Warning! This article contains SPOILERS for Dexter: Original Sin episode 1.
This article contains discussion of suicide.
The new prequel series Dexter: Original Sin examines Dexter Morgan’s (Patrick Gibson) earliest days as a serial killer, and it helps explain why Harry (Christian Slater) never told Dexter’s sister Debra (Molly Brown) about her murderous brother. Dexter: Original Sin is walking a very fine line between the established story of Dexter Morgan and carving its own path for the franchise. Already, Original Sin proved that Dexter survived New Blood‘s ending, and it also retconned Harry Morgan’s family in Dexter. Most of the show, however, fits well into what the original series established.
One of the ways Dexter: Original Sin is fitting in with the original series’ canon is by keeping Deb from knowing that her brother is a serial killer. Deb wouldn’t learn Dexter’s true identity until the end of Dexter season 6, so Original Sin had to keep her in the dark about her brother. As a prequel series, however, Original Sin has also gotten the chance to better explain why Harry never told Debra about Dexter becoming a serial killer even in the early days of his killings. As it turns out, Harry had two very simple – and very good – reasons to hide Dexter’s identity from Debra.
Harry Didn’t Tell Debra In Order To Protect Both Her & Dexter
If Debra Didn’t Know About Dexter’s Murders, She Wouldn’t Be Legally Culpable
The main reason Harry didn’t tell Deb about Dexter’s homicidal tendencies was to protect her. If Debra truly didn’t know about Dexter’s life as a serial killer, then even if he was caught, she wouldn’t be criminally liable. Harry, on the other hand, would have gone to prison as Dexter’s accomplice if his son had ever been arrested. Additionally, not telling Deb about Dexter added another layer of protection for Dexter, as there was one less person in the world who knew about his secret and could potentially let it slip.
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Keeping Dexter’s dark passenger a secret also helped protect Debra in a completely different way. Because she didn’t know Dexter was a serial killer, Deb just thought he was her weird older brother, not a murderous monster. Keeping her in the dark let Debra and Dexter have a good relationship as siblings, and it let them remain as friends until she finally found out. Harry also spared Debra from having to carry Dexter’s secret for him, which would have weighed on her conscience just as heavily as it weighed on his.
Harry Was Ashamed That He Helped Dexter Become A Killer
Harry Thought He Turned Dexter Into A Monster & Eventually Killed Himself Because Of It
The other reason Harry never told Debra – or anyone besides Dr. Vogel for that matter – about Dexter is because he was ashamed of what he had done. Harry thought that teaching Dexter the code and letting him kill Nurse Mary essentially cemented him as a serial killer, and he later wondered if he could have saved Dexter from becoming a monster. At the end of Dexter: Original Sin episode 1, Harry even wept because he let Dexter kill his first victim. It was essentially his deepest, darkest secret, so it makes sense that Harry wouldn’t have shared his life’s greatest regret with his daughter.
It was essentially his deepest, darkest secret, so it makes sense that Harry wouldn’t have shared his life’s greatest regret with his daughter.
Dexter: Original Sin also hasn’t even shown the full depth of the guilt Harry had about what he did for Dexter. In the original series, Dexter learned that Harry’s guilt for the code and turning Dexter into a monster eventually got so bad that it caused him to commit suicide by overdosing on his heart medication. There’s still quite a bit left of Harry Morgan’s story and his growing shame over his adopted son left for Dexter: Original Sin to show on-screen, and his decision to hide it from Deb will only get more understandable as the show continues.
Dexter: Original Sin explores the origins of Dexter Morgan as he transitions from student to serial killer in 1991 Miami. Guided by his father, Dexter channels his dark urges through a moral code while starting a forensics internship at the Miami Metro Police Department.
- Release Date
- December 15, 2024
- Network
- Paramount+ with Showtime
- Character(s)
- Harry Morgan , Dexter Morgan , Debra Morgan , Maria LaGuerta , Vince Masuka , Bobby Watt , Angel Batista , Aaron Spencer , The Inner Voice of Dexter (voice) , CSI Chief Tanya Martin
- Producers
- Clyde Phillips , Michael C. Hall , Robert Lloyd Lewis , Mary Leah Sutton , Tony Hernandez , Lilly Burns