"Born Free" is the twelfth episode of season one and first-season finale of the American television drama series Dexter, which aired on December 17, 2006 on Showtime in the United States.

[1] The episode also aired on May 4, 2008 on CTV in Canada;[2] on May 14, 2008 on FX in the UK;[3] on September 28, 2008 on Channel Ten in Australia; and on March 21, 2011 on STAR World in India.

[5] Based on the novel Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay, the season featured many differences to the original source, mainly in the lead-up to and revelation of the identity of the "Ice Truck Killer".

After kidnapping Debra Morgan (Jennifer Carpenter), Rudy Cooper (Christian Camargo) is in the final stages of his plan to reunite with his long-lost brother.

Since the killer had always sent secret messages to Dexter, he searched his apartment for clues that Rudy could have left, finding a picture of the shipping container where his mother was killed.

In a final plea, Paul calls Rita and tells her to search their house for a shoe, which he believes came off when Dexter knocked him out.

He also witnessed the murder of their mother but did not repress the memory; instead, he grew up in a mental institution and was treated for antisocial personality disorder.

As Doakes and the police close in on the house, Brian escapes through a trap door, and Dexter is left with Debra, having appeared to have saved her.

In the middle of the night, Brian breaks in and attempts to stab Debra, only to find a prosthetic body in her place; Dexter then chokes him unconscious with a garrote.

"Born Free" was written by Daniel Cerone and executive producer Melissa Rosenberg, and was directed by Michael Cuesta.

Dexter hesitantly kills Brian instead of letting him escape, Debra does not discover her brother's secret, and LaGuerta is not present at all in the confrontation.

[11] The first season attracted on average 1.96 million American viewers, including live and DVR viewing off the premium channel's main feed.

[13] Hall submitted the episode for consideration for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, but was not ultimately nominated.

Eric Goldman of IGN said that "Born Free" was "an intense episode that brought the Ice Truck Killer story to a satisfying conclusion."