Season Eight (or as it's also known, DEXTER: The Final Season) is the last season of the Showtime series DEXTER. The season is tied directly to Season Seven, with each season covering a part of one large arc.
Season Eight premiered on 30 June 2013, which is the first season to do so as all other seasons aired in the Fall (starting primarily in September or October). It consisted of Twelve Episodes, the same as the previous seasons. The DVD and Blu-ray disc release date for Region 1 was scheduled for 12 November, 2013.
Showtime stated that this was the Final Season and it closed out the series.
Synopsis
Dexter discovers more about his childhood and the origin of The Code of Harry. He also deals with several serial killers and later commits a mercy kill. It ends with Dexter departing Miami to live in the Northwest.
For more info, see:
Main Cast
- Michael C. Hall as Dexter Morgan
- Jennifer Carpenter as Debra Morgan
- Desmond Harrington as Joey Quinn
- C.S. Lee as Vince Masuka
- David Zayas as Angel Batista
- James Remar as Harry Morgan
- Geoff Pierson as Thomas Matthews
- Aimee Garcia as Jamie Batista
Special Guest Stars
- Charlotte Rampling as Dr. Evelyn Vogel
- Sean Patrick Flanery as Jacob Elway
- Yvonne Strahovski as Hannah McKay
Recurring Cast
- Jadon Wells as Harrison Morgan
- Darri Ingolfsson as Oliver Saxon
- Dora Madison Burge as Niki Walters
- Sam Underwood as Zach Hamilton
- John D'Aquino as Ed Hamilton
- Nick Gomez as Javier Guzman
- Bethany Joy Lenz as Cassie Jollenston
- Dana L. Wilson as Det. Angie Miller
- Aaron McCusker as A.J. Yates
Guest stars
- Rhys Coiro as Andrew Briggs
- Scott Michael Morgan as Lyle Sussman
- Barbara Tarbuck as Mrs. Sussman
- Rebecca Staab as Lucy Gerard
- Andrew Elvis Miller as Ron Galuzzo
Dexter's Victims
- Unknown person in opening scene
- Andrew Briggs
- Ron Galuzzo
- A.J. Yates
- Oliver Saxon
- Debra Morgan
Directors
Numbers inside parentheses indicate the directed episode.
- Keith Gordon (1)
- Michael C. Hall (2)
- Ernest Dickerson (3,11)
- Stefan Schwartz (4)
- Romeo Tirone (5)
- John Dahl (6,9)
- Alik Sakharov (7)
- Holly Dale (8)
- Steve Shill (10,12)
Writers
Numbers inside parentheses indicate the written episode.
- Scott Buck (1,12)
- Manny Coto (2,12)
- Lauren Gussis (3)
- Tim Schlattmann (4,11)
- Scott Reynolds (5,10)
- Jace Richdale (6,10)
- Arika Lisanne Mittman (7)
- Wendy West (8,11)
- Karen Campbell (9)
Summary
Six months after LaGuerta's death, Dexter feels no regret, as her death solved all of his problems and allowed him to continue enjoying his life (e.g., coaching Harrison's soccer team, bringing together the Miami Metro bowling team, and killing people).
Meanwhile, Debra has become a guilt-ridden mess since murdering LaGuerta. She demands that Dexter leave her alone and stay out of her life, as he is the one that she blames for her action. She abruptly quit her Lieutenant's job at Miami Metro to work as a private investigator for Jacob Elway. To assuage her remorseful feelings, she drinks heavily and takes various drugs. At this point in her life, she feels nothing but hatred for Dexter. She considers him to be the reason why she compromised everything she believed in, having killed an innocent woman (LaGuerta).
To ignore her abhorrent deed, Debra is sleeping with a criminal named Andrew Briggs who is in the possession of stolen jewelry. Briggs arranges to sell it to a supposed fence named 'El Sapo.' Dexter finds out that 'El Sapo is actually an alias for a hit man, Javier Guzman. Dexter tries to rescue Debra before she becomes Guzman's collateral damage, but she refuses to leave with him. A fight ensues between Dexter and Biggs, in which Dexter kills him in front of Debra. El Sapo starts following Debra.
