Set before The Red Dragon. This is a strong and dark show for US network television.
The focus is on FBI profiler Will Graham (Hugh Dancy). A nervy academic who has been picked by Jack Crawford (Laurence Fishburne) the head of Behavioural Sciences at the FBI.
Graham can empathise with serial killers and recreate the crime scenes in his mind. Crawford wants Graham to help him with a case where 8 young women have been abducted in 8 months.
Crawford also gets forensic psychiatrist Dr Hannibal Lecter (Mads Mikkelsen) to take an interest in Graham and help out with these abductions.
The stories are original with characters created by Thomas Harris. Dancy's Graham is far away from the burnt out agent played by William Petersen in Manhunter who was badly injured when he captured Lecter.
The first episode sets up the meeting of minds between Graham and Lecter with Graham as the potential prey but he does not yet know it.
Of course Lecter gets all the delicious lines and the gourmet food. Mikkelsen laps it up.
A very good first episode, of course the source material is very strong. You can relish the games these two characters will play.
The focus is on FBI profiler Will Graham (Hugh Dancy). A nervy academic who has been picked by Jack Crawford (Laurence Fishburne) the head of Behavioural Sciences at the FBI.
Graham can empathise with serial killers and recreate the crime scenes in his mind. Crawford wants Graham to help him with a case where 8 young women have been abducted in 8 months.
Crawford also gets forensic psychiatrist Dr Hannibal Lecter (Mads Mikkelsen) to take an interest in Graham and help out with these abductions.
The stories are original with characters created by Thomas Harris. Dancy's Graham is far away from the burnt out agent played by William Petersen in Manhunter who was badly injured when he captured Lecter.
The first episode sets up the meeting of minds between Graham and Lecter with Graham as the potential prey but he does not yet know it.
Of course Lecter gets all the delicious lines and the gourmet food. Mikkelsen laps it up.
A very good first episode, of course the source material is very strong. You can relish the games these two characters will play.