TV Review: ‘HANNIBAL Season 2, Episode 6: FUTAMONO’

Futamono is an episode all about transition. Jack is finally coming around to seeing Will’s point of view and distrusting Hannibal. By the end he’s come to realize that Will is completely innocent. Hannibal also makes a transition of his own, telling Jack that after his close encounter with death at the end of last week’s episode, he can no longer involve himself with the FBI. Hannibal realizes that the noose is tightening on his charade and has to distance himself professionally, but not personally. Hannibal invites Jack to a dinner party, which normally wouldn’t set off any red flags, except now Will has explained that the kills in threes and fours to keep the meat from spoiling and would likely be holding a dinner party soon.

Meanwhile, Chilton has been recording Will and Abel Gideon’s conversations, gaining proof that Gideon was in Hannibal’s home, something Gideon denies in person. Gideon is then beaten by a guard on his way back to his cell and sent to the infirmary with a broken back. He’s not there long before Hannibal kills the infirmary guard and takes Gideon back to his place where he feeds him his own leg.

Jack’s suspicion is enforced in a great moment between him and Chilton, where Dr. Chilton explains that Hannibal is a very dominant personality and cannibalism is the most ultimate form of domination. Jack’s suspicion leads to him testing Hannibal’s party food, which comes up negative on any traces of people. Jack leaves the party early, but Alana stays a little longer than everyone else. Hannibal and Alana hook up after the party and that sound you hear is me throwing up. The two of them getting it on is gross for reasons beside the obvious ones, he’s using her as an alibi to cover for the infirmary guard killings.

Zeller and Price get a lot of great scenes in this one and their banter adds a lot of needed comic relief to the series. I really like how they add a CSI element to the show. They deduce where the murder at the begging happened by using germ samples in the water, they make a connection between the wire used in Hannibal’s cooking and the murdered guard, and also use a rare piece of tree bark to trace to an abandoned farmhouse where Jack finds Miriam Lass is still alive. And oh yeah, MIRIAM LASS IS STILL ALIVE! What a way to end an episode guys!

The episode isn’t just about thematic transitions, but also visual ones. This episode has some of the best transitioning shots I’ve seen since Breaking Bad. In the opening scene alone we get a cool shot of Hannibal composing a piece of music transitioning into Will’s  prison bars plus a really cool sequence starting with a closeup of a man’s eye into flowers in bloom and then again into his creepy corpse entwined into a tree. The most telling transition however is when Will shoots a question to Jack: “Who does the ripper have to kill before you open your eyes?” This is followed by a shot of Alana in the kitchen with Lecter slicing up a heart. I pray this isn’t some cruel foreshadowing.

I actually had to watch this episode twice to properly review it. At first I was going to give it a lower review because I felt like nothing happened. Upon further review I realized that a lot happens, but it happens at a weird pace. There’s a lot going on but like a good meal it takes it’s time with it’s preparations.