dinner and walks off, Felix - smug in his behavior reaches over and takes Brian's plate, completely emptying it onto his own before setting it back down in front of the boy. In belief that he could just get away with it, he starts eating while Brian decides to pick up a fork and jam it into Felix's hand, forcing him to bellow out a loud scream. Ultimately this action causes his removal from the group home and he reaches his final destination - the Harbor Light Mental Hospital (which he explains that each new home he went to was a "better fit" until none of these fit right with him and he was "thrown away"). After they make their way into the hospital, Barb says to a woman working there that this place would yet again be a "better fit" for Brian and looks to him, telling him that this will be his new home. She then notions over to an orderly named Raul Martinez who walks up with a smile to the young Brian and leads him off to his room, while Barb stays behind watching him through the glass window and Brian looks back to her several times before a look of anger crosses his face - remembering this moment for the next 17 years.
During his time there Brian was diagnosed with anti-social personality disorder, that he lacked empathy, disregarded social norms. That he would exploit or violate others and some doctors even said he was a psychopath. Over the course of the next 11 years he would grow up in the facility, feeling that he had everything taken from him - his mother, his little brother Dexter and his freedom. For years he felt the only constant in his life was Raul, he thought he was the only person that actually cared about him. When he was 18 and Raul went to get some of his medication from the nurses at their station, Brian found Raul in the Day Room of the hospital and demanded to know where his pills were. The new doctor had prescribed him him three new medications that he was supposed to be on for the last six months and felt that it was no wonder he wasn't getting any better. In reality Raul was pawning off his drugs, making money from a security guard who paid for them. Raul denied any knowledge of what he was talking about and said "Dude, you're acting crazy" which set Brian off - where he tackled and then punched him in the face several times while other orderlies tried to pull him off the man. As he was dragged away he called out to Raul "You Liar!" and was put in a room, where he sat there staring into the abyss - the light echoes of his childhood trauma screaming in his mind.
Brian's First Kill[]
Eventually Brian would exhibit behavior that allowed him to be discharged from the hospital, though he was still assigned to a therapist who he reported to on occasion. This therapist, Dr. Paul Petrie, stated that he was proud of Brian - that he's never been able to talk about his past without losing his cool and that he was approaching a place of peace. Brian puts on a smile and thanks Petrie, who says they've come a long way together. Brian asks if it's enough to go see him now (referring to Dexter) and Paul tells him that they've talked about this - not wanting to backtrack on all the progress he's made. Brian tells him that Dexter's his brother, the only family he has left in this world but Petrie claims that he's a trigger for him that'll only cause him to spiral. Aggravated, he says he can handle it and his therapist shuts him down saying he can't...so Brian asks why he's doing this - so he can work in a RadioShack for the rest of his life as his rage slowly starts to rear its head. Petrie looks at him and says that if he keeps pressing, he might get sent back to the hospital - to which Brian takes a moment and says "Then I suppose there's nothing more you can do for me" as he stands up. Petrie starts to stand himself before he's grabbed by the head and slammed into a nearby table, falling to the floor with a bloody gash on his head. He stumbles and falls to the floor, trying to crawl away as Brian slowly stalks him and eventually throws him against the fireplace...smashing his head multiple times against an mantle until blood sprays onto the mirrors behind it and he falls to the floor. Brian then takes a firepoker and starts beating on Petrie until he's dead - then proceeds to attack him further getting out all of his rage in that moment.
Later into the evening, he takes Petrie's car keys and steps out of the house covered in blood but due to the darkness in the area nobody sees him. He gets in the car and drives off to Miami.
Summary[]
Brian was released from the Harbor Light Mental Hospital and sometime later he would begin targeting those associated with his stay there, focusing first on Paul Petrie and Raul Martinez. While he had stayed there he assaulted Raul on a few occasions and Dr. Petrie recorded various recollections of his time in the Shipping Container following his mother's death. He visited Dr. Petrie for a few months after his release as he ran an at home clinic in Tampa for patients. This was all until one session turned violent - . Brian attacked him with a fire poker, which resulted in the victim trying to crawl away only to be attacked further - beating him to death and beyond that, attacking relentlessly. With Petrie dead, he took his black and gold Pontiac Grand Am eventually making his way to Miami.
DEXTER: Original Sin[]
N.H.I. Serial Killer Case[]
One summer Miami evening late into the night a man named Raul Martinez can be seen stumbling around outside some closed shops in Overtown (situated in Little Havana). As he swayed about, high on crack with the pipe in his mouth, someone approached him from behind. The man turned, in disbelief as a revolver was pointed at his head then he was shot dead by the killer who stood by as the blood splattered across his pants.
The next day a call was put into the Miami Metro Homicide department about a possible drug related homicide. Captain Aaron Spencer stated it was probably an "NHI" and assigns the case to his lead detectives to check it out. Along with these detectives is newly arrived intern Dexter Morgan, who asks Detective Angel Batista what NHI stood for. He takes a moment to explain the acronym as "No Human Involved" - which refers to drug users, prostitutes and the homeless...which after explaining this even he understands it doesn't sound that good. Later on Dexter arrives at the scene envisioning the corpse wrapped up in a bow like a Christmas present. He smiles as he looks down at the body, now pale from the night before. Little did Dexter realize that in the crowd of spectators the killer watched on, wearing an orange cap as he kept his eyes squarely on Dexter leading up to his coffee run for the detectives. Once Dexter returns Brian had moved on, no longer visible in the crowd. After he's allowed to photograph the scene he begins to investigate elements of the victim - he appeared to be in full rigor indicating he had been dead no less than 8 hours ago. Decayed incisors, signs of him being a longtime drug user likely a mix of crack and cocaine. A nearby crackpipe, likely belonging to the victim, is called out to be bagged by Angel Batista. Dexter then notices the pattern in the blood spatter and begins envisioning the sequence from the previous night down to the letter. Despite the gruesome scene Dexter would relay his theory to several people including the Captain until it was turned into a joke, which Harry Morgan says is all part of the fun around there to make seeing this stuff every day more manageable.
Later that day Dexter goes with Batista, Vince Masuka and Bobby Watt to the restaurant of his cousin Alvaro called La Palmita. Dexter is asked to get them a table while they worked on ordering. As Dexter sat down and looked out at the marina, Brian approached him, asking if he could sit with him but he declined saying he was saving it for his friends pointing to the others at the bar. Brian smiles saying no problem as he walks away...perturbed how Dexter could not recognize his own brother.
When the finger of Jimmy Powell ends up sent to Judge Powell, all focus shifts off the "NHI case" at the motel to direct their attention on saving the child. Spencer gives a big speech on television calling out the Kidnapper which brings heavy press attention to the case. Maria LaGuerta uses this opportunity to give an interview to the Miami Herald in which she calls out the department for is high number of unsolved murders when it comes to drug addicts, sex workers and the homeless. She relayed the internal term used for these crimes as NHIs (and what it stood for), which muddies the department's reputation. to be transferred into Miami Metro Homicide by giving an interview to the press where she claims that the department has allowed multiple homicide cases slip through the cracks (in particular she notes the NHIs) and declares there needs to be a reckoning - that no one life has more value than the next. As she introduces herself to Batista and the other Detectives, Spencer arrives reading out the newspaper article to everyone. The commissioner had assigned her to the department to clean it up...Spencer, irritated with her existence, assigns her to the cold case files at the bottom of the list taking interest in the recent murder in Little Havana. He also later assigns Harry Morgan to keep an eye on her as she's a "climber" in the ranks.
With LaGuerta taking an interest in canvasing Overtown for witnesses to the murder of Raul Martinez, which he remarks that they were unable to get anything from the locals there. Determined that's what they heard, she eventually gets one to come forward - a woman with a child who claims that she saw the vehicle used in the murder - a black and gold Pontiac Grand Am.
In the early morning 12 days after his kidnapping the body of Jimmy Powell is found hanging from a bridge by passing joggers. After the police are called and a parameter is set for the crime scene, firefighters bring the body down from the bridge and it's laid on the ground for detectives to investigate. After being pulled away from the press by Captain Spencer, Maria LaGuerta wants to take lead on this case, being instantly diverted by Spencer who orders her over to Alice Wainwright Park in Coconut Grove which results in a bit of apprehension on LaGuerta's part. He repeats her own words that "no one life is more valuable than the next" and says that she should have Officer Clark Sanders meet her there. Dexter is overwhelmed by the sight of a dead child and locks up at the scene, which results in his father Harry Morgan directing him to go with Sanders to the Coconut Grove crime scene. On the way over there the two begin to bond, with Dexter being snapped out of his lockup at the sight of the Powell kid.
