EPISODES 6: Sorbet
THE MENU: Another M.O has arrived on the scene in the form of missing organs from several victims, and once again our team are left wondering if the crimes are connected with the "Chesapeake Ripper." Have they finally cornered their elusive serial killer?
THE MAIN COURSE: I watched tonight’s episode with my mother, and halfway through she tells me she doesn’t know how to feel about this show. She by no means implied that it isn’t quality television; she just admitted that Hannibal at work is a little difficult to stomach, and she is not a woman with delicate sensibilities. This I find as a compliment and it works to the shows advantage, as I will say right out folks this is the show’s most disturbing episode so far. When you have an episode that begins with introducing us to an organ harvesting storyline, that was complimented by the most action packed and disturbing “in the killers mind’s eye” Graham has gotten yet, you know you’re in for some fucked up proceedings.
After the first we jump to Hannibal at the opera, afterwards an acquaintance of his begs Hannibal to throw another one of his infamous dinner parties. Well now Lecter has to do a little shopping, not only do we get a visual of the after effects of Lecter’s actions (I’m talking bodies in two pieces, sliced stomachs)…we get the gory preparations. Hannibal’s kitchen is packed with hearts, lungs, kidneys, tongues and he’s pulling out all the stops for his return to entertaining a table full of guests. I mean, even the blender gets in on some of the action, my mouth was pretty damn agape for most of the episode and you have to respect it having the audacity to go there, major kudos to the balls of brass steel when it comes to letting Hannibal be Hannibal on television.
So how did the story progress in this episode, I’m pleased to see Miriam Lass as portrayed by Anna Chlumsky remains a presence felt to convey that Jack Crawford is continuously becoming emotionally compromised when it comes to the “ripper.” Even going as far to say that he won’t be giving said serial killer a chance to come quietly, with that mindset I can’t wait until shit hits the fan. Graham continues to be haunted by the Hobbs incident even having a daydream about poor Abbie, and it left me wishing Ceuf had been aired in its entirety so that I could see more of that storyline develop, I sort of miss it. Perhaps the most intriguing plot point is by episodes end, thanks to a simple facial expression from Hugh Dancy that could be interpreted as a realization, Graham may have begun to grow a little bit suspicious of the mysterious Dr. Lecter. I may have read a bit much into it, but Graham was acting weird in his last scene even for himself. Shit may be coming together folks.
So did I have any beefs with “Sorbet”? One small nitpick and this is just me pouting, I was excited as hell for the hottie hot hot Gillian Anderson making her appearance on the show, and the scene advertised was her only appearance, and it came dangerously close to a blink and you’ll miss it cameo. Good news, it was a hell of a cameo and she really held her own against Mads and by extension Hannibal, she seemed like his equal. We’ll also be seeing more of her as next week’s promo indicates. Also, there were a few scenes in the episode I felt were out of place (that culminated in a random roadside attack courtesy of Hannibal) and it messed with the flow a little bit, quite honestly I found it hard to follow for a few moments but I tripped my way back.
DESSERT: This episode was dare I say perfection. Cringe inducing dinner preparations, the most gory crime scenes we’ve seen yet, a slow decent into madness for Jack Crawford, and a Will Graham that seems to be putting some pieces together. Extra kudos goes to the musical choices for this episode, the operatic theme that started at the beginning of the episode pretty much carried throughout with some excellent classical music cues. Also, one of my favorite bits of the episode was the guest spot by the usual funny man Dan Fogler, as he pulled off a pretty impressive serious performance as a cat that seems to growing obsessed with Hannibal, even to Lecter’s annoyance. Finally, and this is something small but I dug it…the way Hannibal collects business cards of all his victims and writes “recipes” for those respective peeps, so damn sick. It’s the little things.
NOTE: The fate of the show is up in the air right now, I truly hope this show is given a chance for all the storylines the serious is presenting to play out…some compelling stuff still needs to happen here. It’s a show with guts, intrigue, and a promise of something greater. Don’t f*ck it up.
Next weeks episode entitled "Fromage" shows us more Gillian, Graham appearing to be hit with that love thang, and what looks like a friggin choreographed fight scene for Dr. Lecter? I'm game! Check out the promo here
RATING ON 10
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