Hannibal Recap: “Rôti”

by Veronique Medrano:

Hannibal Recap: “Rôti”
Original Air Date (NBC): Thursday June 6, 2013
Season 1 Episode 11

Cat & Mouse

The episode starts with Dr. Lecter inviting Dr. Chilton over for another one of his decadent dinners. Chilton discusses with Lecter the claims by Dr. Gideon that he was being made to believe he was the killer that he was not. He is a murderer, but not the one that Dr. Chilton wanted him to be.

Chilton mentions to Dr. Lecter as they are about to eat, that it feels as if he is having a ‘last supper’ with how decadent the food is. Lecter finds this amusing, but transitions the conversation towards the method that Chilton was using to manipulate Gideon. He chastises him for being obvious in his approach to embed the idea that Gideon was the ‘true-killer’ when he was not. Lecter tells Chilton that in order for the method of Psychic-driving to work the subject must never be aware that they are being influenced into thinking or acting a certain way.

Gideon is being transported to court,and he confronts Chilton for the Psychic-driving that he put him through. He admits to Chilton that he takes responsibility for killing his wife, but he will not take responsibility for the nurse he killed because he feels that it was driven by the idea embedded in his mind that he was a person who he was not. He enters the transport and has a one-sided conversation with the bodyguard and the medical practitioner. Gideon says he’s jealous of the medical practitioner because he couldn’t understand how they could keep their clothes so white. The camera zooms in on the unknown man’s white uniform as pools of blood begin to seep through the threads of the material.

In some undisclosed location where it is snowing, Gideon calls Freddie Lounds posing as a Dr. Curruthers. Lounds is pleased with the call and indicates that she is familiar with his work, especially as it pertains to the case of Dr. Gideon, someone Curruthers formerly treated. The ruse continues and Gideon asks her if she’d help him out in writing an article about the Chesapeake Ripper/Gideon.

Freddie agrees and they are set to meet. Freddie gets to Dr. Curruthers office and it is eerily quiet, she continues towards Curruthers office and Gideon calls her to come in. Lounds finds Curruthers tongue protruding  out of a gash in his neck, as Izzard in his quirky and slightly awkward manner tries to keep the tongue from moving about and stay still so that it takes the place of Curruther’s neck tie.

Gideon and Freddie Lounds are in the observatory, and he asks her to help him find/call the Chesapeake Ripper out to him. Lounds concedes because Gideon points out to her that the Chesapeake Ripper is a very avid fan of her work. Lounds writes another article on Gideon, which is then read by Hannibal. Dr. Gideon then preps his next victim, while Freddie Lounds watches. Dr. Chilton, who hasn’t been heard from in over two days, lays on the operating table in front of Dr. Gideon. Chilton pleads with Gideon and tells him that he is not the Ripper. Gideon continues to cut into Dr. Chilton and tells him that Freddie Lounds holds his life in her hands if he goes into shock and stops breathing via pump that will continue to pump air into his lungs.

Lounds’ wide-eyed stare says it all. She is officially in too deep. When Crawford enters the observatory later on, we find Freddie resuscitating Dr. Chilton. At the same time, Will hides himself in the back of Gideon’s vehicle and is in his half-dazed state thinking that Gideon is Hobbs. Gideon asks Graham to take him to his psychologist and in his weird episode he does. Graham goes into a seizure and is left in that zombie-like state as Gideon and Lecter talk across the table with one another. Gideon toys with Lecter, saying he is the Chesapeake Ripper and he’s going after his former psychologist. Lecter points out that he isn’t the Ripper and that he’s missed one of the psychiatrists that have treated him i.e Alana Bloom. This dawns on him as a challenge to complete the kill, while at the same realizing he is sitting across from the true ‘Ripper’ himself who’s giving him a request to prove himself.

As the episode ends we see Dr. Lecter with his psychologist, Dr. Maurier, discussing Will Graham’s mental state. Lecter wishes to contain Will’s madness, but Maurier points out that it could lead to him breaching his ethical code of conduct with a patient. Lecter doesn’t understand what the problem with that is. As he states, madness might be the necessary medicine this world need and if it is taken in moderation its beneficial. (Have to point out that this relationship with Lecter & Maurier is rather creeepppy!)

