10 TV Shows That Went Too Far (In Completely Unexpected Ways)

10. That Inexplicable Incest Subplot - Dexter

Dexter was never a show worried by the boundaries of good taste—being based on the (admittedly clever and original) premise of a “serial killer who targets other, worse serial killers” means that idea of staying sanitized is thrown out the window fairly early in development, after all.

But after years of the show developing the tender, tragic connection between Dexter and his adopted sister, no nonsense cop Deb (who is none the wiser to his murderous past times), the series picked the weirdest way to throw away seasons of character development and screw up the dramatic tension of Dexter attempting to hide his secret form the only person who’s judgement truly mattered to him.

Yep, you guessed it—like Game of Thrones before it, Dexter had Deb reveal she harboured secret sexual feelings for her brother, and thus an uncomfortable and wholly unexpected incest subplot reared its head and made a mess of the potentially promising season wherein Deb discovered Dexter’s secret double life.

Their dynamic never really recovered in the eyes of fans and critics alike, and the show’s decline continued until its roundly reviled series finale two seasons after Deb’s dramatic revelation.