Dexter (TV series)
Dexter | |
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File:Dexter intro.png The Dexter intro | |
Created by | James Manos, Jr. |
Starring | Michael C. Hall Julie Benz Jennifer Carpenter Jaime Murray Erik King Lauren Vélez David Zayas James Remar C.S. Lee Devon Graye Dominic Janes Christian Camargo |
Opening theme | Rolfe Kent |
Country of origin | ![]() |
Original language | English |
No. of episodes | 12 (list of episodes) |
Production | |
Executive producers | Daniel Cerone Clyde Phillips John Goldwyn Sara Colleton |
Running time | approx. 50 mins per episode |
Original release | |
Network | Showtime |
Release | October 1, 2006 – present |
Dexter is a Showtime original television series starring Michael C. Hall as serial killer Dexter Morgan, who works as a forensics analyst specializing in bloodstain pattern analysis for the Miami-Dade Police Department. The series is based on the novel Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay.
The first season finished airing on December 17, 2006. On November 2, 2006, Showtime renewed the series for a second season,[1] which began shooting on May 21, 2007, and is scheduled to premiere on September 30, 2007. On July 17 2007, the first two episodes of Season 2 were leaked on the internet[2].
Plot
Season 1
Orphaned at the age of three and harboring a traumatic secret, Dexter (Michael C. Hall) was adopted by a Miami police officer who recognized his homicidal tendencies and taught him to channel his gruesome passion for human vivisection in a "constructive" way—by killing only heinous criminals (such as child molesters, mob assassins, and serial killers of the innocent) who have slipped through the justice system. To satisfy his interest in blood and to facilitate his own crimes, Dexter works as a blood spatter analyst for the Miami police. Although his drive to kill is unflinching, he is easily able to emulate normal emotions and keep up his appearance as a socially-responsible human being. He is well-liked by most of his colleagues, his girlfriend, and her children.
The complete season one of Dexter is set to be released in a 4 disc DVD package on August 21, 2007.
Season 2
This season is not based upon the second novel of Jeff Lindsay's Dexter series, Dearly Devoted Dexter. The part of the ocean where Dexter dumps his bodies is discovered by treasure hunters, which sparks a manhunt for the so-called "Bay Harbour Butcher" that draws in even the FBI. A cult following begins to form behind the "Butcher" when it's discovered who his victims are.[3] Dexter also seems to be having problems executing his latest victims. New cast members include Keith Carradine as Special Agent Lundy, and Jaime Murray as Lila, an ex-junkie artist who becomes Dexter's ally.[4] The role of Rita's son Cody has now been re-cast with another child actor.
Series cast
- Michael C. Hall as Dexter Morgan
- Jennifer Carpenter as Deborah Morgan
- Julie Benz as Rita Bennett
- Erik King as Sergeant James Doakes
- Lauren Vélez as Lt. Maria LaGuerta
- David Zayas as Angel Batista
- James Remar as Harry Morgan
- Christian Camargo as Rudy Cooper
- Mark Pellegrino as Paul, Rita's Husband
- C.S. Lee as Vincent Masuka
- Devon Graye as Teenage Dexter
Four members of the cast also starred in the HBO series Oz.
Plot differences from the novel
There are numerous differences between the novel Darkly Dreaming Dexter and the Showtime series based on it; they range from extra subplots to rearrangements and modifications of elements from the source material.
The novel is narrated exclusively from Dexter's point of view and focuses mostly on his pursuit of the "Ice Truck Killer". With the exception of adoptive sister Deborah and adoptive father Harry, much of the supporting cast (Doakes, Angel and LaGuerta) have minor roles in the novel. The TV series expands on their characters with subplots not present in the original, such as Angel's rocky relationship with his ex-wife.
Another addition is the inclusion of Rita's abusive ex-husband. Although he is mentioned in the novel, he is never actually seen. In the show, he becomes a full-fledged supporting character who professes love for his children, but nevertheless still treats Rita violently.
The biggest change is the lead-up and revelation to the identity of the Ice Truck Killer. In the novel, Dexter (and to a certain extent, the reader) is led to believe that Dexter himself might be the one committing the murders, due to a series of strange dreams that connect him to the murder; the possibility that Dexter's "Dark Passenger" is committing crimes when Dexter is asleep is brought up. The final clue is a blurry photo of someone who resembles Dexter at a crime scene. After the Ice Truck Killer kidnaps Deborah, Dexter (who is followed by Detective LaGuerta) confronts him and it it is subsequently revealed that the killer is actually Dexter's nearly identical long-lost brother, Brian, who, like Dexter, witnessed their mother's brutal murder. In the ensuing conflict LaGuerta is slain by Brian, Deborah finds out her brother is a killer and Dexter helps Brian to escape, an act referenced in the next novel.[5] As a morbid trophy, Dexter adds a drop of LaGuerta's blood to his collection.
In the TV series, Brian is introduced under the fake name 'Rudy', a prosthetist who becomes Deborah's boyfriend, and his relationship to Dexter only revealed late in the first season. Here, Dexter kills Brian instead of letting him escape, Deborah does not discover her brother's secret and LaGuerta is not present at all in the confrontation.
Some of the characters have had their names changed. Detective LaGuerta is named Migdia in the novel and Maria in the show while Doakes' first name is changed from Albert to James.
There appear to be 98 slides in Dexter's collection, which implies that he has killed 98 people in his cause. In the novel, it's mentioned that he had 36 victims after the priest.
