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Hannibal Season 2 Blu-Ray Review

Hannibal Season 2 Blu-Ray Review

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Well Fannibals the long wait for Hannibal season 2 on Blu-Ray from Lionsgate Home Video is finally released on Tuesday and here is a look at what is on the disc and I will review the discs and there contents. If you missed my review of season 1 last year (SEE SEASON 1 REVIEW HERE)The season is spread over 3 discs and here is a breakdown of what is on each disc. If you missed last years interviews with Bryan Fuller or Hannibal Blu-Ray Producer Cliff Stephenson click on their names to head over and read what they said.

Disc 1:

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Episode 1 Kaiseki (Producers Cut 43:11) 

Jack Crawford visits Dr. Hannibal Lecter at his home and immediately attacks him. A protracted and brutal fight ensues, ending with Lecter stabbing Crawford’s neck with a piece of broken glass. Bleeding profusely, Crawford manages to lock himself in Lecter’s pantry. Twelve weeks earlier, Kade Prurnell (Cynthia Nixon), an investigator for the Inspector General’s Office, warns Crawford of his misconduct, while pressuring Alana Bloom to recant her complaint, namely about Crawford’s mishandling of Graham’s instability. Bloom refuses, stressing that the truth must go on record. Lecter gets to walk in Graham’s shoes when six partially preserved bodies are found in a river. Lecter theorizes that the killer is preserving the bodies to create a human model collection and that those in the river are imperfect castoffs. In the Baltimore asylum, Graham is determined to uncover how Lecter set him up and enlists Alana to help him recover lost memories through hypnosis. While not immediately successful, he later has a flashback of Lecter forcing Abigail Hobbs’ ear down his throat with the use of a plastic tube. The killer strikes again, kidnapping a young man and taking him, alive, to an empty silo where his collection is revealed: an interconnected collage of naked bodies.

Episode 2 Sakizuke (Producers Cut 43:11)

The young man, Roland Umber, escapes from the silo, but is chased by the killer through a cornfield to the edge of a cliff and dies attempting to jump into the water below. The BAU team recovers his body but assume he was discarded and dumped like the others. Lecter picks up the scent of corn on him, which he keeps to himself. Dr. Bedelia Du Maurier terminates her relationship with Lecter, having come to the conclusion that he is a dangerous man. Beverly Katz continues to use Graham to help with the case and, using photos of Roland Umber’s body, Graham realizes that he had in fact escaped and was not discarded. In return for his help, Katz promises to look into Graham’s possible innocence. Lecter finds the silo without informing the BAU and kills the murderer, adding him to his own mural. Prurnell visits Graham in the asylum and offers him the chance to avoid the death penalty by pleading guilty, which Graham refuses. Du Maurier visits Graham, standing close and whispering “I believe you”. Lecter goes to Du Maurier’s house, only to find the furniture covered and the house empty.

Episode 3 Hassun (Producers Cut 43:12)

Graham’s trial begins and the prosecution paints him as an intelligent, creative psychopath. Crawford puts his job at risk by testifying that he may have pushed Graham too far by keeping him on the investigative team, though the admission allows him some relief. Graham’s lawyer receives a severed ear in the mail, cut from a corpse within the previous forty-eight hours, causing doubts to stir among those who believe in Graham’s guilt. Katz, Price, and Zeller determine that the ear was severed using the same knife that cut off Abigail Hobbs’ ear, which was signed out of the courthouse evidence room by the bailiff in Graham’s trial, Andrew Sykes. A large fire is triggered when the FBI raid his apartment, but it does not destroy a key piece of evidence: Sykes’ body mounted on a stag’s head, missing an ear, face cut into a Glasgow smile and set on fire: all of the things Graham supposedly did to his victims. Lecter presents the forensics report to Graham, who deduces that Sykes was killed in too different a manner from the others to be the same killer. Lecter agrees, but urges Will to lie about who he thinks killed Sykes in order to exonerate himself. The prosecution picks up on the dissimilarities as well, and succeeds in having the bailiff’s murder deemed inadmissible. The next day, the judge in Graham’s trial is found brutally murdered and displayed in the courtroom. This prompts a mistrial and saves Will from conviction – for the moment.

