The season finale of the Showtime hit series, "Dexter", aired last night. This favorite of mine is set in the Miami-Dade police department and features many scenes set (I'm guessing) in Broward. But who's quibbling about artifice when the writing and acting on this show are such stellar examples why the hour form, cable TV format knocks the socks off the movies.
There are nearly a dozen active series on cable TV that are better than any movie playing in the multiplexes this Christmas season. (Boardwalk Empire (HBO), Bored (HBO), Big Love (HBO), Curb (HBO) Weeds (Showtime), Justified (FX), Madmen (AMC), Breaking Bad (AMC), Friday Night Lights (DirecTV), Damages (FX) and last but not least, The Walking Dead (AMC); whose zombie theme is so strikingly harmonious with Eye On Miami.) Caveat: despite the efforts to recap the previous episodes in the show openings, you really need to watch the entire series to catch the nuances of the plot developments. For the bad shows, like the horrendous AMC offering, "Rubicon", you want your money back. But shows like "Dexter" pay back with interest.
The show development and writing on "Dexter" reaches to the top. What fun it must be in the writer's room, setting up Dexter for every possible way his secret could be broken. All season long, it seemed inevitable that Dexter would be tripped up by complications the writers created for their forensic expert/ serial killer. Damn if they didn't tie it all up in the season finale when Dexter's failed attempts at humanity, successfully concealed to the end, breathe humanity into all the secondary characters. So, hooray, Dexter: you escaped to give us one more season. If the producers haven't already sharpened their pencils for next season, I have a pen knife to do the trick.
4 comments:
Love the DVR as well. I never have to watch commercials anymore.
Check out this Website for Dexter locations.
http://www.seeing-stars.com/dexter/index1.shtml
I always thought it was filmed in California, with some shots of Miami.
tom
"Damn if they didn't tie it all up in the season finale when Dexter's failed attempts at humanity, successfully concealed to the end, breathe humanity into all the secondary characters."
Perfectly expressed.
I concur with your list of shows and add "Sons of Anarchy" a modern day hamlet set int he world of a motorcycle gang in California. Good scripts and engaging characters.
I so wanted to like Rubicon but man that sucked. SAfter 4 or 5 episodes I just just not care any less. Not one likeable character in the lot.
Dexter is by far my favorite. The first half of season one was filmed in Miami but then we had that 3 hurricane punch and they moved to LA. They have a team to shoot b-roll here but all the actors are in LA.
After 6 feet under I thought that Michael Hall would always be typecast as a gay funeral director, but one episode of Dexter put that to rest. I enjoyed this season tremendously.
I also suggest Nurse jackie, with the excellent Edie Falco. I record so many shows that aside from news I only watch recorded television.
Why didn't Dexter know that you can find what property a person owns on Miamidade.gov? And one other problem. They had less than an hour to dismember the body and get it out of the house. I've never done such a thing, but I would think that you would need more time than that, including clean-up. They had not even prepped the killing site.
tom
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