Murder and mayhem and Miami, oh my!
... and at first glance, that seems to be what Showtime's Dexter is all about. Dexter Morgan (played by Michael C. Hall) is a charming blood spatter analyst for the Miami PD... who also has the little problem of being a sociopath and likes to kill people as a hobby. Thanks to the moral code instilled by his adoptive father, Harry, he only kills other killers- especially the ones that escape the justice system. Dexter attempts to blend into society by means of elaborate fake emotions, his attachment to his sister Deb, and his girlfriend Rita and her two kids, Cody and Astor. But while he considers himself a fraudulent human, we of the audience suspect there may be more to Dexter than even he believes.
The television series is based on the book series by Jeff Lindsey; the books and the show, while featuring the same premise and comparative plot, have different focuses- the show is far more detailed, rounding out many characters that are only briefly featured in the books, which are very strongly written in a first-person narrative- and who can expect a sociopath to incorporate the feelings of others in his book?
I would have to say one of my favorite things about the television series is the way it explores issues of community/isolation, realness of self/realness of others. There is so much dramatic irony to be seen as Dexter thinks himself alone and unique in his problems, even though its stuff we can all sympathize with- stuff like not understanding the people around us.
... and at first glance, that seems to be what Showtime's Dexter is all about. Dexter Morgan (played by Michael C. Hall) is a charming blood spatter analyst for the Miami PD... who also has the little problem of being a sociopath and likes to kill people as a hobby. Thanks to the moral code instilled by his adoptive father, Harry, he only kills other killers- especially the ones that escape the justice system. Dexter attempts to blend into society by means of elaborate fake emotions, his attachment to his sister Deb, and his girlfriend Rita and her two kids, Cody and Astor. But while he considers himself a fraudulent human, we of the audience suspect there may be more to Dexter than even he believes.
The television series is based on the book series by Jeff Lindsey; the books and the show, while featuring the same premise and comparative plot, have different focuses- the show is far more detailed, rounding out many characters that are only briefly featured in the books, which are very strongly written in a first-person narrative- and who can expect a sociopath to incorporate the feelings of others in his book?
I would have to say one of my favorite things about the television series is the way it explores issues of community/isolation, realness of self/realness of others. There is so much dramatic irony to be seen as Dexter thinks himself alone and unique in his problems, even though its stuff we can all sympathize with- stuff like not understanding the people around us.
When it comes to fandom, Dexter is sadly nearly as dead as one of the title character's evening entertainments. However, there are some communities that produce some decent fanfiction- the Dexter Fanfic and DD_Dexter communities at LiveJournal especially. Thunderemerald is one of my favorite authors, for her quality characterization and dialogue- she just wrote "Water Through a Rusted Pipe," which I was totally impressed with the way she wrote Dexter and Deb. Dexter is inspiring me to explore the characters in more depth, too- so far I've written "Breakable Girls and Boys" and am writing another fic, and I'm also putting together a fanmix of songs that musically portray Dexter and Rita's relationship, and the hurdles that they both face to understanding each other.
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