Episode 4 Takiawase (Producers Cut 43:11)

Graham agrees to a form of intense light therapy with Dr. Chilton, during which time he realizes that Lecter was tactically encouraging his encephalitis. Chilton confronts Lecter about this, but is not hostile, relating to Lecter as another physician accused of manipulating his patient into murder. An acupuncturist (Amanda Plummer) lobotomizes suffering patients, leaving them to die in meadows. Her first victim is found with a beehive occupying his half-empty skull; the second is found still standing, brain dead but physically alive. After the second victim is discovered, he is immediately connected to the first as patients of the acupuncturist. When Crawford visits her, she turns herself in without a fuss. Bella Crawford talks to Lecter about the possibility of suicide in the face of her lung cancer, something which he encourages, citing Socrates and describing death as a “cure”. Later, Bella visits Lecter’s office after taking an overdose of morphine, and falls unconscious. After flipping a coin, Lecter saves her life with a naloxone shot. Later he visits her and Crawford in the hospital, and Bella slaps him across the face. Katz, on Graham’s advice, examines the body of James Gray, the mural killer. She finds that the stitches connecting him to the mural were also surgical stitches on an opening through which his kidney was removed. Katz, starting to suspect Lecter and against Graham’s advice, breaks into Lecter’s home and discovers his murder dungeon. She removes a package from a freezer but is caught by Lecter and gunshots are fired.

Episode 5 Mukzuke (43:11)

An anonymous tip brings Freddie Lounds back to the observatory she and Dr. Chilton were taken to by Abel Gideon. There she finds the body of Beverly Katz, sectioned vertically and displayed in tableau. Graham is brought to the crime scene and convinces Crawford that it is the work of the Chesapeake Ripper and the mural copycat; that they are one and the same. A post-mortem examination of Katz reveals that her kidneys were removed and replaced with the kidneys of James Gray, the mural killer. Graham convinces Chilton to return Abel Gideon to the asylum, to glean information about the Chesapeake Ripper’s identity. Graham uses Lounds to write an article, hoping to inspire contact from the killer of the bailiff and the judge at his trial. A new orderly at the asylum, Matthew Brown (Jonathan Tucker), confesses to Graham that he killed Sykes, hoping it would exonerate Graham, but the death of the judge was someone else’s work. Brown asks Graham how he can serve Graham, who tells Brown he could kill Dr. Lecter for him. Gideon overhears this and gives Alana the chance to save Graham from himself. The orderly tranquilizes Lecter while the latter is swimming laps, strings him up with a noose and is about to kick away the bucket on which Lecter is standing when Crawford arrives. He shoots the orderly, who even while falling dead manages to kick the bucket out but Crawford saves Lecter.

Special Features Disc 1:
Episode 1 Kaiseki Commentary by Bryan Fuller and Hugh Dancy
Episode 2 Sakizuke Commentary by Bryan Fuller and Chef Consultant Jose Andres
Episode 4 Takiawase Commentary by Bryan Fuller and Hettienne Park

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Disc 2:

Episode 6 Futamono (43:11)

Crawford confronts Graham about setting the orderly Matthew Brown on Lecter, and Graham denies it but tries to make Crawford see that Lecter is the Chesapeake Ripper by explaining to him why he only kills in lots of three or four; he has to eat the meat he takes before it spoils. Graham assures Crawford that if the Ripper is killing again, Lecter will be throwing a dinner party. Sure enough, Lecter soon invites Crawford to a gathering he is hosting. Meanwhile, local city councilor Sheldon Isley is found surgically grafted onto a tree in a parking lot (for which Isley brokered the development deal and in the process destroyed the habitat of some rare songbirds), his chest cavity emptied of all organs except his lungs and stuffed with poisonous flowers. The autopsy reveals a number of Ripper tell-tale signs and that Isley was drowned. Price and Zeller determine from the water in his lungs that he was killed within a fifty-mile radius. Chilton records Abel Gideon confessing to Graham that he was in Lecter’s home, but Gideon denies this when questioned by Crawford. Gideon is beaten by a pair of guards and put in the infirmary. Lecter throws his dinner party and Crawford takes a few samples of the food to Price and Zeller to be tested. Alana and Lecter sleep together and Lecter kidnaps Gideon from the infirmary while she is sleeping (helped by a drugged glass of wine). The infirmary guard is killed and strung up with fishing lines. Lecter uses Alana as an alibi when confronted by Crawford. Lecter cooks and serves Gideon’s leg to him as a last meal. Though Price and Zeller do not find any human tissue in the samples of Lecter’s food, they do find body materials in the fishing lures from such victims as the judge, James Gray, Miriam Lass, all the way back to Marissa Schur. They also find a piece of rare tree bark, which Crawford traces to an abandoned farmhouse in the initial search area, where he finds Miriam Lass still alive.

