It's been a couple of months since Dexter (Michael C. Hall) discovered how he came to be in the care of his foster-father, Harry (James Remar), and the fact that he had a brother. Not only did he have a brother, who was also a serial killer, but Dexter was forced to kill him. Now, though, Dexter finds his routine a bit in shambles. For one thing, Sgt. Doakes (Erik King) is keeping a much closer eye on Dexter and doesn't let him have any nights to himself, which makes it hard to satisfy his needs. And when he does finally get a night-on-the-town to track down his latest murderer, he finds he can't actually go through with the kill, because of issues with his brother. As if this wasn't bad enough, some divers have discovered a dozen body-part-filled trash bags at the bottom of the bay and Dexter's own police department is starting to investigate his murders. They have dubbed him the Bay Harbor Butcher. Needless to say, this is quite a hectic season for everyone's favorite brooding serial killer killer.
Last season also had Dexter attempting to get rid of his girlfriend's drug addict ex-husband. After knocking him out and OD'ing him, the Third-Strike Rule had Paul (Mark Pellegrino) winding up in the state pen. But when Rita (Julie Benz), the girlfriend, confronts Dexter, he admits to shooting Paul up. Upon further questioning, Rita tries to figure out where Dexter got the drugs and he has to admit to being an addict. Needless to say, Rita isn't too keen on this and forces him to start a 12-Step program. What surprises Dexter is that he is able to talk about his "Dark Passenger" and dark desires to these people (under the veil of drug addiction, of course) and actually feel good about it. But to Rita's chagrin, Dexter's sponsor, Lila (Jaime Murray), turns out to be a nubile young woman with a British accent. What's worse, Rita finds out Dexter is able to tell Lila things about his desires and family history that he has been hiding from her.
While both of these storylines (Dexter's bodies being discovered and his addiction) could be great season-arcs unto themselves, combining them makes the season even greater, since it causes Dexter's meticulous mind to constantly juggle having to keep his friends on the force guessing and trying to keep from losing Rita. This really is a powerful and eventful season that ends in a most unexpected way. Not only do these issues have to be resolved before the end, but one of the main characters will end up dead.
As for special features, staying in suit with their other releases, Dexter's extras aren't on the disc itself. Instead, you must log into BD Live in order to access whatever happens to be available at the time. The box touts a podcast, video clips of a publicity stunt that was done where fountains around the country were turned red, and interviews with pretty much ever major cast member this season. There is one feature on the disc itself, but this is only a "game" that lets you select various tools and put them in Dexter's bag. If you choose a tool that goes in there, it pops into place automatically; if not, it goes back to the menu. Basically all you do is go down the list of seven items and try to put them in the bag. You don't really have to try and place them in the right spot or anything; if it goes in there, you're good; if not, move on to the next item. Quite pathetic really.
Dexter really is a great show, and The Second Season just adds to the experience. The Blu-ray version looks and sounds great (obviously) and there is nothing like seeing Dexter's high-definition five o'clock shadow to really show off the format's abilities. If you already have a Blu-ray player, then this is the version to get. Otherwise, check out the DVD release.
