sammi says

As a child, Dexter (Michael C. Hall) was found at a gruesome crime scene and was adopted by stand-up Miami Detective, Harry Morgan. As he grew up, Harry noticed that Dexter was not like the other kids. He spent his entire life trying to teach Dexter a code or set of rules teaching him to act like he fit in, like he belonged, like he wasn't an outsider and most of all, how to not get caught. See, Dexter has a dark passenger; a thirst for blood and a desire to kill. But because of Harry's rules, Dexter is a serial killer who only kills other serial killers.

That is the premise of the hit Showtime series, "Dexter," which just ended its 4th season this past December. I tried getting on board with "Dexter" after the first season had ended. I made it through 15 minutes of the first episode. In those 15 minutes we see Dexter stalking his victim, a pedophile who kills little boys, abducting him, and killing him while he's restrained to a table with plastic wrap in a room draped with plastic and the dead boy's bodies. It was way too much torture and blood for someone as easily scared and grossed out as I am.

Upon the recommendation of a friend I tried "Dexter" again. It became much more intriguing when I was able to get past the guts and gore and get into the real story behind it. The show is based on the novel, "Darkly Dreaming Dexter," by Jeff Lindsay, and is truly your worst nightmare...That someone you know and love could be capable of terrible things The rich characters make it all worth while. Dexter is a blood spatter analyst for the Miami Metro Police Department and works along side his foul-mouthed sister Deb (played by Jennifer Carpenter, Michael C. Hall's wife in real life), a detective. Dexter's inner-monologue narrates the show (Michael C. Hall has a super sexy voice, which is a plus!) and gives us insight into what makes him do the things he does. He claims he feels nothing and is faking his way through life. His girlfriend is an abused, divorced, single mom, Rita (Julie Benz), who Dexter claims is just a cover, but over time we see a real relationship develop.

I will not spoil anything, but you start to wonder why only a select few sense that there is something different about Dexter. After all, his closest relationships are within the homicide department whose job is to find killers. During each episode my hands would sweat and my stomach would churn thinking Dexter was going to get caught. It's excruciating watching all the trouble Dexter gets himself into and wondering how he's going to clean up his mess, literally. At the center of each episode is Dexter's kill. He stalks his prey, makes sure they fit Harry's code, sets up his kill room, puts on his kill uniform (a brown thermal shirt and cargo pants), abducts and kills his victim, then seamlessly cleans up without leaving a trace of evidence that anyone was ever murdered.

Throughout the series we see Dexter evolve and start to stray from Harry's code. Each season brings plenty of shocking twists, perhaps the most shocking at the end of season 4. He goes through a lot of changes but I really wish he would stop killing people! No kidding, it's hard to empathize with a serial killer, but "Dexter" makes it possible.

Ummm....Wow! That's pretty much what comes to mind when summing up the first season of "Nurse Jackie" on Showtime. I watched the final episode of the season last night On Demand. If there's one thing Charter Cable's good for it's On Demand, which let me watch the season finale a week early. I couldn't wait after I saw the cliffhanger of episode 11!

If you're not familiar with the show it takes place in New York City and tells the story of Jackie, played wonderfully by Edie Falco of "The Soprano's" fame, and her life as a hardass nurse, wife and mother. Did I mention that she's also addicted to pain killers and is cheating on her husband with the hopsital pharmacist? It sounds a little crazy but you really do end up pulling for Jackie despite her morally gray behavior. She does what is right for her patients whether it's ethical or not, keeps her family hidden from the entire hospital and comes home at the end of the day as a woman who loves her husband and kids.

The show features a hilarious and intriguing supporting cast of characters played mostly by people I've never heard of before. Zoey, a nurse-in-training, kitten lover and all around too-upbeat-for-her-own good is played Merrit Wever. In the final episode of the season she decides to punish herself for giving a patient a wrong dose of medicine by wearing dark gray scrubs instead of her normals bright pink, bunny scrubs. It's so much fun to watch her character and Falco's interact because they are polar opposites.

A familiar cast member is Peter Facinelli (aka Carlisle Cullen for all you "Twilight" lovers) who plays the newest doctor, Fitch Cooper, a wannabe guy's guy and ladies man. Although should he get nervous, say when he's being yelled at by Jackie, he has what he calls "sexual tourrette's" which makes him grab people's breasts uncontrollably. This could perhaps be a result of growing up with lesbian mothers played fabulously in one episode by Swoosie Kurtz and Blythe Danner.

Showtime has really been quickly becoming my favorite television network. Between "Nurse Jackie," "Weeds," and "United States of Tara," I don't know that I've ever seen such comical, dramatic, smart and realistic writing and acting in shows starring women. But don't get me wrong, these shows aren't only meant for women viewers. My recommendation to you is to hurry up and watch all 12 episodes for free while they're still available On Demand or else you'll have to wait a couple of months when it comes out on DVD. If you don't have Showtime you should make friends with someone who does and take a couple hours and watch this show!