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Dexter: New Blood: What the critics are saying about the revival series

Verdicts for Michael C Hall’s return as TV’s favourite serial killer are not favourable

Sam Moore
Tuesday 02 November 2021 11:56 EDT
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First full trailer for Dexter: New Blood

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Dexter: New Blood sees the return of the eponymous serial killer to TV screens for the first time since 2013.

Michael C Hall returns as the beloved character Dexter Morgan who was last seen faking his own death and taking on a new identity.

Dexter: New Blood picks up 10 years after the original series ended with him assuming the identity of Jim Lindsay and working as a shopkeeper. Dexter has also suppressed his urge to kill.

Jennifer Carpenter also reprises her role in the revival as Dexter’s sister, Debra, despite the fact she died at the end of the original show’s season eight.

The original series initially received critical acclaim, especially for Hall’s performance and it did well in the ratings. But fans started to become dissatisfied after the conclusion of season four, which co-starred John Lithgow as the Trinity Killer.

The reviews are now in and the critics are not impressed. Read a roundup below.

Rolling Stone

“Neither [Hall] nor New Blood come to feel sharp enough to justify his return as anything but a nostalgia play for a property whose finale likely preempted a lot of nostalgia. Whatever conclusion Phillips writes for this miniseries almost by definition has to be better than Lumberjack Dexter, but is clearing the lowest of bars enough to justify returning to our man and all his old rituals?”

Michael C Hall in ‘Dexter: New Blood'
Michael C Hall in ‘Dexter: New Blood' (YouTube/SHOWTIME)

Indiewire

“Like Dexter being lured back to his dark passenger, there are temptations. The father/son story shows an interest in exploring Dexter’s natural vs learned duality with an earnestness not glimpsed since the first few seasons. Could Harrison hold the answers Dexter has been searching for all his life? Can he save his son and, in turn, himself? Whether New Blood answers these questions or not, only you can tell if the query is enough of a draw. Dexter is still Dexter. Let your conscience be your guide.”

Entertainment Weekly

“It’s kind of fun seeing Dexter again, with its serial killer-meets-dad jokes charm. As far as nostalgic do-overs go, this one may not be perfect, but at the very least it’s not dead on arrival.”

IGN

“Dexter returns, reborn with a few tweaks and fidgets to the formula, but not so as to mask the malicious fun of the hallmarks from the old show. Whether or not, contextually, this is all just a shot at a do-over feels irrelevant because New Blood’s mix of old and new holds a ton of promise.”

Dexter: New Blood premieres on Sky Atlantic and NOW TV on 7 November.

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