Having watched Dexter from the start over the last few months, I concur with the analysis it all goes down the pan after Season 4. Related to the show-runner leaving and I believe involvement in the Twilight movies for some of the writers (and maybe the original showrunner, not clear on the fragmentation).
It went the way of Game Of Thrones, it gets stupider and stupider after that, and lots of people hated the ending, it was a hate watch for me by that point (spoilers at the end).
I believe only the first season was related to the books, it went another way after that (so I’ve read, not read the books).
New Blood was a return to form, with the original showrunner, and I liked that.
Not tried Original Sin yet. I have read its not consistent with some things in Dexter, a kill doesn’t match what was said in original series, but I’m not bothered by that.
Onto Dexter later season spoiler complaints: Did Debs have the worst shrink ever? Sending her off to declare her undying love to her adopted brother? Dexter then gets stupid. A random kill of an innocent (but annoying) redneck in a random bar in the keys against his code and never gets mentioned again? When he previously was very careful about where he set up his kill room (like the next door to a murderer, rather than an actual murderers house), he then kills the one Debs catches him at, AT AN AN ACTIVE CRIMESCENE? (Sorry for the caps but it was just so stupid). And then, with LaGuerta pretty much shouting “Dexter’s a murderer” at him all day, he then just ignores the fact his mothers killer has suddenly being released as an obvious trap? The character is thick as a plank at this point. The about turn in the final episode is jarring too, but frankly the character isn’t worth the bother at that point.
I liked New Blood because it realized that in the end, Dexter wasn’t a hero - he was just another serial killer who needed to be put down. Which is why I have no interest in seeing the new show.
Been watching ‘D:OS’ almost as a nostalgia watch. All the old beats are back- the huge plot holes, the ridiculous setups (torturing and killing one of his victims in a Jai Alai arena? Doesn’t the place have any security guards?), even Michael C. Hall back doing the voiceover again, mentioning his ‘dark passenger’ 57 times per episode. They should have called this series “Dexter: The Wonder Years”.
One thing that bugs my wife and me: can’t they get a basic timeline correct? In the flashbacks, Dexter is maybe 6, at the very youngest? Then Harry, Dexter’s future (step)dad goes home from banging his CI and his wife says “surprise, I’m pregnant!” with Deb. That would put Dex & Deb’s age difference at around 7 years, but in present day ‘D:OS’ Dexter is only 20, he can’t legally drink yet, but Deb is clearly a Junior or Senior in high school. Even if you put Dexter at 4 when Harry’s wife becomes pregnant, Deb would only be around 15 in the present day.
Yeah, clearly the child actor is older than the age he’s supposed to be, which at the time Harry’s wife announces she’s pregnant must have been 2-ish, 2 1/2. So, around a 3 year difference between Deb and Dex in ‘D:OS’. I guess that works- Dex is 20, Deb would be 17.
They did fudge the age difference from the original ‘Dexter’, where they were supposed to be 8 years apart, at least according to the ‘Dexter’ Wiki: Dexter born in 1971, Debra in 1979. But, I guess the writers thought it would be better for the show in ‘D:OS’ if Deb was a trouble-seeking older teen, rather than a 12 year old.