Meanwhile, an unknown, very skilled, and highly intelligent serial killer (The Brain Surgeon) emerges in Miami. He holds a victim captive for days before killing him He then saws into his head and scoops out the portion of the brain that processes empathy.
During the investigation, Dexter meets neuropsychiatrist and psychopath-expert, Dr. Evelyn Vogel. Dexter is instantly wary of her presence and feels that she may be there because of him., especially when she questions him about the Bay Harbor Butcher Case. When she gives Dexter a few of his gruesome childhood drawings, he is baffled, and demands an explanation. Vogel simply tells him that he cannot kill her - because she does not fit Harry's Code. Soon after, Vogel reveals to Dexter that she helped Harry create the Code that he operates under and he owes her a favor. The Brain Surgeon is leaving brain fragments (the anterior insular cortex) on her doorstep, and she wants Dexter to hunt down the killer.
Vogel suspects that the serial killer may be one of her former patients. Dexter begins to check them out, killing the ones who fit the code.
Meanwhile, Debra nearly gets a DUI (but Quinn helps her get off the hook). She and Dexter later have dinner and Dexter shows her the video of when she saved numerous innocent people during a restaurant shoot-out, in trying to convince her that she is a good person. Debra realizes she is in denial, and goes to the police station (while in an intoxicated state) with the intention of confessing to LaGuerta's murder. Quinn simply thinks she's talking nonsense due to being drunk. He calls Dexter and he and Vogel hurry to the station to stop Debra from taking it any further. Vogel tells a confused Quinn that Debra is suffering from 'survivor's guilt.' Dexter secretly injects Debra with M99 and tells Quinn that Debra passed out. Dexter carries her out and takes her home.
Vogel begins to treat Debra, even taking her to the shipping yard where the latter murdered LaGuerta. Slowly but surely, Dexter and Debra manage to reconcile with the help of Dr. Vogel.
After finding and rescuing a captive woman (being held in a cabinet by A.J. Yates), Dexter calls Vogel over to the house. While looking through files on Yates computer, he discovers one on him that reveals Vogel's true intent - she is using Dexter as a case study. Dexter angrily tells Vogel they will part ways once The Brain Surgeon threat passes.
Later, Dexter manages to corner A.J. in the nursing home where the latter's father is comatose, but A.J. pulls his father's oxygen tube, triggering an alarm that alerts the nurses and is able to escape.
While on a drive with Debra, she asks Dexter if Harry killed himself and if it did because of him. After Dexter confirms that he did, Debra grabs the wheel and drives it into a lake, where the car begins to sink. A fisherman saves Debra, who, in turn, sees that Dexter is drowning and saves him. In a therapy session lead by Vogel, Dexter is obviously upset because Debra tried to kill him and herself. He reasons that Harrison would be an orphan if he was to die. Debra admits that she was mentally "fogged" and barely put any thought into it. However, Dexter has trouble believing this and tells both her and Vogel to go to hell.
When Vogel is kidnapped by A.J. Yates, Dexter and Debra work together to save her. They track her to a vacant house, where A.J. (after he terrorized her) is hiding under a bed. Dexter locates a long curtain rod shaped like a spear and smashes it through the bed, impaling A.J. Then Vogel and Debra accompany Dexter on the Slice of Life when he disposes of the body, with him stating that he wanted to be with "family."
Dexter begins to trail a young psychopath (Zach Hamilton), who apparently killed a woman named Norma Rivera in cold-blood. Dexter notes how Zach is attracted to the sight of blood at crime scenes. Upon trailing Zach, he finds him visiting Vogel!! Dexter waits outside for Zach to leave, before going into Vogel's house to question her. Upon questioning her, she explains how Zach's father informed her of his son's violent tendencies, and asked her to treat him. She reminds him that working with psychopaths is her only agenda and specialty. Despite repeating the mistake of trying to pacify a psychopath (what she did with Yates), she dismisses Dexter's concerns and the fact that Zach is even guilty.
