Network: NBC
Episodes: 39 (hour)
Seasons: Three
TV show dates: April 4, 2013 — August 29, 2015
Series status: Cancelled
Performers include: Hugh Dancy, Mads Mikkelsen, Laurence Fishburne, Caroline Dhavernas, Aaron Abrams, Hettienne Park, Scott Thompson, Lara Jean Chorostecki, Gina Torres, Ellen Greene, Raúl Esparza, and Gillian Anderson.
TV show description:
Set in Baltimore, this thriller series is based on the series of novels by Thomas Harris and brings psychiatrist-turned-serial-killer, Hannibal Lecter, to television for the first time.
Special Agent Will Graham (Hugh Dancy) is a gifted FBI criminal profiler who is on the hunt for a serial killer. Graham’s unique way of thinking gives him the ability to empathize with anyone — even psychopaths. He seems to know what makes them tick.
When the mind of the twisted killer that he’s pursuing is too complicated for Will to comprehend, he enlists the help of Doctor Hannibal Lecter (Mads Mikkelsen), one of the premier psychiatric minds in the country. Armed with the uncanny expertise of the brilliant doctor, Will and Hannibal (known as a serial killer only to the audience) form a brilliant partnership and it seems there’s no villain they can’t catch.
Others on Graham’s side are Special Agent Jack Crawford (Laurence Fishburne), Graham’s boss and the head of Behavioral Sciences at the FBI; Doctor Alana Bloom (Caroline Dhavernas), a psychology professor and consultant profiler for the FBI; crime scene investigator Brian Zeller (Aaron Abrams); Beverly Katz (Hettienne Park), a crime scene investigator who specializes in fiber analysis; and Jimmy Price (Scott Thompson), a crime scene investigator who specializes in latent fingerprints;
Other characters include Fredricka “Freddie” Lounds (Lara Jean Chorostecki), a tabloid blogger; Jack Crawford’s wife, Bella (Gina Torres); Mrs. Komeda (Ellen Greene), a Boston novelist and friend of Doctor Lecter’s; Doctor Frederick Chilton (Raúl Esparza), the administrator of Baltimore State Hospital for the Criminally Insane; and Lecter’s psychotherapist, Doctor Bedelia Du Maurier (Gillian Anderson).
Episode #39 — The Wrath of the Lamb
After Francis reveals he’s the Red Dragon, Reba tries to appeal to his humanity, but the Dragon is fully in control. He makes sure Reba understands where she is, then asks her to remove the key from his neck and lock the front door. The Dragon warns Reba not to try to flee, but she does so anyway. When she runs out the front door, the Dragon is waiting for her. He brings her back to the bedroom, pulls out a shotgun and makes Reba feel it. Francis asserts that he doesn’t want to see Reba hurt by the Dragon, so instead, he pours gasoline all around them and ignites the room with a match. Realizing that he can’t bear to see Reba burn, the Dragon shoots himself in the head. After the shot goes off, Reba drops to the ground and combs through what’s left of the man she loved until she finds the key. She manages to crawl to the front door and escape.
At the hospital, Reba is visited by Will, who asks her to recount what happened. He comforts her concerns about attracting a monster by assuring her there is nothing wrong with her and that Francis’ actions could be construed as him trying to stop his murderous impulses – thanks to her.
Will breaks the news of the Dragon’s death to Hannibal, who says he’s disappointed for Will. Will came all this way and didn’t even get to kill someone, aside from Dr. Chilton. Will brushes off the accusation, saying he came back to stop the Dragon and the Dragon stopped. Hannibal wonders if Will can even return to family life now, noting that it will never be the same. He additionally asks Will to think of him when things get maddeningly polite. But Will puts an end to Hannibal’s mind games when he reminds him that he only turned himself in because Will rejected him. And with that, Will leaves.
As he enters his hotel room, Will is ambushed by the Dragon, very much alive and armed with a chloroform-soaked handkerchief. When Will comes to, he’s still in the room, restrained but otherwise unharmed. The Dragon and Will forge a bond by trading stories about being betrayed by Hannibal. Will says Hannibal is the one person the Dragon truly needs to change. The Dragon agrees, saying he’d like to meet Hannibal. He asks Will how that can be managed.
