Ooooooooooh.....shiiiiiiiiiiiiiit! The one great thing about this series is that it's never predictable. Even though you have the movies (Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal, Red Dragon, Manhunter) as a frame of reference, you still don't know what it around the corner and Yakimono kept me totally off guard and then it finally tripped me up at the very last second when they killed off Dr. Chilton. If you're not familiar with the series, killing him off here just destroyed the continuity of what happens in Silence of the Lambs. How can you kill off Chilton in the series, which is essentially a prequel to the movie and then have the same character in Lambs? Like I said, you can't predict anything and that's why I think the show is phenomenal. With that said, this has to be some sort of elaborate set up for Alana's benefit since she has Hannibal's ear (no pun intended). Sure, it's an elaborate set up and extreme by any measures. But then dealing with the Ripper, they (if it turns out to be a set up) have no choice. I dunno what to think, but it was and still is a fun ride watching this play out.

Hannibal is one of the best damn shows I have ever seen. The writing is the best on TV right now and visually it's groundbreaking for something on basic cable. So naturally it's on the verge of being cancelled due to poor ratings. Sigh. As for this episode, another superb hour. There is always the undercurrent of a through-line involving the characters from episode to episode, but this one is definitely a 'stand alone', 'killer of the week' episode. As soon as you see that Jeremy Davies is the guest star, you know you are in for something special. The guy has turned into one of my favorite actors because he delivers some unique and truly memorable each and every time. Once again, the series pushes the boundaries of what they get away with showing on the air. A horse giving "birth" to a human. It needs to be seen to be believed.

I don't know if it's physically possible to build a suit out of Prehistoric Cave Bears and Wolves with pneumatic hydraulics to the point of being able to wear it all and move in the manner that Randell Teir does, but it's a unique idea, especially for this show. So, are they setting up a potential love interest between Will and Margot Verger? It's another interesting predicament that made me think about it a little bit more. From the outside, would anyone really feel comfortable dating someone else you know to be in therapy? Most likely not. But if one is within the same circle, that same person probably would want to date only those of "like-minded" souls. They definitely have something in common, that's for sure. Ack!

I like to think that Bryan Fuller; the shows creator, has the balls to take the series down another road, continuity be damned. But I can't buy that Will Graham killed Freddie Lounds and then served her up on a platter to feed not only himself, but Hannibal. This has to be some kind of set-up that Will and Freddie have "cooked" up to lure Hannibal into a false sense of security, to reveal his true nature to the world: Proof. She agrees to participate in this trap and obviously her reward would be an exclusive intereview after the fact. Like I said, Will killing and then eating Freddie is a bit hard to "swallow". Still a great episode, one that introduces Mason Verger (last seen in the movie Hannibal, as portrayed by Gary Oldman). Bonus points for getting Michael Pitt for the role.

Nailed it! I knew that Freddie Lounds wasn't gone. Ya can't kill a reporter, even if you wanted to. Now that the cat is out of the bag, I do wonder if Alana is going to be able to keep the secret to herself. But Hannibal thrives on being able to read a person. Hell, she couldn't even hide the simple fact of firing a gun from him. How the hell is she going to hide THIS? Whatever happens, it's getting even more interesting, especially with Mason added to the mix. I do wonder if Mason will be key in helping Hannibal escape once we revisit the first scene of this season where we saw Hannibal stabbing Jack in the neck with a shard of glass.

Mason Verger = The Joker. Why so hungry?  That was the first thing that came to mind when THE scene played out. Mason's cackle was very reminiscent of The Joker for sure. Not sure if it was intentional or not, but I liked the resemblance to two f*cked up individuals. With each episode that makes its way to broadcast TV, I always ask myself if and when NBC would come to a point that even THEY would draw the line. That finally comes with this episode for sure. It's still bloody and gory as hell, but they couldn't (or more to the point were not allowed) show Mason cutting off his own face and feeding it to the dogs. Well, in part anyway. Most of the scene was shot in shadows to cover up as much as possible, but there was enough rim light to show that the scene was extremely gruesome by any standards. It was great to see Gillian Anderson come back to the show, even if it was just for a cameo.

I am stunned at what I just watched. The entire season has been leading up to the Season Finale and for good reason. We knew from the first episode what and where we are heading and we all had to see what happens to Jack after getting stabbed in the neck with a shard of glass by Hannibal. What we didn't know (and how could we? The writers did a great job hiding it) is that Jack is part of the story. You want twist and turns? You want misdirection? You want to be surprised at what's coming? Well then this is THE episode to get all that and more? Were to begin?

Yes, Jack is in the pantry bleeding out. But adding to the mix is Alana showing up and walking in on Hannibal trying to finish the job of killing Jack. Naturally she flees for her life and just like every slasher movie you have seen, instead of running out the front door, she runs up stairs. Unbeknownst to her and the rest of us watching, she comes face to face with....Abigail! What the fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck!! She is dead! Well, apparently not. The thing that happens next threw me for a loop as Abigail throws Alana out the window. Meanwhile, Will shows up and is gutted by Hannibal and then is forced to watch him kill Abigail in front of him, in spite of sheltering and hiding her all this time.

So, Hannibal, with his handiwork complete, walks off into the cold, dead night, leaving four bodies, each laying in their own pool of blood. I honestly don't know who would or will survive. This was left ambiguous for a reason, to keep us guessing all Summer long. I see Jack and Will surviving, but I think Abigail is a goner for sure. That only leaves the fate of Alana. I want to see her come back, but the smart move on the part of the writers would be to give Will a TRUE motivation for revenge and reason to hunt Hannibal down for taking her life. So, you think that's the end of this episode? Think again! It's the epilogue that truly nails the ultimate twist (if that wasn't already enough). With Hannibal on a plane, fleeing from the US, it's when the camera pans from his seat to the one next to him to reveal....   
Dr. Bedelia Du Maurier (Gillian Anderson) who apparently was and is his accomplice. What the fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck!! Beyond all the twist and turns, this episode looked AMAZING and is dripping with symbolism. This gets 10 Stars out of 10. I may have to watch this again.