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Will’s character development through the motif of his clothing.

I’m not sure if this has already been talked about, but I’m going to talk about it. nbc hannibal is genius in how it uses will’s clothes to visually show the different stages of his transformation. his appearance reveals a lot about his mental state.

during the first season, we see him wear a lot of professional outfits for his work. I see these outfits as a sort of “person suit” he adopts to fit into the world, a way of blending into the crowd. the colors are always dark shades. this is the will we see in public. if you notice, his hair is also quite tame, especially during the first few episodes

Will’s Character Development Through The Motif Of His Clothing.

something else I noticed was the amount of layers. now of course it’s cold and will is dressing for that sort of weather, but at home he wears hardly anything, so we can say that the layers are a form of protection against the outside world (like how his glasses help him avoid eye contact).

as I alluded to before, at home will’s attire is completely different. he wears the bare minimum. on the occasion he’s caught like this at home, we don’t see him cover himself up either. it’s like as soon as he’s alone and home, he feels free to strip himself of his persona. the scenes where he is at home usually show his mental state crumbling (eg nightmares etc).

as the season progresses and will becomes more physically and mentally ill, his physical appearance also shifts. his hair becomes long and unkempt. he is more frequently seen at home.

he reaches his worst point when he throws up abigails ear. when hannibal finds him, will is shivering because he’s cold, and hannibal puts a blanket over him, restoring the protective layers that will often adopts in an attempt to comfort himself.

in prison, will wears a jumpsuit that is bright orange. it’s startling because we’ve never seen him wear such vibrant colours - it draws attention to him, and his position as a prisoner. it represents his guilt. everyone thinks he is the Chesapeake ripper. even will does

when he arrives at hannibal’s office, he’s wearing it. at this point he still doesn’t want to suspect hannibal, and wears the guilt. but as the realisation begins to dawn, he changes into normal clothes, because he is shedding his role as the prisoner.

when returned to prison, he still wears a jumpsuit, but it’s a darker shade. he no longer feels like the centre of attention - he has purpose, and he knows he didn’t kill abigail. when at court, his outfit is an exaggeration of his person suit, as he tries to make everyone remember who he really is. I believe he’s 100% playing a part here. when trying to prove his innocence, he becomes very manipulative.

so to summarise. season 1 will uses his clothes as a means of protecting himself and playing the part of the functional professional helping the FBI. alone, however, his lack of clothing represents his vulnerability that he dislikes displaying to others. clothes will take on a completely different meaning to him in season 2.

the first time will confronts hannibal after prison, he’s wearing his usual clothes. he’s unsure how he wants to proceed with the situation, but after the interaction with hannibal he realises something: he can’t continue to play his usual role. to catch hannibal he has to adopt a new one.

when he comes to see hannibal for the second time after prison, however, his attire is completely different. he’s bought expensive, tight fitting clothes. he’s had a haircut. he is pretending to be the person hannibal wants him to be - he makes himself more refined and thus more appealing to (and similar to) hannibal. his body language reflects this new persona too

I think that for will, playing this part is refreshing, because he now has power. he has found a way to take back his dignity through his outward appearance. this part of will’s character development is obvious on purpose - we are meant to look at him and think wow, is this the same guy we saw a few minutes ago? I’m sure hannibal went through a similar moment of surprise.

the layers are gone now. mostly. but in the scene where will tells jack he’s a good fisherman, he’s completely covered from head to toe. to me this feels like he is trying to be the person jack thinks he is. guilt for enjoying being that person he is with hannibal makes him return to the safety of his layers.

something else that’s important we always see him dressed from now on (apart from when he has sex with margot). season 2 will is very much in control. he has learned he can only rely on himself, and so his vulnerability is not even displayed to the audience. we only get glimpses now of what he might be thinking. we are only exposed to the outward, not the inward.

I’ve seen people refer to will’s scheme as a seduction, which I definitely agree with. there’s no way that changing his appearance to appeal to hannibal isn’t an erotic decision. he thinks it will please hannibal for him to look a certain way. that isn’t platonic.

anyway, I also noticed that the way will wears clothes doesn’t really change. he’s wearing tight fitted shirts, but he keeps them unbuttoned, like he used to with his other clothes. this is his true self coming through. while he looks noticeably different, much of his style stays the same - the roles he plays are very much a part of him.

so far will has used clothing to manipulate hannibal. but then mizumono happens

will goes to hannibals place dressed in layers: he’s ready to go back to who he was before. but he finds alana bleeding outside. he takes off a layer, and covers her with his coat. when he enters the house, he is soaking wet. his shirt sticks to him. he’s vulnerable once again.

both hannibal and will are in a state of disarray in this scene. it’s alarming to see, because both of them have kept up appearances for so long. but this scene is one of the first where they are completely vulnerable with each other. they no longer have the comfort of their respective person suits.

and that’s where we end. this is where will’s pretence comes to a shocking conclusion. the only question is… what will he wear now?

are you ready to hear something heartbreaking?

when we first see will after mizumono, he is shirtless.

this is the peak of his vulnerability. his heart is broken. he has nothing: no abigail, no hannibal. he feels completely exposed. and the scar is part of that.

when will meets chiyoh, he lifts his shirt to show her the scar. and we are now faced with the fact that will knows no matter what he wears, the scar will always be underneath.

interestingly, will wears more layers in the first half of season 3, even more than he did in season 1. he’s usually wearing a coat or at least a thick jacket.

he covers himself from head to toe, seeking comfort in this period of heartbreak and uncertainty. this is especially visible in the scene where jack asks will to come back into the field after 3 years of peace. his clothes are a shield from the allure of seeing hannibal again.

also, will dresses this way in season 1 and 2 when he feels particularly vulnerable (for example, the scene where he tells jack hannibal was his friend and he wanted to run away with him). while yes, it’s cold, I still think there’s more to the style choices than just that.

when will returns to hunt francis, his style becomes distinctly hannibal-esque as he reassumes hannibal’s mindset. in therapy sessions with bedelia, he wears a shirt and suit jacket - shedding layers. and in conversations with hannibal, especially in the final scene of twotl, will wears only an unbuttoned shirt - he’s exposed.

upon killing francis with hannibal, the shirt is torn and bloodied. it becomes unimportant. will is not wearing a person suit - it doesn’t matter how he looks, or what he wears.

for season 3 will, clothing is both protection and a tool. it’s also an expression of self identity. he has a distinct style - it lingers no matter how many layers he wears.

if anyone can think of any other examples of this morif, I’d love to hear them <3

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