Darkly Dreaming Dexter - Jeff Lindsay

I, like 2 million other people, watched the first episode of the TV show Dexter. Having done so has completely changed the way I read this book. This may not be a novel (no pun intended) observation, but encountering the story in another medium makes it impossible to read the book as it was intended. Instead of absorbing the story as written, the process becomes about finding differences, and answering the ultimate question: "Was the book better than the show?". Usually this game gets played with movie adaptations, with the majority of the time the answer being "the book is better because there's more in it." In this case, Darkly Dreaming Dexter's 304 pages are better than the first season's 12 episodes because there's less in it.

Reading the book after watching the show makes it abundantly clear which elements have been added for the sake of making a more conventional TV series. In retrospect, the expanded character subplots, particularly the twisty romantic one, feel more tacked on when you know they're tacked on. After scraping them back away, you end up with a more concise, centrally-focused narrative that gets to spend more time establishing and maintaining the darkly funny tone that makes both the novel and its televised offspring so enjoyable.

So let's break it down, comparing the characters from both (since all I was doing in reading was comparing anyway) and seeing how this all works out.

Dexter Morgan: The book allows him to be darker and focuses less on his positive relationships (except for the one with Deborah/Debra). He is more (obviously) calloused, referring to Rita as his beard. Whereas a TV show comprised mostly of monologuey narration would likely flop, the constant honest insight in DDD's 1st person voice keeps the story grounded and the focus where it needs to be.
Winner: Book Dexter

Deborah/Debra Morgan: DDD's Deborah is described as looking more like a centrefold than a cop. Now I've got no problem with how Jennifer Carpenter looks, but I was intrigued enough with this description that I felt like I needed to mention it. It also brings a slightly different angle to the character, where she has to face more direct sexual discrimination, apparently needing to apologize for and overcome her more voluptuous figure. Despite this angle, the character ends up being just a touch more irritating than her TV counterpart. Furthermore, while on the show, Debra eventually does come into her own as a police officer, book Deborah is entirely at the mercy of Dexter's machinations. She is only able to gain insight into cases when he feeds it to her, at his discretion.
Winner: TV Debra

Rita Bennett: Barely present in the novel, Rita develops a lot further as a character on the small screen. During the first season she begins to come out of her shell and hasn't yet made her Season 3 transition into professional shrew. She's still overwhelmed, damaged, but awkwardly trying to move hers and Dexter's relationship toward kind of normalcy that he is with her to avoid. Book Rita is an afterthought whose jump to the foreground is an undesired distraction, whose presence we resent as much as Dexter does.
Winner: TV Rita

Migdia/Maria LaGuerta: Hateful, spiteful, silver-tongued Migdia of DDD makes for a much more compelling character than political-but-actually-a-pretty-good-cop-Maria. Migdia is deluded, Maria is comparitively boringly self-aware. No question here.
Winner: Book Migdia

Angel Batista: Shows up three times in the novel, always peering over someone's body. It's possible that he never actually speaks. That's about it. Compare this to seasoned cop TV Angel, whose friendly demeanour make him worth keeping around.
Winner: TV Angel

James Doakes: Present as a looming figure and eventual enemy, the book's Doakes shows potential that is much more elaborately, and entertainingly played out on TV. While TV Doakes' ante-romantic subplot does eat into valuable Dexter time, his accusatory interactions with Dexter are among the best things the show has to offer.
Winner: TV Doakes

Harry Morgan: With Dexter's adopted father, the book gets it right with a less-is-more philosophy. Rather than having a phantom daddy figure looming around whenever the show feels like going to soft-focus, DDD's Harry stays dead and is mentioned in reference or in flashbacks.
Winner: Book Harry

Brian Moser/Rudy Cooper: On the one hand, the show takes more time to elaborate on the identity of the Ice Truck Killer and his connection to other characters. Then again, it also forces an extra connection by way of a fairly transparent and convient romantic subplot. The book, on the other hand, has the killer remain a total mystery until the final chapters. We know there's a connection somewhere, but it shows up in frustrating dreams and visions. For a few chapters, there is potential for disappointment that the book may take a paranormal turn, leaving us to feel an even greater sense of relief and satisfaction when the answers are finally revealed. It's a close call but...
Winner: Book Brian

Vince Masuoka/Masuka: This one's tough. Whereas the show depicts Masuka as an honestly perverse sass-monkey, filled with delightful one-liners and an infinite patience for rejection, the book's Masuoka gains an invaluable depth when Dexter connects with him as a fellow non-human. While Masuoka does not appear to have any homocidal tendencies, the two relate to each others' artifice when it comes to their interactions with others. In terms of entertainment, the show takes the cake, but as a character who I'd like to see explored further, Masuoka is considerably more intriguing. Which wraps it all up to a...
Winner: Tie.

This means that our final score is...

Show: 5
Book: 5

Yeah, pretty big cop out, eh? So here's the deal. The show is great with some great (and some unnecessary characters), but when it comes to telling this particular story, you get it better from the book. So be like me and experience both, that way you're not missing anything.