IGN gave the pilot episode an "Outstanding" rating of 9 out of 10, with Dan Iverson starting his review by saying "Every a show will come along that will be so creepy and so intriguing that you feel compelled to watch. Dexter is one of those shows. " and summarized with "The pilot episode did an extremely good job hooking us into the world of Dexter. We are meant to feel confused by his actions, and only time will tell how the show deals with this topic - will Dexter ever go too far, making us turn on our protagonist? There are so many questions that we have about this show, and that is a good thing. Personally we cannot wait to see how long this game of cat-and-mouse goes on with the unknown serial killer and Dexter. With the solid introduction to the series, characters, and future storylines, we can't help but recommend Dexter to anybody that is at all curious about the show. " IGN reviewer Matt Fowler later placed Mike Donovan third on a list of "Dexter's Top 10 Kills", saying "We all remember our first. First car. First love. First staph infection. And when it comes to Dexter, first kill. No Mike Donovan, the church choir master, wasn't Dexter first dead body, but he was our televisual introduction into Dexter's wicked world of revenge and reckoning." IGN also declared the show as the "Best New Psycho Drama of 2006".