Dexter is a critically acclaimed series of novels written by Jeff Lindsay that have spawned related material in several media. Dexter as a franchise started with the Dexter television series that aired on Showtime, the series itself was based on the first novel by Jeff Lindsay - Darkly Dreaming Dexter, at least by Season 1 of the show. Since the show's second season and since Lindsay's second novel, each media took a different path in the story, effectively resulting in two different universes for Dexter.