COMM 380:  Media Criticism

Crime has always been a concept that is puzzling in which it has always been part of the reality that exists in society, yet fascinating in the sense of what would entice individuals to commit such actions. Documentaries, movies, television shows, news outlets have all addressed a variety of crimes whether they were committed for political, personal, or economical gain. However, viewers tend to be drawn to the most heinous and violent of crimes: murder. Crime dramas seek to sate an individual’s natural curiosity of the dark side of human nature, in which they follow a pattern of narrating a team of

investigators pursing possible suspects and then finally imposing a punitive sentence on

the criminal.

 

Furthermore, rape, kidnapping, torture, dismemberment, or other factors may be implied or displayed that would add to intensity to the story that would result in thrill or excitement. This natural curiosity is what former popular crime drama Dexter seeks to illuminate in its eight seasons with its protagonist, Dexter Morgan, who is not only a blood splatter analysis for the Miami Police Department, but is also a serial killer with vigilante attributes.

​

One theory that might possibly explain why society is drawn to heinous crimes is the uses and gratifications theory. The theory states individuals “are constantly seeking gratifications and the media compete to provide them” (Hanson, 2016). Furthermore, the theory asserts that viewers have a set of needs they are seeking to be fulfilled and consume various media in order to satisfy those needs (Hanson, 2016). These needs extend to cognitive, affective, personal and social integrative, and tension free needs (“Uses and Gratification Theory,” 2016). As to why individuals continually watch crime shows, individuals feel affective needs in which they consciously or unconsciously want

to experience thrill, horror, or even fear.

 

According to a former criminologist, individuals actively watch crime shows because they “receive a jolt of adrenaline as a reward for witnessing terrible deeds…that is similar to that of roller coasters or natural disasters” (Time, 2016). Therefore, individuals ultimately are drawn to a controlled environment in which they can experience fear and horror without the threat actually being real in the

comfort of their own home (Time, 2016).

 

Dexter competes with other crime dramas due

to the rare occurrence of an individual of the law

is also a compulsive serial killer.

Dexter is presented as an honorable and justice

driven murderer yet is also depicted to possess

thrill seeking and erotic tendencies for his killings.

One sequence that is shown in each episode is

Dexter’s infamous kill room in which he chooses a

setting his victim is familiar with, encloses the room

in plastic to prevent any trace evidence from being

discovered, straps his unconscious victim to a wooden

table, and then tapes photos of the victims on a wall

his target has killed (Dexter, 2008).

​

Furthermore, Dexter performs what individuals would consider to be a “kill ritual” in which he draws blood with a scalpel and puts it on a microscope slide, intimidates and confronts his victim, kills his victim using a variety of methods, and then dismembers the body, which he eventually disposes of in the ocean (Dexter, 2008). In mass media individuals hear about how serial killers hunt for their victims, the method in which the victim is killed, and how they have deposed of his or her victim, but what they do not hear or see is the gut wrenching, personal moments a serial killer has with his or her victim. This exploration of the darker, immoral side of humanity provides an outlet for viewers to fantasize about being reckless or rebellious without the consequences.

​

As Granelli and Zenor note, contemporary audiences desire unconventional narratives and characters rather than the traditional “good versus evil” stories (2016). Therefore, creative rather than conventional plotlines are needed to elicit and maintain audience engagement and morally ambiguous characters are an effective method in providing audiences the fantasy of breaking moral codes. As Dexter’s murders

become increasingly more explicit and violent throughout its eight seasons, networks feed the thrill, horror, and fear viewers crave, as they become fully immersed into the clandestine, fantasy world of a serial killer.

​

One other method that Showtime uses to distinct Dexter from other crime drama is narrating Dexter’s thoughts throughout each episode. This method would not only provide personal insight into a serial killer’s persona and mindset, but would also establish a relationship with audience members, as they would be the only individuals to know about Dexter’s true nature.

