10 TV Character Deaths Fans Still Aren't Over
3. Rita Morgan - Dexter
The fourth season of Dexter is almost unanimously agreed to be the show's best, thanks in equal parts to Dexter's relatively stable personal life, John Lithgow's chilling Trinity Killer, and its final big twist.
After finally besting the Trinity Killer, Dexter went home with his and Rita's son Harrison to prepare for their honeymoon. Only, upon arriving at the house, he found Rita dead in the bathtub, presented as a final gift from Trinity before his own demise.
Rita's death was the best last-minute plot twist Dexter ever deployed as a show, striking the perfect balance between shocking and ingenious. It also changed the fabric of the series for the rest of its run, as with her death Dexter lost his main link to his humanity and was more free to live his life as an uncaged killer of killers.
Though the show never again reached season four's lofty heights, Rita's final fate remains one of Dexter's most inspired and affecting moments.