LaGuerta has already arrived on scene wondering where someone from the Miami Metro Forensics department would be there and Dexter rolls up, which leaves her unimpressed initially. As this scene is a lot more tense than the last one everyone watches on as Dexter walks up to the body, kneeling down to take note of the tears in the corner of the victim's eyes, the blood pool underneath his head and track marks along his arms down to his hands - similar to the first victim Martinez. Dexter stands up and begins to give a play-by-play sequence of what the killer did: the killer strangled the victim with his hands but not from behind; he faced him, wanting to feel the death of his victim - savor it. He threw the body to the ground after, where it struck a nearby rock resulting in the blood pooling. LaGuerta asks how he knew that and he summed it up as an "educated guess", which irritates her and she walks off. After he checks off everything on his list for the forensics department he notions to Clark that he's done and Clark tries to get the coroner to help him load the body - to which he refuses saying he's "not touching that thing. I don't want to get aids". Clark moves forward, prepared to lift the body himself when Dexter goes over to help by grabbing his legs and the two of them load the man onto a gurney where it's packed away off to the morgue.
Later on Dexter has prepared a demonstration to show LaGuerta his theory in action - with a pair of melons and a bottle of ketchup. As Clark and LaGuerta look at him with a bit of confusion in their eyes, she asks Clark to go first and tell them what they know about the victim. The man's name was Blake Kersten, grew up with his sister in Gables but was estranged from his parents since he was 17 due to the realization that he was gay. Kicked out of the house, cut off from the family he fell off the grid...with a history of a few arrests for drugs, loitering and vagrancy. Last known residence at an SRO in Kendall, that he kept to himself - a loner. Dexter makes a note of that to both of them that he's a loner, similar to the Martinez case from a few days prior. LaGuerta dismisses it due to the treatment by the department when it comes to NHIs and tells him to go ahead with his demonstration.
Dexter starts by going over the photos he took from the murder - stating that if this had been a straight forward murder that when he was flung to the ground suffering the head wound he would have bled extensively out of his still beating heart. He then takes one of the melons and drops it directly on the floor, resulting in a large split in it followed by squirting the ketchup all around indicating the blood flow. With the second melon he attaches a couple ketchup packets to the back with duct tape and drops it, showing very little blood from the wound. He states that the victim was already dead before he even struck the ground, so his heart wouldn't have been able to bleed out anymore blood. Dexter reiterates that the killer held him by the throat watching the life slip out of him, he wanted to look into the victim's eyes. LaGuerta still ponders if this is a guess but Dexter says it's based on hard evidence - it wasn't a robbery as cash and even drugs were still present on the victim and that it was only about a singular thing: the kill. LaGuerta feels that it may have been personal based on his explanation but Dexter declares that it was more "intimate" - suggesting that the killer did this as part of a ritual, a release like Dexter's own passenger. Following Dexter's demonstration she thinks that it may have been due to the victim being gay...and dismisses the onlookers who watched Dexter's demonstration as she leaves the office.
Sometime later Brian would find Felix Woodard and attacked him inside of a large dome-like building unknown another body shows up inside of a large building with a dirt floor, with Dexter taking pictures of it as his father Harry and LaGuerta are partnered up on this homicide. Witnesses on site of the building have no idea who the victim is - another loner like the rest. However unlike the previous victims who all still had drugs on their person this man had no signs of use, no track marks on his arms. He noted that there wasn't any defensive wounds or skin under the fingernails though he did have ligature marks on his wrists (they appeared to be self-inflicted cuts on his arms that had healed over time) and bruising on the biceps to indicate he was held against his will. Dexter then goes to the murder weapon - a plastic bag wrapped around the man's head which he pulls off to reveal a second bag, with a hole where the mouth was. Harry and LaGuerta theorize that the victim must have poked a hole in the first bag, with the second bag meant to finish the job...but Dexter disagrees showing marks on his wrist to indicate his hands were bound so LaGuerta asks who could have poked a hole in the first bag. He circles the body and begins his explanation of the events from the killer's POV: the killer had found the man here inside the building and threw him against some objects in the area to stun him; zip-tying his hands as he pulled out a bag and wrapped it around the victim's head. Dexter says that he wanted to savor the kill, make it last longer so as he began to suffocate the man he would eventually poke a hole in the mouth of the bag allowing the man to breathe (and ultimately start audibly crying). After a moment of watching his victim's terror he pulled out a second bag as if planned from the start and covered his face again, this time strangling him to death as he watched the fear in his victim's eyes as he died. He remarks that for him this kill was pleasurable, which gives LaGuerta a weird feeling with how he worded that.
He then he began to talk about noticing similarities to the other two victims they had found before - the drug addict in Overtown and the sex worker in Coconut Grove. He ponders if they're connected but Harry interjects stating that they're all killed in different ways from a gunshot, to suffocation and now asphyxiation meaning there's no consistent Modus Operandi (M.O.). Dexter says the method isn't consistent because the killer's still learning what he enjoys (how he likes to kill), with each kill being more refined - more intimate. He states that it's evolving...which Harry says they could be muggings gone wrong but Dexter quickly shows that it wasn't a robbery just like the other two when he presents some cash from the victim's pocket. Dexter stands up and begins to talk about the FBI's definition of a Serial Killer is someone who's killed three times and this marks the killer's third victim. LaGuerta says it's an interesting theory but it doesn't have legs yet...and Harry tells him to let the detectives build the case while he gathers the evidence.
Earlier that day Nicky Spencer, the son of Captain Aaron Spencer, is kidnapped from his home resulting in a hectic situation up top as he works with all of his detectives except for Harry who remains assigned to the bottom of the homicide list. The next morning as Spencer mulls over no leads in that case Harry watches on wishing he could help only for LaGuerta to redirect him; "eyes on the prize" as she brings over a file she's pulled together on the victim they saw yesterday. The vic's name is Felix Woodard, 23 years old with a record for petty theft and loitering. No next of kin...a loner like Dexter had pointed out and Maria begins to understand the pattern. The killer is choosing his victims on purpose, people that nobody would miss.
Later that evening Dexter pursues his own third victim - Levi Reed, a serial killer who had murdered 8 people including two children in home invasion. As he's pursuing Levi on the street he's briefly separated by the appearance of a Refrigerated Truck, the exact make and brand down to the lettering as the one used by Brian later in his life, which earned him the name Ice Truck Killer. The truck makes a turn in front of him as Dexter focuses on it briefly before continuing his hunt. After he successfully kills Levi he, like Brian himself, becomes a serial killer - though his victims deserved his table.
With the Nicky Spencer Case escalating towards the direction of the Los Tigres Cartel, Captain Spencer goes through an action plan with Bobby and Batista before finishing up the meeting asking LaGuerta what happened with the John Doe out in Alligator Alley. As it turns out one of Dexter's victims, well an arm of his, had been called in by someone...which prompted the police to investigate the area. Dexter, in his quick thinking, found an opportunity to feed the arm to the alligator while faking that he had been attacked and it made off with the arm. After this gets blown off by Spencer, he's stopped on his way out by LaGuerta asking about her cases - telling him that she believes they're dealing with a serial killer. Spencer has both her and Harry head to the office as Dexter looks on, seeing that they followed his theory. As the Captain looks over the files for each of the three victims he asks how this is the pattern of a killer given the different method of killing each time. She basically repeats Dexter's words from the other day saying he's escalating the thrill, experimenting to find what he believes most pleasurable. Spencer appears intrigued but he asks Harry what his thoughts are and he agrees with her, feeling this is going somewhere. Spencer reluctantly agrees to let them pursue their serial killer case and they put out a BOLO for the Black and Gold Pontiac Grand Am.
Eventually Office Jablonski puts in a call to the department having found a car matching that description with stolen plates. Harry and LaGuerta make their way out to Allapattah, where they meet up with Jablonski and his partner who asks if they should come with them - Harry says to hang back and wait for their signal if need be. The two of them approach Apartment 12103 where an intimidating Muscle Man answers the doors wearing scars on the left side of his face, covered in prison tattoos. LaGuerta says they have a question about the vehicle out front, asking if it's his car...only for the man to call his daughter Annemarie. As she shows up, they ask about her new car - to which she says she got it a couple days ago. The man, along with the girl's mother, chipped in together giving 300 bucks to a man who had it sitting on the side of the highway U.S. 1. Harry says that unfortunately they have to impound it into evidence with LaGuerta adding that the suspect had used the vehicle in the commission of a crime. Reluctantly Annemarie hands over the keys but the father is less than pleased with answering anymore questions, slamming the door in their faces.
Later that day after running the Pontiac's information they get the name of the registered owner - Paul Petrie, whom lives in Tampa. LaGuerta feels that the element of surprise is in their favor by not tipping Petrie off and the two of them decide on a road trip.
