36/35

Narrative

He’s smart

He’s lovable. He’s Dexter Morgan, America’s favorite serial killer, who spends his days solving crimes and his nights committing them. In season eight, David Zayas didn’t always play Angel Batista. His son, David Zayas Jr., stands in for his father in some shots, since they look remarkably similar.

Featured at the 64th Annual Golden Globe Awards (2007)

Visible throughout the first season, Dexter has a large scar on his left side. Later in season two, the scar moved to the right side, leaving his left side without a mark. Dexter Morgan: I lived in the dark for a long time. Over the years, my eyes adjusted until the dark became my world and I could see.

Greenberg, and its cast includes Buffy/Angel protagonist Julie Benz)

Main theme written by Rolfe KentPerformed by Rolfe Kent After four episodes, I’m ready to declare it the best show currently on television, one that may one day rival The Sopranos and the first season of Twin Peaks as a contender for the second-best television show of all time (after the incomparable _Buffy the Vampire Slayer_; the show’s executive producer and writer is former Buffy writer Drew Z. Dexter is a sociopath, a person devoid of human emotion, and thus has no natural, internal moral compass and an unquenchable bloodlust that drives him to kill. But he had the great grace of being the adopted child of a police officer who (as seen in wonderful flashbacks) effectively instilled in him a complete moral code that he adheres to on a strictly intellectual level. It’s a completely brilliant concept (which I assume comes from the novels it’s based on), and it allows the writers to explore the nature of moral behavior and what it means to be human (Dexter is, in a way, an alien).

Another thing the show does brilliantly is move at different speeds in parallel

There’s a major story arc that lasts an entire season (concerning the cat-and-mouse game between Dexter and a serial killer), and a subplot involving Dexter’s sister’s career as a cop. The first handful of episodes feature a very strong, completed story arc involving one of Dexter’s cops and a local criminal, while two of the four episodes so far have also featured standalone stories that connect (and play off) the ongoing ones. I’ve seen the future of TV season structure, and this is it. While the writing isn’t on par with the best of House , it’s excellent.

The cast and production are wonderful

The only reason you wouldn’t want to watch this absolutely brilliant series is its frequent use of incredibly graphic imagery: the first four episodes probably feature more severed body parts than the first four episodes of every other TV show on the air combined. If you can stomach that, tune in for a mesmerizing look at what makes us human—or inhuman.