Episode 7 Yakimono  (43:11)

Miriam Lass is brought in to identify the Ripper, but has no memory of her encounter with Dr. Lecter and only vague recollections of her captivity. When Lecter himself is brought in, Miriam is positive it is not him. The evidence gathered from the most recent Ripper killings serves to prove that Will’s alleged victims were actually the Ripper’s, exonerating him of all charges. Graham is released from the asylum and urges Dr. Chilton to share what he knows about Lecter’s unusual psychiatric treatment on Graham, by confessing his own psychic driving of Abel Gideon. Graham figures out that Alana and Lecter are together and warns her to stay away from him. He visits with Miriam and tells her about the light therapy used to induce his blackouts. Miriam recalls similar experiences with her captor. He then drops in on Lecter and confronts him with a gun. He says killing Lecter would feel right, but ultimately doesn’t. Crawford takes Miriam to Lecter’s office and he performs hypnotic regression therapy on her. The last thing she remembers before being captured is the Wound Man illustration. Price and Zeller find one of Lecter’s fingerprints on a flower from Sheldon Isley’s body, and Crawford repeats what Will said in the farmhouse, i.e. that whatever evidence is found, it would lead away from the Ripper. Drugs are found in Miriam’s blood which were used in both Graham and Gideon’s treatments, pointing to either Lecter or Chilton as the suspect. Crawford wants them both brought in, but Lecter moves first and frames Chilton by placing Gideon’s mutilated body in Chilton’s house and murdering the two FBI agents who were to bring Chilton in for questioning, dressing one of them as the Wound Man. Chilton goes to Graham for help, intending to flee the country, but Crawford catches up with him first and brings him into custody. Miriam “remembers” Chilton performing the treatment on her, identifying him as the Ripper. In a moment of rage and confusion, she takes Crawford’s gun and shoots Chilton in the face. Graham visits Lecter again and asks to resume his therapy.

Episode 8 Su-zakana (Producers Cut 43:09)

Lecter begins therapy with a new patient named Margot Verger (Katharine Isabelle), who suffers abuse at the hands of her sadistic brother, Mason Verger. Will Graham, now cleared of being the Chesapeake Ripper, resumes assisting the FBI, and willingly continues his therapy with Lecter. Finding a female victim placed inside a dead horse’s uterus, Graham and Crawford interview previous stable employee Peter Bernardone (Jeremy Davies), who left after suffering a head injury from a horse, and denies committing the crime. Performing an autopsy, the horse victim is found to have a live bird trapped in her chest cavity, and soil found inside her throat leads the FBI to a mass burial ground. Graham questions Peter further, who states he placed the soil to lead them to his social worker Clark Ingram (Chris Diamantopoulos), who is responsible for the mass grave and the horse victim. Clark, assigned to assist Peter following his injury, performs an interview with Dr. Bloom, which leads Graham to accuse him of being the real killer; despite Clark’s counter-accusation of Peter, Graham sympathizes with Peter’s vulnerable state, and believes he too is being manipulated. Peter returns to the stables, only to find Clark has used a hammer to kill the horse that injured Peter, further implicating him. Graham and Lecter, arriving at the stables as Peter sews up the dead horse’s torso, learn he placed Clark inside the horse; shortly thereafter, Peter clarifies he did not murder Clark, but instead trapped him alive so he could experience the fate of his victims. Returning to find Clark emerging from the horse and picking up his hammer, Graham holds him at gunpoint and threatens to kill him for trying to frame Peter. Lecter confides that he is fascinated with Graham’s unpredictability, but warns that killing Clark won’t resolve his own internal conflicts. After Lecter takes Graham’s gun, the pair arrest Clark for his crimes.

