Episode Report Card Couch Baron: B- | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Dying of the Light
By Couch Baron | Season 6 | Episode 5 | Aired on 10.30.2011
In a hurry? Read the recaplet for a nutshell description! Finished? Click here to close.Quinn and Batista interview EJO's old teaching assistant, who opines that while EJO liked to stir up trouble and make people think, and they had an affair, he's no killer. However, that night, despite Batista's investigation-protocol-related objections, Quinn makes it his mission to bone her, which gives us the opportunity to see what looked to me in an admittedly quick shot like a tattoo of a seven-headed snake. Also, when Batista comes to pick Quinn up the next morning, he takes a look at some of EJO's stuff he apparently left with the woman and discovers a playbook of some awfully familiar disturbing imagery, so it looks like the woman's going to be a key figure in the investigation, and almost surely that Quinn's little dalliance with her will come back to bite him. You know, if anyone actually cares.
Miami Metro discovers that the dead girl from last week worked at the café in the Miami Cultural Center, and based on the number 1244 so thoughtfully lodged in the dead girl's esophagus, and the new male who's replaced the Horrific Nightmare of an Intern's research uncovering the mention of 1260 as a recurring number in Revelations, the team figures they only have fifteen clear days to work with before something truly terrible happens. On examination of the angel costume on the poor dead girl, Dexter finds a special type of glue used in ancient manuscript restoration; he follows this lead and discovers that Colin Hanks works at the Cultural Center and is a restoration expert. Dexter discovers where he lives and breaks into his place after Colin Hanks leaves to go to work and discovers that Colin Hanks got his Masters at the University of Tallahassee, where, as you'll remember from last week, EJO used to teach. He also finds Colin Hanks' Bible, which just so happens to have some passages and numbers in Revelations marked, and cuts out a page to take with him; soon, he's confirmed that Colin Hanks' Bible is the source of the numbers they've been finding on the Doomsday victims.
For his part, EJO informs Colin Hanks that they need to find the Whore of Babylon, but whether he's in Colin Hanks' head or not, once they see that the police have advertised EJO as the Doomsday Killer, they decide it's not safe for him to be, um, seen in public. However, Colin Hanks fails in his first attempt to grab a girl without EJO, but the next night he hits a girl with his car and abducts her. Unfortunately for him, when he gets into his car after work the next day, Dexter is waiting for him, and he forces Colin Hanks to tell him what's up, so Colin Hanks tells him EJO is the prophet he follows, and EJO is the one who's actually been doing the killing. Dexter tells Colin Hanks that EJO is pure darkness, and he needs to find someone else to follow. When Dexter then allows him to go free, he calls EJO with a lame excuse for not showing up, prompting EJO to inform him sternly that if he thinks he can run from his God-given mission, he'd better think again. Probably not great news for the girl, wherever she may be at the moment.
Dexter runs into Mos Def at the station, as Mos Def's garage got shot at or something? This leads to Dexter inviting Mos Def over to his place, and soon Dexter is confessing to Mos Def how he saw his mother die, and although he doesn't say the words "Dark Passenger" he does imply that he didn't grow up quite right. Mos Def, however, tries to convince Dexter that his mother left some light in him, and that and the love he has for Harrison is enough to keep any darkness at bay. Dexter definitely wants to believe that, although it's pretty clear he's not quite there yet. He'll probably be less inclined to be so when he learns that Mos Def takes three bullets at the end of the episode and is at death's door. That's the kind of thing that will extinguish your inner light in a hurry, you know?
Want more? The full recap starts right below!As Dexter examines the poor dead girl's angel costume, DVO gives us a history of people's beliefs about angels, to which I'm going to pay absolutely no attention given that he'd never even heard of the FOUR HORSEMEN OF THE APOCALYPSE. Well, okay, I have to pay it a bit of mind given that it sets up the episode theme, but in a shout-out to MCH's Six Feet Under, I'll just tell you that we're going to be focused on Dexter Light And Dark today. Anyway, other than blood, Dexter discovers some glue on the wings he's hopeful will lead somewhere...
