Pensamientos Acerca de Televisión
Dexter: “Born Free”
Well, Dexter is already on record as having the most interesting opening credits of any TV show I have ever seen. Indeed, the opening montage of shots portraying Dexter's daily morning routine -- making breakfast, flossing his teeth, getting dressed, etc. -- in a creepy manner prove that a good director and film editor can take even the most mundane of activities and make them seem quite horrible. Which, needless to say, is a lot harder than taking activities that are already horrible and portraying them in a horrific fashion.
So it is hardly a surprise that this series also has one of the most memorable season finales.
When we last saw Dexter, he was in frantic pursuit of the Ice Truck Killer. In this episode, he catches up with him.
But the show doesn't end there. Nor does the eventual demise of this week's bad guy prove to be the conclusion of this episode.
Instead, we get a vision of Dexter's ideal world. A world in which he no longer has to conceal his true identity. A world in which his work as a serial killer elicits not condemnation but applause from the people around him including his fellow cops.
It's tempting to see this vision as a takeoff on the recent spat of vigilante films put out by Hollywood. But actually this episode aired long before those vigilante films came out. And frankly, it would have been just as effective if they had never been released.
It does, however, seem to question the whole pro-vigilante mentality which has become popular as of late. The mentality that argues that it doesn't really matter what rights an individual suspect may have if he's undeniably guilty. The mentality that argues that it's perfectly okay to torture and even kill such a suspect if it saves lives or tax dollars.
The funny thing about “Born Free” is that it seems to applaud such a mentality. And yet through Dexter, the “evil” serial killer who kills only “bad” people, it also argues against it.
Let's face it. Not many of us would like to live in the type of society that Dexter dreams about. And not many of us would necessarily feel comfortable in a society in which the likes of Dexter no longer felt compelled to hide.
There are times when we think we do because we're convinced that such a society would only inconvenience the “bad” people. But unfortunately, such societies have a bad habit of expanding their definition of “bad” people. And even if they didn't, one can't help but wonder: would you want to live next-door to a person like Dexter?
Dexter: “Born Free”
Well, Dexter is already on record as having the most interesting opening credits of any TV show I have ever seen. Indeed, the opening montage of shots portraying Dexter's daily morning routine -- making breakfast, flossing his teeth, getting dressed, etc. -- in a creepy manner prove that a good director and film editor can take even the most mundane of activities and make them seem quite horrible. Which, needless to say, is a lot harder than taking activities that are already horrible and portraying them in a horrific fashion.
So it is hardly a surprise that this series also has one of the most memorable season finales.
When we last saw Dexter, he was in frantic pursuit of the Ice Truck Killer. In this episode, he catches up with him.
But the show doesn't end there. Nor does the eventual demise of this week's bad guy prove to be the conclusion of this episode.
Instead, we get a vision of Dexter's ideal world. A world in which he no longer has to conceal his true identity. A world in which his work as a serial killer elicits not condemnation but applause from the people around him including his fellow cops.
It's tempting to see this vision as a takeoff on the recent spat of vigilante films put out by Hollywood. But actually this episode aired long before those vigilante films came out. And frankly, it would have been just as effective if they had never been released.
It does, however, seem to question the whole pro-vigilante mentality which has become popular as of late. The mentality that argues that it doesn't really matter what rights an individual suspect may have if he's undeniably guilty. The mentality that argues that it's perfectly okay to torture and even kill such a suspect if it saves lives or tax dollars.
The funny thing about “Born Free” is that it seems to applaud such a mentality. And yet through Dexter, the “evil” serial killer who kills only “bad” people, it also argues against it.
Let's face it. Not many of us would like to live in the type of society that Dexter dreams about. And not many of us would necessarily feel comfortable in a society in which the likes of Dexter no longer felt compelled to hide.
There are times when we think we do because we're convinced that such a society would only inconvenience the “bad” people. But unfortunately, such societies have a bad habit of expanding their definition of “bad” people. And even if they didn't, one can't help but wonder: would you want to live next-door to a person like Dexter?
Labels: Dexter, Michael C. Hall, Pensamientos Acerca de Televisión I, Series de Televisión Latinas I
posted by Tonio Kruger at 11:39 AM
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