Dexter Morgan, the vigilante serial killer, is back. The reaction to season eight, the original final season, was highly negative. I remember already being disappointed with season eight and was hoping that maybe the ending could make up for it. It didn’t. It ended with Dexter faking his death after his step-sister, Deb, was killed and leaving Miami to become a lumberjack. It made me pretty livid. This was not a final season because it didn’t feel like one. Season eight didn’t ruin the whole series since almost every season was a self-contained story, unlike Game of Thrones, where the entire series was ruined by its unbearable final season.

As years went by and everything pop culture was demolishing its way back into our theaters and our televisions, I kept thinking, where is Dexter’s comeback? My wish came true, and we have this new series, Dexter: New Blood. If only my wish to get a sequel to Alien: Covenant would come true, I would be a happy geek. Was I satisfied with this new and hopefully final season? Yes and no.

After faking his death from a Florida hurricane, Dexter ends up in Iron Lake, New York, with a new identity, a new occupation, and a girlfriend who also happens to be the sheriff. It’s been ten years since the events of the last season, and everything is going well for him. Rather than seeing his dead stepfather all the time, he sees his dead step-sister instead. So maybe not all good. He’s doing his best to keep his dark passenger at bay, but eventually, it comes back, and so does his son he left with his girlfriend Hannah, who is now dead. Despite the additional title to the show, this is season nine of the series.

Overall I liked the season. It’s good, but not great. Not the triumphant return I was hoping for, but I was somewhat satisfied. Like several Dexter seasons, it’s sloppy. Especially the final ten minutes because it’s rushed and doesn’t feel genuinely earned. These last ten minutes should’ve at least been expanded to two, three episodes, or maybe even the entire season.

Season two has always felt as close as we could getting a proper Dexter finale. In fact, it could be the best season if it wasn’t for season four having one of the best villains of all time played by the perfect John Lithgow. New Blood has a lot of excellent aspects to it, such as its cast. Everyone is fantastic, especially Julia Jones as the sheriff and the always amazing Clancy Brown as the main villain. He’s not as good as Trinity, Ice Truck Killer, or Lila, but he’s probably right there with Ray Stevenson from season seven. Jennifer Carpenter returns as Deb, and I loved every one of her scenes. Dark and hilarious. Jack Alcott as Harrison is the one character that could’ve been bad and annoying, but he does a good job. The setting is fantastic, with it being a small town and snow being everywhere and Dexter’s cabin out in the woods being a place I would love to live in.

Michael C. Hall owns this role. It’s another one of those born to play characters, and he is just magnificent. The dude oozes charisma, and Dexter amplifies it. He’s one of the best television characters of all time, right next to the likes of Walter White or Johnny Lawrence. I wouldn’t want to see anyone else play this part. Dexter still feels like Dexter, thanks to having the showrunner, Clyde Phillips, who did seasons one through four, considered the best seasons.