I’ve never had feelings this mixed on a show before. Half the time I was desperate to stop watching it, and the other half all I wanted to do was keep watching. I still don’t even really know how to feel, It’s a tale of two sides. But, if there’s one thing I do know, it’s that I have a lot to say. Therefore… 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐧𝐞: 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐔𝐑𝐄 𝐎𝐅 𝐃𝐄𝐒𝐏𝐀𝐈𝐑 - If there is one thing I can pinpoint my exact feelings on, it’s this show’s presentation and more specifically its atmosphere. From the jump it feels unlike any other show I’ve seen. In its quiet, methodical, picturesque cinematography is an underlying and overwhelming feeling of unease and tension. There wasn’t a single second in this show where it didn’t feel like evil was lurking around the corner, and while it did make for an exhausting experience, it was also a memorable and rarely accomplished one. Few if any horror media manage to unnerve me, but this show did it on countless occassions and it’s what kept me coming back. Whether we were following a serial killer, watching the aftermath of a brutal murder, or just following a simple conversation between psychiatrist and patient, the feeling of malice and darkness creeping was always present. That feeling is enhanced by top notch cinematography and framing which was consistently gorgeous, creative, and always serving the story. This show is an easy 10/10 in this category and it’s worth watching for the visuals alone. 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐰𝐨: 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐄𝐕𝐈𝐋’𝐒 𝐕𝐈𝐒𝐀𝐆𝐄 - Dr. Hannibal Lecter. A character who needs no introduction and everyone’s, myself included, favorite part of the show. He’s an antagonist with unparalleled complexity and the strongest screen presence I’ve ever seen. It’s to the point where he feels inhuman and as though he could be the earthly form of the devil itself. He’s cold, calculated, relentless, and best of all, he’s also sympathetic. I went into a lot of detail with it in my Mizumono review, but to touch on it quickly, he’s a character that despite being so evil manages to remain relatable at times and is someone the audience can feel for and empathize with. Outside of his heinous crimes, he is someone looking for human connection and someone he can share his true self with. This drive for a partner births one of the most beautiful dynamics I’ve ever seen with the protagonist of the show Will. Their relationship and impact on one another is flawlessly written and genuinely one of the best romance stories there is period. Will is great, but Hannibal is perfect in every way and a shining example of what a tv character can be, by far the biggest strength this show has. 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐞: 𝐂𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐊𝐒 𝐈𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐏𝐀𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 - While I’ve thrown a lot of praise at the show so far, and still have a lot more to give, it’s time to acknowledge the shows many, MANY shortcomings. While on the surface the show’s story seems solid, looking at it under any scrutiny reveals a plethora of blunders and simply terrible concepts. The structure it’s told through is uneven and nonsensical. One episode acts like the end of the world is near, then in the next the characters are twiddling their thumbs and completely ignoring the Chesapeake Ripper they just spent two episodes trying to catch. The story also fluctuates between tones and identities every twenty minutes, making it feel like the writers were never quite sure what they wanted to do or where they wanted to go. There are times where mystical and outlandish ideas are introduced, but then completely stripped away and removed a few episodes later before ever having the chance to blossom into anything of substance so that it could go back to being “grounded”. Take a character like Chiyo who is given a full backstory and episode for her introduction. She’s treated as very mysterious character who is a key that can unlock a whole new layer to Hannibal, yet she does nothing for the story and just hits a trick shot and vanishes? Her reason for existing isn’t there. Situations like that happen constantly in the show and it’s so frustrating because why spend such a long time establishing something when it’s irrelevant and thrown away like a used bandaid? And if you want to the show to be realistic, maybe let a character actually fucking die, which leads me into… 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐫: 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐓𝐑𝐎𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐘 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐁𝐋𝐄𝐌 *some potential spoilers* - Let’s imagine that with each season the writers were given a choice: Kill off 60 random people, or kill off 1 single important character to create some stakes and emotion… they chose option one every. single. time. This is a show about CANNIBALS AND SERIAL KILLERS, yet only one meaningful non-antagonist character is killed off throughout all 40 episodes, what the fuck kind of logic is that. I can’t take the show seriously when people are surviving clear headshots or ten-thousand stab wounds. A show like this relies heavily on having stakes and believable consequences, yet this show rarely if ever has either. It was to the point where a character was quite literally covered in fire and I already knew there was no chance they would die. Stuff like that tears this show down, and devalues the climaxes it spends full seasons trying to build up. The show’s greatest achievement, Mizumono, has its impact lessened drastically by the simple fact that nobody was even really injured (except that one person but yk what I mean). What really makes this a problem to is that the characters had no reason to even be kept alive because they don’t contribute anything at all after their “unexpected” recoveries. Easily the show’s most noticeable flaw and the one that ticks me off the most, because just imagine how incredible the show would be if Hannibal was actually killing the people around him. 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐢𝐯𝐞: 𝐀𝐍 𝐄𝐗𝐐𝐔𝐈𝐒𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐀𝐅𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐓𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐄 - I ranted about what I loved, and ranted about what I hated. It was really 50/50 with this show, but what made me lean towards the positive side was that it ended off with one hell of a bang. The final act of Will & Hannibal’s journey together was one to be remembered. It’s very rare that a show gets cancelled and still manages to have a satisfying conclusion that reshapes the show, yet somehow the writers pulled off that miracle. Now when I think of this show, I don’t think of its issues, I think of that last gorgeous shot… the lovers’ embrace with Love Crime in the background, and I can’t help but feel satisfied and emotional. 𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲: 𝐀𝐍 𝐔𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐑𝐂𝐎𝐎𝐊𝐄𝐃 𝐁𝐔𝐓 𝐏𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐀𝐍𝐓 𝐌𝐄𝐀𝐋 - It’s got its problems, and it certainly doesn’t hide them, but under the rubble is a truly beautiful story that I can’t help but look back on fondly. Listening to Bloodbath or Love Crime already gets me teary-eyed, and that’s enough for me to say I’ve connected with this story and to consider it firmly amongst my favorites. ————————————————————————————— 𝐒𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐎𝐍𝐒 𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐊𝐄𝐃 1.) Season 2 (9.0) 2.) Season 1 (7.5) 3.) Season 3 (7.5) 𝐓𝐎𝐏 𝐄𝐏𝐈𝐒𝐎𝐃𝐄𝐒 1.) Mizumono - 2x13 2.) The Wrath of the Lamb - 3x13 3.) Digestivo - 3x8 4.) Mukōzuke - 2x5 5.) Tome-wan - 2x12 6.) Sakizuke - 2x2 7.) Dolce - 3x7 8.) Yakimono - 2x7 9.) Savoureux - 1x13 10.) Takiawase - 2x4 𝐓𝐎𝐏 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐒 1.) Hannibal 2.) Will 3.) Jack 4.) Abigail 5.) Mason 6.) Abel 7.) Alana 8.) Bedelia 9.) Frederick 10.) Freddie 𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐀𝐋𝐋 #18 TV Show 78%