Necessary Evil

There is a moment in "The Dark Knight Rises" where someone looks at Bane and says, "You're pure evil." He responds, "No. I'm necessary evil." The supposition of Bane, and people of his ilk, is that sometimes society needs to be pruned. Sure, he does evil things to the people of Gotham, but it's to make the world a better place.

I thought about that last night during "Dexter." After all that he's done, Dexter Morgan (Michael C. Hall) has come to feel he's broken. He's come to feel that he's a mistake. He's come to feel that he's ruined life for those around him, most important among them his sister Deb (Jennifer Carpenter).

But that's not the reaction he gets from Dr. Evelyn Vogel (Charlotte Rampling). Not only does she know what Dexter is, she helped craft "the code" by which he operates. She doesn't see him as a mistake, but rather as playing an important role in society. She tells him he's perfect and making the world a better place. She believes that psychopaths are necessary, and that they help correct society's mistakes. Like Bane, Dr. Vogel believes that sometimes evil deeds are needed to craft the world we want to live in.

This is the final season for "Dexter," and it's been fascinating to see where the show goes. Dexter isn't your typical serial killer. He has a misguided sense of justice, and he forms emotional connections to family. These aren't typical of traditional psychopaths. For that reason, Dexter has often struggled with his impulses and how he views the world. He knows what he wants to do, he knows who he wants to be, but he can't escape the impulse to kill.

For a long time he's compartmentalized his world, but that's impossible now. He feels responsible for all that's happened with Deb, and he is responsible for much of it. He has, seemingly, created a monster without a code or controls. He's like a vampire who's created a new creature and left it to its own devices. Deb is wildly spiraling out of control, and her descent is effecting Dexter in profound ways.

Through two episodes it's clear this is the final path, and it won't end well. The only question is how it will end, and how messy it will get along the way.