“Neither of us is free. He’s not done.”
Hannibal seems to create a perpetual sense of claustrophobia, engulfing the audience in its characters and their mind games. Everyone in the show is trapped in some way, whether it be through emotional connection or steadfast loyalty or fascination or mere expedience; the walls are closing in as the Earth spins on its axis.
Throughout the season, we’ve observed this idea of entrapment, manifested most literally in Will’s imprisonment in the psychiatric hospital. Interestingly enough, now that he’s free, he as a character seems to be even more restricted, drawn back into the circle of the fascinating specimen that is Hannibal Lecter. Sure, Will’s a changed man, but those changes only circle back around to the situation he was in back in the pilot. Much like Hannibal’s fascination with Will–his penchant for appealing to him as a “friend”–will undoubtedly lead to his downfall, Graham’s elevated sense of self-confidence may result in an overestimation of his own abilities.
Will knows exactly what he’s up against, but his motivations are now solely self-serving. Whereas before, he wanted to prove Lecter’s guilt, now, he’s merely in search of a satisfaction to his piqued curiosity, the curiosity piqued during the scene in which he confronts Hannibal with a gun. In a sequence reminiscent of the season 1 finale “Savoureux”, so much is expressed through just a few aspects of body language: Will’s enjoyment at watching Hannibal flinch, Hannibal’s certainty that Will won’t pull the trigger, the events of a half season’s worth of material. This is an intense, well-done scene that ties in nicely with the final one of the episode, in which Will–with a new haircut and newfound confidence–takes on the doctor on his home turf. He’s ready, and the beauty of this situation is that these are two very intelligent men with a mutual fascination of each other.
Will’s hunting now, attempting to lure Hannibal in in the same way he explained to Abigail in his dream. As he’s trying to move out of the realm of Lecter’s control, we’re also seeing the far-reaching effects of that control in the form of Miriam Lass. Anna Chlumsky is brilliant here, truly disappearing into her role and conveying the pain and sacrifice that’s built up over the years; she certainly has her showier parts, but my favorite might be the scene in which she’s being fitted for the prosthetic arm. It’s a quietly devastating scene, and interestingly enough, this prosthetic arm is later used to send a bullet into Dr. Frederick Chilton (okay, she used her regular hand, but work with me here!).
Hannibal taketh away, Miriam still giveth. Even after all these years, Hannibal’s still able to get to her and utilize her in his big game. The Chilton set-up is very nicely done, and I’ll definitely miss Raul Esparza’s performance if this is truly the end; it’s nice to see him go out as the funny, narcissistic man he’s always been, and it’s a pleasure to see him interacting with Will in this episode. Then again, I suspect all is not as it seems.
Nothing is ever really as it seems in this world, is it? It might just be Hannibal vs. Will on the surface, but if you look deeper, it’s so much more than that.
GRADE: A-
OTHER THOUGHTS:
–“The Chesapeake Ripper has set you free. Mazel Tov.” Oh, Chilton.
-Chilton can’t eat protein. That’s fairly obvious, no? The characters should’ve thought of this.
-Fishburne does some fantastic work here, too.
-On the topic of Alana Bloom: Her characterization is certainly frustrating, but it’s not a leap. She’s always been drawn to those she deems most moral, and understandably, because she’s known Hannibal the longest and because Will passed that threshold, she’s steadfast in Hannibal’s innocence. Then again, her and Jack’s characters do verge on ignorance at times; I really hope the writers have something else in store for Alana, as I definitely do not want to lose Caroline Dhavernas and her talents.
–SEASON FINALE:
Alana: Wow, you guys ALL suck. *Moves to Niagara Falls with Applesauce, works in a gift shop*
-Miriam also talks about drowning and being awake, which reminds me of Will back in season 1. Water was a prominent image there.
Photo credit: NBC, Hannibal
Polar Bears Watch TV 
awesome review mate. I must agree on the ignoranct part. Why was crawford so dismissive of chilton when he knew he was going to die? and why is alana such a walking cliche`? they fit they’re ignorance to the plot too comfortably.
Regarding will, maybe i need to jog my memory because i am having a problem buying into the “curiosity” thing. I mean, bottom line is, by keeping hannibal alive and doing some sort of waiting game, Will is allowing Hannibal to kill more people…
True, and I think his decision not to kill Hannibal will come back to haunt him. However, I think the essence behind this relationship is a curiosity/fascination, one that keeps it going, even though it should’ve ended a while ago. Will’s more willing to find out the whole story–hence, the curiosity–than keep others safe right now.
Thanks for the kind words!
No worries, man, in Vanderwerff’s walkthrough with Fuller it’s been all but confirmed that Chilton is alive and well, for the moment at least.