Hannibal (2013-Present)

Eater.com

Back when Raúl Esparza guest-starred on Pushing Daisies, I didn’t know what I was getting into.  His two-episode stint drew me into that charming gem of a show, which in turn led me to the brilliant but ratings-challenged Bryan Fuller.  He was the first showrunner I ever followed, and I’ve loved all of his short-lived masterpieces to bits.  His latest outing, which airs Friday nights on NBC (9 p.m. Central,) isn’t quite like anything I’ve seen on TV before.

 

Pretty obviously, Hannibal is based on the Thomas Harris serial-killer books.  Not so much an adaptation as a reimagined prequel, the show follows gifted, unstable Will Graham in his work with the FBI.  Will has a neurological disorder that allows him to feel total empathy with anyone, and given a crime scene, Will can extrapolate the killer’s mindset and motivations.  It’s not nearly as hokey as it sounds, and I should clarify that his insights help guide the investigation rather than serve as admissible evidence themselves.  However, stepping so fully into the shoes of killers does a number on Will’s psyche, and his boss sets him up with a therapist to make sure he’s looking into the abyss without the abyss looking back.  Mental health services can be enormously beneficial, of course, but when your therapist is Hannibal Lector?  Not so much.

 

The show naturally lives or dies on the strength is its Hannibal, and Mads Mikkelsen gives an utterly fantastic performance.  Dr. Lector is erudite and cultured, hiding audaciously in plain sight with all the subtlety of a peacock who likes cannibal innuendo.  He’s an excellent feigner of emotion and empathy, but Mikkelsen can go so cold at the drop of a hat.  While he gives the impression of being a thoroughly cerebral creature, he can also be tremendously physical, striking silently with cobra speed and alarming strength.  He plays everyone around him like a regular Iago, for reasons of self-preservation, curiosity, revenge, or simply because he can.

 

Hugh Dancy’s Will is excellent as well.  On the surface, he seems a much weaker man, sensitive and skittish.  But Will is capable of great fortitude, and he’s been especially resourceful in the face of staggering odds in season two.  The cast also features Laurence Fishburne and Caroline Dhavernas (Jaye from Wonderfalls,) and tons of Fuller alumni make guest appearances (my favorites include Ellen Muth from Dead Like Me and Eddie Izzard from Mockingbird Lane.)

 

Additionally, the series is stuffed with twisted beauty.  The DC area is apparently chockfull of serial killers who are fond of complex murder tableaus.  From the killer who turns his victims into mushroom gardens to the murderer who constructs a human totem pole, the crime scenes in Hannibal are wildly inventive, absolutely disgusting, and unsettlingly gorgeous.  The visuals are stunning throughout; plus, even though you know the food is made of people, it looks delicious.

 

I highly recommend Hannibal to anyone with offbeat sensibilities and a strong stomach.  If you can, go back to the beginning before digging into the current season.  The show is pretty serialized and rewards attentive viewership.

 

Warnings

 

Tons of violence (though much of it is either crime scenes or mental reconstructions,) some swearing, and extremely dark subject matter.  Only watch if you think you can handle it.