Dexter Morgan, Dexter
Showtime Sun 9 p.m. EST
Let us be clear: we do not condone murder—serial or otherwise. For those who haven’t seen the show, Dexter Morgan is a blood-spatter analyst for the Miami Metro Police Department, and has a dark side: he moonlights as a serial killer (who, in his defense, only murders other serial killers).
This was one of our toughest calls for this list because Dexter, played by Michael C. Hall, is one of the most complex characters on the air right now. ***SPOILER ALERT*** His urge to kill stems from horrifying childhood trauma: he and his brother were trapped for two days in a storage container, sitting in a two-inch bath of their murdered mother’s blood. The incident led the young Dexter down a dark path of compulsion that was only curbed by the guidance of his adoptive father, Harry (who happened to be the policeman who found him).
Before you balk at this—dismissing Dexter’s past trauma as his excuse to chop people up—consider Edmond Dantes from The Count of Monte Cristo. Both were plucked as innocents and thrown into unimaginable trauma (a lifetime in prison and a blood bath at the age of 3). Both ostensibly lose the capacity to feel emotion apart from a simmering rage that’s expressed in, well, less than healthy ways. Both spend the rest of their lives trying to fill an unspeakable hole. But as Alexandre Dumas writes in Monte Cristo, “only a man who has felt ultimate despair is capable of feeling ultimate bliss.”
Despite his impossible yearnings—what the show dubs his “dark passenger”—Dexter strives toward goodness even if he won’t admit it himself. Married with three kids as of season three, he claims that his family is just a ruse, a mask to hide behind, but throughout the show you can see him realizing how much he wants to be a good father, a good brother, a good husband. Contrasted against his former self, you could argue that he feels goodness more pointedly. Take, for instance, his inner monologue on the day of his wedding:
Dexter Morgan—family man. All of my previous attempts at human connection have ended in, well, death. And now I have a partner for life. How did that happen? Am I drawn into the safety of belonging or being apart of something bigger than me? Either way I’m a married man, soon-to-be father. But what do I have to offer a child? Just me. Demented, daddy, Dexter. Maybe I’m making the biggest mistake of my life, but who’s perfect? Certainly not me. Certainly not Harry. Sure I’m still who I was—who I am—question is, who do I become? There’s so many blanks left to fill in. But right now, at this moment, I’m content. Maybe even … happy. And I have to admit that when all is said and done, life is good.
The way we see it, we all have demons. If we were to take Dexter’s propensity for killing as a metaphor for all of our collective problems, failings, and guilt, it almost seems like too small a tribute. But like all good men, he’s muddling through, trying to change for the better.
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Marshall Eriksen, How I Met Your Mother
CBS Mon 8 p.m. EST
With apologies to Neil Patrick Harris—who is amazing in this show—we had to go with Marshall Eriksen from the crew at CBS’s How I Met Your Mother.
Played by Jason Segel, Marshall is your textbook “good guy” who’s so flat-out good that he occasionally makes you want to vomit in your mouth. An unwaveringly loyal friend and husband and an aspiring environmental lawyer, his most evident flaw is that he’s way too nice. One episode follows him as he walks down the street, handing out nice nuggets like they’re hot potatoes. (First he says hello to chess players on the street and to a woman outside the dry cleaners. Then he helps a kid fix his bike with two quick turns of a wrench, and joins a breakdancing session in the middle of the sidewalk.)
Unwaveringly faithful to his wife (played by the lovely Alyson Hannigan), he can’t even fantasize about other women without first concocting an elaborate scenario in which his wife is dead, unavailable, or OK with the situation. As far as career ambitions go, he gave in to the real-world pressures of impending fatherhood and entered the world of corporate law. Still, he doesn’t work on cases that run counter to his values. If only it was so easy to be good in real life.
Then there are the little things: his obsession with food, his uncanny knack for games, and how excited he is to cash in on his “slap bet” with Barney (Neil Patrick Harris).
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To this list, I’d add: Patrick Jane (“The Mentalist”), Dr. Owen Hunt (“Grey’s Anatomy”), Terry Bellefleur (“True Blood”), Chuck Bartowski (“Chuck”), LeRoy Gibbs (“NCIS”) and Marshall Mann (“In Plain Sight”). All good men.
