Sexy killers have always been a Hollywood staple, and this year two franchises that have been seen previously return with panache. Both DEXTER and YOU are smart, scary, humorous, and charming and both will probably rattle your mind.
After several seasons away, Michael C Hall returns in the award winning DEXTER. While I was a fan of the original series, it took a while to get back in sync with it. Dexter has spent 10 years being good, not committing any murders. He has created a new life in the woods of Maine. The writing is snappy and clever and rich with irony, as Dexter has fallen in love with a cop, and now works in a hunting shop that sells guns and knives, challenging his determination to lead a good life.
As before, ghosts populate Dexter’s world. This time his sister appears to keep him on the straight and narrow path. When a teen arrives seeking the father who abandoned him, the stage is set for an intense and dramatic season.
Dexter had a huge audience for its first week. I suspect more discussion, and ultimately more awards will follow.
People may also be talking about YOU, now in Season 3, another well made tale about another killer. Set in a beautifully photographed New York City, YOU focuses on Joe, a young and sexy bookseller played by Penn Badgley. Joe becomes enamored with a client whose name is Guenevere Beck (Elizabeth Lail) who is sexy and smart, but troubled by consistently making bad choices. Joe is made even more likeable when he introduces the world of classic books to a young boy who lives next door.
The cast is terrific, the sets and production design are appealing, and by the end of the first episode you’ll be hooked. Will Joe win over Guenevere, or be her last lover? No doubt Joe has secrets, perhaps some of them bloody.
Based on the books by Caroline Kepnes, YOU was developed by Greg Berlanti and Sera Gamble. Belanti is celebrated as a gay icon, not only for his work, which ranges from
“Brothers & Sisters” to ``Riverdale”, but also for his marriage - to soccer star and activist Robbie Rogers.
YOU season 3 is now on Netflix. DEXTER is on Showtime.