Okay so maybe we aren’t
officially midway yet but who cares, I’ve been putting this off for way too
long. Where season one was merely an entrée, season two serves up the goods in
the most delectable of ways. Season two builds upon every aspect of the first
in staggeringly beautiful of ways. The acting, the colour palette, the story
arcs they are all wonderfully realised. So far any ways. This is the best cable
show, not on cable.
Season one left us with Will
Graham locked away for Lecter’s crimes, while the eponymous Hannibal was left
free to not only to continue his spree but also, steal Will’s life. In the
first half of the season we have seen away with, killer of the week stories as
a main focus. Instead they have been shifted to the background while the main
course is, us watching Graham and Hannibal play a game of chess, using all the
other characters as piece in their deadly game of the mind.
Firstly, my hat goes off to Brian
Retzell, James Hawkinson and Karim Hussian. These three, under Fuller’s vision
one would assume, have created a texture so engrossing, it is hypnotizing. The
sound and visuals of the show are so striking that they captivate you with
every episode, every scene, every shot. The lack of harsh contrast in shots, lets you
forget that you are watching a show about serial killers and instead drops you
into a gothic mural of the macabre. The sound is a delight to the auditory
senses. Every scene is scored perfectly, none of that emo, flavor of the month band
providing you with, been there felt that music. The music never steals the
scene, it plays harmoniously with the visual cues to deliver the best possible
experience. The mixture of these two flavors is absolutely stunning to behold.
The next kudos goes too Brad
Milburn and the other art directors who dress these scenes in such a perfect
meld of modernity and gothic styling. Every little detail is just so rich and
dare I say, flavorful. Yes, yes I dare say it. As well, the costume designers
do a phenomenal job at giving each outfit a story to tell. The outfits and
makeup tell us more than words ever could. In particular there is one scene
where both Lecter and Graham are suiting up, the contrast is palpable. One
takes time to get every little detail just right, while the other goes through
the motions. Yes, that is direction, but the choice of suits to demonstrate
this differing philosophy on preparation is just as important.
These things of course would have
little consequence if they were not in service to a great story and Mr. Fuller
and company, certainly have a great story to tell. Think of season one as a
prologue, or maybe the first book in a series. An introduction to the
characters and the struggles. The themes and styling from where we can leap into
the abyss of madmen, doing mad things. Season two, the sequel, builds of each
and every single point, elegantly, leaving no detail unexplored unless it
serves a purpose to be left unturned. Where the Hannibal films progressively
degenerated into torture porn, relying on shock value to give the audience a
thrill, the show goes for subtlety. It leaves the most gruesome of details up
to the viewer to imagine. Yes their is blood, yes there are organs a plenty,
but they all serve to build on the story. Unlike certain other serial killer
themed shows (The Following), Hannibal does not wallow in unnecessary guts and
gore. Instead it focuses on the why and how. Why does Hannibal do what he does?
How is Graham going to get himself out of this predicament? This all leads to
another great aspect of the show. Dramatic irony. Here it is used marvellously,
it is no crutch from point a to point b. Instead it is used for tension. The
goal is not how the killer does what he does, nor is it how the cops will catch
the killer of the week. By throwing away these fake surprises, Hannibal goes
for the jugular in ways that only cable dared to do until now. In essence, we
care more about the character who is doing the act rather than the act being
portrayed. The intricate murders are merely a stylistic gateway to lure you
into a deeper, far richer world, much like a honey trap.
Now for the performances. Well
start, obviously enough, with Mads Mikkelson. By god is he incredible, if he
does not get an emmy or globe nod, shame on the people who hand those out. He
portrays Hannibal with a complexity far greater than in any of the Anthony
Hopkins performances. He plays it as innocently as a child burning ants.
Hannibal, knows that what he is doing is wrong, but he just can’t grasp as to
why it is wrong. Mads, captures this childlike ignorance, wrapped in a cloak of
elegance perfectly. He portrays a fake sympathy with utter ease and in a
moment’s notice he turns it into violent, focused madness as if on a switch.
Mikkelson surrounds himself with an air of curiosity and innocence that is so
genuine, that at times you forget that he plays the boogeyman. He does it so
well, you may feel truly justified for rooting for him instead of the good
guys.
