DEXTER

Dexter is an American television drama series that centers on Dexter Morgan, a forensic bloodstain pattern analyst for the Miami Metro Police Department who moonlights as a serial killer. The show debuted on October 1, 2006, on Showtime and the fifth season ended on December 12, 2010. As of December 2, 2010, the show has been renewed for a sixth season. Set in Miami, the show's first season was largely based on the novel Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay, the first of his series of Dexter novels. Subsequent seasons have evolved independently of Lindsay's works. It was adapted for television by screenwriter James Manos, Jr., who wrote the pilot episode.
Dexter structures his killing around "The Code of Harry", a body of ethics and procedures devised by his adoptive father Harry (who was a Miami cop) to make sure Dexter never gets caught and to ensure that Dexter kills only other killers. Harry also trained Dexter in how to interact convincingly with other people despite being a psychopath, since the murder of his biological mother, Laura Moser, did in fact turn Dexter into a serial killer. As an adult, Dexter has largely escaped suspicion (with some exceptions) by being genial and generous and maintaining generally superficial relationships. However, his attachment to his sister Deb, his significant other Rita, his stepchildren and (later) his biological son have all complicated his double life and made him question his need to kill.
In February 2008, edited reruns began to air on CBS. The series has enjoyed wide critical acclaim and popularity. Season 4 aired its season finale on December 13, 2009 to a record-breaking audience of 2.6 million viewers, making it the most-watched original series episode ever on Showtime. Michael C. Hall has received several awards and nominations for his portrayal of Dexter, including a Golden Globe. The series was picked up by Showtime for a sixth season, which was billed as not being the final season, leaving possibilities open for a seventh.
Orphaned at the age of three, Dexter Morgan is adopted by Miami police officer Harry Morgan and his wife Doris. After discovering that young Dexter has been killing neighborhood pets, Harry believes that the boy is a psychopath and teaches him "The Code" as a way to channel his violent urges towards people who "deserve it". In this code, Dexter's victims must be killers themselves who have murdered the undeserving and will likely do so again. Dexter must also have proof that the criminals are guilty. Most importantly, Dexter must never get caught. Flashbacks throughout the series show Harry, who died several years before, instructing Dexter in how to appear normal and cover his tracks. Dexter has followed The Code religiously to satisfy his Dark Passenger (what he calls his urge to kill). Like many serial killers, he keeps trophies; before dispatching a wrongdoer, Dexter makes a small incision on their right cheek with a scalpel and collects a blood sample which he preserves on a blood slide. He stores his collection in a box concealed inside his air conditioner. Dexter is (with varying success) able to fake 'normal' emotions and maintain his appearance as an unremarkable friend and neighbor. He does maintain a few personal relationships, however. He is "fond" of his adoptive sister Debra. She is unaware of Harry's training or Dexter's secret life, but harbors lingering jealousy of the perceived preferential treatment Harry gave Dexter. As part of his "disguise", Dexter dates a woman named Rita who is too traumatized from years of abuse at the hands of her ex-husband, Paul Bennett, to be intimate with Dexter. This suits Dexter, who believes getting intimate will reveal his darker side to Rita. He is fond of (and good with) children in general, particularly Rita’s two children, Astor and Cody.
Connections have been suggested between the TV show Dexter and an ongoing murder charge against Mark Twitchell of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. On December 3, 2008, Twitchell pled not guilty to the charge of first degree murder of 38-year-old John Altinger, whose body is still missing. Twitchell filmed footage for a production of House of Cards (entirely unrelated to the British production House of Cards), a horror-romance similar to Dexter's clandestine murders in which he allegedly murdered Altinger. Det. Mark Anstey of the Edmonton Police Service was quoted as saying "We have a lot of information to suggest he definitely idolizes Dexter." In the summer of 2008, Twitchell had posted a series of ominous Facebook statuses in which he "believed he had a lot in common with Dexter Morgan". In November 2009, Andrew Conley, 17, was arrested in Rising Sun, Indiana, US, in connection with the death of his 10-year-old brother, Conner. In an affidavit filed in Ohio County court, police said that Andrew told investigators that he identified with the character. "Andrew stated that he watches a show called 'Dexter' on Showtime, about a serial killer," prosecutors said in an affidavit. "He stated, 'I feel just like him."