10 TV Shows That Completely Shifted The Balance Of Power In America

7. Dexter (Showtime: 2006-2013)

Dexter Morgan (Michael C. Hall) was a serial killer we could love, and for four seasons he headlined one of the better shows on television. Then the last four seasons happened and it became all too easy to forget how fun the show once was. Dexter put Showtime on the map as cable's second best premium channel chased rival HBO for subscribers. Later would come shows like Californication, Homeland, Ray Donovan, Masters Of Sex and (the US) Shameless to the network as time went on. However, Dexter was the one that started it all. Dexter told the story of a man with a 'dark passenger', ruled by his own selfish need to kill. The adopted son of a cop, he is taught at an early age, in what is perhaps a misguided bit of parenting technique, that if he must kill, then he should kill someone who deserves it. Of course his mentor Harry is played by James Remar, and what else would you expect from the guy who was 'Ajax' in The Warriors? So no longer was the serial killer just a tool to be used in cop shows for a ratings boost. Now it's a viable option for character study, and other networks have taken notice, as evidenced by more recent shows like Bates Motel, Hannibal and The Following. Dexter's popularity grew so much so, that CBS, the safest of all the networks, even attempted to capitalize by re-airing edited episodes. The experiment failed, but it was an obvious sign that of what was coming - the cookie cutter programming on broadcast wouldn't be able to rule forever.