‘Dexter’ Season Finale Post-Mortem: What’s Next for Season 8?

Along with last night's explosive 'Homeland' finale, 'Dexter' too staged a very bloody end to its season. We won't spoil the shocking events for those who haven't seen, but suffice to say a number of characters will be greatly changed by the time the series picks up for an eighth and possibly final season. Will there be a time jump? Will certain guest stars return, or will there be a new big bad? Series showrunner Scott Buck weighs in on what to expect in 'Dexter' season 8 inside!

Has Deb completely fallen to the dark side? Will LaGuerta's murder bring Angel out of his swift retirement and open another hole into Dexter's secret life? Will Hannah McKay return to menace Dexter and Deb once more? Last Night's 'Dexter' season finale "Surprise, Motherf---er" left us with a number of questions but series showrunner Scott Buck's recent conversation with The Hollywood Reporter answered a number of burning questions on 'Dexter's' eighth season.

For one, reports that Dexter's eighth season would be its last might be somewhat premature, as Buck indicated that while writing discussions are being held with the end in mind, the decision on a ninth season of the serial-killer smash would ultimately rest with Showtime. To that end, not all of the writing decsions have been hammered out, including any time jumps, Yvonne Strahovski's concrete return, and what will become of Batista now that LaGuerta has fallen.

Buck indicated that the majority of season 8 would understandably focus on Dexter and Deb's relationship, likely now freed of any romantic complications. "[The finale] flips their relationship on end," says Buck. "They're both going to have to take a big step back and re-examine who they are and what they mean to each other and how they're going to go on from here."

But what of additional villains, or explorations of Dexter's past? Buck couldn't confirm that Yvonne Strahovski would return as Hannah, despite her character's escape from prison, but certainly left the door open, and teased the dark omen left on Dexter's porch in the form of the black orchid. As for future villains and new characters, Buck teased the approach of the new season:

Hopefully Yvonne will return, but we're also talking about a couple other big characters who will have a huge affect on Dexter next year. If the plan that we're starting to incorporate now goes through, it will be a very different type of big bad than we've ever seen before. It'll be someone unlike anything we've seen in Dexter's life before.

Buck also revealed that the eighth season would likely involve more flashbacks to Dexter's past and explorations of his identity through "Ghost Harry," but remained mum on how Dexter's journey would conclusively end.

What say you? Did you think 'Dexter's' seventh season did a good job of inverting the relationship between Dexter and Deb? What would you like to see in an eighth season?  Should it be the last for 'Dexter?'