Dexter: Consider Me Hooked!

This weekend, I happened to come across a little show called Dexter on Showtime. Dexter has been airing since 2006 and is based on a series of novels written by Jeff Lindsay, yet due to the fact I was never fortunate enough to get Showtime, I was never able to watch it. Let’s just say, I’m incredibly thankful to get the pay channel now because I was thoroughly engrossed in the two episodes I watched and can’t wait to see where this crazy thing goes. There’s a spoiler at the end of this post so if you don’t want to know what happened in Sunday’s Dexter, consider yourself warned.

I realize I’m extraordinarily late in the game with the show, and there is a lot of catching up I’m going to have to do (Netflix here I come!). From what I gathered by watching the two most recent episodes (“Dex Takes a Holiday” and “Dirty Harry”), Dexter Morgan (Michael C. Hall) is a Miami police investigator with a wife, children, and a dark secret – he kills people, lots of people. However, he channels his psychopathic tendencies towards socially responsible murder. Dexter is a serial killer of serial killers; that is, he offs people that deserve it.

This moral ambiguity creates one of TV’s most interesting and complex characters, and Hall’s performance is mesmerizing to watch. He plays Dexter with an uncomfortable, anxious confidence that is a true extension of how layered and psychologically messed up this guy really is. In addition, Dexter gets advice and guidance from visions of his deceased father (James Remar). Yeah, there’s plenty here to keep a psychoanalyst busy for decades.

Dexter’s recent developments have him on the tail of an elusive serial killer nicknamed “Trinity” (played by subdued John Lithgow) who, in last week’s episode, shot his sister and killed an FBI agent she was involved with.

“Dirty Harry”, which aired this past Sunday, continued this story line and dealt with the ramifications of his sister’s shooting and how his double life is affecting his marriage. The extraneous goings on, such as the interoffice romances and other drama seemed clunky and paled in comparison to the main plot. I just found myself eagerly waiting for Dexter to pop back on my screen again.

However, the show's final moments were superb. Dexter locates Trinity and frantically attempts to chase him through a high rise office building only to lose him in the stairwell. However, Dexter manages to follow him by car only to discover that Trinity -- this sadistic serial killer who has been murdering for over 30 years -- is a suburban husband and father just like him. Dun, Dun DUN!