"There are moments when I feel the mask is slipping. "

Dexter: The Second Season picks up about a month after the events of Season One's conclusion. Serial killer/vigilante Dexter Morgan (Michael C. Hall – Six Feet Under, Gamer) thinks that after the Ice Truck Killer was caught, his life will calm down a bit, but scuba divers discover the large cache of trash bags littering the ocean floor that contain the remains of the dismembered corpses that were victims of Dexter's vigilante justice. Dexter is dubbed the Bay Harbor Butcher by local media, and an FBI task force led by Special Agent Frank Lundy (Keith Carradine – Kung Fu, Deadwood, Spider-Man: The New Animated Series) is dispatched conveniently to the same office where Dexter still works as a blood spatter expert alongside fellow forensics specialist Vince Masuka (CS Lee – Chuck).

(Click "Read more" below for SPOILERS GALORE!)

Now firmly under surveillance by a suspicious Sgt Doakes (Erik King – Oz, National Treasure), his crimes investigated by his own sister Debra (Jennifer Carpenter – The Exorcism of Emily Rose, Quarantine), and recognized as an addict by his girlfriend Rita (Julie Benz – Roswell, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Halo 2, Supernatural, Saw V, Punisher: War Zone, Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day), Dexter's normal vigilante activities have become increasingly difficult. The main plot arc for Dexter: The Complete Second Season is the investigation and resolution of Dexter's Bay Harbor Butcher persona, but this show really thrives on its several intertwined subplots:

In the Season Two premiere, Paul (Mark Pellegrino – Burn Notice, Chuck, Ghost Whisperer, Lost) Rita's ex-husband and baby-daddy, who would not have been in prison were it not for Dexter's machinations, is killed in prison in an inmate altercation.

Dexter's metaphorical "addiction" that he tries to abate by attending Narcotics Anonymous meetings at the behest of Rita results in him meeting his sponsor Lila (Jaime Murray – The Mentalist), who instead of helping Dexter avoid his addiction, invites him to meet it head on and investigate the origins of his dark past. This intertwines with Dexter's literal origin, as he confronts Jimenez (Tony Amendola – Stargate SG-1, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Dollhouse) one of his mother's killers and thereby discovers that Harry Morgan (James Remar – The X Files, Blade: Trinity, Battlestar Galactica, Justice League Unlimited, Jericho, The Batman, The Spectacular Spider-Man) was not only his foster father, but was probably his biological father as well.

After a failed attempt at a rebound relationship with a writer, Debra re-rebounds into the perceivedly safe arms of Lundy, that while actually safe, he is not interested in a commitment as his one true commitment is to his job, which takes him all over the country.

LaGuerta (Lauren Vélez – Oz, Medium) gets her lieutenant shield back after her replacement is found to be useless and too busy dealing with her personal issues.

Lila is a complete psycho the whole time but serves to move the plot forward quite nicely. After she ruins Dexter's relationship with Rita, she frames Angel (David Zayas – Oz, Burn Notice) for rape.

Doakes' paranoia drives him to discover Dexter's collection of blood slides containing the blood of all his victims and takes it to Haiti where he has a contact who can analyze them. He's put on the list of suspects as he's not present to be questioned while away in Haiti. Doakes confronts Dexter who locks him in the remote cabin belonging to Jimenez.

In the end, Rita finds Doakes, who is subsequently killed at the cabin in a gas explosion and is successfully framed as the Bay Harbor Butcher. Lila tries to continue to be a psycho, so Dexter follows her to Europe and does what he does best.

Extras
While there aren't any special features actually on the 3-disc set, the producers of this release smartly moved all the special features to BD Live, meaning that instead of taking up more space on your shelf, all the extras are yours to peruse online on your same internet-connected Blu-ray player. This allows them to add additional content in the future to any release. So whether now or in the near future, you'll find BD Live bonuses of:

• "Blood Fountains" Featurette
• Dark Defender Series
• Podcasts
• Two episodes of The United States of Tara
• "and more…"

  Dexter is one of the smartest shows on television. The writing, acting, and production are all top notch, and after Three seasons, continues to thrill. Now Showtime and Paramount have released Dexter: The Complete Second Season on Blu-ray so we can all enjoy this darkly dreamed masterpiece of television in 1080p resolution so as to appreciate each tiny spatter, and in full 5.1 Dolby Digital True-HD surround sound so as to best appreciate the nuance of each scream of pleasure or pain as well as the obligatory explosions.

  ComicsOnline gives Dexter: The Second Season on Blu-ray 5 out of 5 bloody successful stabs at vigilante justice.