After last night’s shocking finale, Dexter has solidified itself as the best show on television.  I can’t remember a time when a T.V. show threw such a twist at me that it literally made me nauseous.  I couldn’t sleep last night, and I was a mess all day at work today.  The episode was beyond heartbreaking, it was emotionally draining.

***SPOILERS: DON’T READ IF YOU HAVE YET TO WATCH SEASON 4***

We’re now just about 24 hours after the show’s conclusion, and the only thing I can think about is Dexter’s infant son sitting in his mother’s blood in the bathroom, with Rita lying motionless in a blood-filled tub.  The image is seared into my head, it’s going absolutely nowhere.  The writers have spent four seasons building up Rita’s character (remember how creepy and uncomfortable she was in the first season?), and in a vomit-inducing twist they take it all away with a 2 minute closing segment.  What’s better is that nobody saw this coming.  2.6 million viewers tuned in Sunday night to watch Season 4′s finale, blowing away all modern records for Showtime…and no one knew this twist was coming.

If you’re still in the dark about Dexter, I demand that you rent the first season and get in the know.  Borrow them from a friend, get them off Netflix, find them OnDemand, go to the library…do whatever you have to do.  Take it one episode at a time, and don’t be turned off by the eerily dark premise when you’re first introduced.

The writing on this show is the best on television, there’s absolutely no question in my mind.  You think you know the big twist that’s coming, and the writers smack you in the face with something out of left field that nearly forces you to go into hibernation to get yourself back together.  The acting, which features no true superstars, is top notch.  This past season the show was led by John Lithgow with one of the creepiest serial killer portrayals of all time.  Dexter’s x-factor is the audience’s inability to predict what will happen.  I have absolutely no clue what direction Dexter will go next season.  Will they jump ahead in time?  Will Dexter wrongfully be the prime suspect in his wife’s murder?  Will Rita serve as a ghost character in the 5th season, in similar fashion to Dexter’s father?  I know nothing.  All I know is that Dexter will keep blowing me away and will continue to set the bar for modern television.