Episode 9 Shiizakana (42:53)

A truck driver is found horribly mauled, and Crawford believes it is not a simple animal attack, but the work of someone with a large animal trained to kill on command. Later discovering a couple who are similarly mutilated and killed, the BAU team realize that while it appears to be an animal, it is more likely a killer who stalks and kills while wearing a mechanical beast suit. Dr. Lecter informs Crawford that he previously treated Randall Tier (Mark O’Brien), a patient who fits the profile; only a teenager when Lecter treated him, Tier suffers an identity disorder, causing him to believe he is an animal in the body of a human. Meanwhile, Graham is approached by Margot Verger, seeking insight on Lecter’s unusual therapy, and the two discover that they share similar personal problems. Visiting Lecter, Graham informs him that Dr. Du Maurier confided her belief in him, and questions if Dr. Lecter has a history of manipulating patients. Lecter approaches Tier and warns him the FBI is investigating him, and asks him to kill Graham. After one of his dogs Buster is attacked and injured outside his home, Graham rescues it and locks himself inside, only for Tier to break through a window and attack him. As Lecter returns home, he enters his dining room and finds Graham has killed Tier, and has laid the corpse on his dining table.

Special Features Disc 2:
Episode 7 Yakimono Commentary by Bryan Fuller and Raul Esparza
Episode 8 Su-zakana Commentary by Bryan Fuller and Hugh Dancy
This Is My Design (1080p/1:22:51)
The Style of a Killer (1080p/13:24)

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Disc 3:

Episode 10 Naka-choko (Producers Cut 43:08)

As Randall Tier smashes into Graham’s house, Graham alternates seeing him as the feathered stag, the Wendigo, and as Lecter. A struggle ensues and, overpowering Tier, Graham pummels him before snapping his neck. Taking Tier’s body to Lecter, Graham states he and Hannibal are even, having both sent psychopaths to kill each other. Crawford asks Lecter and Graham to analyze Tier’s corpse, parts of which have been combined with a saber-tooth display, and pretend to examine the scene by discussing Graham’s actions. Meeting with Freddie Lounds, Graham learns she still believes Graham’s story of Lecter being the real Chesapeake Ripper. Margot visits her brother, Mason Verger (Michael Pitt), who shows her that he is training specially bred pigs to eat people alive. Margot meets with Graham again, and they further confide in each other, which leads to them having sex. Lounds visits Alana Bloom for an interview, and, after noting that Tier is the fourth ex-patient of Lecter’s to have been murdered, states she believes Graham and Lecter are killing together. Mason meets with Hannibal and explains he is suspicious about what Margot may disclose; when Lecter then outlines doctor-patient confidentiality and offers to treat Mason, he accepts. Learning of Lounds’ suspicions from Alana, Lecter waits in her apartment to kill her. Concurrently, Lounds arrives at Graham’s house and investigates his locked barn, where she finds Tier’s bloodied animal suit, along with his jawbone. Graham appears and, when Lounds flees and calls Crawford, Graham overpowers her. Crawford shares Lounds’ phone call, only unintelligible screams, with Graham, who mentions he invited her to an interview she failed to attend. Joining Lecter for dinner, Graham provides the ingredients and meat, and is vague about the meat’s origin. Eating together, Lecter presses Graham on its source, and the latter coyly refuses to answer directly.

Episode 11 Ka No Mono (43:09)

At the TattleCrime offices, a burning body in a wheelchair rolls into the parking garage, and a dental analysis confirms it is Lounds. Margot meets with Graham and Lecter, informing them she is pregnant with Graham’s child, but that she is hiding it from Mason. Graham is visited by Alana, who is worried about his relationship with Lecter, and asks if he killed Lounds; Graham responds vaguely, but gives Alana his pistol and tells her to practice using it. Mason attends therapy with Lecter, who implies Mason could have an heir through Margot, hinting at her pregnancy. Graham attends Lounds’ funeral with Alana, and further implies he murdered her. Several hours later, Lounds’ grave is found disturbed, her body posed like Shiva, which Bloom deduces was done by an admirer of Lounds’ killer. Margot, aware Mason knows of her pregnancy, attempts to flee, only for Mason’s assistant Carlo to crash into her car. Waking on an operating table, Margo learns from Mason that he is having her made infertile, leaving him as the only source of any family heir. Alana confronts Crawford, demanding to know what he and Will are hiding; Crawford reveals Lounds is alive. Learning what Mason did to Margot, Graham breaks into his farm and, when taunted by Mason, hangs him over his pit of pigs. Graham spares Mason, but notes Lecter is manipulating them all, and suggests Mason feed Lecter to his pigs.