Critical reception
The initial response to Dexter was positive. The website Metacritic calculated a score of 77 from a possible 100 based on 27 reviews, making it the third-best reviewed show of the 2006 fall season. This score includes four 100% scores from the New York Daily News, San Francisco Chronicle, Chicago Sun-Times and People Weekly.[6] Brian Lowry, who had written one of the two poor reviews for the show, recanted his negative review in a year-end column for the trade magazine Variety after watching the full season.[7] On the CNET Networks website TV.com, Dexter has an overall rating of 9.5/10.[8]
On December 14, 2006, Michael C. Hall was nominated for a Golden Globe Award in the category Best Actor in a Television Drama Series for playing Dexter.
Awards
2006
- AFI Awards — TV Program of the Year — Official Selection
- IGN - Best New Show
- IGN - Best Actor - Michael C. Hall
- IGN - Best Villain - The Ice Truck Killer
- IGN - Best Character - Dexter Morgan
- Satellite Awards — Outstanding Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series — Julie Benz
2007
- Television Critics Association - Individual Achievement in Drama - Michael C. Hall
- Saturn Awards - Best Actor in a Television Program - Michael C. Hall
Nominations
2006
- IGN - Best Television Program
- Satellite Awards — Outstanding Actor in a Series, Drama — Michael C. Hall
- Satellite Awards — Outstanding Television Series, Drama
2007
- Golden Globe — Nomination for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Drama – Michael C. Hall
- SAG — Male Actor in a Drama Series — Michael C. Hall
- Emmy - Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing, Drama
- Emmy - Outstanding Main Title Design
- Emmy - Outstanding Original Main Title Theme Music
- Television Critics Association - New Program of the Year
- Saturn Awards - Best Supporting Actor in a Television Program - James Remar
- Saturn Awards - Best Supporting Actress in a Television Program - Julie Benz
- Saturn Awards - Best Syndicated/Cable Television Series
DVD release
Art Cover | DVD Name | Release Date | Ep # | Additional Information |
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File:Dexter-DVD.jpg | The Complete First Season | August 21 2007 [1] | 12 |
International broadcasting
Country | Alternate title/Translation | TV Network(s) | Series Premiere | Weekly Schedule |
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Showtime | 1 October 2006 | ||
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Showtime | TBA 2007 | ||
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The Movie Network (Eastern Canada) and Movie Central (western Canada) |
1 October 2006 | ||
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BeTv | March 2007 | ||
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Fox | July 8 2007 | Sundays | |
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Canal + | May 17 2007 | Thursdays | |
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Fox Crime | July 19 2007 | Thursdays 10pm | |
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Viasat3 | August 31 2007 | Fridays | |
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Fox Crime | August 8 2007 | Wednesdays 10pm | |
Latin America | Movie City | May 6 2007 | Sundays | |
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e2 | Feb 22 2007 | ||
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Canal Plus | January 11 2007 | ||
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Canal Plus | January 11 2007 | ||
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FX | July 8 2007 | Sundays | |
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Canal Plus Nelonen |
January 11 2007 August 30 2007 |
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FX | July 8 2007 | Sundays | |
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Yes Stars 2 | 11 July 2007 | Wednesdays | |
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Skjár Einn | January 2007 | Sundays | |
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Fox crime | |||
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Fox crime | Fridays |
Cultural references
- Dexter lists himself as Dr. Patrick Bateman to receive animal tranquilizers. Patrick Bateman is a serial killer from the novel and film American Psycho.
- The pseudonym Dexter uses to see the therapist in "Shrink Wrap" is Sean Ellis, a combination of Sean Bateman (Patrick Bateman's little brother in American Psycho and lead character of Rules of Attraction) and Bret Easton Ellis (the author of both books).
- The character Neil Perry is a reference to the martyr of the same name in the film Dead Poets Society.
Trivia
- In the original opening credits, the lock used by Dexter on his front door is a "Dexter" lockset. In later broadcasts it was replaced by a "Defiant" brand lock.
References
- ^ the futon critic: Showtime's Dexter Takes A Stab At Season Two
- ^ "Massive Leak of Pre-Air TV Shows: Piracy or Promotion?". TorrentFreak. 2007-07-24. Retrieved 2007-07-24.
- ^ IGN.com, "Dexter Gets Ready for Another Killer Season"
- ^ IGN.com, "Dexter Makes Friends"
- ^ Jeff Lindsay. "Chapter 1 except of Dearly Devoted Dexter". Dearly Devoted Dexter. Random House. Retrieved 2007-03-17.
Doakes was convinced that I'd had something to do with LaGuerta's death. This was totally untrue and completely unfair. All I had done was watch – where's the harm in that? Of course I had helped the real killer escape, but what could you expect? What kind of person would turn in his own brother? Especially when he did such neat work.
- ^ "Dexter (Showtime) - Reviews from Metacritic". Metacritic. Retrieved 2007-07-27.
- ^ Looking forward, some no-no's for the New Year
- ^ TV.com highest rated shows
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fa/Wikiquote-logo.svg/34px-Wikiquote-logo.svg.png)
- Official site
- Metacritic score for Dexter
- Rolfe Kent, Dexter's Theme composer
- Brendan Bernhard (September 29, 2006). "Blood Relative". New York Sun Newspaper.
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(help) - UK Official site