We have just four days until Dexter leaves our TV screens for good. With only one episode remaining, we can't help but speculate what will happen to our protagonist - and some of the rest of the characters, for that matter.
The possibilities are endless, but there is one thing that probably won't happen: Dexter will not get caught by Miami Metro. Nothing in this season strongly indicated the possibility of his dark secret escaping. With Dr. Vogel dead, there is no one left who would reveal his secret; Deb isn't going to say anything, and no one would believe Saxon after that video of him leaked.
No, we're ready to bet that Dexter's Dark Passenger will accompany him to the grave. Instead, we've come up with four possible series endings: from the never-going-to-happen, to the more-than-likely.
See also: Ten Dexter Film Locations That Were Really Shot in Miami
4. A familiar stranger returns
When Rita's died back in season four, she never really knew the truth about Dexter, and ultimately it was Dexter's secret that killed her (his rivalry with Trinity was provoked by their shared serial killing ways). Since Rita, Dexter has hung out with two women, both of whom knew about Dexter's internal calling, and neither of them died because of it (well, so far). Let's not forget that before Dexter planned to run away with Hannah, he was ready to commit to Lumen in season five. You remember Lumen: the girl with the strange name who was gang raped and survived and then went on a vindictive killing spree to satisfy her temporary passenger.
What if, out of the blue, Lumen happens to come back to Miami and calls up Dexter to see how he's doing? This could create tension between Dexter and Hannah, and confuse the hell out of Harrison - a third blonde! Dexter gets all stressed because he has Debra in the hospital, Hannah at the airport, and now Lumen wants to get back together. Maybe Dexter ends up running away to Argentina with both Lumen and Hannah. Hey, crazier things have happened -- remember the "Deb thinks her brother's sexy" storyline?
So instead of being a serial killer, Dex now has his hands full with two rival women and a kid in the middle. Hey, that sounds like an interesting spin-off we'd watch! It could be called, Two Killer Girlfriends and a Baby.
Likelihood: Slim. There's been no news of Julia Stiles returning to the show, and besides, the writers must know that she was one of the series' least favorite characters.
3. And he lived happily ever after
After eight years, and all the terror the show has put us through, maybe the writers want to end on a peaceful, happy note. There's no reason to end things badly for Dexter; after all if anyone deserves a fairy tale ending, it's our dark vigilante. Maybe Elway will get caught up by TSA and miss Hannah in the airport. Maybe Dexter will get a phone call from the hospital and he'll be all like, "Hannah, baby, you take Harrison and go to Argentina. I'll meet you there once Deb recovers from her gunshot wound." And then Hannah calls him up later from Argentina and says how she has already stocked up the fridge and is watching Rosetta Stone videos with Harrison.
Meanwhile, in Miami, Dexter sits by Debra's bedside at the hospital and holds her hand while she's in a deep sleep after surgery. While Dexter goes on a food run, he accidentally backs up his car and runs over Saxon - whoopsies, he says. And then, when Deb wakes up, Quinn realizes he can't live without her, and she realizes life is too short (something she probably should have realized the first time she got shot), and they both agree to marry immediately.
Deb has always been a fan of warm climates, so she and Quinn plan a destination wedding in Argentina. Flash forward six months and Deb and Quinn have a beautiful ceremony on the beach with Hannah as the Maid of Honor, Dex as the Best Man, and Harrison as the ring boy. Quick zoom in on Dexter's face as he thinks up some deep and profound quote, and black out.
Likelihood: Maybe some of these things will happen. But if they all do, the season finale's gonna be the most boring hour of Dexter since the Jimmy Smits season.
2. Symmetry is key
One of the biggest shocks in the entire series was when Rita was discovered murdered in the tub full of her own blood. Dexter was all satisfied that he had finished off Trinity and was returning home for a weekend vacation with Rita, only to realize Trinity had time to get one more kill in before his own demise. Well, since this entire season has been winking back at previous years, what if Dexter's same mistake - not killing his Big Bad sooner/when he had the chance - repeats itself? What if the first thing Saxon does with his newfound freedom is kill Hannah? (Let's leave Harrison out of this, okay?). Hannah's dead body could be what a bloody Dexter is running from in the episode preview trailer.
Think about it: Saxon is majorly pissed off that Dexter was not only about to kill him, but that he instead ignored his killing instinct and turned him over to the police. We're not sure which he finds more insulting. Since he was able to shoot down Deb, he doesn't have to worry about going after her. Who's left in Dexter's life that he cares about? Hannah and Harrison. We're going to go off on a limb here and say that he won't harm children, mostly because we just really don't want to have to see it happen.
Though he's injured (our girl Deb nicked him before he escaped), his anger will power him through until he finds Hannah either at Deb's house or at the airport. Maybe he's read about his fellow serial killer, Trinity, and is familiar with his methods, so he goes to kill Hannah in Deb's tub. After all, he did bludgeon Cassie in the style of Zach's first kill - to make a point, Saxon doesn't need to stick to his original killing method.
Likelihood: Fair. He's the series' last villain, so a final showdown is likely.
1. Dead is dead
Okay, now let's get real. More than likely, someone of importance is going to die. Top choices would probably be Dexter or Debra, next tier is Batista or Quinn, or maybe it will be more unexpected and less impactful -- perhaps Masuka, or his random daughter. (What is her purpose in this season, anyway?)
Deb was shot in last week's episode, so she already has the grim reaper on alert. But she's the toughest person on the show - next to Dex - so a bullet wound will just make for a cool scar story later.
Then there's Quinn. What if Deb survives but Quinn doesn't? That's some heartache that will destroy us. Oftentimes Deb is the one who pays a bigger price for Dexter's sins than Dexter himself - this was particularly emphasized at the beginning of this season. Another way to see Debra's misfortune is how she's still unmarried and without children, while Dexter is a widow with a son and two stepchildren who adore him. Therefore, Debra ending up alone makes perfect sense - it's sad, and we don't want it to happen, but it'll make sense if it did.
Yet, what would make the most sense is if Dexter gets offed. Dexter is trying to change, and he wants to forget about his cravings and concentrate on building a new, more honorable future. When it comes to anti-heroes, it's hard for them to ever fully transition to an ordinary hero. We love Dexter because he's bad, because he kills people and gets away with it; what were to happen if he suddenly stopped? Aside from the fact that the series would end (which it is), it just wouldn't make for a compelling story ending.
In the end, Dexter is a bad guy, and bad guys usually get what's coming to them - at least, that's what Dexter himself has always preached. In the final episode, it would be nothing short of poetic justice if Dexter were to die. But by whose hand, we're not sure. He could get shot trying to flee to Argentina by the private detective who's on his tail. He could get into a car accident racing to the hospital to see Deb. Or Saxon might even finish him off...nah we can't believe that, can we?
Likelihood: We'll just have to wait and see.
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