thrasheryeah, i looked into it deeper.
Dexter started off as a one dimensional character. A serial killer who kills killers. He is incapable of love or emotion (except toward his sister). Even with Rita he didnt really feel the connection (altho after her death, in the season 5 opener when he beats a guy to death and freaks out crying was pretty powerful, shows he had some sort of feelings).
Dexter has been caught multiple times as wildfire said, he just manages to figure out a way get away. I really felt like the final 4 seasons were good, they were just going in a different direction. Showing dexter develop into more of a "human". Season 5 was a powerful season IMO, for very personal reasons. It also was the beginning of the "new dexter", making some sort of connection with lumen. Seasons 6 and 7 were intense with deb being dragged into dexters secret life, and it kind of drove him closer to normality. His character has grown from a one dimensional character because of those seasons. He was starting to rid himself of his dark passenger, and while it woulda been a hacky kind of ending, I think most long time fans of the show wanted to see him end up happy with his son and hannah... and im glad they didnt go that way.
Sure, there were some plot holes... for example, despite being in a non-extradition country, harrison has been left with a fugitive, who will still have people looking for her. If you pay attention tho, you can find plot holes in most movies/shows (terminator 2... one of the best action movies ever... why the hell did the T-1000 not just disguise himself as the cop he kills early on for the majority of the movie? he just has a uniform. what if another cop spotted him? needless attention. sorry, i just noticed that recently lol)
Anyway, back on track. I liked the ending. By losing deb he has a moment of clarity, that simply by being who, and what he is that he will be putting people he loves (hannah and harrison) in danger. He inadvertently made his father kill himself, was responsible for the death of deb, rita, dr.vogel, and zach. By faking his death he felt like he was protecting them, and seeing the character go back from sort of a soft-hero that he had become to dark anti-hero where he started was actually kinda cool.
I know everyone wont dig it, but i enjoyed it.
good analysis thrasher...and i'm really glad you didn't bring up season 3, worst by far haha.
but I'm not sure how I felt about the ending, I mean...if he really had to do what he did I think he should have let himself die in the hurricane. I mean, what was the point of him faking his death? Now he just has to live with the regret of all that he had done and still know that Hannah and Harrison were still out there. And it's like, if he had to continue killing in Argentina I think by then he would have learned from his past mistakes (all of which were in a way simple and up to his control). Honestly I think his decision was pretty selfish and it's not like he would have ever harmed either one of them personally.