Catalyst

Will is having another one of his creepy dreams. An iceberg breaks before his eyes, a tidal wave comes towards him and the totem pole of human body parts. Yeah…Graham is not ok in any way.

Of course that doesn’t stop Crawford from calling him onto the scene of another crime, Gideon’s escape no less.Graham enters his state of mind a lot quicker than he has in cases prior and breaks down how he escaped and it is pretty brutal to say the least. Gideon broke one of his own hands, escaped from the cuffs and proceeds to kill the guard and medical practitioner with him in the back of the car and then attacks the driver who went back to check what was going on. Will notices that the way in which Gideon hung the organs around the bodies of his victims is not consistent with that of the ‘Chesapeake Ripper, who takes the organs with them. Will and Crawford deduce that this might make it more probable that he really wasn’t the ‘Chesapeake Ripper’ that Dr. Chilton claimed him to be.

This leads Graham and Dr. Bloom to see Dr. Chilton and ask him some follow up questions on what occurred during his tenure at the hospital due to his questionable tactics, along with what was said prior to him entering the transport. Of course, Chilton is trying to cover his butt and say that it wasn’t really his fault, the only reason his method of treatment didn’t work is because Dr. Bloom pointed out the treatment was taking place. Furthermore he changes what Gideon said prior to entering transport by telling Graham and Bloom that Gideon told Chilton he was going to proclaim that he was the Cheasapeake Ripper.

Will Graham is now suffering flashes of delusion/fevers in his waking moments, and as he stands in the back of the briefing room he goes through another one of his episodes of hazy delusion. Graham goes to see Dr. Lecter and express his concern that as of late there has been a larger sense in his mind that he doesn’t know who he is anymore. He draws the parallel between himself and Gideon, both of them not feeling like themselves and having the furniture in their head moved around by some unknown entity. Unbeknownst to Will, Hannibal is doing it to him and while Dr. Chilton tried to do it to Dr. Gideon.

This idea comes back to fruition as the bodies left by Dr. Gideon show that while organs may have been harvested the brains were scrambled. Will attributes that to Gideon feeling as if his brain has been messed with by all the different psychologists who’ve tried to treat him over the years. Crawford asks to get a list of all the psychologists who’ve treated Dr. Gideon, one of which
is their very own Dr. Bloom.

While Graham and Crawford are at the scene of Dr. Curruther’s murder, the pattern clearly presents itself. Gideon is going after any psychiatrists who treated him, and when they found the second body it is not a kill made by Gideon, but by the Cheasapeake Ripper himself telling them where to find Gideon, via the severed arm that mimics the body part Crawford found in the observatory.

(Miriam Lass’ arm was found there in episode: Entrée)

They get to the observatory and Will confides in Jack that he is not doing well. Crawford has a very corny/predictable line for him to ‘stay strong’ and not let the job effect his immune system. Doesn’t address the issue at all. Crawford gets out of the car and heads to the observatory, while Graham follows the stag-mirage in the opposite direction.

Graham finally breaks apart. After finding Gideon and bringing him to Lecter, Lecter tells him that he brought no one. Gideon watches the entire time in amusement as Will completely falls into the delusion put together by Lecter to break into his head and distort the reality. Graham feels it, but can’t pin-point it in his hazy-confusion.

Will Graham awakens from his seizure and Gideon has disappeared. Lecter lets him know that they found Chilton clinging to life and he fears Alana is next. Graham tries to fight him and go to Alana, but he asks Graham to not rush off ’cause the authorities are handling the situation. Lecter leaves his keys on the table and walks off to get his phone. Graham has gone off in pursuit of Dr. Gideon, and finds him staring at Alana through the window. Gideon remarks on the fact that he doesn’t know who he is or if he could ever find remnant pieces of the man he was prior to the ‘psychic-driving’.

The truly interesting remark is when he points out that if he kills Dr. Bloom the way the Ripper would if he’d finally understand what he’s become. Graham stares at Gideon and shoots him in the head. He passes out and is taken to the hospital where tests are run to see what is going on in his head.