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Wow! I don’t tend to start episode reviews with the word “Wow,” but it is apt this week. The crafty dueling between Dexter and Louis, Deb’s gradually increasing understanding of…everything, Sirko’s burgeoning villainy, that crazy-ass killer, and poor Masuka’s intern-related misfortune was a heaping helping of awesomesauce. All manner of craziness went down this week, as the plot and characters continue to build and develop. So let’s get into it.

In the very first episode of Dexter, he tells us that “if” he was going to love anyone, it would be Deb. It’s a sisterly love, to be sure. I don’t think any of us can doubt Dexter’s love for Deb, nor hers for him. It’s amazing to watch Dexter share his process with someone—especially given his experiences with Miguel Prado in Season Three. Even though Deb is ostensibly blackmailing Dexter with the threat of turning him in, it really does seem like an idle threat at this point. Turning Dexter in to police now would only make them ask why she waited so long. With that in mind, we do believe Deb when she threatens that she will take them both down. The constant supervision is still wearing on him.

We, the viewers, already see the value in what Dexter does. Honestly, who hasn’t wanted to cut the throat of a post office teller, or a really annoying coworker? We’re frustrated with Deb, and kind of wish she’d get out of the way and let her brother do his thing. This week, his thing is catching a very bad man with a very scary helmet.

Back at the station house, all this business with Joe Quinn and the Russian dancing girl is needed for the advancement of the plot. But seriously, snore. Quinn has long since become unlikable; and I just can’t bring myself to care much about what happens to him. For me, the last straw was his inability to even admit that he had a drinking problem. I realize this is common in real life, and an even more common trope in drama. I’m grateful the writers are keeping the Quinn/dancer tap dance to a minimum. I liked it better when Batista was calling Quinn out on his bullshit. I also don’t trust the dancer. I couldn’t help notice that she lied to Quinn about the bracelet even before Sirko told her to get close to him.

Side note: Quinn refers to the girl as a stray cat and she’s totally offended. Russians stereotypically see stray animals as worthless beasts that cause only trouble. Americans see strays as adorable unfortunates in need of rescuing. I wonder if that attitude will come into play later. I bet so.

Hannah’s addition to the mix is odd to say the least. We know that she turned on her boyfriend and that he went to prison and died for her. But the mere fact that she got so much screen time makes me wonder what she’s hiding. I’m also wondering whether or not Batista will be leaving the force. He’s got to be damn disillusioned with life, love, and family by now. He’s a good, flawed guy. I’d like to see him end up happy.

Back to Dex and Deb. Dex chokes a suspect that, let’s face it, was acting like a complete asshat. But when Deb has the nerve to ask, “What the fuck is your problem?” I was taken aback by her ignorance. Anyone who’s read anything on overcoming addiction should know that, at the very least, you can expect the withdrawing addict to be tense and easily provoked to anger. This is no different. Well, it’s a little different…

The mystery of the bracelet is solved this week as we learn that each one has a tracking chip. I hadn’t really considered how handy GPS tracking must be for drug dealers. We don’t know yet the actual relationship between Isaak Sirko and Viktor, Sirko seemed thoroughly put out to learn that Viktor was dead and dumped.

Speltzer is a damn compelling killer. He has a predictable modus operandi which is easily followed. He’s built a cool monument to his victims in one of the coolest places possible: a mausoleum. He keeps trophies surrounded by cool drawings and meaningful visuals. He appropriated a house and transformed it into a terror trap. Love it. Love everything about it.

Louis. Man… Louis begins the episode as his now-typical jerky self, posing as a mild mannered forensic assistant. Dexter gave Louis ever opportunity to stop dicking him around. In the manner of a high school tough guy, Louis gives Dex the finger for his trouble. So when Dexter sees that finger, and raises him the Ice Truck Killer hand, we can’t help but cheer at the awesome burn on Louis.

There is a bit of sad collateral damage in the battle between Louis and our beloved hero. Masuka has seriously got to be rethinking his judgment of other human beings. Jaime is out one boyfriend. It’s to her benefit to be free of Louis, of course. But she doesn’t know that. They never do.

As revenge strategies go, drilling holes in the bottom of someone’s boat has all the mystery and panache of stuffing a maggoty sandwich into a guy’s gym locker. That is to say, it’s lame as hell. When Sirko and Novikov (Ray Stevenson from ROME and Jason Gedrick from TV’s The Last Don) pay the Slice of Life a visit, we almost suspect that Louis will find a way to use this to his advantage. Instead, Louis ends up dying like a whiny bitch at the barrel of a consummate killer. Given the liberal amount of Louis’s blood splattered on the deck, Louis may get his wish of foiling Dexter up after all. Farewell Louis. I’m disappointed that I’ll likely never find out what the hell your problem was. Actually…that’s kind of a cheat now that I think about it.

“Buck the System” ends with Dexter once again saving Deb from some stupid crap she got herself into by not listening to him. Yet another reason she could stand to back off. With the help of Deb’s meddling, Speltzer got away clean and the poor victim died badly. Deb clearly felt some serious remorse over that; and she’s probably also out a shirt and jacket. Sad for the girl, but plot-wise it’s probably worth it. Deb is beginning to understand, empathize, and maybe even agree with The Code. We believe her when she tells us she “get’s it.” But we don’t know exactly what that will mean later on. For us, it means we may get to see Speltzer again soon.

My Uverse TV listing ran a synopsis for this episode that said the Bay Harbor Butcher case would be reopened. It wasn’t. Not sure what’s up with that. We shall see. Personally I feel a little more cheated that I didn’t get to see whether or not Sirko could drill through someone’s eye without damaging the brain. Somebody should submit that to The Mythbusters!

This episode was one kapowza after another. I’m a little sad that Louis died, as I was enjoying the sinister dance between he and Dexter. Still, it was pretty awesome. See you’s next week.

–Wednes