The debut episode of Dexter: Resurrection picks up with Harrison Morgan attempting to build a normal life in New York City, but quickly confirms he cannot escape the violent legacy of his father. The episode, titled “A Beating Heart…”, shows Harrison committing his first intentional murder, mirroring Dexter’s own code by targeting a sexual predator.
Harrison’s New Life in New York
After the events of Dexter: New Blood, Harrison is trying to move on, working as a bellhop at the Empire Hotel. He believes his father is dead, having shot him in the previous series’ finale. On the surface, he is building a new life, making friends with a co-worker named Elsa and trying to fit into the rhythm of the city. However, this attempt at a peaceful existence is shattered when he is pushed to his limits.
The Trigger for Violence
The catalyst for Harrison’s dark turn occurs within the hotel. He encounters a situation where a guest, Ryan Foster, is attempting to assault a woman named Shauna. Harrison realizes that Foster drugged the woman and orchestrated the attack. Confronted with a clear predator and a potential victim, Harrison’s own dark urges surface, leading him to intervene with lethal force.
He kills Foster using a toilet tank lid, attacking him repeatedly in a brutal crime of passion. The show makes it clear that the victim was not an innocent man, but a repeat sex offender, making him a target that would have fit Dexter Morgan’s own code.
Cleaning Up the Mess
In the aftermath, Harrison demonstrates he has learned from his father, however imperfectly. He wraps the body in a shower curtain to contain the blood spatter and disposes of the remains. This meticulous, though novice, clean-up is a direct echo of Dexter’s methods. However, Harrison makes mistakes. A hotel sanitation worker later discovers the body parts, alerting the police and starting an investigation.
Detective Claudette Wallace is assigned to the case and quickly proves to be highly observant. She deduces that the killer used the shower curtain and identifies the murder weapon, noting the killing was likely a crime of passion. This puts Harrison immediately in the crosshairs of a competent police investigation.
Dexter’s Return and Discovery
Unbeknownst to Harrison, his father is alive. Dexter Morgan awakens from a ten-week coma after being shot and learns from a physiotherapist about a murder at the Empire Hotel. The details of the kill—targeting a predator and the clean-up attempt—immediately lead Dexter to deduce that Harrison is the culprit.
Dexter escapes from the hospital and travels to New York to find his son. He secretly investigates the crime scene himself, finding and correcting the blood spatter evidence that Harrison missed. He seems almost proud of his son’s efforts, smiling when he realizes Harrison used the shower curtain, but knows the young man is in over his head.
The Weight of Guilt
Unlike his father, Harrison is visibly tormented by his actions. He is haunted by hallucinations of his victim and experiences immense guilt. The episode shows him struggling with the moral weight of taking a life, a stark contrast to Dexter’s usual detached and remorseless approach to killing.
A fan review of the episode on IMDb highlighted the emotional depth, noting the premiere had “some emotional parts which added to how great the episode was.” This internal conflict sets up a central theme for the series: whether Harrison is destined to follow his father’s path or if he can cope with the darkness in a different way.
A Father’s Mission
While Harrison grapples with his actions, Dexter’s mission becomes clear. He tells his own dark passenger, manifested as his adoptive father Harry, that he wants to protect Harrison from a distance rather than directly re-enter his life and disrupt it further. He rents an apartment in the city and begins watching over Harrison, setting the stage for their eventual, inevitable reunion.
The premiere firmly re-establishes the core dynamic of the franchise, showing that the “dark passenger” is not Dexter’s alone, but a legacy he has passed on. As one recap noted, “Harrison follows his father’s footsteps in Dexter: Resurrection,” confirming that the son is now actively walking a path he once only feared.
Also Read: 11 Things You Didn’t Notice in Dexter: Resurrection
