'Dexter' Review: You Will Love This Serial Killer

It is not often that a promo for a television show causes spine-tingling chills. In fact, I don’t think one has ever affected me that way – until this summer, that is. The show is Dexter and it has had me captivated since the day I first discovered it during the television writers’ strike of 2007-08. To fully explain what caused the chills might require providing spoilers to those who have not seen the first four seasons, but I’ll do my best to stop short of that. (Do not follow the links to the promo or the longer trailer unless you have already seen Season 4 in its entirety.)

Dexter is an hour-long drama following the adventures of serial killer, Dexter Morgan. The fifth season of the series premieres on Showtime September 26. If you are not already watching, I highly recommend you purchase or rent (or stream or download or whatever you do) the first four seasons of the series before watching Season Five. Without seeing the development of the characters and storyline in seasons 1-4 you will never fully appreciate the show.

I discovered Dexter a few years ago on CBS when the lack of original content resulting from the writers’ strike sent the networks to reality shows and cable for available programming. CBS “borrowed” the first season of Dexter from their sister network, Showtime. Before seeing the show, I was curious, but skeptical that viewers could identify with a serial killer. And maybe they don’t actually identify with Dexter, but if they are like me, they fell in the love with the character anyway.

The premise of the show, which is based on the character in a series of books by Jeff Lindsay, is that Miami police department blood spatter analyst Dexter Morgan is a serial killer who lives by a strict code of conduct. The “code” was instilled in him by his adopted father, Harry, a cop who recognized the psychopathic homicidal tendencies in Dexter and used the code as a way to protect society and his son at the same time. The code requires that Dexter only kill murderers and that he does enough due diligence before killing them to be absolutely sure of their guilt. In that respect his occupation sure does help since he has access to police and court files and computer records.

Tension is created as Dexter not only tracks and kills his prey, including one main antagonist each season, but as he tries to live as a normal human being. Dexter does what many psychopaths do – he attempts to mimic the emotions he sees those around him display. He endears himself to us, not only because of his strict adherence to a code that leads him to remove some very nasty characters from society, but through his relationships. He is at various times seen as a good employee, a devoted brother, a faithful husband and loving father.

Dexter, played brilliantly by Michael C. Hall, is only one character though. Dexter’s sister, Deb, played by wife-in-real-life Jennifer Carpenter, is a smart, foul-mouthed cop devoted to the job and constantly trying to prove her competence and advance through the ranks of the department. Vince Masuka is a fellow police lab tech who regularly makes the most inappropriate (and hilarious) comments imaginable. And those are only a couple out of a great cast of regulars which is complemented each season by veteran actors like Keith Carradine, Jimmy Smits and most recently, John Lithgow who won a Golden Globe and an Emmy for his role as the Trinity Killer.

Dexter is not for the squeamish or the easily offended. It is definitely not a “family friendly” show. The first season, which aired on CBS, was cleaned up considerably for the network. But the unedited version of the show, which airs on Showtime, contains disturbing subject matter, occasional gratuitous nudity and more “f-bombs” than you would probably care to count. But it is excellent drama — in a league of its own. The characters are original, interesting, funny and engaging. The writing is exceptional with storylines that are unpredictable, and at times even shocking, with many layers and twists. The casting and acting is outstanding. In four seasons I have never been disappointed and the show has just gotten better with time.

Season 4 was particularly good. Playing a family man and serial killer, John Lithgow made a perfect adversary for Dexter, who spent the season trying to convince himself that he could successfully juggle his life as a serial killer with his more recent one as family man. I made the mistake of scanning the message boards for info about the much anticipated season 4 finale before watching it and found a post by someone who accurately predicted the shocker ending. In spite of having read an accurate prediction of the ending ahead of time and seeing a few spoiler lines pop up on Twitter the night the show aired, the finale still had me gasping aloud at the ending and I thought about it for weeks afterward.

Above all, for those who like drama, mysteries and thrillers, Dexter satisfies both intellectually and emotionally. My heart beats faster just thinking about the return of the show and soon I will be counting down the days. I know that sounds really geeky, and maybe a little creepy, but so be it.

Considering the popularity of the show, both on Showtime and in DVD sales, I am far from the only one pining for the return of my favorite serial killer.