Some Reasons Why You Should Be Watching NBC's Hannibal

So, while I was madly finishing up my dissertation, I discovered a new TV obsession (TM), Hannibal, which has been airing on NBC. Peeps, this is the most strangely beautiful, visually stunning TV show I have ever seen. It also has a subtlety and a depth to it you don't really see on most network TV shows. Hands down it is the best network drama I have seen in years, and could easily compete with anything on AMC, HBO, or Showtime. And for that reason, I am terrified it is going to be cancelled, because a show like this is just too goddamn speshul to be on one of the basic networks. So, I am desperately singing Hannibal's praises to anyone that will listen, hoping to generate some buzz via word of mouth.

To summarize, it's less of a prequel to Silence of the Lambs and Red Dragon (the Thomas Harris books/movies that feature serial killer Hannibal Lecter) and more of a reboot. It's a prequel in the sense that it goes back to the heyday of Lecter's career as a serial killer when he was still at large, working with the FBI. But it's kind of a reboot in the sense that Fuller is reimagining some of the canon in the present day, has changed and gender-flipped some characters, and borrows storylines from the other Harris novels. I really love Silence of the Lambs and can take or leave the other films, so I'm not some kind of rabid Hannibal fangirl by any means, and yet I still enjoy the show.

( Reasons to watch )