Dexter: Original Sin – Episode 9 Review

Warning! This article contains spoilers from Dexter: Original Sin Episode 8.

Dexter: Original Sin‘s penultimate episode sees Dexter finally getting Aaron Spencer on his kill table, while Brian Moser targets a woman from his past as his next victim. In the 1970s timeline, Harry and Doris take Dexter and Brian in after Laura Moser’s brutal murder, but they must make a difficult decision.

This episode was directed by Michael Lehmann and written by Scott Reynolds. It aired on Paramount+ with Showtime on February 7, 2025, and the title of the episode is ‘Blood Drive’. This episode is full of twists and turns, with a huge serving of fan service for legacy fans.

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Things Are Really Taking Shape In This Exciting And Twist Filled Episode

After the revelation in Dexter: Original Sin episode 8 that the future Ice Truck Killer, Brian Moser, was a suspect in their serial killer case, the penultimate entry in the prequel series’ first season delves into it a bit more. The 1970s flashbacks reveal that Brian was reluctantly taken in by the Morgan family, but after he displayed worrying signs of psychosis, Harry and Doris make the difficult decision to keep him away from Dexter. These scenes shed more light on the events in the 90s timeline, and they generally work really well. It still feels very fan service heavy to introduce Brian Moser into the story, with legacy fans very aware of what eventually happens to him. However, Roby Attal nails the character, and it’s fun to see his origin story.

The episode has a lot of twists and turns as Dexter tries to find the right opportunity to get Aaron Spencer on his kill table. Once again, the inexperienced serial killer makes a fatal mistake, and this leads to a tense cliffhanger ahead of the final episode next week. Patrick Dempsey does play a very good bad guy, and his motive is actually perfect in its simplicity, and feels consistent with the character. However, it’s unlikely he’ll be up there with Dexter‘s best villains of all time.

The Clever Foreshadowing In This Episode Is Nearly Derailed By Some On The Nose Dialogue

Debra Morgan makes her first appearance at Miami Metro, and she is introduced to Sarah Michelle Gellar’s Tanya Martin, who encourages her to pursue a career in law enforcement. It’s a nice bit of foreshadowing, but her dialogue feels a bit too on the nose, especially as she doesn’t know who Debra is as a character after only just meeting her.

Molly Brown doesn’t feature too heavily in this episode, but she is still the stand-out performer in this series. She is the moral compass of the prequel, just like she was in the original series, and her bushy-eyed naivety makes her eventual downfall all the more tragic. Her brief and uneventful meeting with Maria LaGuerta also works well, and doesn’t feel too forced in terms of future significance. That classic Dexter dark humor is also present in this episode, as the killer with a code ends up giving too much blood during a Miami Metro donation drive. There is also an amusing moment that involves Dexter playing some retro 90s game while Spencer is wrapped in plastic on his kill table. Patrick Gibson really does channel Michael C. Hall in these darkly humorous moments, and was clearly born to play the younger version of Harry Morgan’s adopted son.

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