---
title: "Dexter"
year: 2006
kind: "series"
canonical: "https://film.one/tv/dexter"
fi1m_id: "dexter"
imdb_id: "tt0773262"
tmdb_id: 1405
wikidata_id: "Q23577"
fi1m_score: 74
critics_score: 61
critics_reviews: 7
published: "2026-09-15"
updated: "2026-09-20T21:31:24.985156+00:00"
region: "JP"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Dexter (2006)

Created by James Manos Jr. · 1h 00m · Crime, Drama, Mystery

## Identity

Dexter

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/tv/dexter
- **Type:** Series
- **Fi1m ID:** dexter
- **IMDb ID:** tt0773262
- **TMDB ID:** 1405
- **Wikidata ID:** Q23577
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0773262/, https://www.themoviedb.org/tv/1405, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q23577

**Fi1m score: 74** · Critics 61 from 7 reviews

*In a sentence:* Michael C Hall makes a serial killer pleasant company, which is useful when the script insists on explaining him

> Michael C. Hall makes *Dexter* worth watching, finding uneasy humour in a killer who hunts the guilty. The crime plotting grips, though the writing explains him too often and makes liking him too easy.

## Synopsis

Dexter Morgan (Michael C. Hall) is a blood-spatter analyst who tracks criminals by day and kills after dark. His targets are people who have escaped justice, connecting his private killings to the crimes he investigates. As he pursues them, voiceover and flashbacks bring his thoughts and past into the story. Created by James Manos Jr., the series follows criminal investigations from the perspective of a man committing murders of his own. Jennifer Carpenter plays Debra Morgan, Julie Benz plays Rita Bennett and Erik King plays James Doakes.

## Review

James Manos Jr.’s *Dexter* earns a qualified recommendation by making a serial killer engaging company and then giving us reason to question our enjoyment. Dexter Morgan, played by Michael C. Hall, tracks criminals by day and kills people who have escaped justice. There is a useful nastiness in putting the hunter on both sides of a crime story. The difficulty is that the programme also wants to assure us that he has chosen suitable victims.

Hall is the reason that compromise remains interesting. His Dexter can be likeable without making the killing seem remotely ordinary, and the humour does not wipe out the threat. We can enjoy his company and still wonder what, exactly, we are enjoying. That is a difficult performance to sustain when so much of the writing is busy telling us what to think of him.

We found ourselves wanting Dexter to reach his next victim, and felt uneasy about how little persuasion it had taken. Hall’s charm does some of the work; choosing targets who have slipped through justice does the rest. That discomfort is worth having, but the programme sometimes makes the choice too comfortable. The guilty-only premise provides a ready excuse for our sympathy, so the nastier question of why we want to watch a killer gets partly answered for us.

The relative restraint with gore is a sensible decision. The cinematography, with Terry Stacey and Romeo Tirone among the credits, keeps the violence watchable without making it harmless. Daniel Licht’s music helps the humour and menace coexist, although Hall does much of that work himself. The images do not need to show every injury for the prospect of a killing to trouble us. This restraint makes the heavy verbal explanation elsewhere seem all the more unnecessary.

The writing, with James Manos Jr. and Melissa Rosenberg among the credits, has too little faith in our ability to read a face. Voiceover and flashbacks can deepen a character, but here they too often supply information before we have had time to become curious about it. Editors including Elena Maganini and Scott K. Wallace give the thriller plotting a firmer pace than these explanations. The interruptions are frustrating because Hall has already made Dexter interesting enough to follow without so much assistance.

Despite putting a serial killer at its centre, *Dexter* stays close to the workings of a conventional crime procedural. That familiarity provides solid entertainment: the pursuit of criminals is involving even before Dexter’s own activities complicate our loyalties. The clumsier dialogue can make the people around him sound as though they exist chiefly to keep the case moving. Still, the humour gives these investigations a welcome nastiness, and the thriller plotting supplies a reason to return beyond curiosity about the central character.

If the thought of spending an evening with a serial killer already feels like work, Hall’s charm will not remove the objection. Nor should it. The opening stretch is worth trying for crime-drama viewers who enjoy being made uncomfortable by their own loyalties. Just allow for a central character who explains himself more often than we need him to.

*Fi1m score 74, published 15 September 2026.*

## What the critics say

Most critics lean positive, and almost all of them agree on one thing: Michael C. Hall. He is praised across the reviews for making a serial killer who hunts other killers likeable, or at least watchable, and for carrying the character’s double life with a steadiness the writing does not always match. Those who enjoy the series enjoy its hook, its thriller plotting and its mix of humour and menace.

