I'm not too sure if Hannibal has the same issue as the Sopranos or Breaking Bad, these shows explain the crimes for very 21st century human reasons, whereas Hannibal his crimes aren't explained in a way that we could relate too. (or at least I hope people don't relate!) They aren't justified in that sense. Their crimes don't pay, they're shown to be beautiful but they aren't glamourised in a way that means committing these crimes will sort their lives out, financially or otherwise.
Sorry for the late response. I started responding to this during the afternoon, but got interrupted then work, school, etc. I had to remake my entire answer again, yada yada.
Anywho, I don’t think the post I reblogged is necessarily focusing on shows having issues. I think its mainly talking about how people view and respond to white crime in comparison to POC crime in the media. Just so you know, I don’t entirely agree with the post, but it has some great food for thought. Particularly, I have a problem with that portion you discussed that labels shows like Breaking Bad as romanticizing and glorifying crime. I think at the base of the post though, shows like BB and the Sopranos are looked at as high art that “portrays the complexities of human nature” (x) while POC crime shows are not accepted as such.
However, if you want to make the argument about Hannibal being separate from the issue... I don’t think you can separate Hannibal from the pool of white crime dramas listed in this case. I’ve only watched Breaking Bad and am not too familiar with Dexter or the Sopranos, but I assume a serial killer like Dexter is either A) not relatable because his logic pushes insane boundaries B) is relatable because he kills bad guys and was pushed to do so (Will anyone?).
Also, I’m not sure exactly what you define “21st century human reasons” as, but I’m also assuming its the opposite of your explanation of how crime is handled in Hannibal. If that assumption is right, I also don’t agree with it. Shows like Breaking Bad are explicit about the consequences of crime. Sure, crime gives Walter White money, but he becomes estranged from his family and is an utter monster that becomes unjustifiable by his original reason for starting. Originally, Hannibal’s sister was murdered and he ate her, but the show refuses to use this as a reason. Why? There is no reason for the monster that is Hannibal Lecter. As Will said, “Misha doesn’t explain Hannibal. She doesn’t quantify what he does” (Secondo). The things Hannibal has done and will do are simply not justifiable as you say just like Walter poisoning children is not justifiable or even relatable to most people.
The thing is, regardless of the reasoning and the crime, both Breaking Bad and Hannibal are looked at as high art that is multi-layered whereas POC crime shows rarely get that same privilege.
