Dexter aired its third episode last night and I'm definitely sold on it.  I mean, cast Michael C. Hall in a remake of Designing Women and I'd watch it.  But it's definitely one of the most interesting shows on these days, considering it can get away with a lot of stuff that I imagine would be tough to get through on network TV.

That said, I've put on my beret and scarf, all director-like, and I've come up with some notes on Dexter.  Just some things that have been on my mind and that the producers might want to consider to nurture and develop our little murderous baby.

1.  The show goes out of its way to remind us that Dexter has no feelings.  That is, he is psychologically removed from the regular world and just pretends to act sympathetic when necessary, jovial when necessary, etc.  He says the only person he really feels anything toward could possibly be his sister, and even then…  eh. 

But I don't buy it.  I'm no criminal psychologist, but from a creative point of view he just seems to be too good at faking it.  He's a complete natural when it comes to playing with his girlfriend's kids, spontaneously bringing his sister a congratulatory cactus ("you only have to water it three times a year") and engaging colleagues in repartee.  He's pretty charming, in fact.  Would someone really be able to act like that if they couldn't feel it?  

In the flashbacks to Dexter's awkward adolescence, where he tries to deal with his violent compulsions with the help of his father, he doesn't come off as unemotional.  In fact, he seems to be too emotional. 

"I wanted to avoid an obvious black-and-white, Jekyll-and-Hyde kind of presentation," Hall told CNN. "I like the idea that Dexter is hiding in plain sight."

Okay.  Well, if that's too obvious, maybe have Dexter just be weirdly detached when it comes to murder (like that BTK guy).  I don't know.  Something else besides just being completely bankrupt of any emotion.

Maybe Dexter is just unreliable when it comes to his own self-assessment.

It's really too late to do anything about this, though, because the character has been so clearly defined from the outset.  They may as well run with it and try to iron out the inconsistencies.

2.  I was all ready to go after the first episode when they made it seem like the entire season was going to be focused on the slice-and-dice freezer killer.  The game of cat-and-mouse was laid out at the end of the first episode, but the previous two episodes haven't really done that much with him.  In that first episode, the guy was lobbing severed prostitute heads at Dexter, and now no direct contact for two episodes?

3.  What's going on with Big Black Sex Cop Part Two?  The testy cop who antagonizes Dexter seems to have a subplot all to himself (involving an affair, a double murder of a cop and his wife, and organized crime) and it totally isn't interesting. Unless a) I'm completely missing something or b) this show is coming full-circle and everything will tie together, BBSCPT should probably have stayed a fairly static secondary character.

4.  Finally, umm… pick up the pace.  Just a little.

Holy shit, everybody. Battlestar Galactica is awesome.

This Sci-Fi channel original series has a devoted following already (heck, they get almost as many viewers as Veronica Mars, on cable), so I know that I'm late getting to this, but I just can't state strongly enough: this show is amazing. It has depth and sophistication. Visually, it's unique and takes risks. The actors will blow your minds. The score is haunting. The scripts go places you never would've expected. It fracking rules. 

I wish it were called something else. I can feel you judging me as you're reading this. "Battlestar Galactica?" you sniff. "Sounds like SeaQuest DSV, or some cheesy thing that probably has a tie-in board game." It's the name — Battle, so you've got your war. Star, so you know it's in space. Galactica, some made-up thing, which means it's solidly sci-fi. And that's all accurate, to a degree. But there's so much preconceived baggage with the name — and there's so much more to the show.

I won't bother explaining the set-up and characters here, because there's no way I could do it justice. There are robots who look human. The end of humanity. A sexy renegade pilot with issues. And lots more.

And you can still catch up! The first two seasons are on DVD. Start with the miniseries, then season one (a short season), then season 2.0, then season 2.5. It's stupid that they split up season 2 like that, but it makes no difference. It won't take very long, and then the third season only started two weeks ago. 

Do it.

Seriously. 

News nuggets to get you through your mid-morning slump.

• Bindi Irwin, the crocodile hunter's daughter, is going to have a show of her own entitled Bindi, The Jungle Girl. The late Croc Hunter will appear in a few episodes filmed before his death.
• Taking a page from the Jude Law Book of Matrimony, seems like the husband of Dancing With the Stars' Sara Evans has been effing the nanny. Or so Sara says.  He denies anything ever happened.  However, this MSNBC article talks about the various gross Craigslist escapades of the former Republican congressional candidate (is anyone surprised?).
• Project Runway finalist Michael Knight is dating Brandy.  Yes, that Brandy. 
• You know which show I completely forgot existed?  Medium.  But it's coming back in November , lest you fear that you will be deprived of Patricia Arquette's stilted, dead-eyed acting.  (UPDATE: Holy shit! Who can pay attention to her acting when these things are shoved, front and center, into the camera!)
• Finally, this isn't actually news, but I just think it's funny that Maggie's post on High School Musical has continued to receive comment after comment months after it was posted.