The second season of ‘Hannibal‘ is on the horizon and even though its start date is closing in, 2014 seems so far away. Fortunately showrunner Bryan Fuller knows that we can’t wait and has released the first of next season’s teaser posters. In it we see that Mads Mikkelsen’s (‘Casino Royale’) Dr. Hannibal Lecter to be portrayed without any pretext of what he tries to hide as. There is no eloquent and enduring genius here, just a stag of a monster in all his glory. Clearly the horns represent the way Will Graham associates Hannibal with the killings in the first episode, but let’s take a look at the poster itself first. (Note: There are spoilers ahead.)

I’m wondering if we’re going to be seeing Hannibal looking like this at all in the second season. I’m pretty sure we’re not going to see Will still suffering from fever induced dreams due to him having medical treatment, however, Fuller did mention this little tidbit about the upcoming season in conjunction with the poster:

“After a horrifying descent into madness in Season 1, this image ironically represents the perspective of a scrappier, clearer-minded Will Graham in Season 2. The scales have fallen from his eyes and he finally sees Hannibal Lecter for the monster he is.”

So there you have it. Will Graham will be clearer-minded which we already knew from the end of the first season when he recognized Hannibal for the sociopath that he was. The thing right now is that Will doesn’t yet know the full extent of what Lecter has been up to. Will is currently  thought of as a killer himself and will have to not only prove his own innocence but eventually the guilt of Mr. Lecter.

We also learned quite a bit from Hannibal’s Comic-Con panel that may give us a few thoughts of what to expect. The first of these is that we’re going to see Will in both a courtroom this season as well as being a consultant much like Lecter was in ‘Silence of the Lambs.’ Another of these is that the cast has potentially signed on for 7 years with the plan of possibly running through more. As Hannibal can only be free for so long, at this point one has to wonder if this season may end with the introduction to ‘Red Dragon’ and the eventual capture of Dr. Lecter?

I’m eagerly awaiting the return of one of my favorite shows with a sociopath as one of the main stars (Sorry ‘Dexter,’ even if you weren’t over you were still my second favorite sociopath.) What are your thoughts on what hints of direction we’ve been given for ‘Hannibal’? Are you excited for Season 2? Sound off below!

Source: Screen Rant