Does varje säsong av Dexter ha ett övergripande tema?

Ja, varje säsong har ett tema. Från ett inlägg av EnormousHatred på reddit :

Season 1: Individualism. In the beginning Dexter followed Harry's code to the letter and never really let his own feelings get in the way. He never really questioned a way of life that came from within. Brian represented the antithesis of Harry's code; he was a free spirit with no rules. By the end of the season, Dexter's strict adherence to Harry's teachings ended up costing him his brother, "the only one he ever wanted to let go".

Season 2: Possession. Lila was the embodiment of dependence, she coveted Dexter to the point that it nearly brought down everyone around her. The opposite action is to let go, to free oneself of the bindings, the vices that sustain yet also chain us. Dexter struggled with this when he had to make his toughest decision yet regarding Doakes: "Kill me now or set me free!" It was either give in to his greatest weakness, the need to kill, or set him free and ultimately risk losing everything. Doakes brought up suicide, and even planted seeds of regret and shame in Dexter's mind, causing him to consider turning himself in—other ways of letting go. (Addiction lies in this same sphere so you were pretty much on the money here.)

Season 3: Trust. This mostly goes hand-in-hand with friendship, but it extends beyond that somewhat. There were parallels drawn between Dexter's relationships with Miguel and Rita. Friendship and marriage are ultimately built on the same foundation of trust.

Season 4: Responsibility. With family comes a great need for responsibility and priority (see also care, neglect, nurturing). Dexter eventually learned the hard way that you can't just make perfunctory appearances and not expect things that have been built up to degrade. (On a side note I think this was eventually illustrated in a clumsy way with the twist ending, but at least the point was clear.)

Season 5: Altruism. Story-wise it was sort of an extension of the last season because Dexter was dealing with guilt over his brief and neglectful marriage. The things he did for Lumen were essentially an act of contrition. He couldn't make things right with Rita, so he took in a battered and broken individual and selflessly took on her own darkness. He might have hunted these same individuals had he not met Lumen, but in the end he took his hands off the steering wheel and let her solve her own brief taking-on of the "Dark Passenger".

Season 6: Faith. Dexter never really takes on a spiritual side, but he gains a respect for the concept of faith. He didn't start to question whether there was a "God" per se, but Brother Sam was able to help him discover a capacity to trust that things will work out when they lie outside your control. Control is important to Dexter, so when Harrison was in the hospital, he felt helpless because there was literally nothing he could do but wait. Travis represented the dark side of faith by taking his Lord's name in vain. He was a person who chose to interpret mere words in a radical, concrete fashion, absolving himself of responsibility by saying this is "how it's supposed to be", while missing the bigger picture unlike Sam. Ironically, Dexter found himself hoisted by own petard when he decided to faithfully disregard the minute possibility that Debra would visit him at the church.

Season 7: Love. Pretty obvious so far, though I don't mean that in a bad way. The dangers of love make good and bad people alike suspend rationality and integrity; Debra's love for Dexter is great enough that it drives her to cover for his heinous crimes; Dexter can't bring himself to take out Hannah despite fitting his code quite well; Isaak chooses to pursue a frivolous vendetta, ignoring the fact that Viktor, objectively, committed some terrible acts. More on this one as the season churns on...

En annan användare, PunchingClouzot, svarade:

Pretty interesting. I'll bet Season 8 will be "Sacrifice" to complete the pattern.

I would argue that, if EnormousHatred's theory is correct - and I wouldn't doubt it - there's a an arc on the discovery for human empathy. Individualism being his status quo, possession a natural step to follow which ended with a need to settle hence "trust" (the first positive step). Everything else leads towards a more empathic character BUT his nature cannot be denied hence why a conflict between his new self and his old dark passenger can lead to one ultimate altruistic act - sacrifice.

Kanske var Dexter helt mänsklig hela tiden och Harry lurade på att Dexter blev till en marsvin för Vogel. Dexter blev hjärntvättad från en litet barn till dess att han först dödades vid 19. Hans far visas under hela showet och kommenterar Dexters motiv och metoder. Det kan vara hur tittaren blir medveten om detta. Kanske kan Dexter älska normalt men lärde sig att tro annars. Ju mer tid han spenderade i sitt "täckliv" insåg Dexter att det var faktiskt vad han ville och kunde göra för sig själv. Förra säsongen summerar detta ganska bra. Scenen där han leder höger in i orkanen på Livets skiva kan symbolisera en rening, eller "dop" och han är född igen till ett nytt liv. (Tidigare årstider av showen visar Dexter att försöka förstå religion och tro.) Dexters båt förstördes, precis som det var hans tidigare jag som hade skapats och hans liv återställdes till en plats och scenarie målat med tidigare händelser som skulle ha stannat med honom . # 1 motorsågar (vad han fick lära sig "gjorde" honom som han var) # 2 berg (sista samtal med Deb som hon diskuterade klättra dem) ... vilket leder till Dexters sista scen som arbetar som en timmerhugg i bergen. Kanske kämpade han för att landa innan han landade i Oregon och hade amnesi, inte låta honom komma ihåg sitt gamla liv men några ledtrådar om vem han var / var han tillhörde ...