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CBS Decision To Air 'Dexter' Opens Up Debate

By WALT BELCHER, The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 15, 2008

There are two diverse opinions about why the Showtime drama "Dexter" should not be shown on CBS. And they symbolize the two sides of the cultural war in America.

Those who find "Dexter" to be a morally provocative drama about a serial killer say that editing it for broadcast television will destroy its artistic integrity. Those who seek to sanitize television and keep it on the morally straight path say even an edited version glorifies depravity and compels the audience to root for a serial killer.

I fall into neither camp.

Even though "Dexter" is a visually interesting, critically acclaimed drama starring the talented Michael C. Hall, I am not a fan. Stories about gruesome murders are turnoffs to me no matter how well done they are.

But I don't care if other people watch them. Watching "Dexter" won't corrupt anyone. If it turns you off, use the remote control to turn it off.

And I don't mind edited versions of cable shows such as "The Sopranos" or "Sex and the City." If you want the full impact of adult sex, violence and language, you can subscribe to Showtime or buy the DVD.

The edited "Dexter" debuts at 10 p.m. Sunday because CBS faced a shortage of original content as a result of the writers strike and the network owns Showtime.

Chances are "Dexter" will be only be a short-time filler. CBS said Tuesday that "Shark" will be coming back later this year now that the strike has been settled.

The series, which debuted in October 2006, is based on Jeff Lindsay's "Darkly Dreaming Dexter" novels about Dexter Morgan, the Miami Police Department's most brilliant blood-spatter expert.

By day, Dexter works at crime scenes and seems like an average guy with a good sense of humor. By night, he commits perfect murders. His victims are bad people who are murderers, too. He's a serial killer who kills serial killers. He's also very tidy. He carefully cleans up following every dismemberment.

Hall ("Six Feet Under") manages to make Dexter likable and repulsive at the same time. The series is supposed to be disturbing. It's supposed to make us feel bad about rooting for a sicko who may be doing the world a favor by bumping off other sickos.

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