Forget what the TRUE BLOOD vampire fanatics will have you believe: DEXTER is the finest horror series - and one of the finest comedies - on TV. Each serialized season of the show about everyone's favorite serail killer, Dexter Morgan, tells a complete story, like a novel. There are no cheesy cliffhangers, but a full and thematic resolution to what we've watched unfold over three months. Last year's coda, in which Dexter married his pregnant girlfriend, Rita, served as both a conclusion and a springboard for this season's arc, which opens with Dexter deprived of sleep, and of his favorite past time (murdering killers who have escaped the reaches of the law), because his son has already been born.

Back at the squad room, or away from the squad room, the cops in Dexter's unit are busy sleeping with each other and with their informants, but Dexter and Rita aren't getting any. Into this milieu steps Arthur Mitchell (John Lithgow), aka the legendary serial slayer known as the Trinity Killer. Each season, the writers are faced with the challenge of creating a new super killer with whom Dexter must bond and ultimately take down. LAst year, Jimmy Smits delivered a sensational performance as Miguel Prado, a prosecutor who decided to follow in "Dex"'s footsteps. Although viewers sensed that Miguel wasn't quite right from the get go, it took a few episodes for us to see just how wrong he was, and then several more episodes before Dexter realized he had to off his "best friend." Perhaps seeing that they risked slipping too deep into formula, the show runners showed us just what a sicko the Trinity Killer was within a few minutes of the episode's opening. Based on his appearance tonight, Lithgow is going to make a fine nemesis for Dexter. And Keith Carradine made a welcome return as retired FBI serial killer hunter Frank Lundy, in town to catch his arch enemy... you guessed it, the Trinity Killer. Something tells me old Frank has about six episodes of life left in him.

This episode, "Living the Dream," whioh found the Morgans relocated to suburbia, used Dexter's newfound parental status to goo d comedic affect, most notably in a parody of the show's sly title sequence, and in a chilling confession by Dexter to his son. Looks like fans are in for another killer season.