When Jimmy and Brian get ahold of the Dragon’s body, they confirm what Will already knows: it’s not the Dragon’s. Rather, it likely belongs to a service station attendant who was reported missing. Brian, Jimmy and Jack agree that the Dragon staged Reba’s interactions with the key around his neck so she would believe it was him dead on the floor. To capture the Dragon once and for all, Will proposes that they get the Dragon to come to them… with Hannibal as the bait. The Dragon wants to kill Hannibal in order to absorb him, become more than him. Jack can arrange for Hannibal to be taken into federal custody. Then, they fake an escape.
During his last session with Bedelia, Will admits, however, that he has no intention of seeing Hannibal caught a second time. This is his becoming, bringing an end to Hannibal. Bedelia is infuriated by Will’s recklessness, saying he might as well just slit their throats and be done with it. But Will stands firm and advises Bedelia to pack her bags – meat’s back on the menu.
When next Alana sees Chilton, he is being treated inside a glass chamber. She tells him she came to visit because she wanted to be reminded of what Hannibal is capable of. Chilton knows better; he’s actually an example of what she and Will are capable of. After visiting Chilton, Alana speaks with Hannibal. She lays out Jack and Will’s plan and explains that the Dragon is still alive. Furthermore, Alana promises Hannibal that if he cooperates, she’ll ensure that his books, drawings and toilet are returned. Hannibal wonders why Alana would support such a plan when his escape, if it were to become permanent, could lead to her death. When Alana doesn’t back down, Hannibal eventually gives in – but with the stipulation that Will ask him to participate himself. Alana, meanwhile, takes Hannibal’s threat to heart. On the day of his planned escape, she, Margot and their son depart the Verger estate.
Hannibal is only too happy to see Will have to retract his goodbye and ask for his help. Will explains that the Dragon once expressed interest in meeting Hannibal, so after the escape, Hannibal is to send a message to the Dragon and arrange a meet-up. The Secret Service has lent the FBI a rendezvous point that has never been used before. Its isolated location should be able to convince the Dragon he is not walking into a trap. The day of the escape, two armed guards join Will and Hannibal in the back of a truck while a pair of cop cars drives in front of and behind the truck. During the drive, a third cop car pulls up alongside the escort: it’s the Dragon. He shoots the driver of the first cop car, sending it careening into the truck. As Will and Hannibal are tossed about, the Dragon shoots their armed guards and the passengers of the cop cars. When Will and Hannibal emerge from the wreckage, the Dragon is gone. Hannibal hops behind the wheel of the driveable cop car and offers Will a lift. He hesitates just for a moment then gets in.
Hannibal brings Will to a house on the edge of a cliff, where he once brought Abigail and Miriam Lass. That night, Hannibal and Will come clean about the real intention for the escape, with Will admitting that he intends to watch the Dragon “change” Hannibal. He also confesses that he’s not sure he’ll be able to save himself and “maybe that’s just fine.” Will then reveals that the Dragon is watching them. Hannibal says he knows just as the wine bottle in his hand shatters as a bullet passes through it. The glass window behind Hannibal shatters, too, and Hannibal drops to the ground as the Dragon, gun raised, enters. He crouches down on the ground and removes a camera from his pack; he’s going to record Hannibal’s death.
Will watches Hannibal, while still sipping his wine, and reaches for his weapon. But he’s too slow for the Dragon, who pounces on Will and stabs him with a knife through the cheek. The Dragon tosses Will’s body into the backyard, where Will pulls the knife from his cheek and stabs the Dragon in the leg. It doesn’t slow the Dragon, however, who removes the knife and again stabs Will. Before he can finish him off, Hannibal jumps on the Dragon’s shoulders. The Dragon tosses him off easily, sending him flying across the yard. As the Dragon walks toward Hannibal, Will retrieves the knife and stabs the Dragon in his side. Blood pours from the Dragon and he drops Hannibal, whom he had been choking. When the Dragon again turns his attention to Will, Hannibal picks up a nearby axe and slashes the Dragon’s leg. The Dragon falters just long enough for Will to stab the other leg. Working together, Hannibal and Will finish off the Dragon. When Hannibal again climbs on the Dragon’s shoulders, Will slashes his stomach while Hannibal bites a chunk of flesh from his neck. As Hannibal and Will fall to either side of the Dragon, he collapses and dies, with the blood pooling beneath him forming dragon wings for the final time.
