Dexter Resurrection Season 1 Episode 3 Recap "Backseat Driver"

Dexter Resurrection - Episode 3 Recap

We quickly slip back into the familiar rhythm of the original series, with the show reminding us just how thin the line is between predator and prey. Harrison is under pressure, and the NYPD, especially Detective Wallace is closing in. She’s sharp, intuitive, and unrelenting. She knows Harrison is guilty. She even tries to coax a confession out of him by offering a lesser charge. Here is where we get into those old familiar plot devices. No cameras in the service elevator. The one outside? Broken. And Dexter, ever the cleaner, handled any lingering traces Harrison missed. All that remains is the unique way Harrison ties his garbage bags, enough to raise suspicions but not enough to hold up in court. Harrison lies about his alibi, adding another crack to the foundation.

Meanwhile, Dexter isn’t exactly acting like a father desperate to find his son. Instead, he’s back on the hunt, working under the radar as a rideshare driver in NYC. Unfortunately, his rating is in the gutter. Ntare, the landlord whose basement apartment Dexter rents, suggests he make himself seem more personable. He gives him a photo of a kid, the one that comes with the picture frame. He tells him to put a picture of his son in it. Dexter says they were lost in a fire. Ntare feeling bad, hugs him. This triggers Dexter to think of Harrison. When he later tracks Harrison down at a restaurant on a seemingly normal date, he walks away, choosing, for now, to leave him be, despite Harry’s warnings.

Back in Miami, we get the nostalgia we’ve been waiting for. Batista receives a call about Dexter’s truck being found in an NYC accident. The news sets him on a new path, enough to prompt an early retirement from Miami PD. He breaks the news to Quinn and Masuka, who are understandably concerned. But Batista keeps his cards close to the chest, promising answers in time. They begrudgingly accept it.

Dexter, meanwhile, gets a reality check from Ntare’s wife, she don't know him and had a background check run. Dexter asks to see it and she shows him. Inspired, Dexter decides to use that method to track down the new dark passenger. Just like that, he finds his target’s residence and signature kill tokens. Confirming the target's appointment on his table.

He lures the killer by picking him up through a rideshare. When the killer starts his attack, Dexter is able to disable him with his well-timed jab. Never mind that Dexter was in a coma for ten weeks. Nevermind that he has been suffering and in pain, apparently, a little acupuncture from Ntare’s daughter fixed all that muscle atrophy. What comes next? You already know: the table, the plastic wrap, the ritual. Check, check, and check.

Meanwhile, Harrison faces the heat. The NYPD showed him security footage, he was seen with both the rapist and his potential victim in the elevator. They also clock that he never left the hotel until well into the next day. It’s damning. Just when we think Harrison is about to crack, great job by Jack Alcott, by the way; Harrison regains his composure. He comes up with a cover story: he lives in the hotel and sometimes crashes in vacant rooms. That’s why he lied. When asked if it can be verified, he offers up a friend, though reluctantly. The police aren't concerned with hotel policy, but Harrison's friend is definitely not thrilled about being dragged into the situation.

Before his demise, the dark passenger Dexter had on his table mentions receiving an “invitation.” He assumes it came from Dexter, but Dexter doesn’t press. He’s too focused on feeding the urge.

Final Thoughts

My theory about a serial killer network seems to be gaining traction. That invitation wasn’t random, and I suspect Dexter will soon receive one of his own. The question is, will he infiltrate it and take out its members one by one, or will he get tangled in something darker than even he can handle?

As for Harrison, he continues to walk the tightrope. He yearns for a normal life, but he’s haunted, by his two victims, and by the shadow of his father, one of his victims, who, unbeknownst to him, is still alive. He self-medicates to keep the darkness at bay. The real question is whether he’ll ever get help... or whether the call of his own Dark Passenger will eventually be too loud to ignore.

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