Dexter: Resurrection Episode 3 is full of dark intrigue as Harrison is interrogated, Dexter makes his first post-coma kill, and a new imposter arises.
Showrunner: Clyde Phillips
Genre: Crime Drama, Mystery
Number of Season 1 episodes: 10
Episode 3 Release Date: July 18, 2025
Where to watch: Stream it on Paramount+ with SHOWTIME
The Dexter: Resurrection season premiere set a bloody tone for its debut season with an unexpected kill and some unexpected self-evolution. Episode 3, “Backseat Driver”, very much continues that tone by sprinkling in more adrenaline and the perfect amount of dark intrigue as “Dr. Patrick Bateman” officially returns, Dexter makes his first post-coma kill, and a new imposter arises.
Dexter: Resurrection Episode 3 finds Dexter (Michael C. Hall) still grappling with who he is after his moment of control over his Dark Passenger as he prepares to take down The Imposter in his first post-coma kill. That process, he finds, offers clarity on his true identity.
Meanwhile, after notification that Dexter’s truck has been found in New York City, Angel (David Zayas) retires from Miami Metro Homicide and sets out in search of his friend, while Harrison (Jack Alcott) keeps it cool under the heat of interrogation.
Keep reading for this week’s full recap and review!
Harrison faces interrogation
It’s a good thing Dexter cleaned up behind Harrison after his kill; Detective Wallace (Kadia Saraf, of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit) is on the case, and she’s no normal detective. She has her own dark intrigue: an odd knack for seeing things others don’t and solving murders with accuracy.
In fact, if it weren’t for Dexter, we might’ve seen an arrest in this episode.
During his interrogation, Harrison admits the murder victim preferred to use him for errands. After finding Rohypnol in the deceased’s suitcase, Harrison is pressured on whether he procured the drugs, which he vehemently denies.
He isn’t exactly a suspect, but he’s also not cleared as one. As he talks his way around their questions, Harrison finds the perfect opportunity to come clean when Det. Wallace tells him what she thinks happened, describing the murder with accuracy, telling Harrison she thinks the reason he isn’t seen on camera leaving the hotel that night is because he killed Ryan (Brian Lillis, of Crossroads) and stayed to clean up after.
Without so much as blinking or breaking a sweat, Harrison confesses that he never left the hotel because he’s homeless and is squatting in vacant rooms. His witness? His co-worker and friend Elsa (Emilia Suárez).
Harrison has dodged a bullet … for now.
Dexter gears up for his first post-coma kill
Dexter is working as a UrCar driver. In addition to getting to know the city, it also makes a good cover story when it’s time to stalk his victims. The more he obsesses over the one he’s dubbed The Imposter, the more he embodies his dark intrigue in gearing up for his first post-coma kill. He orders and secures vials of the sedative M99, and it’s clear to us that “Dr. Patrick Bateman” is back and ready for business.
During a family dinner with Blessing’s (Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine, of Smoke) family, Dexter is questioned on why he left Miami. Startled as to how Blessing’s wife ever knew he lived there, he learns she did a background check on him. Armed with a copy, he uses the service to locate The Imposter, Ronald Schmidt (Marc Menchaca, of American Rust), known as Red at work.
The next morning, Dexter waits for him to leave, then breaks into his apartment in search of proof that Red is, indeed, The Dark Passenger serial killer. As he searches for The Imposter’s trophies, he talks to Harry (James Remar) and reminisces over the fact he used to live similarly: sparse, with no attachments.
He locates Red’s trophies—the IDs of all his victims—in the ceiling but not before cutting himself on a piece of metal. Significant? Maybe. If they took time to show us the cut, it’s important in some way.
After finding out where Red will be the next day, Dexter makes plans for his first post-coma kill.
One imposter falls and another arises
As Dexter poses as bait and waits in his car to pick up Red after work, he suddenly drops the syringe on the floor when a bystander knocks on his window and startles him. He struggles to pick it up as Red hops in the backseat.
Dexter plays along, humorously pretending to be afraid when Red strangles him with a wire cable. This is Dexter, though, so you know he’s prepared. First post-coma kill: imminent.
On the kill table, Dexter tells him, “You had no right to come along and take [your victims’] lives, or my name.”
“Who are you?” Red asks him.
After a brief pause, the Bay Harbor Butcher replies, “I’m Dexter,” before plunging his knife deep into Red’s chest, ensuring the fall of The Imposter.
Before dying, Red asks Dexter if he’s the one who broke into his apartment and left “the invitation”. So, Dexter goes through his backpack and finds an invite to a dinner party for “like-minded individuals who share similar passions … a chance to share your craft with colleagues. Yours is a lonely path. Let’s walk it together.” He also finds a box of money as a gesture of good faith.
Could it be? A dinner party of (and for) serial killers? Is it really possible for Dexter to keep killing and have friends to share secrets with along the way? Only in New York! Whoever sent this is clearly wealthy and willing to use their money to secure the trophies of renowned serial killers.
Dexter’s dark intrigue is piqued, and you can bet he’ll be attending this MurderCon of serial killers, but not before he discards Red’s body in an incinerator in a part of town no drivers or cops will enter. As the fire starts to roar, Dexter realizes a thumb print is required for entry into the dinner party, so he quickly retrieves one of the garbage bags and lucks up. He pulls out a hand and breaks off a thumb.
Bon appétit. One imposter falls and another arises.
Dexter: Resurrection Episode 3 Review
Episode 3 is full of so much dark intrigue, it’s hard to look away. It also reveals so much to Dexter and sets us up for this curious little dinner party … but first, another dinner party.
It’s nostalgic for him to be around Blessing’s family but also bitter. It reminds him of what he once had as well as what he has lost. It’s a part of him that’s forever gone, unlike his Dark Passenger, whom he knows is aching to be let out.
We also see Dexter choose to let go of Harrison in a way. Harry encourages him to go talk to his son, telling him he needs someone in his life, and Dexter feels pulled to do so but evolves in another moment of realization.
Sure, Harrison needs someone in his life, but it doesn’t have to be the father he believes to be dead. Dexter doesn’t know how he’ll react, especially right now, to seeing his father alive, but for the time being, he chooses to step back after seeing Harrison happy with Elsa.
Episode 3 also finds Dexter in a precarious position that forces him to release his Dark Passenger in full force; and when the post-coma kill finally happens, it’s an oh-so-sweet release that even we, as viewers, can feel. It’s climactic. It’s also a moment of awakening.
Is it really possible for him to have like-minded friends with which to share his truth? And will he remain an imposter for this dinner party, or will he come clean? No pun intended, but we’re dying to know. We’ve certainly been set up to stroll right into an enticing Episode 4.
Episode 3 of Dexter: Resurrection is currently streaming on Paramount+ with SHOWTIME. New episodes will be released weekly every Friday through September 12, 2025.