Severely beaten and bloodied, Hannibal and Will embrace with what little life they have left. Hannibal declares, “This is all I ever wanted for you, Will. For both of us.” Will, with his head pressed against Hannibal’s chest, tightens his grip around his friend, wrapping his arms around his shoulders. For his last act, he flings himself and Hannibal over the edge of the cliff. (courtesy NBC)
First aired: August 29, 2015.
What do you think? Do you like the Hannibal TV series? Do you think it should have been cancelled or renewed for a fourth season?
That’s too bad it was the best show on tv, wonderfully done, amazing dialogue, story telling, just an amazing show, wanted more……too bad tv networks keep idiotic shows like reality show instead of great shows like Hannibal….
I really liked the show and I was waiting to see if there was going to be a Clairece sighting. PLEASE BRING IT BACK!!
Hannibal filled a void in mainstream television programming: it required you to think and to simultaneously suspend thinking and just become immersed in the show’s artistry. The cinematography and digital effects are superior to anything on television and best much in feature film. The dialogue was deftly mastered, expertly crafted, and delivered so eloquently that you hung on every whispered word. It was violent but the violence was presented as art, mirroring Hannibal’s intentions. Viewers were perhaps lost by its ever hanging time slot or by the need to watch each and every show with rapt attention and sequentially. But… Read more »
I agree, very well put!!
I could not have expressed my thoughts about this unusual network show any better. Every episode was a symphony. Bring It back, please.
Beautifully stated Diane! Every episode a symphony. Bring it back!
Am I the only one that realises that this occurs before Hannibal meets Clarice. Before The silence of the lambs. There is still room to manoeuvre in the storyline. Plus in that Hannibal is back in the mental asylum. Heaven knows what the boys have been up to in the meantime. But we are given an inkling as to how it starts. Did you watch to the end of the titles. Bedelia sat at the table with a well cooked amputated leg and a table set for three. The boys are still alive. I hope they do make a follow… Read more »
Sorry to see this end. I don’t watch much TV but looked forward to this. I read all the books and was interested to see how close this was to the movies. I hope they will reconsider this series.
im so glad it ended so gracefully. never getting to say it jumped to shark or some dumb cliche.
wonderful and thank you.
Bravo!!!!!!
I’m very upset to hear that you canceled Hannibal. Even without Hannibal or the Dragon the series could have continued on with the rest of the cast even With Dr. Chilton filling in as a consultant from his hyperbaric chamber.
I hope I was one of thousands who wrote in begging the network not to cancel this series, but write I did. I’m angry and dismayed that the show’s ending was written the way it was. No hero. No victor. No Will.
Great show, should have been renewed.
Hannibal should not have been cancelled. it is the best show in tv bar none. it was intelligent, extremely well written, and never lowered itself to the fake dramatic cliches used by other dramatic shows. in the future people will look back and realize what a ground breaking and important show hannibal was. i predict its following will resemble the die hard fans of star trek, discussing the importance of hannibal, its perfection, and what could have been had it not been taken off the air so prematurely. not to mention the powerhouse actors Dancy, Mikkelson, Fishburne, who treated us… Read more »
I agree, absolutely, perfectly put!!
The Hannibal series is great and good television, problem is too many people with kids
and the family crap wants to control other people who like such shows, the same people
who complain about the violence on tv are the same bozo who buy their bratty kids
violent x box games , a bunch of hypocrites out there need to get a life and go to hell.
You’re preaching to the choir!!
This is my most anticipated weekly indulgence. There is NOTHING that comes close to this show as engrossing. Mental ride!!
This is one of the most interesting shows on TV, especially considering it is network TV! NBC is shortsighted to cancel, but it is network TV and anything this controversial can not last. They will probably replace it with a boring formula drama, we won’t be watching!
And NBC wonders why they are dead last in the ratings.
I think that this is one of the best shows I have watched in a very long time. I am upset to hear it’s been canceled and would have liked to see a culmination of all that’s been happening, like maybe KILLING Hannibal!!!