***Spoiler Warning***
Another episode and another character’s fate has been revealed: Jack Crawford is alive. We see him almost as a shadow of his previous self. He resembles a man who has been broken and pieced by together (probably not far from the truth considering what happened at the season 2 finale). He doesn’t even seem to be fuelled by vengeance, just regret. But that’s not the only surprise in Secondo. We also delve more into Hannibal’s past and find out some important and twisted personal history when we visit his childhood home.
Jack’s return was not unexpected but it was interesting to see how they would bring him back into the mix. We meet him in Florence, speaking to Pazzi who’s trying to convince Jack to join in the hunt for il monstro (i.e. Hannibal). However, Jack cordially declines and says it’s not his house, not his fire. He’s back for one reason: Will Graham. It’s clear that Hannibal is not the only one to blame for Will’s breakdown in the previous season. Like Jack says, he borrowed Will’s creativity and then broke it. He’s back to make amends and maybe even save Will, though with the way things are going that task may seem more and more impossible.
Meanwhile, Hannibal and Bedelia continue their grotesque version of a relationship, now clearly a marriage of convenience more than anything. However, previously we’ve seen Bedelia as a prisoner, knowingly being manipulated by Hannibal. Yet she’s not as helpless as she seemed. She he accepted her possible fate and even boasts to Hannibal that she knows how to manoeuvre around her situation. It seems her way of doing so is by once again becoming Hannibal’s psychologist and intellectual sparring partner. She no longer seems to be concerned with talking around the issue, rather choosing to directly hit Hannibal with insights. One of these insights is very close to making Hannigram canon (of particular interest to a number of fans). Bedelia has risen up and taken some control. For a woman who apparently shoved her entire arm down someone’s throat as a form of “self defence” (as shown in the first episode), the part of damsel in distress didn’t suit her. If she’s going to go out it’ll be on her terms. In her most brazen move this far, while discussing Hannibal’s sister Mischa, Bedelia asks, “How did your sister taste?” Very risky but she knows she has nothing to lose.
Joining the cast (for however briefly) is Chiyoh (Tao Okamoto), an acquaintance of Hannibal who is in charge of looking after the Lecter family house and keeping prisoner the man Hannibal accused of killing Mischa. Will meets her on the grounds of the decaying home as she hunts a fowl for dinner. From the get go we know she is not just another woman, she’s highly skilled and will fight when necessary. Bryan Fuller is now being cruel because she is a likeable character in the end and yet she’s a huge liability for Hannibal to keep alive.
We don’t know much about Chiyoh yet, but we know she has known Hannibal for a long time. Like everyone in Hannibal’s life, however, she is being manipulated. She’s wanted to believe the story that the man she’s helped keep captive was Mischa’s killer. Yet, Will points out deep down she knows better, she knows she’s just another one of Hannibal’d experiments.
Lastly, Will Graham is by far not the man he once was. He couldn’t be. Yet fans of the show are dubbing him “dark!Will” and it’s clear to see why. He’s still the same soft spoken and gentle character but now doesn’t seem afraid to test limits much in the same way Hannibal does. He’s more daring in his actions as can be seen in the Valentine he leaves for Hannibal in his home.
Maybe this is why Jack wants to find Will. He’s afraid Will has pieced himself back together into something more akin to Hannibal. And that’s a scary thought.
