Summary
- Original Sin delves into Harry’s past with the death of his son, Junior, which shapes his relationship with Dexter.
- The death of Junior explains Harry’s unconditional love for Dexter in the 90s timeline.
- Harry’s guilt over Junior’s death may have influenced him to adopt Dexter and establish the code.
Dexter: Original Sin kicked off in style with its first episode last week, and it was full of brand-new revelations about the past. It was revealed that Dexter’s adoptive father, Harry, had suffered the loss of a son years before taking on the future serial killer. Fans aren’t always keen for franchise lore to be adapted too much, but this revelation actually makes a lot of sense.
Original Sin is not just Dexter’s origin story, with the focus also on Harry Morgan’s past, with flashbacks to the 1970s timeline. The death of Harry’s young son was a shock to the audience, as there was no mention of him in the original Dexter series. However, it is quite possible Dexter and Debra never knew about him, and Harry chose to keep it a secret. After all, secrets in the Morgan household are a regular occurrence in the Dexter-verse.
Related
Dexter: Resurrection Might Be Set In This Location
Dexter: Resurrection could be set to take place in a very famous location, with Michael C. Hall returning in the lead role.
What Happened To Harry Morgan’s Son In Original Sin’s Flashback?
|
Dexter: Original Sin |
|
|---|---|
|
Starring |
Patrick Gibson, Christian Slater, Molly Brown, James Martinez, Christina Milian, Alex Shimizu, Reno Wilson, Patrick Dempsey, Joe Pantoliano, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Raquel Justice and the voice of Michael C. Hall |
|
Created by |
Clyde Phillips |
|
Directed By |
Michael Lehmann |
Original Sin looks set to reveal a lot of backstory that wasn’t previously known by the audience and even some of the characters. This was evident in Dexter: Original Sin episode 1, when Dexter and Debra Morgan return home from an eventful college party to find their father, Harry, waiting up for them:
I can’t sleep unless I know my kids are home safe and sound.
Harry tells Dexter to get some rest ahead of their hunting trip the following day, and this is followed by a flashback to the 1970s timeline, which reveals exactly why Harry is an overprotective father in the 90s timeline. A more youthful Harry Morgan is drinking beers and getting drunk while watching the Dolphins game. He calls out to a boy called Junior, who it turns out is his son, but he is nowhere to be seen. He runs into the backyard and discovers his son has fallen in the pool. Harry jumps into the pool and tries to resuscitate him, but it’s too late. Junior is dead. Harry’s wife, Doris, arrives home to see the coroner loading Junior into the car, and she is overcome with grief as Harry tries to hold her back.
The Death Of Harry’s Son Makes His Unconditional Love For Dexter More Understandable
The death of Harry and Doris Morgan’s son, Junior, was technically rewriting Dexter lore, but the scene was very well executed, and it makes sense in the context of what fans know happened with Harry’s relationship with Dexter. It was never fully revealed why Harry actually decided to adopt Dexter after his mother, Laura Moser, was murdered. The death of Harry’s biological son, and the guilt he felt about taking his eyes off him, looks like it played a huge part in his decision to adopt Dexter. As Original Sin progresses, there are bound to be more flashbacks to reveal what actually happened in the lead up to Harry finding Dexter covered in blood in the shipping container, and his role in becoming Dexter’s adoptive father.
The love for a biological child is unconditional, with the bond linked by sharing the same blood. That is not to say the love for an adopted child isn’t unconditional, but it’s just different. However, in Harry and Dexter’s case, in light of the revelations about the past, it now feels like that bond was so tight because of what happened to Junior. Harry didn’t want to lose another son after Junior’s death, so that is probably partly why he formed the code to help Dexter channel his urges. He didn’t want to see Dexter go to prison for life, and face the prospect of losing yet another son. As witnessed in the first episode, Harry was devastated when he found out Dexter had become a killer, but he knew it was inevitable. Harry and Dexter might not be blood related, but they are very much bonded by the blood of others on their hands. As far as Harry is concerned, it probably makes it a little bit easier that the people who end up on Dexter’s kill table very much deserve their fate. In other ways, the day Dexter killed a human being was also like losing another son, and it brought back painful memories of how things played out with Junior all those years ago.
More
Dexter: Original Sin Shouldn’t Just Be A Set Up For The Sequel
Dexter: Original Sin has set up the sequel series, Resurrection, but it has the potential to run for multiple seasons alongside it.