In the ninth episode of the second season of Hannibal, Dr. Lecter continues to push Will in uncomfortable ways when a recent case parallels Will’s own journey. Intrigued? Then it’s time for Mark to watch Hannibal.
Trigger Warning: For talk of blood/gore, and for brief mention of an injury to a dog.
- Well, it’s clear now that this show is moving in a direction with Will Graham that’s both uncomfortable and dark, and it’s a willing examination of what Hannibal’s influence on Will has brought out in him. This episode, while containing a “case-of-the-week” style story, is actually deeply, deeply serialized, calling back to a number of moments from the premiere, from the midst of season two, from the end of “Sakizuke,” and… shit, THERE’S SO MUCH HERE. I didn’t expect to see Peter again, I never thought that Will and Margot would ever have a conversation, and DOES JACK SUSPECT HANNIBAL OF ANYTHING ANYMORE? WHAT’S GOING ON THERE?
- Jesus, I know I’ve commented on the dual nature of the dialogue in this show, but holy shit, y’all, this is UNREAL. The commentary on Hannibal and Will’s relationship, the references to Hannibal’s true nature, the bits about Will’s “evolution,” and….. I can’t. I CAN’T DO THIS.
- Let’s start by talking about the haunting cold open to “Sakizuke,” which is rich with the evolving (HA GET IT) imagery of the stag that’s been part of Will’s mind for the whole show. Will imagines his reckoning of Hannibal as one where Hannibal is completely powerless, but in the process, Will changes himself. He uses the stag to tear Hannibal’s head off, and the blood arcs poetically in the air. Will’s reckoning of Hannibal isn’t just killing him; it is stripping him of power.
- Power dynamics are all over this episode, though, and I think that as dense and dark as this story got, understanding how power shifts from one party to another was important to understanding how Will’s journey is unfolding before our eyes.
- So! The case that the BAU team deals with initially seems like a particularly violent animal attack, which of course contradicts the very surreal scene where we saw a person climb up on top of the truck. The writers toy with the visual surreality in a way that almost made this episode seem like an X-File, but there’s nothing supernatural about what Randall Tier does.
- It’s not surprising that Randall was once a patient of Hannibal’s because this episode is about three “generations” of patient who all have to grapple with what Hannibal has encouraged in them. If Randall is evidence of how Hannibal manipulates people into the darkest corners of their mind, then Will is mid-metamorphosis, and Margot is just starting down the same path.
- Which is why it’s so significant that Will finally confesses to Hannibal that Bedelia Du Maurier told Will that she believed him. It’s important because now, Will is becoming aware of a pattern in Hannibal’s history. He has been manipulating patients for his own curiosity for years. So yeah, I love the scene where Margot arrives at Will’s house, and the two “trade notes” on Hannibal. OKAY, WHAT ABOUT THIS IDEA: Will Graham. Margot Verger. Buddy cop-style show where they plot to take out Hannibal and Mason Verger. Someone give me the funding for this.
- I know this might be repetitive at this point, but the way the story is structured in season two lends everything to a horrible sense of inevitability. The more Will talks to others openly about Hannibal, the more clarity he achieves about the true nature of him. And it’s not just that Will recognizes that Hannibal is a murder. I feel like Will is discovering Hannibal’s design. His nature. His motivation. The nebulous way in which the vines of his influence have twisted intricately into the world around him.
- Except in one sense: Hannibal is pushing Will into a horrible, horrible place.
- Of course, it’s entirely possible that Will is as aware of that, too, and it made this experience so much more uncomfortable to consider. As Will continues his therapy with Hannibal, now even more charged and tense than ever because of Will’s demand that Hannibal stop lying to him, Hannibal presses Will to consider that Garrett Jacob Hobbs still haunts Will. Because Will enjoyed killing him.
- It speaks to the power differentials I mentioned earlier, and it’s also upsetting because it’s some of the only dialogue here that isn’t layered with subtext. Will is not lying or manipulating Hannibal; he’s admitting who he truly is. And he felt that same burst of quiet power when he tried to have Hannibal killed by Matthew a few episodes ago.
- AND THIS IS PRECISELY WHAT HANNIBAL EXPLOITS. I actually didn’t see this as Hannibal trying to kill Will Graham. He was giving Will someone to kill in order to develop his power. WHICH IS SO FUCKING DISTURBING TO ME. It’s disturbing to me because at the heart of this, Hannibal doesn’t respect his patients in any meaningful way whatsoever. He sics one after another, he plays them off one each other, and he does it all like they’re chess pieces in a grand game. Actually, he does it all while claiming to their faces that he’s a friend. HE IS NOT ANY OF YOUR FRIENDS IN ANY WAY WHATSOEVER.
- I am very interested, then, to see how on earth Fuller and company are going to bring Margot Verger into this. How much of canon are they going to abide? Are they going to do the thing with Mason? (You know…. THAT THING.) I’m very pleased that they’ve kept her a lesbian and that she’s not the confusing and gross stereotype she is in Thomas Harris’s novel. But she’s also someone who is openly questioning Hannibal’s therapy, to his face and with Will. So, if she’s aware of what Hannibal does, will she be susceptible to him? Or is she going to resist his influences? How is that going to affect the way she’s coping with Mason’s abuse?
- I’m also very interested in HOW THE FUCK WILL IS GOING TO EXPLAIN KILLING RANDALL AND BRINGING HIM TO HANNIBAL’S HOME???? LIKE… IT’S NOT LIKE WILL CAN JUST CLAIM SELF DEFENSE IF HE BROUGHT THE BODY THERE. THIS IS REALLY DISTRESSING AND NOT GOOD AND I’M REALLY WORRIED.
- Of course, I’m worried for Will, too. This is such an unnerving path for him!
- I wonder if Jack is at all suspicious of Hannibal after learning that he once treated the suspected. Come on, Jack, you’re so close.
- And finally, I’m glad the show didn’t kill Buster, because NO. NO. NOPE, DON’T YOU DO THAT. I cannot deal with violence to animals and WILL’S DOGS ARE PRECIOUS TO ME.Â
The video for “Shiizakana” can be downloaded here for $0.99.
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