The "Dexter" Defense

Lewis Unglesby, the defense attorney for a seventeen year old Louisiana man accused of murder, says viewings of the Showtime series "Dexter" influenced his client. Police seized DVDs of the show at the defendant's home. Mr. Unglesby entered a "not guilty by reason of insanity" plea for his client in early July. More here from the Baton Rouge Advocate.

The problem? Dexter is a serial killer who eliminates other serial killers. Mr. Unglesby's client is accused of murdering an eight-year-old.

Revisiting Inspector Morse

Last Friday's issue of The Independent has a wonderful article about the charms of Inspector Morse, that unique character created by Colin Dexter and brought to life by the late actor John Thaw. In addition to DVDs available from BFS Entertainment, you can enjoy the Inspector in print in any of Dexter's wonderful novels, many of which are also available in audio editions. Here's a link to the PBS webpage for Morse, and here's a link to a webpage for a walking tour of Inspector Morse's city.

Here are a few discussions of the character in literature and film.

Barker, Simon, “Period” Detective Drama and the Limits of Contemporary Nostalgia: Inspector Morse and the Strange Case of a Lost England, 6(2) Critical Survey 234-42 (1994).

Brodie, J. S., The Cult of Inspector Morse: A Contemporary Phenomenon, 38 Journal of Kyoritsu Women’s Junior College 79-87 (February 1995).

Decottignies, Jean, La vie poétique de l'inspecteur Morse: Un polar mélancolique (Grenoble, France: ELLUG; 2004).

Thomas, Lyn, In Love With Inspector Morse: Feminist Subculture and Quality Television, 51 Feminist Review 1-25 (Autumn 1995).

Sparks, Richard, Inspector Morse: “The Last Enemy”, in British Television Drama in the 1980s 86-102 (George W. Brandt ed., Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993).

[Cross-posted to The Seamless Web].