The spread is wide. Three of seven critics reject the show outright, and their objection is to the premise rather than the execution: The Guardian finds the idea of a charming killer vile and close to torture porn, while Variety finds the tone tawdry and distasteful even with the gore held back. Den of Geek is kinder to the concept but faults clumsy exposition, a heavy voiceover and stilted dialogue. Even the admirers concede the procedural elements are conventional and the lead is softened too much.

## Straight answers

**Is Dexter worth watching?**

*Dexter* is worth watching for crime-drama viewers who enjoy being made uncomfortable by their own loyalties, and we scored it 74. Michael C. Hall makes a serial killer pleasant company without making the killing seem ordinary, and the thriller plotting grips. The writing explains him too often, through voiceover and flashback, when his face has already told us enough.

**How long is Dexter, and what is it rated?**

*Dexter* has episodes of about 1h 00m. It is a crime and drama series.

**Where can I watch Dexter in Japan?**

*Dexter* is streaming on Netflix in Japan, and it is also available to buy from Amazon Prime Video. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service.

**How violent or frightening is Dexter, and is it suitable for children?**

*Dexter* is certified 18 in the UK and TV-MA in the US, and it is not suitable for children. The series is about a man who kills people who have escaped justice, so the prospect of murder is always present, though the cinematography shows relative restraint with gore and does not linger on every injury. It is for adults who can take a killer as their guide through a crime story.

**How does Dexter compare to Memories of Murder?**

*Dexter* is a crime procedural with a serial killer at its centre; [*Memories of Murder*](https://film.one/film/memories-of-murder) is a film about police who cannot do the procedure. Both find sour humour in the hunt for a killer, but Bong Joon Ho's film is the finer piece of work, with a disquiet the series only sometimes reaches. Choose *Dexter* for a longer, more conventional pursuit with a charming guide, and the film for something stranger and better.

**Is Dexter based on a true story or a book?**

*Dexter* is not based on a true story; it is adapted from a novel by Jeff Lindsay. The series, created by James Manos Jr., follows a blood-spatter analyst who kills criminals who have escaped justice, and it stands on its own without any knowledge of the book. Michael C. Hall's performance, not the source, is what carries it.

**What should I watch after Dexter?**

After *Dexter*, try [*Hannibal*](https://film.one/film/hannibal) (2013, Fi1m 54): A more ornate serial-killer series, equally interested in making dangerous company seductive. Then [*The Vanishing*](https://film.one/film/the-vanishing) (1988, Fi1m 88): For the same discomfort about ordinary manners concealing a capacity for cruelty; and [*Memories of Murder*](https://film.one/film/memories-of-murder) (2003, Fi1m 91): Clumsy police work and sour humour make the hunt for a killer disquieting.

### Reviews we read (7)

- **Empire**, William Thomas (85/100, inferred): The series bubbles with sadistic glee as Dexter tracks criminals by day before carving them up after dark. Michael C. Hall plays the title character to perfection in this dazzling debut that wears humour and menace with equal flourish. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/tv/reviews/dexter-season-1-review/)
- **The AV Club**, Scott Tobias (B+): The series has an irresistible hook with Dexter as a serial killer who targets those who evade justice, and Michael C. Hall delivers a likeable central performance. It excels in thriller plotting and flashbacks but can feel like a conventional procedural at times and softens its lead character too much. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/dexter-1798202939)
- **The Hollywood Reporter**, Barry Garron (80/100, inferred): Dexter is the spookiest crimefighter as a serial killer targeting those who slip through justice; Michael C. Hall is brilliant at conveying the character's subtle complexity and moral ambiguity. The series enhances Showtime's reputation for challenging fare. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/dexter-season-1-review-2006-1236390992/)
- **The Times**, Fiona Morrow (70/100, inferred): The review highlights Michael C. Hall's return as an antiheroic vigilante serial killer who targets those who evade justice, noting his comfort with the macabre material and the series' focus on his dual life. [Read](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/tv-radio/article/a-way-with-all-flesh-dnmwwkjwmwb)
- **Variety**, Brian Lowry (35/100, inferred): The critic praises Michael C. Hall's performance in the distinctive role but finds the creepy, tawdry tone unappealing and the show drifting across the line into distasteful territory despite restraint on gore. Overall, it is not working for this critic. [Read](https://variety.com/2006/film/awards/dexter-6-1200513053/)
- **The Guardian**, Lucy Mangan (30/100, inferred): The critic finds the premise of a charming serial killer who targets other killers to be vile and akin to torture porn, with graphic violence and a preposterous setup that fails to land as clever or subversive. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/culture/tvandradioblog/2007/jul/10/cablegirltheressomethingwr)
- **Den of Geek**, Sarah Dobbs (40/100, inferred): The premise of a sociopathic blood-spatter analyst who kills only the guilty is interesting and the pilot does not shy away from its dark material. However, the writing packs in too much exposition clumsily via voiceover and flashbacks, features stilted dialogue and stereotypes, and the overall execution feels awkward and unconvincing. [Read](https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/dexter-s11-review/)

