Dexter Season 7 “Sunshine and Frosty Swirl” Recap

Dexter season 7 Episode 2 recap inside!

While last week’s premiere episode was great as it set up the rest of the season (and really, the series), this week’s episode was even more crucial. What would be the aftermath of Dexter’s confession to his sister? And given all the crazy this show brings, would it be genuine enough for us to believe? Could we really accept that she accepts it?

We picked up exactly where we left off last week in Dexter’s apartment after he muttered the words and confirmed to Deb that he’s a serial killer. And she is so overwhelmed by his confession that she immediately runs outside to vomit. Soon after she begins pushing Dexter for details about his other life and he confesses he’s been killing people since he was 20 years old. But that’s not even the biggest shocker. It was that their father Harry helped him build this “code.”

Dexter starts explaining his “Dark Passenger” and she starts piecing more and more information together. Is he the Bay Harbor Butcher? What other murders is he responsible for? “I have this need deep inside me,” he tells her. But she doesn’t accept that. She calls him out for all the “victims” in his slide box and he tries explaining that he only kills bad people. “Sometimes the system doesn’t work. Killers fall through the cracks.” Doesn’t she know it. Deb then makes the most obvious revelation ever: she’s the worst detective in the world. This realization must have overwhelmed her even more because she punches Dexter right in the face (Deb is too badass to slap) and runs out the door.

As Dexter sits down with Harry, he picks up the Ice Truck Killer’s hand, a gift from Louis. “What is this doing here? Maybe someone’s on to me.” He goes to the office to make sure it’s the real deal, which it is. While there, he runs into Masuka who confesses he lost the hand because of that intern he fired. Dexter deduced the truth – it was obviously Louis. Meanwhile, Deb is busy researching all the old murder cases and Googling “serial killer.” Because she can totally cure her brother of this, right?

In a brief about Mike’s murder, Batista and Quinn are ordered to shut down the strip joint twice a day until people start talking. And in the middle of that, everyone’s dealing with some inmate named Wayne Randall who went on a killing spree with his girlfriend 15 years ago and wants to come clean about where he hid the bodies. So Deb sends Masuka to the scene and shuts Dexter out. She tells him she was close to arresting him. But instead, she suggests being his sponsor of sorts where he moves in with her so she can keep an eye on him, all of which makes Dexter chuckle. He’s tried to stop in the past, but it never worked. But he accepts her offer because it’s his sister and despite everything, she still believes there’s good in him.

LaGuerta is still looking into the blood slide she found at Travis Marshall’s scene. She gets it examined from an outside lab and learns that the blood is in fact Travis Marshall’s. Then she looks into Doakes’ files as the Bay Harbor Butcher and finds the slide box. It looks just like the slide she found, which she’s clearly excited about since it might vindicate her friend. And that’s all we really get from her this episode, which is all the more indication that this whole thing is going to blow up in Dexter’s face later this season.

While busting the stripper joint, Quinn warms up to a dancer named Nadia. And after a little flirting and charm, she reveals that the murdered girl had a boyfriend who worked there, Tony Rush. He was also a bouncer who hasn’t showed up to work in days – their first lead. She later asks Quinn for a ride home and he obliges because he wants more intel on the murder. But she had something else in mind. She asks him to drive her around and pay to fix her car, which to him, is a small price to pay for information.

Back at Deb’s, Dexter shows up with a bag and she tells him he’s sleeping in her bed, so she can make sure he doesn’t sneak out during the night. “This isn’t a fucking pajama party, Dex.” (Best line ever?) They have to be completely honest with one another for this to work. “My new code,” he calls it. She tries to get him to open up over a plate of over-cooked spaghetti, so he talks some more about his bloodlust. “You’re a sick fuck,” she says. But she doesn’t want to see him in prison for the rest of his life. “Or worse.”

The next day, Masuka bitches about working on that Wayne Randall case so Dexter offers to take over for him. The cops are digging, but coming up empty-handed. It’s 15 years later and everything looks different to the guy. What is the point of this? Meanwhile, during an hour break, Dexter has time to head to Louis’ apartment and rummage through his strange toy collection. He also finds his own credit card numbers, which were just sitting on the coffee table. Then he taps into Louis’ computer and finds videos of Louis, one of which is of him bashing Dexter. He also finds evidence of Louis possibly setting up some guy named Bob Henley. Obviously, Louis comes home right in the middle of the snooping and Dexter attacks him. But he claims he’s just mad because Dexter blew off some game he spent years making. Um, what?  I don’t know why Dex believes it, but he lets him off with a warning.

Quinn interrogates this Tony guy and unfortunately, security tapes uphold his alibi. But he does say he was with some dude named Victor. Unbeknownst to him that Dexter killed Victor in the airport, Batista goes back to the club to inquire about this Victor guy. The manager blows him off and heads back to his office where he’s greeted by some other guy in the “Brotherhood” named Isaac, someone clearly above him in the chain of command.

Dexter gets home to Harrison and to his surprise, Louis is there with Jamie! But Dexter doesn’t make a scene, he just lets him leave. Instead, he later slips his magic potion into Deb’s steak and heads to see crazy Louis. He drugs him and puts him in the backseat of his car just like any other one of his kills. But then something weird happens. All of a sudden he feels guilt because he promised Deb he wouldn’t do this anymore. So he calls her and she talks him down. I can’t tell if he’s playing her or not, but he just leaves Louis on a park bench. Is Dexter really trying to change?

Meanwhile, Issac turns out to be the owner of the strip club and he shows up at Tony’s house to grill him on talking to the police. When he’s not satisfied with the response, he puts a screwdriver in Tony’s eye. Ouch.

This was definitely another episode in which a lot of groundwork was laid out for the future. I just can’t wait to see where it goes. I’m sure all the little things that didn’t make sense will start to piece together soon enough.

What did you think of the episode? Comment and let me know!

Dexter airs Sundays at 9 p.m. on Showtime.

Written by Sharon Tharp. Follow Sharon on Twitter to talk all things TV.

Photo Credit: Showtime via Randy Tepper

Dexter Season 7 Sunshine and Frosty Swirl Review / Recap

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