20 Mind-Blowing Facts You Didn't Know About Hannibal
5. There's A Hulk Reference In The First Episode
That nod to Marvel Comics' Jolly Green Giant isn't exactly subtle, as in the first episode Will Graham advises Hannibal to “please don’t psychoanalyse me, you wouldn’t like me when I’m psychoanalysed” – an obvious and common riff on Bruce Banner's often futile warnings to not make him angry, you wouldn't like him when he's angry.
Not exactly the most elegant or original Hulk gag, and perhaps unfair of Will when he was referred to Dr Lecter specifically so he could be psychoanalysed. Lack of logic notwithstanding from Will, that joke actually has about a dozen more layers than it appears on first blush.
Because bear in mind Will Graham's first appearance in the books was in Red Dragon, which was first adapted to film as Manhunter in the eighties, then properly in 2002. In the later version, Graham was played by Edward Norton. The same actor who, in 2008 played Bruce Banner in The Incredible Hulk movie. Everything's connected!