## Details

- **Created by:** James Manos Jr.
- **Creator:** James Manos Jr.
- **Director:** John Dahl, Steve Shill, Keith Gordon, Marcos Siega, Ernest Dickerson, Romeo Tirone, Michael Cuesta, Tony Goldwyn, SJ Clarkson, Stefan Schwartz, Alik Sakharov, Nick Gomez, Michael Lehmann, Tim Hunter, Holly Dale, Robert Lieberman, Seith Mann, Michael C. Hall, Jeremy Podeswa, Milan Cheylov, Brian Kirk, Adam Davidson
- **Writer:** Scott Buck, Tim Schlattmann, Lauren Gussis, Scott Reynolds, Wendy West, Manny Coto, Melissa Rosenberg, Jace Richdale, Daniel Cerone, Kevin Maynard, Charles H. Eglee, Clyde Phillips, Karen Campbell, Arika Lisanne Mittman, James Manos Jr., Drew Z. Greenberg, Chip Johannessen, Adam Fierro, Jim Leonard
- **Story:** Scott Reynolds, Karen Campbell, Melissa Rosenberg, Daniel Cerone
- **Teleplay:** Melissa Rosenberg, Tim Schlattmann, Scott Buck, Wendy West, Daniel Cerone
- **Novel:** Jeff Lindsay
- **Cinematography:** Romeo Tirone, Jeffrey Jur, Martin J. Layton, Alan Caso, Terry Stacey
- **Editor:** Louis Cioffi, Stewart Schill, Keith Henderson, Amy E. Duddleston, Matthew V. Colonna, Michael Ruscio, Elena Maganini, Scott K. Wallace, David Latham, Chris Figler, Rob Seidenglanz, Padraic McKinley
- **Music:** Daniel Licht
- **Producer:** Robert Lloyd Lewis, Lauren Gussis, Tim Schlattmann
- **Cast:** Michael C. Hall as Dexter Morgan; Julia Stiles as Lumen Ann Pierce; Julie Benz as Rita Bennett; Jennifer Carpenter as Debra Morgan; Lauren Vélez as Maria LaGuerta; Geoff Pierson as Tom Matthews; Erik King as James Doakes; David Zayas as Angel Batista
- **Runtime:** 1h 00m
- **Release (Japan):** 1 October 2006
- **Genres:** Crime, Drama, Mystery
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQeUmSD1c3g

## Where to watch in Japan

- Netflix: streaming
- Amazon Prime Video: buy, hd

*Checked 2026-09-15.*

Also available in: AE, AR, AT, AU, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EC, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HR, HU, ID, IE, IN, IS, IT, JP, LT, MX, MY, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PE, PH, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, SI, SK, TH, TR, US, VN, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## Awards

- Primetime Emmy Awards 2010: Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series (won)
- Primetime Emmy Awards 2007: Outstanding Main Title Design (won)

## If you liked this

- *Hannibal* (2013), Fi1m 54: A more ornate serial-killer series, equally interested in making dangerous company seductive. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/hannibal.md)
- *Peeping Tom* (1960): Another troubling invitation to identify with a killer, with fewer comforting excuses.
- *Mr Inbetween* (2018): Dry humour and everyday obligations complicate another man’s professional relationship with violence.
- *The Vanishing* (1988), Fi1m 88: For the same discomfort about ordinary manners concealing a capacity for cruelty. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-vanishing.md)
- *Memories of Murder* (2003), Fi1m 91: Clumsy police work and sour humour make the hunt for a killer disquieting. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/memories-of-murder.md)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/tv/dexter