Episode 12 Tome-wan (Producers Cut 43:08)

At the TattleCrime offices, a burning body in a wheelchair rolls into the parking garage, and a dental analysis confirms it is Lounds. Margot meets with Graham and Lecter, informing them she is pregnant with Graham’s child, but that she is hiding it from Mason. Graham is visited by Alana, who is worried about his relationship with Lecter, and asks if he killed Lounds; Graham responds vaguely, but gives Alana his pistol and tells her to practice using it. Mason attends therapy with Lecter, who implies Mason could have an heir through Margot, hinting at her pregnancy. Graham attends Lounds’ funeral with Alana, and further implies he murdered her. Several hours later, Lounds’ grave is found disturbed, her body posed like Shiva, which Bloom deduces was done by an admirer of Lounds’ killer. Margot, aware Mason knows of her pregnancy, attempts to flee, only for Mason’s assistant Carlo to crash into her car. Waking on an operating table, Margo learns from Mason that he is having her made infertile, leaving him as the only source of any family heir. Alana confronts Crawford, demanding to know what he and Will are hiding; Crawford reveals Lounds is alive. Learning what Mason did to Margot, Graham breaks into his farm and, when taunted by Mason, hangs him over his pit of pigs. Graham spares Mason, but notes Lecter is manipulating them all, and suggests Mason feed Lecter to his pigs.

Episode 13 Mizumono (43:12)

Speaking with both Lecter and Crawford, Graham reflects on his relationship with both and, when both ask if he can be trusted, he confirms. Graham requests Lounds respect Abigail Hobbs’ memory and write only on him and Lecter, and when Lounds questions if Graham expects to survive, he does not answer. Helping Lecter destroy his patient records, Graham brushes off Lecter’s suggestion they escape without confessing, and, when they pass each other, Lecter recognizes Lounds’ scent on him. Alana, accepting Lecter is the Chesapeake Ripper, warns Graham of trapping Lecter, as he could be caught by Lecter instead. Sharing a final meal, Lecter questions Graham’s loyalty and, when asked if he would take Crawford’s forgiveness, Graham notes it isn’t an option as Crawford wants justice. Crawford is confronted by Prurnell, and forced to take a work absence; as he allowed Graham to mutilate Tier and is plotting to entrap Lecter, she finds him unfit to work. Warned by Alana that the FBI is attempting to arrest him, Graham attempts to further earn Lecter’s trust, and phones to warn him. A fight breaks out between Crawford and Lecter; Crawford, wounded, hides from Lecter in the pantry, only for Lecter to be held at gunpoint by Alana. Lecter tells Alana to walk away or he will kill her; she tries to shoot Lecter, who reveals he emptied her gun earlier. Escaping upstairs and reloading, Alana suddenly finds she isn’t alone; turning around, she finds Abigail Hobbs alive, who apologizes and pushes her out the window. Graham, arriving to find Alana seriously injured, phones for help and enters to find Jack. Graham finds Abigail, who again apologizes, stating she obeyed Lecter as she didn’t know what else she could do. Lecter appears, embracing Graham and stabbing him with a linoleum knife, while explaining that he spared Abigail as a surprise. Lecter forgives Graham for repaying his trust with betrayal, but questions if Graham will ever do the same as he cuts Abigail’s throat and leaves the others to bleed. He is next seen aboard a plane to France with Dr. Du Maurier.