...While in that church in which EJO apparently resides, or doesn't, he and Colin Hanks kneel and pray, or rather, he kneels and prays while Colin Hanks kneels and observes blood running down the side of EJO's sweaty face, so I guess he's praying so devoutly that his own blood is flowing down to wash away his sins? Forgive me, haven't been to church in a while. Without opening his eyes, EJO admonishes Colin Hanks to keep his eyes on God, and when Colin Hanks looks at him again the blood is gone. EJO then has Colin Hanks help him to his feet, and eagerly rubs his hands together and tells Colin Hanks it's time to do some hunting, and when Colin Hanks pipes up that he thought they had some time, EJO, apparently just having gotten these orders, notes that Colin Hanks still doesn't hear God. Colin Hanks says he's been fasting and praying for days, and if he's not hallucinating even a little bit after that even I would have to opine that he's doing it wrong. EJO doesn't bother pointing this out; he merely notes that it's a good thing he's around, especially since they have to find the Whore of Babylon. Road trip to Long Island, then?
Dexter gets a report back on the glue and backing and learns that it's a combination used in the restoration of ancient manuscripts. Masuka then raps on his glass and tells Dexter that Deb's called a meeting, but Dexter has to put him off so DVO can intone, "This is no amateur." No amateur...manuscript restorer? I don't even know what he's talking about, seriously.
When Dexter turns up, Deb, apparently sensing that he's late because of pointless VOs, thanks him for joining them before announcing to the crowded room that the dead girl worked at the café at the Miami Cultural Center, which DVO feels the need to inform us is full of ancient artifacts in need of repair. Well, sure, the ancient artifacts in mint condition get to go straight to New York and Paris. Deb tells the group she wants EJO's picture plastered all over the area, and Anderson volunteers to head up that effort. He also informs the group that the pageantry of the last killing suggests references to Revelations 8 through 10, and when Deb asks why he changed up his M.O., i.e., why he left them to trigger her death rather than killing her himself, like, NICE TO MENTION HOW YOUR POLICE WORK KILLED THE POOR GIRL, and Anderson theorizes that, consistent with another Revelations passage, the killer is more concerned with getting his message out that with any thrill an individual kill might give him. Batista pipes up that they found evidence that the victim had sex with someone using a spermicidal condom, and DVO wonders if it was Colin Hanks. Batista also says he's been trying to contact EJO's last-known TA, "Carissa Porter," but so far the university has been rather unhelpful in making that connection happen, so Deb suggests they pay a visit to the university in an effort to, say, foster the spirit of cooperation. Masuka then pipes up that the locusts and fish turned up nothing of interest, but they did find another number lodged in Erin's esophagus. Er, given that she was alive when they found her, how exactly did that work? Did Colin Hanks have it stuck to the end of his dick? Anyway, the new number, written on the same type of paper and ink as the others, is 1244. Some new guy then pipes up that he did a check into the usage of numbers in the Book of Revelations, and instead of Deb being all snooty about "Who are you, now?" I'd wonder why she's not asking why NO ONE ELSE CHECKED INTO THE USE OF NUMBERS IN REVELATIONS UP TO THIS POINT. I am, however, very happy to report that the new guy, Lewis Green, is Masuka's replacement for the Horrific Nightmare of an Intern, and after Masuka has told everyone this, Green goes on that while there's plentiful numerology in the Book of Revelations, the only number close to the ones they've gotten from the killer that appears in a noteworthy manner is 1260. This being the day after 1244, Anderson notes that they only have fifteen days until the countdown ends and they reach, according to Deb, "more apocalyptic bullshit." She asks Dexter to please tell her he's got something else for her, but, with an apology from DVO, Dexter lies and says that he does not -- there was nothing of interest on the wings. Deb calls an end to the meeting, and after everyone disbands, Masuka leans in and asks Green if he's as much of a computer whiz as he seems. Green, who I must say is pretty nerd-cute, kind of aw-shuckses that yeah, he knows his way around a hard drive, so Masuka pulls up the Ice Truck Auction and asks Green if he do something to help get rid of his potential trouble/embarrassment. Green, apparently liking the challenge, says he'll look into it, and man, it's nice to have an intern on the show who doesn't make me want to kill him/myself/everyone who's ever existed.