Following Dexter's discovery that Captain Aaron Spencer may be the Masked Kidnapper, he has a discussion with his Dad on his way out to head to Tampa with LaGuerta. During this discussion Harry tells him to go after Gio Martino, since his sister Debra Morgan while he says he has to get to work and pursue the N.H.I Serial Killer case. Dexter looks shocked, saying "my serial killer? the one I told you about" but Harry blows it off. Afterwards Dexter tells him his theory on Spencer, which just aggravates Harry to the point that he accuses his son of projecting his darkness on others and refuses to believe anything Dexter has claimed about Spencer. He then drives to meet up with LaGuerta, watching as she descends the steps of her place with Miguel Prado with the two discussing him some with LaGuerta saying he aims to become D.A. one day. While driving Harry looks over the photos, questioning why Petrie would drive from Tampa to Miami to commit three murders - to which LaGuerta jokes "murder vacation?". After they reach the house, they find that the door has an active crime scene seal on the door preventing normal entry - which means that someone got to Petrie first (technically three weeks ago).
Once Detective Raymond and Detective Bean from the Tampa Police Department arrive on the scene, remarking how Harry having a car phone and him not calling their department seemed a bit off when investigating this scene. Harry says that they didn't want to set off any alarms while following a lead, though the detectives feel it would have been professional courtesy to fill them in is all. The detectives open the crime scene for them to enter - where they discover the house in disarray, blood spatter all along the walls and pooled on the blood. Detective Raymond tells them that the family of Petrie called in a wellness check when they hadn't heard from him in a few days. When he was found, he was beaten to death with the murder weapon being a nearby firepoker. Raymond says that the altercation happened in another room then the victim tried to crawl where he was beaten to death in the living room with Bean referring to it as "Someone took a fire poker, beat the guy like a pinata...and kept going after the candy came out". As LaGuerta looks around she laments that she wishes Dexter was here "to uh...do his thing", in reference to his theatric way of reading a crime scene and seeing exactly what the killer did. Bean goes on to tell Harry that Petrie was a psychiatrist who specialized in adolescent behavior disorders that worked at Harbor Light Mental Hospital. He also ran a private practice here in his home office, which Harry notices that on the calendars in the crime scene photos the last few months were torn out. This leads him to the conclusion that it was a former patient - only to be told there are about 300 to go through saying they've got files that go back 22 years at the station if they wanted to look at them.
Harry and LaGuerta go along with it arriving at one of their meeting rooms presented multiple boxes of patient files. LaGuerta says it'll take weeks to get through all this and Harry suggests at least copying down the names to cross reference with anything in the Miami database. After the detectives leave and Harry begins writing down names, he goes through last names starting with M until he recognizes a familiar name - B. Moser. He asks LaGuerta if she'll go get him a coffee - all so he can focus on the file without anyone noticing. He quickly opens it up, revealing the face of adult Brian Moser - matching that of the young man who had approached Dexter after the first crime scene. He flips through the documents to find out that Brian was discharged, that he had a history of violent episodes in the mental hospital, recorded diagnoses of his mental condition including Anxiety Borderline Personality Disorder - Major Depressive Disorder - Antisocial - Avoidant - Dependent - Histrionic...with a high level of risk requiring sedation due to a history of violence and instability. Other records showed how he reacted to his mother's death and his knowledge of Harry and Laura's affair...as well as the fact that Harry and Doris did not adopt Brian, who only wanted to be with his little brother Dexter. Harry grabs the page referencing his son and crumbles it up, then looks through a file that confirms that the first victim - Raul Martinez was the attending registered nurse for Brian, whom he had multiple violent encounters with. He takes the rest of the files with him and puts it in his suitcase, with LaGuerta catching a hint that he's hiding something as she returns with the coffee.
Later on that night Harry keeps his word by making her go get the coffee - buying her dinner. As he waits at a food truck LaGuerta reaches into the back seat and pulls out the file he had taken, noticing the name Brian Moser as she flipped through it. Before she could delve deeper Harry was on his way back to the car so she put it back in the bag in the back seat and Harry arrives with the food. She gives off a silence that bothers Harry and he asks if she's good, to which she claims she is - before a call comes in that tells him about his partner Bobby Watt having been shot. The two of them rush off, leaving the case for a later time.
Brian's Fifth Kill and Confrontation with Harry[]
At a Bingo Hall, a man calls out "I-29!" as various elderly people stamp their cards, with one of these ladies bearing a familiar birthmark across the right side of her cheek - the next number called out is N-37 and the woman looks frantically at her cards before bringing her focus for the next number. Beside her is seated Brian, who tells her that she missed N-37 on her far right card. She remarks that the art of being a gentleman wasn't dead after all and asks what someone like him would be doing around there playing bingo with "all us crones". Brian says that his mom always said "Bingo is the best way to gamble without losing all of your money" and the woman compliments his mother as a wise woman, to which Brian can be seen looking down at five different colored bingo stamps (resembling the way he colored his mother's fingernails). The woman introduces herself as Barb while he tells her he's named Brian and as she goes to focus on the game he stares at her with a his fake smile fading. The last number is called out being B-6 which results in a win (B6-I29-N37-G54-O61), which she considers Brian her lucky charm as she excitedly goes to turn in her card. Brian watches her, again his false small fading as he mask starts to slip.
Harry and LaGuerta arrive at the hospital asking about Bobby, with Batista telling him that he's in surgery. As Batista walks off, LaGuerta whispers to Harry that she needs a word and the two of them go off to talk in private. She says that if they're going to be partners there has to be trust between the two of them - so she asks about Brian Moser from the file she had seen the other day, knowing that Harry had stolen it from the Tampa PD. Harry begins to tell her the story...that Brian is from a vice case Bobby and he worked back in '73 - trying to get inside the Estrada Organization. He tells her that they had an informant, Laura Moser...mother of Brian and that she was killed - with Harry feeling it was his fault. He tells her the truth here, that he was having an affair with her...emotions got in the way where he says that it's one of the biggest regrets of his life. He then says that he always wondered what happened to little Brian - "such a sweet kid". LaGuerta asks if this is why he stole the file and he says it's for a private matter, nothing to do with the case they're working on. In some ways he told her the truth but omitting Dexter and claiming he was "a sweet kid" were not the impressions he and Doris had during his brief stay with them.
On the following morning as Dexter can be seen talking with Harry over Bobby's condition and then he asks "how goes your hunt for our serial killer?". Harry stops eating for a moment as he remembers each of Brian's victims thus far and tells Dexter that the suspect they thought was good for it was killed a few weeks ago (Paul Petrie). Dexter wonders if it's connected and asks if he thinks the killer has four homicides under his belt to which Harry dismisses the idea, saying that he doesn't feel any of them are linked and that it isn't a serial killer case. Dexter realizes he's lying but doesn't press the issue...which Harry only did to protect Dexter and keep him away from finding his brother Brian. Debra walks in and after some conversing about the happenings in her life, Harry tells her about Bobby and she wonders if there's anything she can do to help - which leads to her accompanying Dexter to work where a blood drive is going on so she can donate to him. During this time LaGuerta heads down to Miami Metro Records where she meets with Camilla Figg, asking for the file the shipping yard incident. Camilla introduces herself, learning who LaGuerta is and leads her into the back room where she's provided the file - asking to look over it in private. As she scans over it the file only mentions one son, Brian...and she confirms what she needed to know leaving records shortly thereafter. Camilla calls up Harry who is at his desk looking over a file on the Petrie murder and tells him about the encounter - that Dexter's name is absent from all files. Harry asks if she was able to find any information on Brian but informs him she wasn't able to find anything - no arrests, any records are sealed especially medical based ones and as far as she could tell he was sent to the Tampa mental health facility shortly after leaving the Morgans (it's possible the Kerstens and the group home with Felix Woodard are part of the sealed records she couldn't get access to). After getting off the phone with her he looks over Petrie's notes, a particular point from the notes addressing the following:
Brian does not seem to be progressing. Patterns are starting to repeat. Fixated on brother to the point of obsession.
"I want to see my brother, Dexter needs me."
Later that evening Harry continues pouring through the files, trying to find anything he can on Brian but ultimately finds himself at a standstill. LaGuerta approaches him saying that she looked into records of those recently released from the Harbor Light Mental Hospital and cross checked them with the records in the department, saying that three of them have addresses in Dade county with two of them being arrested. She says she's going to give them a visit, while Harry says he's gonna go through the files they have to see if there's anything he's missed. She tells him to do his thing and keep her posted...leaving to check these leads out. Harry starts to look over the files once more, wondering what Raul must have done to Brian to be targeted - then he switches to Woodard's file noting that he was orphaned at age 9, foster care like Brian. Then he checks over the photos of Blake Kersten and all those collected from the scenes - until he finally notices Brian standing in the crowd at each scene. He realizes that he's stalking Dexter and that each of these kills served a secondary purpose - to lure Dexter to the scene.
