Hannibal season 1 episode 3 saw the cannibal psychiatrist become a killer mentor. Brian Cox first played Hannibal Lecter in Michael Mann’s cult thriller Manhunter in 1986. Hannibal only appears in a few scenes but Cox’s chilling, low-key turn left an impression. Of course, it was Anthony Hopkin’s scene-chewing performance that made the character an icon following The Silence Of The Lambs. Audiences were eager to see more of the good doctor but it took author Thomas Harris time to pen the next journey.
Reaction to Harris’ 1999 novel Hannibal was mixed, especially concerning its ending where Lecter and Clarice Starling fall in love and run away together. Response to the ensuing movie adaptation was equally divided, though Hopkins still proved to be a lot of fun in the role. Hopkins bowed following 2002’s prequel Red Dragon while Gaspard Ulliel played the killer in origin story Hannibal Rising. The movie franchise was essentially dead when NBC’s Hannibal TV series arrived, which starred Mad Mikkelsen (Death Stranding) and gave the franchise a gory but elegant reboot. The show focused on Hannibal’s relationship with troubled FBI profiler Will Graham.
Hannibal ran for three seasons before being cancelled, while fans live in hope it will someday be revived. A major part of season 1 involves Will and Hannibal’s relationship with Abigail Hobbs (Kacey Rohl). Her father was serial killer Garret Jacob Hobbs, who Will shot dead in the opening episode following a standoff where he tried to kill Abi too. Hannibal season 1 episode 3 “Potage” furthers her relationship with Hannibal as Will’s boss Jack (Laurence Fishburne) suspects Abigail might have helped her father kill his victims.
Much of the episode finds Abigail dealing with the fallout of her father’s crimes, with Hannibal and Alana (Caroline Dhavernas) bringing her back to her home. Hannibal season 1 episode 3 also introduces Nicholas Boyles, a brother of one of Hobbs’ victims - though it was really Hannibal acting as a copycat - who wants to confront Abigail about his sister’s murder. The copycat strikes again in this episode, killing one of Abi’s friends, which only serves to deepen suspicion around her; she also comes to realize that since her father used every piece from animals he hunted, that many of the items in her home are made from his human victims too.
Hannibal season 1 episode 3 ends Abigail being confronted by Nicholas in her home, and in a panic, she stabs and guts him as her father had shown while skinning animals. Hannibal finds the body and after tells her than even if it was self-defense it looks like murder. He helps her hide Nicholas’ body. In a later conversation, Abi comes to realize it was Hannibal who warned her father he was about to be arrested in the first episode and (correctly) assumes he’s a serial killer. She agrees to keep his secret if he keeps hers too. The show later revealed Abigail did help her father lure his victims, though she never committed any of the murders. Despite Hannibal’s attempts to mold her later in the series, Nicholas Boyle was her only killing, though she also tried to murder Alana in season 2.
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