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Special Features Disc 3:
Episode 10 Naka-choko Commentary by Bryan Fuller and Caroline Dhavernas
Episode 12 Mizumono Commentary 1 by Bryan Fuller and Hugh Dancy, Commentary 2 by Bryan Fuller and Steve Lightfoot
Bodies of Lies (1080p/12:16)
Killer Intentions (1080p/11:41)
Post Mortem Webisodes (1080i)
  1. Mads Mikkelsen (4:39)
  2. Hugh Dancy (3:58)
  3. Laurence Fishburne (4:30)
  4. Caroline Dhavernas 6:50)
  5. Hettienne Park & Aaron Abrams (4:16)
  6. Jim Hawkinson Series Cinematographer (4:53)
  7. Janice Poon Series Food Stylist (5:00)
  8. Bryan Fuller (4:45)
  9. Christopher Hargadon Series Costumes (3:53)
Gag Reel (1080p/7:38)

 

Deleted Scenes (1080p/12:01)

Hannibal is one of those rare shows that fires on all cylinders. I was very skeptical of the show when Bryan told me he was doing it. To be honest the show had a lot to prove and not only did it impress me, it’s one of the best shows on television now and that is both network and cable. The thing that make the show work is the characters and while it follows the spirit of the books, Fuller and company are not afraid of tinkering with the cannon of the book and making the show its own. While the subject matter is not for some people the thing that I always tell everyone about it is that it’s not a horror show, it’s a character study. The strongest thing that the show has going for it is the incredible cast. Not only the main cast but the supporting cast and the incredible guest stars that the show attracts is truly top-notch. It is smartly written with plot twist that always keeps you on your toes so you never know where the stories are going to take you. It’s also one of the best looking shows also because every episode is like watching a movie because the quality of the production is so good. The second season really upped the ante with the story but at the end of the season you are going WHAT THE F@#K?!?!? It took WIll Graham from hero to villain. They had Alana Bloom sleeping with Hannibal. And while there was a lot that happened in season two the focus of the season was super sharp. There was never a wasted scene or episode. While I loved the first season the second season really blew me away with the sheer quality of the story telling that was delivered.

I really applaud both Lionsgate Home Video and Disc Producer Cliff Stephenson for putting together a package that surpasses what they did for the season 1 Blu-Ray. Stephenson has done a great job of putting together some really great special features for season 1 but he was limited on both time and material because the first season had already wrapped and the release date was very tight on the disc. With season 2 and forward Stephenson is working with Bryan Fuller and the cast and crew while the season are being shot so that they can plan what the scope disc will have and what they want to focus on.

Video:

Lionsgate has done another fine job with Hannibal Season 2 Blu-Ray. The video is 108p AVC encoding and is framed at 1:78 to match the original source. The picture looks better than either broadcast which is usually 780p or digital delivery that is not full 1080p uncompressed video. The color palette used on the show is very dark and the black levels on the disc fully capture the show perfectly. A good example is in episode 12 where Mason is feeding his face to Will’s dogs and while a lot of the missing face is hidden in the black unlike when it was broadcast you are able to make out the detail of his cut off face much clearer but still in the shadows. On the other end it does a nice job on the outdoor scenes with more natural lighting. The color saturation in the picture is very nice with good contrast levels and thankfully the show does not use a blown out look that a lot of television show will tend to do. The flesh tones are very natural looking and the overall picture should make Fannibals very happy. While the show is shot in 2K the picture while it’s processed to look more like film does not show any edge enhancements with the down conversion to 1080p. There is no noticeable edge enhancements with the picture that sometimes plagues some home video releases. This is a really nice and clean picture.

Audio:

This is where the Blu-Ray blows away the competition with its DTS-Master Audio 5.1 audio. It’s a full uncompressed mix that shows off the work that the sound designers put into the final mix. This is where the show really rises above other television shows. The care that is put into the mix is perfectly captured on the Blu-Ray. First and foremost dialog is clear and crisp with a very natural sounding front levels that are never overpowered by the music or sound effects. You never strain to understand the dialog. The low ends are quite nice and used pretty often but never overpower the sound. The deep bass always complements the sound but can really kick in when it’s appropriate. The surrounds give a really nice sound field to the show and a lot of the time it’s used very subtly to envelope the viewer in the scene and they never overpower a scene. It really surprising that this show sounds better than a lot of big budget features and the Blu-Ray captures every subtle sound.

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Special Features:

This is where the main course really comes in. Stephenson has really outdone himself with this second season. The key to great special features is a good producer and all access to the cast and crew and this release has both. Bryan Fuller has worked closely with Stephenson on crafting some truly special features.

