Pong Messiah Posted May 24, 2014 Author Share Posted May 24, 2014 Seriously... so, so good, Ryn. I'm not employing hyperbole when I say this is the best show on television right now. Or that it is the most heavily stylized, bizarre, well-crafted show on the air, as well. Especially from the standpoint of color and sound. It is almost pornographic in that regard. It is also revolting, and (like tonight) can be incredibly upsetting to watch. I have no idea how they get this on the air each week. If you care at all about spoilers, though, you need to back out of this thread and start from the beginning. There are some HUGE reveals here. The seasons are only 13 episode each, though, so not a ton of catching up you need to do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShadowDog Posted May 25, 2014 Share Posted May 25, 2014 This isn't just the greatest TV show ... Its the greatest ... thing ... every crafted by human hands. In fact, after annointing myself with scented holy oils and donning blessed robes, I tie a rope around my waist so that if I die whilst in the most holy TV room while Hannibal is on, those not worthy to enter can pull my rotting corpse out. In other words, Ryn, START WATCHING THIS SHIT! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ms. Spam Posted May 25, 2014 Share Posted May 25, 2014 So I learned something interesting about the japanese titles at another forum. Hannibal's aunt was Japanese (in the book). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ms. Spam Posted May 25, 2014 Share Posted May 25, 2014 Also Angela Landsbury was approached to play Hannibal's psycholgist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pong Messiah Posted May 25, 2014 Author Share Posted May 25, 2014 This isn't just the greatest TV show ... Its the greatest ... thing ... every crafted by human hands. In fact, after annointing myself with scented holy oils and donning blessed robes, I tie a rope around my waist so that if I die whilst in the most holy TV room while Hannibal is on, those not worthy to enter can pull my rotting corpse out. In other words, Ryn, START WATCHING THIS ****!I laugh. But I'm still parsing dialogue from the episode, wondering about Bedelia Du Maurier's relationship with Hannibal; how her relationship compares with Will's... wondering who will live and die... wondering just wtf they are going to do next season... Guess I need a robe and rope, too. Can't stop thinking about how Mikkelsen was able to make Hannibal convey so much pain over Will's betrayal. He's a man who thinks it is rude to raise his voice, a man who emotes with a raised eyebrow or subtle curl to the lip at most, a man who will slice one of your appendages off without a care if it suits his game -- the fricken' Devil wrapped in human skin... yet somehow, after gutting Will and telling him about "the gift" he had given him, I couldn't help but momentarily feel bad for this monster. How good does the acting and writing have to be to pull that off? And who lives? Will: obviously has to live. Hugh Dancy's on for next season. Unless they turn Season 3 into some avenging ghost story, he's clear. Jack: I think he will be back and that Laurence Fishburne's "will return upon availability" is just an attempt to create confusion and speculation... I hope. Much like Hannibal's relationship with Will, Jack also uses Will. This user/tool relationship is alluded to a lot more in Red Dragon, and I really hope it is explored more in season 3. It is a fascinating juxtaposition: Hannibal is a force for evil who views other beings as objects or playthings... but he uses Will in an effort to ape some semblance of human relationships and emotions; Jack is a force for good who views other human lives as precious and wants to save them... yet he is so relentless in his pursuit of justice, he sometimes treats Will (and his gifts) like an object, a tool to help him reach his goals -- much like a serial killer *ahem* Hannibal views his victims. Alana: I think she will be alive, without being paralyzed (at least for long) in season 3, but am less sure about her than Will and Jack. One thing I am sure of is that regardless of her fate, regardless of the direction her character is taken, there will be heaps of scornful bitching about Alana Bloom and her implications for womankind on the Internet. Abigail: Are you kidding? Sacrificial lamb is dead. Still kinda broken up about that one, despite having her be "dead" for so long. ------- I don't think Hannibal necessarily wanted Will and Alana to die so much as be punished for their betrayal. Alana got pushed out of the way (heh) because she had a gun, but Hannibal just walked past her on the way out. He could have snuffed her, but he left her to suffer, left her to think about her betrayal. Will, too, was left to suffer and possibly bleed out on the floor -- but remember, you can live for a long and painful time with a gut wound, and Hannibal has to know this. Hannibal did mean to kill Jack, because Jack is tenacious and iron-willed -- a rare true threat to Hannibal so long as he is alive. He may not be as insightful or as good at connecting the dots as Will, but he is a hell of a lot stronger. I don't know if Hannibal just ran out of time or assumed Jack was dead, but I do think death was his intention. