Dexter is a lot like Pokemon, but with serial killers.
The idea of the show is that Dexter Morgan, the main character, has a mysterious past, which has left him as an empty person that feels the need to kill people. Being adopted by the policeman that rescued him from the gruesome scene he was found in as a 3 year old, he was raised by that policeman, Frank, in a manner that helps him control his urges to kill and focus them away from innocent people. This results in a character that mixes Chirstain Bale's portrayal of Patrick Bateman from American Psycho, and Christain Bale's portrayal of Batman in Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, making him a serial killer that kills other serial killers in the name of justice.
I'M BATeMAN!!!
The show resembles other crime scene shows like the millions of CSI shows and the billions of other Cop Drama shows just like it, but unlike those shows, Dexter is actually good. Dexter is himself not actually a cop, but a blood splatter analysis, or whatever its called. He uses the patterns of blood found at violent crime scenes to determine how and what has happened. This means he works with the police, which makes up the entire supporting cast of the show, including his sister Deb, while being a killer. So him having a secret he can't tell anyone is a big part of the show's theme. Like a really big deal.
The show itself sets up some rules without ever getting stuck in a formula, so there's no "monster of the week", although the first few episodes deal with multiple story lines, one of them always being which killer Dexter is secretly hunting after. The rest of the show deals with developing the supporting characters, giving us flashback that help us see Dexter's past, and getting deeper into the main story ark of the season. In the first season, which is the only one I've seen up til writing this, the story deals with a serial killer that kills and cuts up hookers, wrapping their bloodless body parts and displaying them like art. Dexter falls in love with the unknown guy and by the end of the first episode we find out that most of what is being done by this killer is done as a message to Dexter. This story works as a spine that supports the rest of the side stories, helping to build continuity while letting the episodes stand on their own.
I also like the fact that James Remar, one of my favorite actors (see Ajax from the Warriors), shows up muilitple times in each episode through flashbacks as Dexter's deceased adopted father. That means that they can't kill his character off, because he's already dead!
Look at how dead he is. Its great!
The story is well written, tight, and it's the execution of the story and the content of it that makes the show so good. While many shows go all over the place, being funny one minute, and dramatic the next, Dexter is able to build tension and have humor while maintaining the same tone, which works since, after all, Dexter is an empty, emotionless person, so the drama has a way of sliding off of him and letting him move on. A lot of the show is told through flashbacks too, which is something I always like.
My only complaint is the whole storyline that deals with Dexter's girlfriend and all the drama around her two kids and the fact that she has a husband that did a lot of drugs and raped her often before being sent to prison for the first half of the season. When he gets out after a few episodes, they try to focus a lot of the drama of him being around, and although it is kinda entertaining, with the guy being a huge dickhead and being played by Satan from Supernatural, it feels forced because seriously, why would someone that is empty inside really care about all this shit and not just walk away. In fact I'm not sure why he has a girlfriend to begin with, though I think he explains it in the first episode, probably as a way of looking normal, because its such a hassle that anyone, let alone someone without emotions, would just say fuck it. Its the same unnecessary bullshit that they always throw into movies and tv shows to add drama, but end up taking away from the main storyline, and though it a lot more tolerable in this show, its still pointless.
Dexter's Laboratory is like Pokemon with mad scientist!
In the end the show is the perfect example of why television shows that can tell a long running storyline are a lot more interesting than the movies coming these days. The character's and theme within the stories are interesting enough to draw you in, and the writting is so excellent and well crafted that you will come to care about all the character's, even if you started out disliking them at the beginning of the season. I can't think of the last time story alone has been able to hold my interest in a movie. I guess I should start reviewing TV shows.
8-10 Pokemans