First there are 8 commentaries on 7 episodes (episode 13 has 2 commentaries) and each one has Bryan Fuller and either cast or crew. The two that I found the most fascinating were on episode 2 Sakizuke with Chef Jose Andres and Bryan that is more of a conversation than a commentary and that makes for a very nice a different commentary. The other one is the second commentary on episode 13 with Bryan and Steve Lightfoot that is more technical than the other commentaries that give more insight into how the season finale was made. All of the other commentaries are quite good also. Bryan is really good at keeping the flow of the conversation going if needed but they are all fun and lively. I recommend all of the commentaries.

The real crown jewel of this set is the 83 minute documentary This is My Design that follows the making of episode 5 Mukzuke that has the death of Beverly Katz and the near death of Hannibal himself. It starts from the early stages of the writing and production meetings to the reaction when the show originally air and the controversy that was stirred up with fans. While this was a perfect episode to do this documentary for I’m guessing that they never imagined how polarizing the episode would be. Stephenson has crafted a rare documentary that will truly delight Fannibals but it pulls the curtain back on how much work goes into making an episode of Hannibal on a short schedule. He interview both the cast and crew who feel very natural while talking about the show and how wonderful the working environment is. From a pure technical point of view the documentary is a great behind the scenes on how production works on many levels. Rarely do television shows get this high quality special features and I really have to applaud Lionsgate, Stephenson and Fuller for putting the time into making this fantastic documentary. This alone is worth the price of the set.

The Style of a Killer is a nice piece that talks about how important costumes are on the show. Series Costume Designer Christopher Hargadon discusses how he dresses the cast for the show and how costumes are very important to the look and feel of the show. It’s was very nice feature of an important part of the show that rarely get featured.

Bodies of Lies covers the makeup effects of Francois Dagenais who literally performs miracles for the show every week. It’s amazing the detail that they put into the makeup effect on such a short schedule. It’s a real treat to see some of the effects makeup that he shows off in the piece.

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Killer Intentions is a look back at season two and the effect that it has on the characters and the direction that season three is going to be heading. This is a nice summation of the event that happened in season two and the cast and crew look back and forward with their thoughts towards season three.

Post Mortem Webisodes were made while the series was shooting by Sony/Gaumont/NBC and sadly were shot and edited in 1080p but delivered to Lionsgate at 1080i. The good news is they do look pretty decent considering that and the are quite fun. Hosted by Scott Thompson there are 9 short interviews that were shot on the Hannibal office set. They are a lot better than the usual EPK type material shot for television productions. It’s really nice that they are included on the disc. You will fall in love with Thompson on these.

Gag Reel is a good collection of goof and gags while shooting.

Deleted Scenes has 7 scenes from various episodes. It’s nice that they are included but I did have a minor gripe with this. I really wish that the scene had a card at the beginning noting what episode it was from. As with most deleted scenes it’s pretty obvious why they were cut but still nice to see fully completed scenes.

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Technical Specs:

Video
Codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Resolution: 1080p
Original aspect ratio: 1.78:1

Audio
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1

Subtitles
English, English SDH

Discs
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Three-disc set (3 BDs)
UV digital copy
iTunes digital copy

Playback
Region A

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Final Thoughts

It seems that studios are cutting back on elaborate Blu-Ray edition for releases and it’s great that Bryan Fuller and Cliff Stephenson have really pulled out all of the stops that I don’t think that I have ever seen in a new television release. If you are lucky there might be a commentary and some EPK stuff done by the studio and put on the disc as an afterthought. They also didn’t repeat things that were on the first season release. This set is a really nice companion to the season one release and because they were able to work on this season while the show was in production has really benefitted the special features. The one thing that becomes very apparent when you are listening to the commentaries or watching the special features is that the cast and crew not only love doing the show they really wanted to make themselves available to be in the special features. Not only are the special features really good, it’s very obvious that they cast and crew are thanking the Fannibals for supporting the show.

Lionsgate is a strong supporter of Blu-Ray and DVD and really should be applauded for releasing a solid Blu-Ray of Hannibal. The quality of the video and audio are top-notch and the time and money they put into making this a truly special set. While I admit that I am a Fannibal I set that aside when I reviewed this set. I am stickler for quality and hold Hannibal to a high if not higher standard because I am a fan. Beyond the great quality of the disc, Hannibal is a truly fantastic show and this disc is a worthy addition to you Blu-Ray library. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

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