Meanwhile Brian can be seen playing Bingo yet again with Barb, excited and hoping that he provides luck to her once again to win a $75.00 prize. Brian says that the "seven card approach is a game changer" with him only needing one call on three cards to win. Barb's close, needing just one number to win on one of her cards though the number that's called is "I-25" which gives Brian the victory. Barb congratulates him saying it's about time he won though he offers her a trip to Applebee's on him, which she is glad to take him up on. Later as they leave and head to his vehicle - a red van parked far away from any other vehicle in the parking lot on the side of a big building out of view. As Brian continues his charm, Barb starts to become a bit nervous - asking if the van is his car. He then says "your chariot awaits" as he approaches the sliding door, opening it up to reveal an empty space in the back of the van. Barb looks at it and says there's nowhere to sit - that she wants to sit up front.
| "Well, Barb...life is full of wants and desires. I wanted to spend my life with my little brother...Dexter." |
Barb starts to realize who he is, saying his full name as Brian's expression turns to a scowl and he punches her in the face - knocking her out. He loads her into the back of the van and drives off, moving to the rooftop of a building somewhere in town. Meanwhile Harry can be seen at the hospital greeting Bobby's wife Missy Watt, thanking him for taking the "late shift" while he says he'd do anything for this "big tub of love". After she leaves, Harry sits down next to Bobby and apologizes to him for not being there for him. He then says there's a lot he wants to tell and ask him saying for the first time he couldn't complain that he yaps too much...then he brings up the N.H.I murders. Tells him that they both know who the perp is, that it's Brian Moser and he needs to make use of Bobby's "big brain" to figure out what to do here - Brian wants back in Dexter's life "for whatever fucked up reason" and if he brings Brian in, everything gets blown up - Dexter would learn everything (every gory detail). Not knowing what that will do to him, he asks Bobby what he can do...and Bobby had been listening, in and out of consciousness...he tells him weakly to "Save...Dexter...". Harry jumps up with excitement, even planting a kiss on his friend's head before he runs runs out to tell the doctors he's awake.
Back at the rooftop when Barb awakes, she finds herself tied to a post next to an air conditioning unit. Brian turns around to look at her as she starts to panic and ask what he's doing. Brian starts to talk, while Barb continues to plead forgiveness and beg to be let go - until he picks up a chainsaw and walks back to her, fear filling her voice as she starts crying.
| " "You remember what you promised me?" "I'm sor-I'm sorry. You, uh... you needed help." "What I needed was my family. My brother." "I, I uh...I did what I thought was best for you and your brother, Brian." "You promised me, you wouldn't separate me and Dexter." "I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." "But you did. So...now...I'm gonna separate you!" ~ Brian before killing Barb with a chainsaw" |
Brian starts the chainsaw and begins cutting into her, likely starting with her arms while the blood spurts out covering his face. Amidst the carnage he expresses a sinister grin, open mouth excitement as he cuts into her. He would proceed to cut off both arms, both legs and finally her head - all while she was still alive (exactly in the manner everyone in the Shipping Container suffered when they were murdered). He later changes his outfit and moves to another rooftop while a news chopper spots a body on the roof, who alert the police.
Meanwhile back at the hospital Harry is seen standing behind Missy as she looks over a wedding album, seated next to Bobby. Deb walks in and after some talking, Missy says she has to get the kids home leaving the Morgans to stay with Bobby. As Harry settles in LaGuerta enters the room and tells him that they've got a page - a body on a roof, to which Harry says he's staying here with Bobby until she adds that it's a gruesome one. As they go in the hallway to talk she tells him that the body was cut up by a chainsaw...and Harry already can feel it's connected to Brian - especially when she says the victim's name was Barbara Plimpton. Recalling the social worker who had placed Brian and Dexter back in 1973, he leaves her for a moment to tell Deb he's got to get working. The two hug and he makes his way to the crime scene with LaGuerta. As they arrive at the scene a tent has been set up around the body (to protect it from prying eyes of the news stations); inside the arms, legs and torso of Barb can be seen laying in the gravel of the roof. Tanya Martin can be seen taking notes crouched down off to the side then she moves and it's revealed that Barb's head can be seen - a look of shock frozen on her face in the same way Laura's was after her death. Harry looks down at it and Tanya tells them what they have so far - body was cut into six pieces, alive when it happened. LaGuerta asks "what kind of monster could do this? All that rage" and then asks Harry if it could be their serial killer - "next step in his evolution?". Harry then remembers that Brian was always present at each one of his crime scenes - so he makes an excuse to "check the parameter" as he walks out of the tent. He then scans around the area, checking for where Brian might be hiding when he notices the faint shape of someone standing on the roof of a higher building. Harry then spins around and finds a way to cover himself with a nearby conditioning unit while peering up at the roof - he sees Brian clear as day scanning the rooftop waiting for Dexter. Harry then slips away, looking for a way to get over to that rooftop while Tanya asks LaGuerta how she wants to handle the body - noticing that Harry's vanished, asking where he disappeared to.
Brian stands there for some time and doesn't see Dexter (unbeknownst to him at this time he was currently saving the life of Nicky Spencer while pursuing the boy's father Aaron Spencer) - . After he asks "where are you baby brother?"...he ultimately decides to turn around and leave down the stairwell. As he opens the door to go inside Harry can be seen on the other end - the first time he had seen the boy in over 17 years except this time he had a gun in hand - pointed right at Brian. Brian kept his distance and stepped back as he says "Chainsaw give me away?", with Harry stating that it confirmed what he already knew - that Brian was on some kind of revenge quest. Harry made his way onto rooftop and continued questioning him, bringing up three of his victims - Barb Plimpton his social worker, Raul Martinez the orderly at the hospital he grew up in and Paul Petrie his therapist. Brian smirks and remarks that "Who hasn't wanted to kill their shrink?". Harry then asks about the other two victims, what did they do to end up on his list which Brian tells him about Blake Kersten. He stated he was the son of the host family he stayed with after Harry sent him away and that he wasn't very nice to him. He then talks about Felix Woodard who was in his group home and he wasn't very nice to him either. Harry adds that not only did he kill them but their bodies were used as bait - to lure Dexter to each scene. Brian asks how he figures that which prompts Harry to inform him that he read Petrie's files - understanding how disturbed he was and his desperation to see his brother. He then says that Petrie was right and that he shouldn't contact Dexter, saying "I'm gonna make sure you never do" while pulling back the hammer on his gun. Brian says "Too late" and a flash back to their very first meeting at La Palmita - where he had introduced himself to Dexter asking if anyone was sitting there. Dexter looks at him as if he were a stranger and said he was saving the seats for his friends, pointing to those at standing at the bar. Brian's face reveals his shock as he looks to the bar, then quickly snaps into a smile telling him no problem as he walks passed. Back to the present...
| ""What did you do to him? To Dexter...to make him forget his own brother?" "He was so young, so traumatized, he blocked it all out." "How convenient. Is that why you threw me away? So that you wouldn't have to tell your son the truth? That you fucked his mom, forced her to snitch and sent her off to the cartel to get chain-sawed to pieces in front of him. And what about the fact that you buried his only surviving sibling so deep in the system...because then you'd have him all to yourself." "I never meant to hurt you. But you couldn't be saved. Dexter could." "Dexter needs me." "You're right. He needs you...to let him go. You come back into his life, you're just gonna bring all of that pain with you. All of that suffering. Is that what you want for your little brother? I saved Dexter from all of that. Gave him a good life, a chance to thrive. He never would have had that with you. Two things can be true at the same time. You can hate me for good reasons...and still know that I am the best thing for Dexter." |
Brian, who had started to let his emotions show says "You really think you're the hero" but Harry denies it, saying he's far from it but he's going to bring him in - that if he really loves his brother he won't say word about any of their past. Brian looks at the handcuffs, sighs and takes off his hat...telling him "I'm not going to prison. You're going to have to finish what you started when you threw me away 17 years ago". Harry holds his gun, finger on the trigger as it had been since he first arrived on the roof...and looks at Brian, who in his mind morphs into the kid he abandoned long ago. His gun starts to lower but Brian moves forward, leading the gun directly up to his forehead as he puts his hands to side - leaving Harry to make this decision. Harry struggles for a bit, looking at him, to the gun then ultimately, he falters...his finger leaving the trigger. At that moment, as if Brian was watching for it, he quickly disarms the gun and pistol whips Harry - leaving a bloody gash on the back of his head as he falls to the ground unconscious. Brian stands overhead for a moment, lowering the gun to his side as he steps forward. While this is going down Dexter has tracked Aaron Spencer to his ex-wife Becca's house and subdues him - dragging him out through the living room. Becca had left the news on looking for any update on her son Nicky Spencer and as he passes the TV his attention grabbed by it when the news talks about a body being found on a rooftop - chainsawed into six pieces. The news interests Dexter as he ponders it in his head for a moment but unfortunately has to pass on it - he has more "Pressing Issues" at the moment.
