Hannibal (Season 1) – “Coquilles”

Hannibal (Season 1) – “Coquilles”

Please NBC, do not cancel Hannibal. Just give it another 13-episode season, that is all the fans want.

It amazes me that after only four episodes Hannibal feels as good as it does. Even for a show using an established group of characters, Hannibal is managing to feel wholly unique, while being accessible enough for large audiences.

I thought it was a bit of a mistake for NBC to pull Episode 4 from there roster. In case you didn’t read about it, because of the Boston Marathon bombing, NBC opted not to air the fourth episode of Hannibal and instead go right to the fifth. Even though this is a bit of an obnoxious move by NBC, I don’t blame the people behind Hannibal for this little side step.

At first, I thought Coquilles would suffer a bit from skipping Episode 4. Boy was I wrong. This could actually be the best episode of Hannibal so far. It offered up so many great moments, from a totally WTF murder scene in the beginning, to a heartfelt conversation between Jack Crawford (Laurence Fishburne) and his wife.

Hannibal is truly transcending the typical killer-of-the-week story and is striving to be something a lot more. All the actors here deserve a lot of credit for owning their respective roles so thoroughly.

Laurence Fishburne had a particularly strong performance in this episode as we got to see a bit more of his back story. Most of it concerning a secret that his wife is keeping from him. The imagery is also continuing to be top notch. I don’t fully understand the significance of the black buck haunting Graham’s dreams but we got a small clue in this episode.

Lecter had another one of his dinner parties. Every time one of these happens I can’t help but smile since we know what that meat really is. I also commend Lecter for being both creepy and charming at the same time. Getting caught sniffing a woman usually isn’t something your average man can turn into charm but Mikkelsen is such a strong actor that he pulls it off effortlessly.

NBC finally has a show that could potentially compete with the likes of shows offered by AMC, FX, or even big dogs like HBO. Hannibal feels like it has been on for a long time and just maintains such a confidence week after week that it will be a shame to see it cancelled before its time. At the very least, if the show doesn’t get renewed, I hope we get at least some closure.

Let’s all hope for the best!