Set in Miami, the series centers on Dexter Morgan, a forensic technician specializing in bloodstain pattern analysis for the fictional Miami Metro Police Department, who leads a secret parallel life as a vigilante serial killer, hunting down murderers who have not been adequately punished by the justice system due to corruption or legal technicalities.
According to Nielsen Media Research, the episode was seen by an estimated 2.18 million household viewers and gained a 1.1 ratings share among adults aged 18–49.
After another nightmare, Debra (Jennifer Carpenter) asks Dexter (Michael C. Hall) over his role in Arthur Mitchell's case and Rita's death.
After another police raid, Isaak (Ray Stevenson) concludes that they are not aware of Viktor's death, suggesting that either Dexter and/or Louis worked to kill him.
To get the police out of the Koshka's back, Isaak and George (Jason Gedrick) convince a bartender to commit suicide with Mike Anderson's gun and take the blame for his murder, promising to secure the financial future of his family.
The angle here being, of course, Deb more or less accepting that Dexter's dark deeds fill a base societal need; perhaps even opening up the avenue of them working as a team in episodes ahead.
Club gave the episode a "B+" grade and wrote, "For the most part, I still think this season of Dexter is shaping up very strongly, but I'm maintaining a healthy skepticism about Hannah McKay until I can get an idea of what her character is meant to bring to the show.
One has to wonder how many more turns the dynamic can take in future episodes, but for now the characters remain engaging as ever, while the Ukrainian gangster plot largely simmers in the background.
"[6] Richard Rys of Vulture wrote, "Based on her awakening this season so far, that might lead to some conflicted feelings next week, but it likely won't last.
I think she really wounds him when she asks whether he is “capable of love.”"[8] Drusilla Moorhouse of Zap2it wrote, "Hannah and Dexter reconnect at the station, where she is helping with the Wayne Randall investigation.
"[11] Matt Richenthal of TV Fanatic gave the episode a 4.4 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "I had a few nits to pick over the portrayal of Speltzer and how relatively easy it made for Deb to come around.
The series has successfully pushed Season 6 out of my mind and is fulfilling every expectation I had for what would happen once Deb learned of the Dark Passenger.