Later, Dexter and Quinn, who is on the verge of incriminating Zach for a different reason, observe Zach staking out a woman. While Quinn starts talking about Debra's confession a few weeks earlier, Dexter manages to specify the woman that Zach appears to be stalking, and finds her license plate. Dexter later uses this when ransacking Zach's apartment, where he also finds a discarded photo of Norma and pictures of Zach bludgeoning the girl on his computer. After proving his guilt, Dexter follows him to the club where Zach's father works. Quinn is also there, but Dexter is able to throw him off quite easily. When Zach's dad and the girl exit the club and make their way through the parking lot, Zach exits his car and proceeds to follow them to a corner. Dexter also proceeds to follow Zach. When Zach is about to pull out a knife and kill his father, Dexter intercedes and tranquilizes Zach in the neck and Ed is oblivious to his son's attempt to kill him.
Upon putting Zach on his kill table and hearing him out, Dexter comes to see the many similarities between Zach and himself, and so decides to release Zach and take him on as a disciple, teaching him The Code of Harry. After Dexter and Debra sit down to talk for a while, Debra begins to feel a little a woozy, and begins to faint. When Dexter comes to her aid, he too begins to collapse....only for Hannah McKayto enter. She greets a fainting Dexter, asking if he remembers her.
Dexter realizes that Hannah has returned to Miami for love (not revenge), and even admits that she wanted Dexter to kill her new husband (though Hannah ends up killing him herself). After some time passes, the two plan on moving to Argentina together with Harrison (with the intent of starting a new, tranquil life). Debra doesn't take this news very lightly, but, overtime, she comes to accept their relationship.
Meanwhile, Jacob Elway is notified by Debra that Hannah is back in Miami, and he sends Deputy Marshall to try and follow her trail. The Marshal becomes suspicious of The Morgans and, when he hears that Dexter is leaving, he suspects that Dexter is harboring Hannah's presence. When he voices his suspicions to Debra, she utterly dismisses them. However, after a nurse recognizes a publicized Hannah coming into the doctor's office with her "son", under the name 'Debra Morgan,' he realizes that Debra was lying.
Meanwhile, Zach is brutally murdered by the real Brain Surgeon, who leaves Zach's lifeless corpse sitting on a chair in Dexter's apartment.
Dexter manages to find one of the killer's hairs in Zach's studio which he tests, only to reveal that the killer is related to Vogel. She tells Dexter that she had two sons; Daniel and Richard. She explains how Richard died at the hands of his brother, whom she sent away to a mental facility for psychiatric treatment. However, a disastrous fire broke out there that killed all of the child inhabitants. Dexter believes that Daniel did survive and could have been the cause of the fire himself. Despite Vogel's disbelief, she gives Dexter a picture of Daniel, which Dexter takes to do some facial tests upon. He soon discovers that Oliver Saxon (the former boyfriend of Cassie Jollenston) is actually the Brain Surgeon and Vogel's eldest son. However, she secretly meets up with her estranged son and, in the presence of her long lost relative, convinces him that she will help him to freely exist. However, this proves to be not true...Her devotion to Dexter leads to her own fate at the
Saxon cuts his mother's throat.
hands of her son, who cuts her throat right in front of a stunned Dexter, but not before calling Dexter and telling him, "Mother chose the wrong son, again." Dexter breaks open the door and finds Vogel bleeding out on the floor, and he embraces her in deep sorrow. Saxon uses this time to escape. Her death deeply impacts Dexter, who calls the police in, but not before clearing out her house of all the information, files and videos therein relating to him. When Saxon discovers that the police are now suspecting him of murdering Cassie, he brings himself in to clear his name, and it is here that Dexter is told to take a DNA sample from him, whereby the police learn that he is related to Vogel and so Detective Quinn has a feeling that Saxon might be responsible for the murder of his own mother. Saxon meets up with Dexter in his apartment, telling him that he's offering him a truce - Both of them forget about each other and go on their own separate paths in life. Dexter bluntly refuses, but
Saxon offers Dexter a truce.