"You're right", written in blood
Harry later awakens his back up against a wall on the roof and his hand handcuffed to a nearby pipe - thankfully he kept the key in his sock and uses it to free himself, his gun laying on the ground in front of him. He stands up to leave when he notices the words "You're Right " painted in blood on the door to the stairs - likely utilized from the blood coming from Harry's wound. He then gets a page from Deb about Bobby, departing from the rooftop.
Aftermath of the N.H.I. Murders[]
Harry rushes in, blood from his wound having poured down onto the back of his white shirt. Deb says he's okay, which gives Harry a sigh of relief though she notices the blood and hugs him - not realizing he had just had a run in with the future Ice Truck Killer. Later on Harry returned home, drinking as he saw the news about Nicky Spencer's rescue as well as the fact that Aaron was the kidnapper. He tells Dexter he never should have doubted him on his suspicion of Spencer but ultimately the two reconcile - with Harry realizing that Dexter making the save shows that he tempered his urges and channeled them for good. He says that despite it being his longtime friend...he never could have expected him to be capable of killing a child or torturing another one. During their conversation Dexter says that Spencer wasn't born a killer like he himself was but became one...and Harry thought for a moment about telling him the truth instead saying that he was "born one" and tells him he couldn't be prouder of him. Later the next day at the station he's talking with Batista about the Spencer situation when eventually Batista asks how everything went in Tampa, any news about LaGuerta's serial killer. Harry looks up at him telling him that "between you and me...LaGuerta was wrong about the NHI cases. There is no serial killer", Batista says he thought Harry was on board with her but Harry said he was giving her the benefit of the doubt saying that sometimes thing are just random - saying he already filed his report. Whilst he was telling Batista about this, LaGuerta was outside and heard every word...walking off in deep thought, feeling betrayed.
Brian always watching over his brother...
Meanwhile Dexter returns to his lab and his boss Tanya Martin says she got the approval for a new head in the department - she promotes Dexter from an intern to a full time position. Later that day Harry takes Dexter and Debra to La Plamita to celebrate - congratulating him his position. At the same time Debra pulls out an envelope with an acceptance letter from Florida State University from the Miami Metro Police Academy - which surprises Harry but ultimately he's happy she chose her own route and joining the two of them in law enforcement. Eventually Deb gets up to go dance and Harry watches on beside Dexter praising him for his decision to save Nicky - that it shows he can use his urges for good and that the Code is now his. They then join Debra...though in the distance, just beyond the windows peering in at his brother supposedly for one last time...is Brian Moser, forever longing to connect with his brother.
Aftermath[]
| "For a detailed look into Brian's appearance in "Season One" of the original series, please refer to this page. The following addresses background information from the original series leading up to the Pool Victim and is subject to change if any additional information is revealed in the DEXTER Television Franchise" |
Brian's Life before becoming the Ice Truck Killer[]
Following the conclusion of the Nicky Spencer Case and apparently leaving Dexter in Harry's hands, Brian would eventually leave Miami. The timeframe of the following events is unclear but according to Brian he traveled the world, noting that he went to Paris, France where he studied at the University of Paris-Sorbonne,[1] "learning the human form". This knowledge gave him an acute knowledge of human anatomy, similar to how his brother entered the University of Miami as a pre-med student acquiring the necessary skills he would utilize as a serial killer himself. Just like his brother this knowledge was put to use later in his life when he began chopping up victims as the Ice Truck Killer, though it's unclear who his first victim was that he killed in this manner. In 1998 Brian was in New Jersey where he killed a man named Rudy Cooper and assumed his identity, using his information to enter the field of prosthetics (this may have been prior to attending the university in Paris). He would then move back to Miami where he rented out an apartment and started to construct an elaborate freezer within the building, which according to his brother likely took him years to build (and that it would not be easy letting go of such an intricate part of his kill-ritual).
In 2005 he met with a prostitute named Monique, whom he shared an intimate encounter with one night. Initially he was very rough with her, until he noticed her prosthetic hand and his tune changed - removing it from her and he began worshiping it, even took nail polish and painted each nail a different color (as he had done for his mother Laura the day before her murder). A few months into 2006 he would kill a couple of women in Broward County, chopping up their bodies leaving them in a state similar to how he left Barb Plimpton - except that he drained them of their blood and it's suggested that these were the first two women he killed in this manner - as his next victim, the Pool Victim, would be left in Miami for his brother to discover - much like he had done 15 years prior with four of his victims (the fourth, while seen by Dexter via a news report, did not have him at the scene due to being busy with Aaron Spencer).
Description[]
Brian is a young Caucasian man with black, curly hair and green eyes. He wears casual clothes, usually a button up and some dress pants and he wears a watch on his left wrist. As a child he was often seen wearing graphic t shirts and shorts. He was generally seen with a scowl, rarely smiling unless it pertains to his brother Dexter or his mother Laura.
Personality[]
As a child Brian spent a lot of time around his little brother Dexter, often teasing him over toys but praising his brother all the same. It's unknown how he really felt about his father Joe Driscoll but his decision later in life to kill him shows that it must not have been favorable. He only felt positively about his mother and brother, the two people he could never hurt. When Harry came around as part of a long-term undercover job for his mom, his focus was primarily on Dexter - probably due to the fact that Dexter was the same age as his own son when he died. Brian, being older...and giving off something of an unsettling air, only saw polite smiles in parting vs the kind of attachment Dexter got. He also exhibited some early signs of a psychopath in front of Harry when he first watched the kids...witnessing Brian removing a collection of 12 tails from a lizard constantly. Some lizards died in the process too...and Brian only looked on with intrigue compared to the more emotional reaction from his little brother. The last time he could smile genuinely was in the company of his mother and brother as they painted her fingernails several different colors...as shortly after this Santos Jimenez and his men rounded up the family for a tragedy.
Brian sat next to his brother and mother as they watched Hector Estrada, Santos Jimenez and Juan Pablo Aliso murder several other snitches in a shipping container. The blood, the brutality of it all...seeped into both of them with each body until their mother was left.
According to session notes:
"Brian was traumatized watching his Mother's death, grappling with a whirlwind of emotions. Brian's recollection of events is as follows: After his mother was discovered, cartel members broke into their home and after a violent struggle, Brian, Dexter and Laura were abducted. Brian being aware of it all.
Eventually they were packed into shipping containers where Brian and Dexter were witness to 3 other people AND their mother Laura being hacked into pieces via chainsaw.
They were left alive locked in the container in the darkness of the container as well as the bodies and blood. It took 3 days for the police/Harry to find them.
Brian was comforting Dexter the whole-time chanting lines from the "3 Little Pigs". Shock gave way to disbelief as he struggled to reconcile the image of her as a loving mom with the reality of her dangerous double life. Anger simmered just beneath the surface, directed at the cartel that took her from him and at a world he felt utterly unprepared to face."
After the tragedy Harry chose to adopt Dexter, instead of Brian...who wanted to stay with him. He had known about Harry's affair with Laura and that Dexter had called Harry father...but did not feel like he belonged in the home despite Doris's intention to raise both boys alongside her daughter. His rage would boil over into murderous intent and he nearly suffocated baby Debra with a pillow if not stopped by Doris. When confronted, he snapped and became angry enough to punch his hand through glass - then slash Harry across the face bloodying it as a result. These violent outbursts ultimately resulted in a separation from his brother - which had a detrimental impact on his psyche. He was now abandoned to the system, where he grew up in a mental hospital. He was isolated from the kind of loving family Harry, Doris and his new sister Debra gave him...as well as the Code of Harry instilled in young Dexter after Harry learned about his darkness.
According to a Harbor Light Mental Hospital document signed by Sr. Watts, Brian Moser was diagnosed with Anxiety Borderline Personality Disorder and Major Depressive disorder. Additional conditions listed antisocial - avoidant - dependent - histrionic. He often exhibited a history of violence and extremely unstable behaviors. On several occasions reports indicate he's assaulted his registered nurse Raul Martinez, stole personal belongings from another patient, attacked yet another patient, participated in substance abuse and had retaliated against a hospital staff member.
