10 TV Shows Whose Leads Are The Worst Character

For a while, Dexter’s central character was its main selling point. The moral ambiguity of the serial killer who only killed other serial killers was a fascinating puzzle to unlock, and Michael C Hall’s committed, subtle performance was awards catnip.

As the show went on, though, Dexter became his show’s biggest problem. His moral code turned ever foggier as he killed to survive - to keep killing, essentially - rather than to redress some karmic balance in the universe. This reached a head in the final season, whose infamous ending remains one of the worst in TV history.

The showrunners didn’t know how to solve a problem like Dexter. He’d reached a point at which his crimes needed to be answered for; the logical conclusion would be a prison sentence, or death.

Instead, he sailed into a storm, then became a lumberjack. It was so disastrous that the show was rebooted years later. The results were similarly poor.

There’s a great world in there with some quality support and terrific antagonists, but Dexter was an increasingly unworkable character whose writing ultimately spelled the decline and demise of his show.