I have to say I am very impressed with how the spin-off series of Hannibal Lector has turned out. While I was a little worried at first after hearing the idea to create a series based on the most famous cannibal in the history of film, the series have placed my fears to rest.

The series follows Will Graham, a profiler for the FBI, and his journey into the minds of the darkest criminals. It is his daily job to think like the psychopaths they deal with and this has left a great toll on his mind. To protect what sanity he had left, he decided to leave. However, once he is manipulated into coming back to the FBI, he must learn new ways to protect himself from the dangerous profession he is involved in. So along comes Dr. Hannibal Lector, a psychiatrist who Will becomes close to. While Will confides in Dr. Lector his deepest, darkest secrets, he has no idea that the man he is speaking to is actually one of the greatest serial killers (and cannibals) the FBI has ever searched for.

With such a dark story leading the way for this show, the fear would be that NBC just isn't free enough to do the material justice. A show such as "Hannibal" would be more suitable for cable TV channels such as AMC or FX, that would be the thought at least. However, NBC proves naysayers otherwise by showing just how fearless they can be when the time calls for it. They truly dive deep into a world that is dark and macabre in ways that even match "American Horror Story" by creating an atmosphere that is chilling and disturbing. They especially do this with terrifyingly graphic imagery. Honestly, with how far the show seems to go at times I am amazed they didn't end up having to tone things down or risk getting booted. Happily though, the show is still going strong with its wonderfully macabre world still intact.

But it is the chemistry between the two leading actors that really sells the show. Hugh Dancy and Mads Mikkelsen do fantastic work in the leads. Dancy shines as the poor Will Graham. You can really see the tragedy behind his eyes as he goes deeper and deeper into a dark world where he might never come back from. And that is what makes him very different from the team on CBS's "Criminal Minds." Throughout the series you can see him as a truly broken man and what little of him that's holding together is also crumbling. All the while it almost seems he is entirely alone through this situation. However, he does have someone and that is Dr. Lector. Mikkelsen does some truly fantastic work as Lector. He brings the charisma and cultured intelligence that is Hannibal Lector to new life on screen. Of course he comes into the picture in the shadow of the great Anthony Hopkins who made this character what he is today but Mikkelsen does a great job at making this character his own. Both of these actors do great jobs at giving fresh spins to two very well-known characters. Fantastic work by the both of them.

This is a great piece of television here. We find ourselves completely immersed into a world that is haunting on many levels and that is why this show works. The show succeeds by giving audiences an intelligent look into the mind of a man going slowly insane while giving us a look at one who has already gone insane.