Speaking of the good guys. Where
Norton played Will Graham as a generic, great analyst, Hugh Dancy, gives the
character soul. In the first season, he played a gifted but lost soul. He was
innocent, aware of the evil of the world, yet somehow untouched, distanced from
it. In season two, Graham has been, not only touched, but corrupted by the evil
that surrounds him. Hannibal’s betrayal has left him, not shattered but,
focused. Graham knows his goal and has let go of understanding the why and now
focuses on the how. The how being, how he can free himself of his shackles and
get revenge. Dancy, dances pound for pound with Mikkelson, bringing a subtle,
yet simmering loathing to his performance. It is nuanced and natural. A breath
of fresh air into the geeky yet head first protagonist which we have had
pounded into us for so very, very long. Dancy carries the air of corrupted
innocence, extremely well.
Now, for Fishburne. Oh Larry, how
glad am I that you ditched the formulaic and mediocrity of CSI and came over to
a program that truly deserves your talent. Where in season one, Fishburne played
almost a generic boss, with a few flourishes of real character rather than
caricature, in season two we see his character develop into a real human being.
Crawford becomes more than simply an FBI boss, he is made into a man struggling
to juggle his quickly collapsing personal life with the heavy demands of his
position within the bureau. Fishburne carries with him a sincere sense of
regret about what he believes is a personal betrayal of Will Graham, by himself.
The scenes between him and his onscreen wife, Gina Torres, are sublime. In
fact, the fourth episode, without spoilers, is heart devastating. The two of
them play out there roles, with touching devastation. You can feel their pain
even as the two are forced to make light of events to keep their days going.
The best part about all of this, is how seamlessly it is integrated into the
main focus of the plot. Hannibal is not their therapist because he is the best,
they choose him because they are friends. They fall prey to Hannibal false
compassion. It is a terrible shame that Torres’ character has an expiry date
that is set in stone.
Then we have the three
musketeers, wisely enough reorganized for this season to be more than simple
gimmicks. Aaron Abrams and Scott Thomson have seen their roles reduced but,
also refined. By reducing their screen time the writers have left them with
only scene stealing moments. Their dialogue scraped down to the most efficient
and witty, possible. Thompson and Abrams carry this with zest and a wonderful
sense of begrudging chemistry. Almost as if they had spent twenty years
together. It also helps that, by the end of the season we will probably see
their roles greatly increased. Hettiene Park’s, Beverly Katz on the other hand
has seen her role greatly increase, at the expense of another character. Park
and the writers do great job of retooling her as Graham’s doubt ridden
champion. The only actual problem with the three musketeers, is that they are all
job, all the time. Unlike the other characters on the show, we have yet to even
glimpse at what their lives are outside the office. I wish they would give a
small glimpse into the characters personal lives. Maybe show them grabbing
lunch and have them talk about what they’re doing on the weekend? That would be
nice.
Lastly and sadly the only real
downer in the season so far, is Alana Bloom, played by Caroline Dhavernas.
Dhavernas is serviceable in her role and could probably be better, the problem
though is that she hasn’t been given much to work with. It’s almost as if the
writers came up with the season and then realized that they had left out Bloom.
Unlike the necessity to the character in the first season as both,
counter-point to Crawford and confidant too Graham, here she is just, there.
Most of her position has been filled by Katz, a logical move based on how this
plays out and where the series is going.
I can understand why she has been reduced, but her appearances serve
mostly to remind me that the character is borderline useless this season.
Mr. Fuller and co., your
adaptation so far, has elevated the show beyond simple hackneyed network
slasher fare. Unlike The Following which relies on blood and shock to grasp the
viewers’ attention, Hannibal seduces you with truly intriguing characters.
Their actions and inaction in the story is secondary to allowing us to delve
into their motivations. Watching Hannibal imitate people, by reducing humanity
to a flip of a coin is carried out with such panache. Watching Will Graham
blossom from timid professor too, vengeance hungry anti-hero is completely
engrossing. All the while, the show finds time to focus on the inhumane
humanity of the serial killers that are featured. Broken beings, who like Hannibal
simply do not know how to be normal, nor do they understand what it is.
Hopefully, the second half of the
season stays strong and we see some more love for this show come awards season.
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