8. The Great Red Dragon

Complete story — includes the ending

After seeing the painting The Great Red Dragon and the Woman Clothed with the Sun, Francis Dolarhyde develops an obsession with it and begins remaking himself via physical transformation. Three years after Hannibal's arrest, Dolarhyde has begun killing happy families each full moon, putting mirror fragments over their eyes and mouths. Chilton, now a true crime novelist, visits Hannibal, incarcerated at the Baltimore State Hospital, for insight. Hannibal writes an American Journal of Psychiatry article correcting many of the errors in Chilton's book about him, while Dolarhyde becomes interested in him after reading the book. With three weeks before the next full moon, Jack visits a retired Will, who agrees to help with the blessing of his wife Molly, though he receives a letter from Hannibal warning him not to get involved. He goes to Dolarhyde's most recent crime scene and uses his ability, while Price and Zeller find a partial fingerprint on a mirror piece and create a mold of Dolarhyde's fanged dentures. Needing assistance, Will reluctantly visits Hannibal.