Patrick Jane (“The Mentalist”) I love that show but while he is smart he has a bit too much of a disregard for authority. And his attitude sometimes borders on arrogance. LeRoy Gibbs (“NCIS”) Again I like the show a lot but for all the good there is in Agent Gibbs I’m not sure he’s that great of a man if for no other reason than his head slapping and how selective he is of it. You could make a viral video with clips of him slapping DiNozzo and McGee (to the beat of “Where’s Your Head At?” by Basement… Read more »
Okay, I just stumbled upon The Good Men Project so I should probably withhold judgement on its mission statement until I’ve read more. That being said, it seems to me the ultimate TV example of someone “trying to be a good man” is Nate Fisher from Six Feet Under. If you’ve seen the show, you know how well his tries work out.
Totally with you, and I’m a huge Krause fan (Sports Night, SFU, etc.). We’ll have to do a follow-up piece with shows that aren’t running.
I don’t understaaaaand the fascination with neil patrick harris! he wasn’t on the list, but got what amounted to an honourable mention – his character is an unabashed sexist pig!
Don’t forget Eddie Trunk, Don Jamison, and Jim Florentine on the VH1 Classic program, “That Metal Show.” Guests so far include Rob Halford from Judas Priest and Michael Anthony from Van Halen. They opened the new season with a genuine tribute to the recently passed rocker Ronnie James Dio.
These guys just sit around an talk metal, mostly classic metal. The show is a big hit, and this season was expanded from a half hour to an hour.
I believe this list was characters, though. Those guys are great (and absolutely hilarious), but they’re real people on TV. Not characters that everyone is made to look up to. I feel there’s a difference.
Great list! Love the Modern Family guys! Henry Francis does deserve to be on this list! I like watching Don and his struggles but there are so many other great characters on Mad Men. Henry is a good guy and I love the actor. Can’t wait to see what next season brings.
I CAN’T POST! IT ALL ZIPS AWAY!
nevermind…..everytime I post here the whole thing gets lost just before I hit PostComment. so foget it here
Detective Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni) of Law and Order: SVU. Good father, defender of the weak.
I don’t entirely agree with this. Though Detective Stabler can be a great guy, he has just as many flaws. He’s an angry cop and too conflicted to be put on this list, in my opinion. Besides, if you didn’t notice (or read) law enforcement was avoided on here. Stabler is a perfect reason why. Good cop, not the greatest guy.
I’d like Bill Adama of Battlestar Galactica added to this list.
I really enjoy Chuck on Chuck. And the supporting cast of men on that show, from Awesome to Casey to the guys who work at the Buy More. Each is flawed, each tries to do the right thing in their own, sometimes misguided, ways.
seconded
I have to agree. Chuck is loyal to his girlfriend, a good brother to his sister, a good friend and always tries to do what’s right. He might be a nerd, but he knows it and he doesn’t let it stop him.
Okay guys…with you all the way on this with one exception. Henry Francis. Have you been watching the show? He seems like a pretty bitter dude to me, treating Betty and my boy Don pretty horribly. Maybe its because I am so fascinated by how they portray Don’s search for meaning, his attempt to deal with being a divorced dad, and juggle work, love, and booze (okay, yes I plead guilty) that makes me dislike Henry Francis intensely. I’ll ask you one question: Did Betty look better with Don or with Henry Francis? I will grant you that Don’s latest… Read more »
Don has been a horrible husband (infidelity), father (absenteeism), soldier (desertion), and business partner (dirty dealings to prevent exposure). Compared to Don, almost any other husband is superior–and Henry is a revelation.
Al Bundy is the best TV dad of all time and it’s abhorrent that he didn’t make this list. He sells shoes and makes no money, but what little money he does make is taken by his wife. He has two kids who don’t respect him, yet he constantly comes to the rescue when his throws the boyfriends of his slutty daughter into the wall and out of the house. And he takes his boy on father-son bonding trips to the nudie bar. Al was also a promising high school football standout, but instead of striving for fame and athletic… Read more »
We love Al Bundy! But this is for characters currently on air. He’s there in spirit through Modern family though!
Damn technicalities! 😉
Unfortunately the male characters from my other favorite show (It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia) are morally deplorable and thus would not qualify. But it is hilarious.
I JUST discussed this with my boys’ class the other day and discovered that most of the male characters they watch on television happen to be animated ones who lack integrity. However, they assured me there are GOOD MEN on TV who are human, but they are watching an entirely different stream of programming than the ones mentioned here, and I suspect so are an enormous number of other people. The boys let me know loud and clear that George Lopez is a good man, and then they went on to rattle off a list of good cops and forensic… Read more »