TV Bulletin Board (Oct. 8) -- Showtime's Dexter adds "Early Cuts" animated webisodes

By ED BARK
Rabid fans of Showtime's Dexter, now early in its fourth season, will have another outlet in Dexter: Early Cuts.

The 12 animated webisodes, each running one to two minutes, are scheduled to launch Sunday, Oct. 25th on sho.com.

Showtime says they're a "way to continue building on the mythology and critical mass" of the series, which stars Michael C. Hall as a homicide investigator/serial killer. Narrated by Hall, the webisodes will detail, among other things, how Dexter bought his boat (Slice of Life) and when he began collecting slides of his victims.

***CBS has given full-season orders to two freshman dramas, NCIS: Los Angeles and The Good Wife. They're the No. 1 and No. 2 new series of the fall season, respectively averaging 17.5 million and 13.7 million viewers on Tuesday nights.

Also, HBO has renewed its first-year comedy series Bored to Death for a second season.

***Dallas-based HDNet, run by Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, kicks off its inaugural five-game United Football League coverage on Saturday, Oct. 10th (6 p.m. central) with a titanic struggle between the Florida Tuskers and New York Sentinels.

The broadcast team for the games is headed by veteran booth dude Paul Maguire, with help from Kenny Rice, Ron Kruck and Natalie Taylor.

HDNet also has two companion programs ready. The half-hour Live: UFL precedes each game. And the one-hour UFL Blitz (Sundays at 9 a.m. starting Oct. 11th) will have highlights of the week's action.