Saxon reminds him that he has a lot more to lose than himself - A son, two step children, a sister and a girlfriend (Hannah). Dexter then agrees to the truce, but, in secret, he plans to kill Saxon to protect his family from harm (similarly to how he made a truce with Trinity years earlier, but was planning to kill him in secret). In The Treatment Room, he also finds Saxon's computer, containing footage of him murdering several of his previous victims. Dexter brings this footage to a local media outlet, via internet, presenting himself as a 'concerned citizen'. This immediately gets Saxon's attention, who gets enraged at Dexter for putting him in the spotlight and giving him obloquy. He breaks into Dexter's apartment and sneaks into his bedroom to kill him. However, Dexter injects him with M99 while Debra is holding a gun to the back of Saxon's head. Dexter straps him to his very own table in the Treatment Room. However, Saxon shows no signs of fear or anger, but he just lies there in amusement and awaits his demise. However, as Dexter speaks with Saxon, Dexter comes to realize that he no longer feels an urge to kill and just wants to be with Hannah and Harrison at best. Saxon then tells him to walk away and forget about everything, but Dexter stuffs a
Dexter embraces Debra one last time before leaving off to the airport.
rag into his mouth and tells him that he's still going to die, but by an electric chair (not by Dexter's hand). He then calls Debra over and tells her to arrest Saxon, and the two share a 'goodbye' with one another. However, unbeknownst to Debra, Clayton was following her the whole time...suspecting her of harboring Hannah, who is now a wanted fugitive.
Debra is badly wounded by Saxon's gunshot.
Clayton goes inside the hospital where Saxon is being held and, in the presence of an "innocent victim" (Saxon is in fact, using a pretense), Clayton frees him. Saxon proceeds to immediately stab Clayton in the chest with one of Dexter's knives that were unfortunately set down right beside him. He then takes Clayton's gun and, as Debra comes inside, he immediately shoots her in the gut. As she's falling down, however, she manages to get in a shot on Saxon's arm as he is escaping.
Finale
Jacob Elway follows Hannah to the airport where she and Dexter are leaving from. However, Dexter is able to remove his threat by planting a mysterious backpack near the seats. This results in Elway being falsely detained by airport security. However, the flights are ultimately cancelled due to the oncoming Hurricane Laura, and Hannah and Dexter are forced to divert to another airport by taking a bus.
Dexter learns that Debra has been shot by Oliver Saxon, who proceeds to knock out a man and hijack his car. Thus, Dexter arrives to speak with his bedridden sister, who the doctor claims to be recovering well. Debra and Dexter talk about their past (including Dexter having memories about Harrison's birth). Dexter claims that he was responsible for Debra's gunshot injury, due to the fact that she witnessed him kill Travis Marshall, which led into a whole lot of other chaos. Debra appreciates his concern, but only sees what's best for him and so forces him to leave and enjoy the remainder of his life with Hannah.
Elway confronts Dexter at the hospital, first asking about Debra's injury...which Dexter does not have time to explain. When Elway accuses Dexter of being with Hannah, Dexter pins him against a wall, telling him to stay away. Elway only says that a "storm" is coming and tells him not to go down with Hannah.
Saxon finds a local veterinarian, whom he coerces into stitching up his lacerated arm. After the vet is done, Saxon sees a broadcast about the "injured detective", and so demands the vet to drive him to The Miami Central Hospital (where Debra has been admitted). Saxon creates a diversion by removing the vet's tongue and letting him loose in the hospital. Dexter, however, has prepared for Saxon's arrival and attempts to kill him, though he is intercepted by Angel Batista, who puts a gun to Saxon's neck and arrests him the spot.
Dexter learns that Debra is not in her room, and finds Quinn weeping. Upon questioning him, Quinn explains that Debra has been moved into a much higher care. The nurse shows the two a comatose Debra, who she explains had a stroke due a blood clot caused from earlier surgery. She tells them that it would be a miracle for her to survive, Dexter exits the room in pure rage, believing that there are no miracles. In the Miami Metro interrogation room, Angel promises to nail Saxon to the wall for his crimes, as they enter the room to cuff Saxon and incarcerate him.