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ms. Spam Posted May 25, 2014 Share Posted May 25, 2014 Good write up, Pong. To your last paragraph concerning the gut wound: Hannibal as a former doctor knows what they can do. It's chilling to think about him requesting the stroke of the knife be low when Verger had given Will the knife while Hannibal was hanging in Vergers pig barn. Gonna watch again tonight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ms. Spam Posted May 27, 2014 Share Posted May 27, 2014 Do not click or read below if you do not want to be spoilered! (I have no idea how to Spoiler Tag. If someone can edit it, that'd be great. de Mauier (Anderson playing Hannibal's psychiatrist) is the smartest person on the show! She figured it out before anyone else! First, from Fuller's Twitter: https://twitter.com/BryanFuller/status/471012274870566912 Not so much spoilery but way cool. Second A certain Dr. is not dead. Never believe until you see the body. Dolarhyde is coming in season 3 but we saw him in season 1 too! (he was on Will's season one first appearance in his funny playback scene way for murder!). Hannibal's Aunt! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest El Chalupacabra Posted October 6, 2014 Share Posted October 6, 2014 I couldn't even finish Dexter in my Netflix and I look forward to Hannibal. The character development and acting is much better as well as set dressing. SO I say Hannibal > Dexter. OK, I haven't seen Hannibal season 1, mainly because these days I wait until season 2 to invest my time in shows anymore. Especially regular network TV shows. I am considering this one, based on that preview. So, give it to me straight... using it as a measuring stick, how does Hannibal stack up against Dexter (pre-season 5...back when it was good)?Dexter was a ton of fun when it started, and worth (reluctantly) finishing, IMO. Hannibal is a lot less fun (seriously), but stylistically and intellectually and viscerally just miles ahead of Dexter. There's just no comparison. Also, the game/set/match of Hannibal is just amazing. I don't know if this is because it played with my expectations as a Red Dragon reader and viewer, or if it was just that well done, but virtually everything leading to the final scene of scene season one means something and it is fabulous. Yeah I'm a huge Dexter fan and Hannibal pwns that series in all ways a show could possibly pwnage.I just finished the pilot to episode 7 on season 2, and gotta say I am hooked on this show. Definitely better than the later season of Dexter. Interesting casting choices, and here's a few observations: I like Lawrence Fishbourne as an actor, but he seems a little miscast. I've come to accept him in the role as Jack Crawford, but he comes across as a bully and a dick, at times. It is a shame Dennis Farina died, because he could have reprised the role from Manhunter. Freddie Lounds gender recast: interesting she is just a slimey as PSH, but a lot more sympathetic too, so if she ends up in the Dollarhyde wheelchair of fire, we may actually mourn her. It took me a while to accept that Phil Graham is such an unbalanced psycho in this incarnation, but I actually like the character as he is portrayed here. I am such a big fan of his "this is my design" scenes. Dr Chilton is probably the closest portrayal of the characters in the movies. I like to see he is a total scumbag, still. Miriam Lass seems a call back to Clarice Starling, yet a broken one. I hope they keep her around after her incident with Dr Chilton. I was very surprised to see Gillian Anderson show up in the series. I had always thought that her character Scully in the Xfiles was directly and heavily influenced by Foster's Clarice Starling. Kinda comes full circle where she is now appearing in Hannibal, the source of the character that her character was inspired by. Then there is Hanni-mumble Lecter. OK Mads Mikkelson is a great actor and definitely creepy. Anthony Hopkins is such a hard act to follow (and in my mind, he still OWNS the role), but it is both interesting and for the better that Mikkelson is portraying Hannibal in such a different way. Hopkins is very charismatic and very overstated, Mikkelson is very understated...all he has to do is slightly hint at a smile, and it speaks volumes. I am a fan of this Hannibal as well, and I think he even looks a little like Brian Cox. One thing that bothered me is the accent, though. I am at the point where i can understand him, but at first, there were times I couldn't understand what he said. Also, I know Hannibal is Lithuanian, yet Hopkins had a decidedly British accent. Mikkelson's accent sounds at times German, and other times, unidentifiable to me. Does anyone know what accent he is trying to portray? Also, the overall cinematography, shading, CGI, subtle foreshadowing, fresh take on characters we know well as well as new ones, and most importantly the writing, is just spectacular. Thanks for the referral guys! Glad I caught this show, and look forward to the season finale! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pong Messiah Posted October 6, 2014 Author Share Posted October 6, 2014 I like Lawrence Fishbourne as an actor, but he seems a little miscast. I've come to accept him in the role as Jack Crawford, but he comes across as a bully and a dick, at times. The thing is... Crawford is a bully and a dick, at times. He is single-minded, and certainly doesn't put his friend's mental health and welfare ahead of trying to solve a case when he runs out of options. Have said this before, but the fact that white-hat Jack sometimes treats Will more like a tool or an object while black-hat psychopath Hannibal seems genuinely interested in Will as a human being is one of the great jarring juxtapositions of this show, IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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