Latest
Contact
filmOA v2.0
Times have changed. Where networks like NBC once ruled analog tv, airwaves have gone digital and even a streaming service like Netflix can now bring a high quality and highly acclaimed drama — their series House of Cards will hit DVD and Blu-ray June 11th. And long before Netflix started making its own series, it helped AMC and FX distribute their intense dramas to people cutting the cord.
Where Mad Men was all pretty kosher, The Walking Dead brought tv gore to a new level. Literally, but also in numbers, drawing about 12 million viewers during last Sunday’s season finally — there’s nothing like watching zombies with family on Easter.
No wonder Fox tried to get in on the gore earlier this year with The Following. It had a decent start, mainly because of lead Kevin Bacon, but the numbers are dropping slowly. It’s just not a highly original series like some hoped it would be. It feels like one of those serial killer movies no one really remembers a year later. And there’s no instant fan base like with Breaking Bad or Dexter.
The new Hannibal series on NBC has got a lot going for itself. Two extremely compelling leads. Well known and loved source material. And some of the best creators in tv and film — David Slade (30 Days of Night) is helping Bryan Fuller launch the show.
The first episode starts off with a bang. Immediately we’re launched into a world of gore, where Will Graham visualizes what happened during a killing. The tone is often dark, with Graham intensely identifying with all the characters involved. And the visual style is original. Unlike say Dexter, we see Will Graham reconstruct the whole scene in graphic detail. The main story takes the backseat in the first episode, but that’s to expected when all the characters have to be introduced.
One thing all current popular shows have in common is a narrative. There’s a deep relationship between characters that evolves during the whole show. And not every storyline is solved in one episode (like the Law and Order type shows). This will be one of the most important aspects of the show.
Will we go from episode to episode wondering how the relationship between Will Graham and Dr. Hannibal Lecter is going to evolve? Or will it mainly be murder cases that have to be solved by the duo during one episode? The latter could get old fast. While a rich story between the two characters could create a show that wants to be followed. Something that can create hype on the Twitters and Facebooks of this world.
So far the series could go both ways. The short 13-episode season suggests a deeper condensed story, which Bryan Fuller acknowledged. But The Following wasn’t helped much by its short season either. And we’re still talking about NBC here. Slowly building up ratings like an AMC show won’t do. There’s a chance we won't even get to the best parts of the books before NBC throws in the towel. 
Hannibal airs Thursdays on NBC.
