Contorno
As Will and Chiyo take the long train from Lithuania to Florence, Jack arrives in Florence ahead of Will, first to spread Bella’s ashes in the river and then staying on as Inspector Pazzi’s guest. While Pazzi is hungry for redemption and recognition, the bounty on Hannibal’s head proves too tempting a prize as Pazzi goes about trying to capture Hannibal for Mason Verger. Hannibal never forgets anything, however, and recognizes Pazzi from his youth in Florence and knows Pazzi is after him. Hannibal gives him the chance to make the right decision, but when Pazzi arrives alone after consulting with Verger about the details of the bounty, Hannibal knows that Pazzi means to give him to Verger. Hannibal, in turn, disembowels Pazzi and hangs him from a window. Of course, Jack has been sent to look for the late-to-return-home Pazzi and finds Hannibal looking out at his handy work. Jack then beats the crap out of Hannibal and pushes him out the window. Luckily, Pazzi is still hanging there for Hannibal to climb down and make his escape. Meanwhile, Chiyo and Will have tense conversations about Hannibal and Chiyo pushes Will off the train, leaving him stranded somewhere outside Florence.
Jack
Jack arrives in Florence, where he met Bella, and scatters her ashes in the river, also throwing away his wedding ring. There is something in Jack’s demeanor that speaks to a certain acceptance and peace, but when Jack encounters Hannibal after the murder of Pazzi, he goes into an impressive rage. Hannibal either can’t do much against Jack’s rage fueled strength, or strategically allows him the upper hand. Either way, Jack pummels Hannibal. When Hannibal asks him how he will feel when he’s dead, Jack replies “alive”. Its then that we realize that Jack hadn’t reached a point of peace or acceptance, but was really closer to dead inside. His encounter with Hannibal is really the first spark of passion or emotion that we’ve seen from him all season. It’s as if when Jack briefly died from Hannibal’s inflicted wounds, that he stayed dead in a sense. But Hannibal is the catalyst for all sorts of things, and seems to also be what brings Jack back to life.
Alana
Alana is definitely not herself these days. Rather than the character she had grown into the previous two seasons, she now plays a role that is more a combination of the Barney and Clarice characters from The Silence of the Lambs. She consults with Mason Verger on the capture of Hannibal Lecter, discovering that he is indeed living somewhere in Florence and also presenting Verger with some of Hannibal’s belongings. Many of these scenes are extremely reminiscent of those in the movie Hannibal, almost line for line. Alana calls Pazzi to issue a warning about going after Hannibal himself, knowing that he will be killed, when Hannibal is the one who answers the phone just before killing Pazzi. The same scene plays out between Hannibal and Clarice in the film just before he kills Pazzi. Its just a pity that Alana can’t just be Alana – as if he character isn’t interesting enough on her own, she has to be a cipher for the characters Bryan Fuller can’t legally use.
Will and Chiyo
Will is getting creepier by the minute. When he smiles its somehow not his natural smile, holding something dark and sinister. He tells Chiyo that he’s afraid if he doesn’t kill Hannibal that he will become him, when really it seems that that’s likely the last step in his transformation into Hannibal. Chiyo’s motives for finding Hannibal are sketchy, especially after she pushes Will off the train, preventing him from reaching Hannibal before she does. What are her intentions toward Hannibal? In this universe, she isn’t Hannibal’s aunt but his aunt’s servant, growing up with Hannibal under his influence. It will be interesting to see what their relationship is like once they meet up.