When Brian finally exhibited behavior that warranted his release, the need to kill had formed inside of him at a level that needed to be channeled. He confronted his former psychiatrist in his home, Dr. Petrie and proceeded to beat him to death with a nearby firepoker - continuing to beat on the body after death. He then chose to take this vehicle and drive to Miami, where he tracked down and murdered the Nurse he had several hostile encounters with (Raul Martinez) by shooting him in the head. The next two victims seem to have been targeted due to their designation as "N.H.I"s...a term referring to low priority cases involving prostitutes, drug addicts and the homeless. Whether it was intentional or not, Raul Martinez was using a crack pipe when he was murdered - which fit the category of a drug addict along with Blake Kersten who also fit the role as a prostitute. The most recent victim, Felix Woodard, was homeless - another victim he could kill relatively easily. On these two victims though Brian took joy in the kill - first strangling Blake and holding him in his hands, lingering as he watched the life slip from his eyes before tossing down the corpse like trash. For Felix he began to asphyxiate him with a plastic bag only to poke a hole in the mouth for him to breath. This was so he could instill further panic in the victim when he added a second bag, which froze Woodard's face in a shocked look at he lay dead.
In one instance he has tried to approach Dexter, the day after the death of Raul and Dexter's first crime scene being that same victim. As Dexter sat down at a restaurant by himself, Brian approached asking if anyone was sitting there. When Dexter looked up at him, he didn't show any sign of recognizing Brian...instead saying he was saving the seat for his friends (two detectives and a forensic investigator). Brian told him it was no problem and left the area. This could have been the first glimpse Brian had that his brother had completely blocked out everything that happened to him including the face of his own brother...and he chose to keep his distance, likely watching him from afar. Given his way of testing his brother much later in his life, it could be that he was aware of Alligator Alley and put in the call for the leftover arm of Tony Ferrer as no witnesses were present at that crime scene.
Dexter himself has taken an interest in the N.H.I. Serial Killer, as Detectives LaGuerta and Harry began calling him, as he was the one to connect all three of his "N.H.I" victims. He could also recognize that the killer was escalating the thrill, trying to find what he found most pleasurable. The irony is that at the same time Dexter himself was about to become a serial killer - as he later went on to kill Levi Reed and thus his third victim. While the crime scenes themselves weren't the kind of gift wrapped spectacle within the Ice Truck Killer Case, Dexter was still able to accurately visualize how Brian performed each kill and his exact motives when doing so - showing he understands his brother, in a way he would later understand him as the Ice Truck Killer.
When he approaches someone he is able to convince them he's a friendly guy with a natural, flowing polite demeanor which charms those around him as a perfect mask to the monster he is inside. He uses this approach with two of his victims, one of which was a male prostitute and the other his old case agent back from his time in foster care. The mask however slips in moments where he isn't being watched and is quickly removed when he has someone exactly where he wants them. When he captured Barb, he spoke of a promise she made to him long ago when he was a kid - that she would not separate Brian and Dexter. This separation did occur, due to his own violent tendencies and almost killing Deb. As he talks about this, he grabs a chainsaw and despite his victim's panic, he states that due to what she did now he's going to separate her - by cutting her up with said chainsaw while a sinister grin crosses his face.
Motive[]
| "The following illustrates his motive for the murders in "Original Sin", for his later victims please refer to this page" |
Following the Shipping Yard Massacre, Brian's emotional state was prone to violent outbursts - generally over any grievance caused to him. His first known instance was around Baby Debra Morgan where her crying annoyed him enough to try and suffocate her with a pillow. This outburst led to him being "thrown away" by the Morgans, where Barbara Plimpton told him that she was going to place him with a new family - one that was a "better fit". He viewed Barb as the one who separated he and Dexter, as well as the Morgans who kept Dexter from him as he was forced to bounce foster home to foster home. At one house, that of the Kersten Family, Brian was locked in a closet by his foster-brother Blake Kersten which triggered a form of PTSD where flashes of his time trapped in the shipping container tormented him. When he was freed from the closet by Mrs. Kersten he lashed out, attacking her. When she tried to put him in a hold he bit her severely on her arm. At another, while sitting at a dinner table with the family of Felix Woodard, Felix took Brian's plate of food and began eating it. Brian then picked up a fork and jabbed it into Felix's hand. All of these acts left him abandoned in the Harbor Light Mental Hospital where he grew up separated by his brother - Dexter. Outside of everything he endured Brian longed to see Dexter, whom he had taken from him twice in his mind - first by Harry in the shipping container which left Brian feeling isolated, lost in the blood of his mother. Then once more after his attempted murder of Debra and violent outburst...where he was removed from their home while Dexter remained behind with the Morgans. Pulled from the bond of his actual blood brother, he was forced to be around his foster-brothers that pushed him into his violent outbursts - finally isolated within a mental institute so deep within the system that he felt he'd never see Dexter again. As the years went on he held onto that memory of a family, his brother and mother...until he was a young man. On one occasion, meds that he required were being pawned off in a drug deal by Raul Martinez, his one attachment in the facility because he believed Raul cared about him. When Brian discovered this he confronted Raul in the day room, who denied any involvement and told Brian he was acting "crazy" - this threw him into a rage and he attacked Raul until he was eventually escorted back to his room by other orderlies.
Brian, with the assistance of Dr. Paul Petrie, did his best to acclimate into normal society...all in the hopes that he would be allowed to see his brother Dexter. Despite his remarkable turnaround as noted by Petrie, he felt that Dexter would be a trigger for him...to result in more violent episodes. In fact...if he kept pressing the issue, Petrie considered sending him back to Harbor Light. Brian, realizing that all of this was for naught, attacked Petrie...bashing his head into a table. Petrie tried to crawl away into the living room as Brian stalked him...and he proceeded to beat him to death finishing him with a fire poker. With what he learned in the mental hospital having done nothing to help him see Dexter again, he decided to take his revenge on all of those who had wronged him during his separation from Dexter. He started with Raul, an orderly he believed cared about him but viewed him as nothing more than a tool to be used for his drugs. The death was swift...a gunshot to the head. He then tracked down Blake Kersten, who he lured into a spot where he strangled him to death for having trapped him in a closet to relive his trauma. His next victim was Felix Woodard, whom stole from him feeling he could reign over Brian due to him being smaller than him at that time. Finally he targeted Barbara, approaching her under the guise of friendliness and possible flirtation which lured her from the bingo hall she enjoyed playing at to his van - where he moved her up to a rooftop. He told her that she made a promise to him - that she would not separate he and Dexter...which she did regardless, despite her admittance to the fact and her rationale for doing so...Brian intended to kill her. He pulled out a chainsaw, telling her that he intended to separate her and he killed her in the exact same manner his mother died - chainsawing off arms, then legs and finally her head dividing her into six pieces - all while she was still alive.
All the while each victim served as bait for his brother to come out of the shadows, watching him at each crime scene from afar. It's possible he could see the darkness in Dexter that Dexter searched for in everyone else and enjoyed seeing how his brother looked over his work - the same way his mother praised him for how he painted her nails. However...when he approached Dexter at the restaurant and Dexter did not recognize him, he began to blame Harry Morgan - hating him for his involvement in his life being taken from him. He felt that he was thrown away - because he was older, he knew about Harry and Laura. How he slept with his mother, forced her to be his informant and ultimately got her killed while her two sons had to stay there with her for three days. So he buried him in the system to have Dexter all to himself...at least this is what he believed.
At last when he encounters Harry, he learns the truth about Dexter - how he has been able to thrive, grow up living a good life and that Harry is the best thing for him. He dares Harry to kill him but realizes he can't do it...and knocks him out with Harry's gun leaving a bloody gash on the back of his head. When Harry awakens, Brian had left a message in Harry's blood that "You're right", leaving Dexter in Harry's care - although he does watch him from afar at least one more time. He chose to spare Harry, likely having intended to kill him based on his beliefs growing up but considering how he cares for his brother - he chose to back off and let him live.
Ultimately this could explain why he never tried to approach Dexter again in over 15 years and when he chose to finally meet with him - he had found his preferred way of killing and sharing an old motivation: catching his brother's attention.
Modus Operandi[]
The killer utilizes various tools for the job, having four murders with different M.Os.
- For the first victim, he beat him to death with a firepoker apparently to the point where he kept attacking the body even after he had already died. This would have potentially been his first kill beyond animals growing up and the bloody brutality of it was like Dexter's first kill with Nurse Mary - he was probably drenched in his victim's blood.
- For the second victim he shot him point blank with a revolver in the forehead, killing the man instantly. With the first kill satisfying his urges, he wanted to try again but with the most direct way by killing someone quickly.