While Saxon is incarcerated, Dexter asks to perform a GSR test on him. Upon entering the cell, Dexter interprets his feelings about Debra's condition ...explaining that it was his own fault, though he still blames Saxon for his other crimes. Dexter takes out a pen, stating that he will use it to end Saxon's life. Saxon promptly grabs the pen and lunges towards Dexter, who quickly dodges so that the pen only pierces his left shoulder. Dexter yanks the pen out and stabs Saxon's left carotid artery...which causes Saxon to fall to the floor and bleed out. Dexter convinces both Angel and Quinn that it was self-defense. The police footage does not lie, and Dexter is not charged for the crime.
Meanwhile, Hannah and Harrison make it onto a bus heading to a different airport. Elway catches up with Hannah, and jokingly mocks the fact that she is good with kids. Elway tells her that he is going to turn her into the Marshals. When Hannah offers him some tea, he turns this down, believing that it's poisoned. However, Hannah then injects Elway with a dose of M99. Elway is left on the bus until he wakes up in Tallahasse, and his hunt for Hannah ends in failure.
With Hurricane Laura swiftly approaching, Miami continues to evacuate it's population, including the Miami Central Hospital patients. Dexter boards his boat and arrives at the dock just outside of the hospital. Various patients can be seen leaving the hospital on stretchers and boarding various emergency vehicles within the vicinity. Dexter uses this chaos to walk into the hospital, where a nurse informs him that all of the patients are being evacuated.
He ignores this and enters the room where his sister Debra is being kept on life-support. Struck with grief and not wanting to leave her in a vegetative state...he turns off her life support. Much like Camilla Figg years ago, Dexter delivers a merciful death to his sister. He takes Debra from her room, moving her outside of the building, where he picks her up and carries her to his boat.
After undocking, he makes his way far out to sea, where the hurricane can be seen approaching in the distance. As he leaves Miami behind him, he parks his boat, and then calls Hannah (who is now boarding the plane with Harrison) one last time. After falsely assuring her that he'll see her in Argentina, Hannah passes the phone to Harrison, whom Dexter tells that he loves and for him to always remember that. He closes the phone and tosses it into the water, turning to his dearly expired sister, whom he picks up gently and walks to the edge of his boat. Here he lets her go into the waters of the Gulf Stream.
Dexter then steels himself, believing that all of what he does brings death to those close to him; his father, his brother, his best friend, Miguel Prado, his wife, Rita, his spiritual mother, Evelyn Vogel, and finally his sister, Debra. Not wishing this fate on Hannah or his son, he drives his boat straight toward Hurricane Laura...where it disappears.
Epilogue
The storm clears out and the wreckage of the Slice of Life can be found far off in the sea by patrol units, who report this to Angel Batista. An article is posted in reference to his death, which Hannah discovers as she's sitting at a restaurant with Harrison. Upon realizing that he's deceased, she holds her emotions in to not worry her "son" and takes him under her care.
During the final scenes, several large logging trucks, loaded with felled trees, arrive at a lumber mill. One of the loggers is the focus as he finishes up his work and returns to his cabin. The man closes the door behind him, takes off a cold-weather vest, and sits down at a wooden table. He looks out the window at his left before he faces forward. Behind his grown-out beard and flannel jacket is the face of The Bay Harbor Butcher, who closes his eyes for a moment and then opens them, staring straight into the camera. It's Dexter Morgan, alive and alone, in an undisclosed location.
Trivia
- This is the second season in which the main antagonist (Saxon) is killed by Dexter in front of people (Quinn, Batista) who are close to him but are unaware of his secret. The first was Season Six when Debra witnessed him killing Travis Marshall.
- This is the third season in which Dexter takes another person as his apprentice or accomplice. The others were Season Three in which Dexter partnered with Miguel Prado and Season Five in which Dexter collaborates with Lumen Pierce. This season, Zach Hamilton becomes Dexter's apprentice and he begins to also follow Harry's Code. Unfortunately, Zach is killed by Oliver Saxon.
- This is the second season in which the main antagonist kills someone (Vogel) close to Dexter. The first was Season Four in which Arthur Mitchell kills Rita.
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Episodes
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