Jo Bromilow | On 19, Jun 2014

This review contains spoilers.

Two characters experience release this week; Miriam from her subterranean prison (and potentially from being trapped in the nightmare the Ripper made for her) and Will from his own. After last week’s clues point all fingers naming the Ripper away from him, Will is now a free man to return to his pet dogs, his fishing and his one true goal: catching the Ripper that elusive second time. After all, if Miriam can rise from the dead, how long might it be before Will’s Miriam – Abigail Hobbs – returns to help or hinder the case against Hannibal?

As ever, however, things are never as simple as they seem, and while Will finds he has a friend in Jack on the outside, his one-time ally Alanna Bloom has her face, and her allegiance, turned firmly away. With the loss of Beverley and the compromise of Dr Chilton, Will has no choice but to venture directly into the lions’ den in an attempt to catch the big fish. For all Hannibal’s smoke screens, we are sneaking ever closer to that mano-a-mano reckoning Will promised from behind bars.

That theme of smoke screens is clear upon closer examination of last week’s victim. The Ripper, in the guise of his identity as Lecter, has steadily begun to reveal himself; closer examination of the location in which Miriam was found reveals various other paraphernalia from other murders, while a truly grim framing of one of the suspects pays homage to two of Abel Gideon’s (another Ripper pretender’s) greatest murders.

Miriam’s tormentor used flashing lights to hide everything other than his silhouette, a technique which enjoys a lovely fleeting homage as Will looks back through a glass door while Jack chases a suspect through his home. As such misdirections pepper the episode, we are kept firmly on the roller coaster by a truly electric score; the show’s composer. Brian Reitzell, really coming into his own this season.

Sadly though, as certain stars in the cast and crew rise, some must fade. After the return of one of the season’s pivotal characters (admittedly as a plot device rather than an actual presence), we are forced to say farewell to at least one, if not two of the show’s finest cast members.

Eddie Izzard has been one of the show’s best and a brilliant guest star, and gets a suitably macabre exit to pay homage to his contribution. Its final shot rather puts any complaints he has of leg pains following marathons into perspective. Meanwhile, whether we’ve seen the last of the enigmatic Dr. Chilton remains to be seen – but if this is his final bow, we can celebrate a similarly sinister, multi-faceted foil to Hannibal’s deadpan brand of sociopathy.

 

Hannibal: Season 1 to 3 is available to watch online on Amazon Prime Video as part of a Prime membership or a £5.99 monthly subscription.

 

Where can I buy or rent Hannibal online in the UK?

All photos: NBC

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