- For the third victim he strangled him with his hands while both of them were standing until he died. He held the victim up, lingering for a moment to savor the kill before tossing the body to the ground like trash. It's probable that after the quick death he gave Raul, he wanted to see more of the reaction from his victim through a slow death which leads into the next one...
- For the fourth victim he knocked down and zip-tied his hands before taking a plastic bag to wrap around the victim's head. As he struggled to breath the killer poked a hole around the victim's mouth, allowing him a brief moment to breath before adding a second bag so he could asphyxiate the terrified man until his death.
For the fifth victim Barb it is shown how he introduces himself to a victim as well as the lead up to and the act of the murder. Brian utilizes charm to speak with his victim, ultimately drawing them in with a veil of comfort in a friendly conversation. When he’s able to isolate them, he makes use of a van with a sliding door and an empty back compartment where he puts the victim unless otherwise lured to a location. Based on the second victim it would appear that Brian brought Blake to Prostitute Park or at least met him there - as the victim in Dexter’s imagining of the events turned to face Brian when he was strangled. With Barb he met her at the bingo hall where she frequented and after a couple nights lured her outside with the hints of a dinner date. Once they reached his van he moved behind her and she started to recognize him - prompting him to knock her out with a punch to the face.
When she awoke she was tied to a post and he questioned her about a promise she made him a decade and a half ago - not to separate him from his brother Dexter. After a moment he goes and retrieves a chainsaw telling her that she broke her promise and now he was going to separate her. Brian then used the chainsaw to saw her into six individual pieces all while wearing a menacing grin - likely starting with each arm as the Cartel had done to their victims back in the shipping container. After the arms he would have sawn off her legs and finally her head, all while she was still alive (though if she remained conscious the entire time is unclear).
Victims[]
| "For further information on Brian's victims after the events of "Original Sin", refer to this page" |
The Body of Raul Martinez, as first seen by Dexter Morgan's imagination.
Apart from his first victim, the next three matched the police classification of groups referred to as "N.H.Is", meaning No Human Involved. These are low priority victims that consist of prostitutes, drug addicts and the homeless due to the fact that the police allocate resources into cases they can actually solve (according to Harry, though LaGuerta theorizes that it's due to the high priority victims being Caucasian). With this in mind each victim was a loner, isolated from family so that when they were killed nobody would miss them (and more importantly - police attention on these crimes would be minimal).
In reality Brian was targeting those connected to his life after the Shipping Container, with two being former foster brothers and another being an orderly from his hospital. The reason the kills occurred was out of vengeance - where as the connection that they were N.H.Is was an incorrect assessment by his brother (and utilized by LaGuerta). While Dexter was correct about the kills being linked to one another - he could not see the personal motivation of revenge which extended to his first and fifth victims, his therapist and the social worker who sent him to the mental hospital in the first place.
- Paul Petrie - Original victim, beat to death with fire poker. Therapist (didn't fit N.H.I classification) that was assigned to Brian Moser as he grew up in the Harbor Light Mental Hospital, saw patients as part of a home practice in his later years. After Brian's release, it's assumed that he had several appointments over a few months with Petrie before one turned into a violent murder. Petrie revealed that despite his improvements, he was still not trusted to see Dexter and that he ultimately believed he could even be sent back to the hospital if he pressed the issue further.
The next three were presumed to be the 1st-3rd victims, however Paul Petrie was the original victim. The following are ordered based on their appearance in Miami and all currently fit the N.H.I classification.
- Raul Martinez - First victim, shot point blank in the forehead; Drug user (crack/cocaine). Registered Nurse assigned to Brian Moser during his time in the mental hospital who was selling off his medication for a quick buck which led to Brian assaulting him in the day room of the hospital.
- Blake Kersten - Second victim, strangled with hands until death. Drug user (track marks on arm indicate heroin junkie) and sex worker (possible that the killer lured him to the area he was killed by wishing to secure "services"). Former foster brother of Brian Moser who trapped him in a closet (triggering PTSD from the shipping container) and ultimately got him kicked out of his second foster family.
- Felix Woodard - Third victim, asphyxiated by plastic bags (2 of them). Not a drug user but based on his dirty appearance including in a mug shot he appears to be Homeless. Part of a group home that Brian went to after the Kerstens, he stole food from Brian's plate and was promptly stabbed in his hand - which ultimately led to Brian's removal and being sent to the mental hospital.
The next victim does not fit the classification of an N.H.I and instead is motivated by revenge.
- Barb - Barb was a social worker assigned to Brian and Dexter Moser by the state. She initially set Brian and Dexter up in the Morgan Family, promising Brian that he would remain with his brother believing that separating siblings was ill advised. When Brian later proved to be too dangerous to be around their daughter Debra, he was sent back with Barb to two foster families and ultimately he ended up in the Harbor Light Mental Hospital where he grew up. Brian later tracks her down to a Bingo Hall she frequents and strikes up a friendly conversation with her, even acting as her "good luck charm" when she ends up winning a round and then a round for himself. Under the guise of flirtation, he lures her outside and to his van where he knocks her out - moving her to a rooftop somewhere in Miami. Tied to a post, he tells her about her promise to him and how she separated the two brothers - now he will separate her with a chainsaw. As he cuts into her, a wicked smile crosses his face as the blood splatters all over him.
Attempted Victims[]
- Debra Morgan - When Brian was taken in by Harry and Doris Morgan, the only person he truly cared for was his brother Dexter. One time when he went to ask Doris to make a sandwich for his brother, Brian stayed behind near baby Deb who started fussing as babies do. This crying annoyed Brian, being "too noisy" and he grabbed a pillow as he loomed over the infant. With a scowl he put the pillow over her face and began suffocating her, with her legs kicking about wildly in the crib. Thankfully Doris saw this and threw Brian onto the couch away from Deb, who she took into her arms while putting him in a "timeout" until Harry got home. Later this escalates into a violent episode and Brian is eventually sent away from the home, to protect Debra.
- Harry Morgan - While it's unclear exactly when he intended to corner Harry, he blamed him for causing the death of his mother as well as the trauma caused to both him and Dexter when they were young. He also blamed him for throwing him away, which made him feel abandoned...that nobody wanted him which he continued to feel throughout his whole childhood growing up. Harry realized that Brian would be watching his most recent crime scene where he killed Barb, so he looked around and saw Brian on a rooftop overlooking this one...he then found a way over to that building to confront him at gunpoint. Harry learns everything about the victims and Brian's motivations but tells him that the best thing he can do for Dexter is let him go. He was too young, he blocked out everything - he led a good life now, something that he needed Harry for and he tells Brian that he's the best thing for him. He intends to take him in though, which Brian dares him to shoot him instead - even bringing the gun up to his forehead himself as he stands there, hands at his side. He watches Harry's trigger finger as he thinks back to the young boy he abandoned so many years ago...and he takes his finger off the trigger, which prompts Brian to quickly disarm and knock out Harry. Harry wakes up and sees the words "You're right" painted with Harry's blood (from his head wound, being pistol whipped with his own gun) - showing that Brian spared him and agreed that for now - he was the best thing for his brother.
Notes[]
- Young Brian played by Xander Mateo makes a cameo appearance in Dexter: Resurrection during the episode 'A Beating Heart'. While Dexter is in his ten week coma, he has a variety of hallucinations involving major figures in his past. One of these hallucinations was his father, who often "accompanied" Dexter in his adult life as a figment of his imagination - that kept him on the path, almost giving life to the Code of Harry. During this hallucination they both end up inside the bloody shipping container where they see a young Dexter, before the conversation turns with Harry saying "Your brother didn't have a father" and Young Brian can be seen sitting by himself, his rage causing him to growl as he stares at Harry. Dexter says "He didn't have a mother either - thanks to you", referencing how Harry was the one who got Laura killed and ruined both of her sons lives.
- Brian's appearance and survival of Original Sin's first season marks the only time a serial killer antagonist has returned for a second season (albeit in a different show - unknown if the character will return in future seasons of Original Sin). In each season of the original series and New Blood, no serial killers escaped Dexter - every main antagonist and all people who have pursued Dexter's secret have perished (save for Angela Bishop and Joey Quinn, both of whom abandoned their investigations), even Brian in Season One was killed despite his novel counterpart returning in later books.
- Brian's survival is due to Harry's mercy - he had an opportunity to shoot him but he couldn't escape his guilt over abandoning the boy when he was young. Additionally Dexter's own victims distracted him pursuing the N.H.I. Serial Killer case which meant the two didn't meet - nor would they clash. It's unknown what a young Dexter would have done had he met his brother then and there.
- Additionally his survival is guaranteed due to the show honoring the canon of the original series - he is among various "safe" characters in the prequel series. None of them can be killed or maimed in a way that conflicts with their appearance in the original series.
