Review: Hannibal The Cannibal Cannibalize

Into its third season and Hannibal has gone into to slow mow mode. Literally nothing that has been said in the first four episodes could not have been said in the first episode. The first two seasons of Hannibal dealt with both Hannibal’s persona and his relationship with FBI Agent Graham. To be honest the first two season were able to get into your head, a psychotic mind produced on the TV. It allowed for good quality police procedural and a thriller along with a story arc of mistrust and friendship.

The third series so far has failed introduce anything new. The storyline hasn't really moved on to the next part of Hannibal rather it has lethargically zoned in on the last two seasons and its aftereffects.

Will Graham (Hugh Dancy) and Bedelia (Gillain Anderson) are still obsessed by Hannibal (Mads Mikkelsen). As we saw in the final episode of season 2 Bedelia and Hannibal escaped together, so far this plot has only provided us with details of their strange relationship and their new home, and that have taken on the positions of Dr. Roman Fell and his wife, in Palermo.

The opening episode are fill flashbacks, slow motion blood and smashing objects. Beautifully filmed but lacking the tension of previous seasons, okay we get it Hannibal is a cannibal. Gillian Anderson's portrayal of Bedelia remains strong but how many times can she contemplate her own death and at who’s hands. The question of her own misdeeds comes up but the audience is still left with the feeling that Hannibal continues to control her emotions.

Meantime everyone feels let down by Lecter. His control across the board is clear to see, but this continued lethargic depressive exposition causes a once interesting series to die in its own obsession with coldness.

It's a pity the third season didn't move straight to the Red Dragon storyline. Allowing the audience to see FBI Agent Jack Crawford (Laurence Fishburne) struggle to get The Tooth Fairy (Richard Armitage) without Graham on his team. In the novel we see Graham has moved on with his life, so far into episode 4 the audience have yet to meet his future wife Molly Graham (Nina Arianda), the series could have explored his rehabilitation with her.

Instead the writers seem to be more interested in Lecter's capture than any other aspects of the story. It is as if they decided that Lecter has to be in prison before The Tooth Fairy investigation begins, a strange decision considering that much of the series so far is a mix of stories from the Thomas Harris novels, and that Graham is not involved at the beginning of the investigation into The Tooth Fairy, the novel Red Dragon begins after the Chesapeake Ripper as seen in Season 1.

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