Hannibal Will Graham- worst aspie portrayal ever!

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Girlwithaspergers
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11 May 2015, 8:40 am

hugh dancys will graham is supposed to canonically have aspergers based on the first episode. I have seen all the seasons and they are always talking about how "mentally unstable" he is and his main symptom is visual hallucinations--he sees moose heads everywhere. He acts more like post traumatic stress disorder and in my opinion it is the worst portrayal of asd on television ever. Thoughts?



Girlwithaspergers
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12 May 2015, 5:18 pm

Nobody has any comment? I'm surprised.



pcgoblin
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18 May 2015, 9:41 pm

It has been a while since I've watch Hannibal. I forgot he was suppose to have Aspergers, but yeah. I think I'll have to watch it again before I have a definite opinion. As I search my memory though, I think the Aspergers is just a stepping stone to more supernatural abilities, and not the byproduct. They could have just as easily made him an albino to give him a more exotic foundation. It sets him apart from the others. It is theater.

I have not read the books. Does he have Aspergers in the books, and it is it more realistic?

These are just my thoughts, and I may be full of hooey.



Sweetleaf
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18 May 2015, 10:25 pm

I don't think I have watched this show..maybe an episode or two. Though what you describe does not really sound like PTSD either I mean moose heads? where would that come from unless you got attacked by a moose and that's what the PTSD was from then hallucinating such a thing might make some sense. But also visual hallucinations aren't even in the DSM symptom list for PTSD though they are possible from what I understand.


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JJabb
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22 May 2015, 6:07 pm

This show is amazing. I think he does ok acting as someone with ASD but it is tough to focus on just that since the show is just crazy in itself and there are so many other things going on that it kind of falls to the wayside.



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30 May 2015, 5:05 am

I liked his aspie portrayal in Adam, but I'm not seeing it in Hannibal series. I'm still a bit hung up on the book anyway (Red Dragon, 1981), but I don't remember any sort of definite claim about an autism angle on the show. The term pure empathy is used, and the advanced encephalitis is what's causing the hallucinations.



Kraichgauer
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30 May 2015, 6:17 pm

I think Graham is far too insightful into the minds of homicidal perpetrators to legitimately have Asperger's. After all, being unable to read others is common with most real Aspies.


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01 Jun 2015, 5:47 am

Yep

Some bits are there (loner, sorta stilted, doesn't make much appropriate eye contact, likes dogs/animals, and whatnot), but his "too much empathy and ability to put himself in the killer's shoes" is the total opposite of an ASD.

Now, an easy fix for this would have been to just say he had a special interest in killers and killing, so he has a vast amount of knowledge to go on, which is why he's good at "reading" them; it's evidence based.



Jonesy435
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14 Apr 2017, 9:33 am

He is the only aspie like me... without the character I would feel well and truly lost. I feel like a freak amongst freaks, according to friends I am just as uncanny with my over the top insight. I need to think the character is autistic otherwise what am I?
Can confirm does make me unstable, only had a couple of hallucinations nothing drastic, can confirm have done the windscreen wiper/imagination thing he does, just no glowing line, and I walked into a wall because I got too focused on what I was thinking about. I have absorbed other people's problems, cry a lot, sweat a lot, haven't sleep walked, my dog gives me worried looks, I have no sense of self-preservation, I have obsessive interests in psychology, medical sciences and true crime... I don't make eye-contact because of the reason he doesn't, I have the driest snark... and I might get a little too involved with other people's perspectives let say, for my own good.

Late reply but I figured I must.


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