Some leeway may be used for Harry when it's his time but the information shouldn't conflict with anything in the original show - as far as Dexter knew initially he died due to hardening arteries and organ failure but Thomas Matthews claims it was "suicide" - as it's not shown and a post-humorous discovery from a verbal account...his actual cause of death may even be murder. Whatever the case if it was a murder this information is either for the audience to know only or to be explored in the present with Resurrection.
- Brian's first actual appearance on screen is during the first crime scene for Raul Martinez, where he can be seen standing in the crowd of people around where Spencer and Harry are located. He's wearing an orange cap but the rest of his outfit is what he wore when he approaches Dexter later at the restaurant. He leaves after Dexter heads to a nearby shop for coffee, no longer at the scene once he returns and goes over his hypothesis over how the crime occurred.
- He cannot be seen at the second or third crime scenes during the respective episodes, however in Episode 9 Harry looks over multiple photographs that show that Brian was present at each crime scene Dexter was - realizing that he was stalking his son.
- A murderer visiting the scene of a crime is a tell-tale mistake of many serial killers, wanting to witness the reaction to their first crime. Though due to Dexter being at the scene, it was his soul motivation - wanting to keep an eye on him as he worked and Harry was able to deduce that each victim also served as bait to lure out Dexter.
- The first crime scene is similar to the first crime scene in the original series, featuring the Pool Victim.
- Dexter approaches excited, only to be stopped by an officer at the yellow tape in both instances. Here he did not yet have his laminated forensics badge (he received it later at lunch) but in the original series he quickly got by the cop after showing the badge to him.
- Both victims were left in relatively low-income parts of town, with Martinez being found dead in front of closed down shops in Little Havana and the Pool Victim at the Seven Seas Motel.
- Both victims fall in line with the department's "NHI" guidelines as Martinez was a drug addict and the Pool Victim was a prostitute - however in 2006 it's possible that this process has been removed as now Lieutenant LaGuerta oversees the crime scene with the same kind of press coverage all crime scenes get.
- Last but probably the most important - both victims were killed by the same killer 15 years apart.
- The third crime scene also bares some similarity with the third ice truck killer victim Sheri Taylor as both victims were found in large, enclosed places compared to the first two being left out in out in the open.
- There are similarities with the Ice Truck Killer Case as all victims thus far (except for Paul Petrie) fall into the "N.H.I" category, with Brian's primary victims all being N.H.Is (prostitutes) and this his victims now including prostitutes as well as drug addicts or the homeless.
- Like with the Ice Truck Killer's shown kills (two more occurred prior in a neighboring county), each kill has an experimental step into finding his ritual.
- The original kill, which was found fourth among the total victims thus far, was done impulsively - likely through an act of rage during a session. Brian used a firepoker to beat the man to death and then beat on the body some more.
- Similar to this kill is Dexter's kill on Rankin, an arrogant man who angered Dexter and was beaten to death with a anchor, proceeding to beat the man's skull in passed his death showing his rage in that moment.
- The first crime scene the killer shot the man pointblank, with no physical connection to the victim.
- The second crime scene showed that he was evolving the process, much like the Fountain Victim for ITK. In this scenario he strangled the man with his hands, lingering to watch the life slip out of his eyes before throwing the body to the ground.
- The third crime scene yet again escalated the thrill, leaving a body in a large open building much like Sheri Taylor in the Miami Blades Ice Hockey Stadium. He strangled the man with a plastic bag, poking a hole in it to let him breath only to do it yet again resulting in his death.
- This method of killing was used again by The Brain Surgeon, where he left the murder weapon at the scene.
- The fourth crime scene he used a chainsaw, which was used by Santos Jimenez to murder his mother many years ago. Ironically Dexter would also use a chainsaw on Jimenez himself many years later.
- To a degree the chainsaw is a crude, more brutal way of dismembering bodies than he would later utilize - where he slit the throats of his victims allowing them to bleed out before he utilized an electric saw to cleanly carve each body up. This could be due to his time in Paris where he learned more about the "human form" where as Barb's death was done to mimic what happened to his mother.
- The original kill, which was found fourth among the total victims thus far, was done impulsively - likely through an act of rage during a session. Brian used a firepoker to beat the man to death and then beat on the body some more.
- For each of the crimes committed Dexter has placed himself in the eyes of the killer, replaying the exact events of each kill as they happen. This is similar to a trait shared by Will Graham from the series Hannibal who would place himself in the way mindset of the killer to reenact their kills. During these sequences it would appear as if Will himself was the killer though in Dexter's imagination it is either the actual killer or a placeholder for the sake of the scene.
- During the POV of each kill, the viewer can make out Brian's hands and wristwatch, showing that he is murdering people in just his general outfit similar to what he wore at the restaurant.
- Despite Dexter thinking that Felix Woodard was Brian's third victim, he was actually on his fourth so he remained ahead of Dexter during the course of the season ultimately capping at five kills while his brother managed four kills.
- This would occur again in Season One, as Dexter only killed a total of 6 victims including Brian himself while Brian killed over 10 victims (it's unclear the exact number, given the buckets at his home which identified each name and the identities being unknown for two of the shown victims as well as 2 mentioned to have been murdered in Broward County). However his total kill count would pale in comparison by his brother's by this point in time, unless he steadily killed over the course of 15 years between 1991 and 2006.
- Despite the original series establishing Brian as a more timid, long haired boy that was constantly close to his brother...this depiction of Brian shows that he has a more foreboding presence. He sticks to the shadows, with musical cues pertaining to a menacing feeling - either suggesting his future as the Ice Truck Killer or to illustrate that there was always something off about him.
- Brian removes a lizard's tail repeatedly, laying the immobile tails in a line on the pavement while another flops around with nerves still active. After removing the last tail, he has a collection of 12 - with a similar neatness to how he placed the body parts of his victims as an adult. The removal of a limb (in this case a tail) also relates to his later life cutting body parts up into multiple limbs and chunks.
- In addition to removing the tails, the boys together also appeared to kill the lizards - which is an early telltale sign of psychopathic tendencies in a child. According to the original series both Dexter and Brian weren't born monsters at birth but were created by the trauma of seeing their mother slaughtered in front of them. With Original Sin, more so with Brian than his brother, it would appear that the child is already disturbed and the tragedy simply pushed him over the edge.
- Brian is said to be "too much to handle" for the neighbors and they won't watch him anymore, where as Dexter has been referred to as her "angel" child. Whether this means Brian is rowdy or perhaps displaying other psychopathic tendencies to the neighbors is not elaborated on.
- Brian enjoys messing with his little brother by keeping a toy out of his reach, showing he enjoys manipulating others and watching them squirm.
Brian's first apperance
- Brian Moser was revealed to have appeared in the 2nd episode as a young man approaching Dexter at a table, following his second kill. He would not appear again until photos of his face are shown in the patient records Harry was sifting through in 'Business and Pleasure'.
- Brian's choice to step away at this moment is probably due to Dexter not recognizing who he is and also the fact that the "friends" he mentions he's saving a seat for are cops.
- In the files Harry is looking through the date of birth is inconsistent. The dates range from 3/29/1966, 7/19/1966 and 7/17/1966. As his date of birth in the original series was 7/17/1966 it's likely that this was the intended date though there are inconsistencies with other characters and their birthdates.
- In the files it states that the date of admission was March 26th, 1973 which would match the year the Shipping Yard Massacre happened but not the date established by the original show - the murder took place on October 3rd, 1973.
- It's possible that it meant March 26th, 1974 which would mean that Brian stayed with Harry and Doris for five months.
- Dexter: Original Sin confirms that Brian was retrieved from the shipping container seconds after Harry took Dexter by Bobby Watt. The original series established that Harry told officers on the outside to go back in there.
- The series also confirms that Brian’s biological father is Joe Driscoll, which means he killed his own father in his adult life.
- Brian was initially taken in by Harry and Doris Morgan, a fact that wasn’t hinted at in the original series. Brian says that Harry had taken one look at him and saw how “fucked up” he was. Original Sin establish that Brian was liked by them until he tried to kill baby Debra and then he had a violent outburst which threatened the security felt within the Morgan household.
- This effectively makes the Morgans his foster parents briefly along with making Debra his foster sister.
- At age 7 Brian is the youngest attempted murderer in the franchise, having tried to suffocate baby Debra. Arthur Mitchell had also accidentally caused the death of his older sister but for Brian it was intentional.
Gallery[]
Kid Brian Gallery[]
Adult Brian Gallery[]
_seeing_Dexter_at_his_own_crime_scene_.png "Brian (the guy with the yellow cap) seeing Dexter at his own crime scene .png (701 KB)")
