Dexter Detention (Dexter's Laboratory)

"Dexter Detention"
Dexter, maybe next time you’ll think before shouting an answer to a test question.
Part of Season: 2 Episode Number: 19c Air Date: November 19, 1997 Director: Rob Renzetti Previous episode: Now That's a Stretch Next episode: Don't Be a Baby (Broadcast Order) Topped Off (Production Order)

"Dexter Detention" is the third and final half of the 19th episode of Season 2 of Dexter's Laboratory, which first aired on November 19, 1997.

Plot

Dexter is given detention after accidentally shouting out the answer to a test question.

Why It Deserves Detention and Solitary Confinement

1. Dexter's teacher, Miss Wimple, is somewhat of a pervert. The way she acts toward Dexter makes her sound like she has a romantic connection with him.
   • Given how she just flat out sends Dexter to detention for being "harassed" during a test, she should have been fired.
   • She could've also just skipped grading that question as well.
2. This episode tries to make fun of detention, but it's poorly handled, as it is pretty much another Dexter torture episode, with Dexter sent to detention after accidentally shouting out an answer to a classmate, and later gets confined in a tight space after a bully made him mess up his chalk writing.
3. While the classmate was also clearly wrong for asking a question to the test and should have been punished instead of Dexter, Dexter himself could have just controlled his impulse and handled the situation better by simply reporting the classmate to Miss Wimple instead.
   • The student who attempted to tell Miss Wimple about the answer is nothing but a cheater in this episode.
4. There's this huge bully in the detention room who is ubber unlikable, he punches Dexter hard for no reason when he first sees him, then later shoves him while they were writing on the chalkboard for also no reason. Even worst is that he gets no compresses for his actions, and while he does later on add Dexter as to escape, the huge bully never apologized to him for how he treated Dexter in the first place
5. The Detention Warden can be seen as harsh with the students who don’t follow the rules and puts "criminal" students in solitary confinement, which is a very small tight space on the floor. Even Miss Trunchbull was never this harsh towards Matilda Wormwood.
   • The running gag of him saying "criminal" is also very annoying.
6. Plothole: Why would a school have a solitary confinement section, let alone one that's only as big as Dexter?
7. In addition to the episode's mean-spirited nature, it is also predictable, as it is very easy to tell that Dexter is going to get mistreated in many ways due to this episode's cruel nature. Even the mistreat moments are predictable, notably during the chalkboard scene and the mere-moment that the large bully turns to Dexter, you can easily tell that he's going to do something very cruel to Dexter, and it falls flat as a result.
8. The detention room feels more like a prison than an actual detention room.
9. Escaping from detention can never end well, as it’s shown when Dexter ends up in prison.
10. A bad ending with Dexter instantly sent to prison after his failed attempt to escape detention.
11. This episode is not only very mean-sprite and harsh, but it's also a humongous wasted potential of an other-wise great and interesting premises, during the first couple of minutes of the episode, the plot does focus on Dexter in detention while debating whether he should help out the other kids or find ways to escape himself. It gives it the potential of being a fun episode with numerous hilarious slapstick and creative writing that involves the detention to match as both he and the other kids also face numerous obstacles antagonizing them, such as the Detention Warden, while also implementing some heart-warming elements such as Dexter befriending the kids that are also in detention who have their own personalities, which the episode itself could have easily been about. But instead, its a mean-spirited Dexter tourter episode.

Redeeming Qualities

1. Dexter befriends the other detention students, and we can understand why they would want to escape from this so not normal detention.
2. The Morse Code is pretty interesting and shows us that Dexter can learn more and become smarter.
3. The episode started good, until the moment when Dexter accidentally shouted out the test answer.
4. Both the Detention Warden and the large bully are only seen in this episode, and are never seen or mention again.

Reception

Despite having more positive than negatives, the episode was panned by a huge chunk of fans, all of which criticize this episode due to all of the cruel and harsh treatment Dexter gets though out this episode, many fans called it one of the worst episodes in all of Dexter's Laboratory.

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