​

This method is known as parasocial relationship interaction in which audience members feel they are in

                                                                               a reciprocal relationship with mediated characters,                                                                                     which can even include fictional literary characters                                                                                     and radio and television talk show hosts (Semmler,                                                                                     Loof, & Berke, 2015). In Dexter’s case this form of                                                                                     interaction develops when viewers are engaged in a                                                                                   “simulacrum of conversational ‘give and take’” in                                                                                         which Dexter would appear to speak directly to the                                                                                     audience and supply personal information (Semmler,                                                                                 Loof, & Berke, 2015). Furthermore, Dexter does                                                                                         not share his secrets with any other character,                                                                                           including his sister and closest cop friends, and the                                                                                  audience members are the only witnesses to his

brutal and heinous crimes. Thus, Showtime presents the opportunity for viewers to perceive Dexter as a friend or even as a secret companion.

​

One would most likely imagine that serial killers would be on the same side as they share the common bond of fulfilling their fantasies for killing. However, in Dexter the serial killer is the one hunting other serial killers, which is another factor that extinguishes Dexter from other crime dramas. In each season the story is not only surrounded around Dexter’s vigilante murders, but also on a particular and prolific serial killer terrorizing Miami. As an example, in the first season all twelve episodes focus on what Miami Police call the “Ice Trucker Killer” in which he would lure prostitutes,dismember their bodies, and promptly would construct a form of public display with their body parts (Dexter, 2008). Moreover, he would mock Dexter with some of his body horror displays, with one grotesque image of dismembered, painted fingers (Dexter,2008). Interestingly audience members would begin to root for a vigilante killer that inflicts the same fate on his own victims, which suggests the thrill of the established ethical contradictions entices viewers.

​

According to Green (2012), the writers of Dexter were able to effectively execute a formula for the protagonist that would maintain audience appeal, which includes Dexter “catching a murderer, solving a mystery, relieving the audience, and momentarily restoring social order, [which] provides viewers

that tidy feeling of having wiped down the benches and taking out the trash.” Due to the established relationship of the hunter and the hunted, the audience actively participates with Dexter in anticipation of determining the identity of and inflicting justice upon the serial killer. Although audience members’ are aware of Dexter’s identity as a murderer, his heroic transgressions coupled with his polar ethical credence encapsulates the tension and adventurous fantasy they desire.

​

Dexter is one of those unconventional crime dramas that are part of the increase in anti-hero protagonists in television. Other notable crime dramas such as CSI, Law &Order: Special Victims Unit, Bones, NCIS, etc. solely display the forensic and legal process in imprisoning a criminal with the characters being considered good cops.

 

However, they all do not display the sole perspective of a killer, which is a side that is rarely shown in shows and contributed to the success of Dexter. By providing a fictive first hand account, Dexter fulfills the uses and gratification theory with showcasing a fantasy of not only anticipating his victims but also anticipating other killers.

​

Works Cited

Bonn, S. (2016, January 08). Why We Are Drawn to True Crime Shows. Retrieved April

16, 2019, from http://time.com/4172673/true-crime-allure/

 

Manos Jr., J. (Director). (2008). Dexter [Television Series]. New York City, NY:

Showtime.

 

Dexter: Investigating Cutting Edge Television. (2011). Critical Studies in

Television, 6(1), 125–128. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com.mutex.gmu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=fah&AN=66693418&site=ehost-live

​

Granelli, S., & Zenor, J. (2016). Decoding “The Code”: Reception Theory and Moral

Judgment of Dexter. International Journal of Communication (19328036), 10, 5056–5078. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com.mutex.gmu.edu/login.aspx direct=true&db=ufh&AN=127361676&site=ehost-live.

​

Green, S. (2012). Desiring Dexter : The pangs and pleasures of serial killer body

technique. Continuum: Journal of Media & Cultural Studies, 26(4), 579–

588. Retrieved from https://doiorg.mutex.gmu.edu/10.1080/10304312.2012.698037.

 

Hanson, R. E. (2016). Mass Communication Living in a Media World (5th ed.).

Thousand Oaks, CA, USA: SAGE Publications, Inc.  In Mass Communication, P. (2018, December 11). Uses and gratification theory.  Retrieved April 16, 2019, from

https://www.communicationtheory.org/uses-and-gratification-theory/

​

Semmler, S. M., Loof, T., & Berke, C. (2015). The Influence of Audio-Only Character

Narration on Character and Narrative Engagement. Communication Research Reports, 32(1), 63–72. Retrieved from https://doiorg.mutex.gmu.edu/10.1080/08824096.2014.989976