The first season of Hannibal felt like the old case of a television show simply testing the waters before diving in -- a case of a show not particularly sure of how it should start off and establish the upcoming narrative it is wishing to explore.
These days, the world of television is one that wants to make as few early mistakes as possible; there's not much room for risk in the early episodes and first season of a show: it simply starts off strong or it fails to grasp an audience. Fortunately, Hannibal seems like a show that has managed to come back from its not-so-great first season, redeeming itself of its overly-excessive psychological horror elements and pushing into a simplistic mind-game between characters.
From the very start of the second season, it is clear that Hannibal is running on borrowed time; he must tread carefully and ensure his sinister ways remain hidden from the eye of the FBI, as well as the various other characters that are so sure of Will's innocence and constant attempts to reassure himself and the jury that he is not the intelligent psychopath everyone is searching for.
There's this very 'Fargo' style of cat-and-mouse going on with Hannibal and everyone else. Hannibal is getting desperate, almost scared of being caught at this point: his necessary actions are beginning to bring in some unwanted attention, leading to Hannibal taking even more extreme lengths to remain hidden.
I much prefer this style of narrative over the attempts to be one of deep psychological thrills filled with the unexplained and almost unrealistic, rather fantasy-like 'evils'. I tend to believe horror is done right when the threat isn't from the unexplained, but from the minds of humans themselves, in a way where intelligence and manipulation are the threat's biggest weapon. It gives the narrative a more immersive feel when the viewer is capable of finding potential answers and clues themselves simply by observing characters and their agendas.
If you have the time, I recommend watching the first season, even if it does feel a bit like a chore in order to get to the second season. As ever, more screen time for the villainous Mads Mikkelsen is always nice.
