'Dexter' sets series ratings record

"Dexter"  not only bested Jordan Chase  (Jonny Lee Miller), but he's bested himself.

The fifth season, which concluded with "The Big One" Sunday night (Dec. 12), averaged more than 5 million viewers per week, making it the series' highest-rated season to date.

The finale itself nabbed 2.9 million viewers from the 9 p.m. (2.5 million) and 11 p.m. (401,000) airings combined. This is on par with the series' stellar Season 4 finale and a good 40 percent up from the premiere's 1.77 million viewers.

When all is said and done and watched On Demand/Live+7, the Season 5 finale could boast as many as 6 million viewers.

In "The Big One," Dexter (Michael C. Hall) concludes his search for Lumen (Julia Stiles) , who's been kidnapped by Jordan, the leader of a group of men who raped, tortured and killed women, known to the Miami Metro as the Barrel Girls.