The Dexter prequel show returning characters in Original Sin started, the prequel show has added dividends to Dexter's lore. Now, Dexter: Original Sin has finally answered one weird question that the original show never even addressed.

In Dexter: Original Sin season 1, episode 5, Dexter stopped Harry Morgan (Christian Slater) from killing a criminal he let walk free. Then, in a surprising moment, Dexter actually put Harry on one of his kill tables, complete with plastic wrap and a gauze muzzle to keep him from talking. Aside from how shocking it was to see Dexter kidnap his foster father, the scene also answered a strange mystery about his kill ritual: why Dexter strips all of his victims naked before killing them. Prior to Original Sin, it was just an added bit of creepiness for Dexter's kills, but it now has a very simple explanation.

Dexter: Original Sin Reveals Why Dexter's Victims Are Naked When He Kills Them

Dexter Told Harry That Plastic Wrap Clings Better To Bare Skin Than Clothing

For almost all of Dexter's kills, he strips his victims naked and wraps their bodies in plastic. While the plastic helps secure them to the table to keep them from resisting and provides a way for Dexter to easily clean up any evidence of their deaths, the franchise never explained why they were naked. Original Sin has finally explained that peculiarity: Dexter strips his victims naked because plastic wrap clings better to their bare skin than it does to their clothes. Fully-clothed people would have an easier time wriggling out of the plastic wrap, which would make it easier for them to potentially escape.

Original Sin has finally explained that peculiarity: Dexter strips his victims naked because plastic wrap clings better to their bare skin than it does to their clothes.

Undressing his victims also has a side effect that usually works in Dexter's favor. Being naked makes his victims feel even more exposed and vulnerable, which helps add to the intimidation of being on Dexter's table. Dexter also usually has somewhat intimate moments with his victims where he asks them why they committed their crimes or even asks for advice about his own personal life. Making them even more scared and vulnerable likely helps him ensure his victims are telling the truth, and undressing them helps with that.

Dexter: Original Sin Season 1 Episode 5 Has A Great Reminder About A Major Flaw In His Method

Dexter's Intricate Kill Rooms Take So Much Time To Clean Up

Dexter: Original Sin episode 5 didn't just explain a big part of Dexter's modus operandi, it also exposed a big flaw in his system. It took Dexter a huge amount of time to set up and take down all of his plastic wrap in his kill rooms, which nearly got him caught in Original Sin. Even though Dexter didn't have to clean up anything associated with Mad-Dog's (Joe Pantoliano) death, like his body and blood, it still took nearly 15 minutes to take down all the plastic, replace all the things he had moved, and hide before Miami Metro arrived.

Interestingly, Original Sin wasn't the first to show how the length of time Dexter has to spend cleaning up kill rooms negatively affects him. At the start of Dexter season 4, Dexter had to expedite his cleanup process after Rita told him to get ear medication for Harrison. Because he had to hurry, and because he lost his memory in a car crash, Dexter spent a few hours searching for a misplaced corpse, which he had temporarily hidden in a punching bag. If Dexter's cleanup ritual wasn't so involved, he would have had time to deal with that body properly.

The sheer amount of time Dexter spends setting up and taking down his kill rooms shows how committed he is to the golden rule of the Code of Harry: don't get caught. His meticulously planned plastic sheets help him ensure not even a drop of blood or a scrap of evidence is ever left behind. In fact, the few times he's gotten closest to being caught were because he didn't kill someone in a kill room. Even though they're a major time commitment, Dexter: Original Sin has proven that his kill rooms are an integral part of the Bay Harbor Butcher's success.