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revdorothyl at 07:04pm on 24/05/2013 under television as mirror
revdorothyl at 07:04pm on 24/05/2013 under television as mirrorIs anybody else a) watching NBC's "Hannibal" on Thursday nights (it requires some sacrifice -- I'll have to catch the recent episodes of "Elementary" in reruns, since I couldn't watch that AND "Scandal" AND "Hannibal" in first-run eps), and b) kind of sort of rooting for Hannibal Lecter to draw Will Graham into his cozy, incredibly well-catered web with the promise of family, implicitly painting an alluring picture of the two of them (and possibly Alana Bloom, as well, eventually, if Hannibal can 'stabilize' Will enough to meet her relationship qualifications) co-parenting the traumatized Abigail Hobbs?
Or is that just me?
I gotta say, I never expected to root for any kind of Hannibal/Will relationship, since I'm a big fan of the dynamic between Hannibal and Clarice in the Thomas Harris novels, but I'm being lured to the dark side by this very different, alternate universe version of Lecter and Graham and other characters from Red Dragon (several of whom have undergone a gender-switch). Instead of cookies (the traditional lure offered by the T-shirts), THIS alternate incarnation of Hannibal Lecter is trying to entice Will Graham over to his side of the Force with the promise of belonging and good-doing and being NEEDED by people who love him, instead of just by the stray dogs he takes in.
There was something eerily paternal and irresistible about Lecter's careful, calculating cultivation of Abigail Hobbs' trust and dependence last night, and even as he held her and reassured her that she was NOT a monster and promised that he and Will would protect her as her own father had failed to do, I couldn't be sure if he was only comforting her because he saw her as his infallible route to Will's loyalty and commitment, or did he perhaps truly care about her on some level, or see her as someone he could mentor or parent for her own sake, regardless of her link to Will?
Darn that Mads Mikkelsen and Hugh Dancy: they're totally sucking me in to yet another TV obsession! Just what I did NOT need!
*pout*
Or is that just me?
I gotta say, I never expected to root for any kind of Hannibal/Will relationship, since I'm a big fan of the dynamic between Hannibal and Clarice in the Thomas Harris novels, but I'm being lured to the dark side by this very different, alternate universe version of Lecter and Graham and other characters from Red Dragon (several of whom have undergone a gender-switch). Instead of cookies (the traditional lure offered by the T-shirts), THIS alternate incarnation of Hannibal Lecter is trying to entice Will Graham over to his side of the Force with the promise of belonging and good-doing and being NEEDED by people who love him, instead of just by the stray dogs he takes in.
There was something eerily paternal and irresistible about Lecter's careful, calculating cultivation of Abigail Hobbs' trust and dependence last night, and even as he held her and reassured her that she was NOT a monster and promised that he and Will would protect her as her own father had failed to do, I couldn't be sure if he was only comforting her because he saw her as his infallible route to Will's loyalty and commitment, or did he perhaps truly care about her on some level, or see her as someone he could mentor or parent for her own sake, regardless of her link to Will?
Darn that Mads Mikkelsen and Hugh Dancy: they're totally sucking me in to yet another TV obsession! Just what I did NOT need!
*pout*
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I'm growing more leery of Abigail the more we learn about her, but at the same time I'm fascinated by her and the emotions she stirs up in all the lead characters. It's such a fascinating character study and while the procedural side has been done before I understand the need for it. Besides Will's downward spiral is what keeps me coming back for more. :)
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I'm glad I'm not the only one addicted, though. :)
And yes, I completely agree about the fascinating DIFFICULTY of Abigail's character as they've gone along. I suppose I should have seen that possibility coming, but I was totally unprepared for her admission to Hannibal of what she was REALLY trying to repress in relation to her father's crimes. And yet, I can see justice in Hannibal's declaration that this just makes her even more of a victim of her father's evil, rather than a monster herself. I'm always prepared to hate Freddie Lounds on Will's behalf, and it bothered the heck out of me that Abigail would even TALK to this 'enemy' of Will's, not to mention worrying about what Hannibal might feel it necessary to do in order to keep Abigail from exposing the truth about HIS part in the showdown with her father and the death of that Boyle guy at Abigail's own hands. In Abigail,they're creating someone who feels just as complex and difficult and in need of comfort and protection in spite of herself as a REAL teenager! :)
And yeah, Will's downward spiral is a train wreck I just can't look away from, even while my heart aches for him to find some relief and comfort and stability SOMEWHERE. At this point, I'm rooting against Jack Crawford (however sympathetic he seemed when it came to dealing with his wife's cancer) and FOR Hannibal Lecter simply because I think Crawford is hastening Will's dissolution (no matter how high-minded his stated motives) and that a manipulative, ruthless serial killer with a degree in psychiatry might be the only person capable of protecting Will from his demons, no matter how selfish Hannibal's motives for doing so might be!
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