Warning! The following contains spoilers from the Dexter: Resurrection episode "Touched By An Ángel." Stream the episode with a Paramount+ subscription and read at your own risk!
Dexter: Resurrection's penultimate episode proved to be a huge one, and answered our question of who is going to win that showdown between Dexter and his old pal Angel Batista. It's not the way I expected it to go down, but I am proud of the Bay Harbor Butcher for one thing I had my doubts about earlier this season.
Leon Prater promised Dexter that the truth could lead to an unexpected response, and once he and Charley found out Dexter wasn't Ronald Schmidt, he offered him a deal that seemed perfect for the serial killer. It came at a price, however, and I'm happy about how Dex responded to it after a season of ups and downs for him.
Leon Prater Gave Dexter The Opportunity He Always Wanted, But The Price Was Too Steep
Batista went to Leon Prater to tell him the truth about Dexter, and it proved to be a fatal mistake. The billionaire captured and kept the former Miami Metro detective locked up in his basement, and when "Red" arrived, he informed him that the jig was up. He knew his true identity and that Dexter was the Bay Harbor Butcher.
As it turns out, Leon was actually thrilled by the discovery and wanted to become Dexter's benefactor. He offered his fortune, as well as Charley's extensive research on serial killers around the nation to allow him to continue his work as the Butcher and kill some of the worst people in the world. The only price in exchange for this was that Dexter would have to kill Angel Batista to secure the pact.
Prater made a great offer, and from a utilitarian perspective, Dexter could do a great deal of good by having easy access to serial killers around the United States and unlimited resources to track them down. All it would cost is breaking his code to kill his former friend, who now knew beyond a shadow of a doubt he was the Bay Harbor Butcher. While I thought he'd be tempted, Dexter freed Batista and refused to kill him, unwilling to compromise his moral code.
Unfortunately, Batista was more than ready to kill Dexter. He jumped on him as soon as he was free and began to strangle the life out of the former blood spatter analyst. He only stopped when being shot several times by Leon Prater, which ultimately led to his death. Dexter tried to apologize in Batista's final moments, but he wasn't hearing it. While Dexter wasn't directly responsible for the lives of Doakes, Laguerta, and every other innocent who has died along the way, his actions led to their deaths. With that, we officially said goodbye to Angel Batista.
Will Dexter Be Forced Into An Arrangement With Prater Anyway?
While Prater did fire an errant bullet at Dexter after killing Angel Batista, I don't think he's done with him. He holds all the cards at this time and currently has the serial killer locked in his vault. He also knows that Harrison is Dexter's weakness, and while he may not have access to him yet, he can certainly get hold of him if he wants to. He really shouldn't have been so sloppy with making sure he wasn't being followed.
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Going forward, I see one of two things happening. The first is that Prater will leverage Dexter and force him into working together, with Charley there to ensure he doesn't get killed. Then again, it's a pretty big risk to let Dexter walk free, considering how long he was able to avoid Prater figuring out his true identity. Can he be trusted to be let free?
The second is that I think Leon Prater will survive until next season, which I previously wrote about. I also believe that Dexter will be forced to work with him, or maybe even we'll see Harrison become the main character. Maybe Prater will make Dexter teach his son Harry's code and force him to walk the path of a serial killer as some twisted game. I'm not sure if Harrison has it in him, but maybe he'd be more willing to kill someone like Al, who escaped a couple of episodes ago.
Fortunately, we don't have much longer to wait and see where things go, as the season finale of Dexter: Resurrection is coming next Friday to Paramount+. Those without a subscription can tune in to Showtime on Sunday at 8:00 p.m. ET and see this all unfold in the episode.
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