Hannibal season 1 episode 2 introduced a new take on the ultimate nightmare journalist Freddie Lounds. While he's a good deal more sophisticated than A Nightmare On Elm Street's Freddy Krueger and way chattier than Halloween's Michael Myers, Hannibal Lecter is still a horror icon. Despite making his screen debut in 1986's Manhunter - played by Brian Cox - it wasn't until Anthony Hopkins played Hannibal in The Silence Of The Lambs that he became a pop culture sensation.
Despite the runaway success of Silence, it took a decade for the character to return for sequel Hannibal, with Hopkins returning for a third and final time for prequel Red Dragon. Another prequel charting the character's origins called Hannibal Rising arrived in 2007 starring Gaspard Ulliel but received poor reviews and mediocre box-office. The character was given a glorious reinvention with NBC's Hannibal starring Mads Mikkelsen and Hugh Dancy. This series charted the complex and often bloody friendship/romance between Hannibal and Will Graham and is much missed since it came to an end after three seasons.
Most of the key characters from Thomas Harris' books made an appearance on Hannibal - with the notable absence of Clarice Starling - and Freddie Lounds is no exception. The character was previously played by Stephen Lang (Avatar) and Philip Seymour Hoffman in Manhunter and Red Dragon respectively and was portrayed as a tabloid journalist of loose ethics who meets a bleak fate. Hannibal season 1 episode 2 "Amuse-Bouche" presents a gender-swapped take on the character, with Lara Jean Chorostecki playing Freddie as a true-crime blogger who runs a website called TattleCrime.
This take on Freddie is less sleazy and obnoxious than past screen outings, but she's still more than willing to cross ethical lines for a story. Hannibal season 1 episode 2 "Amuse-Bouche" takes place in the aftermath of Will shooting serial killer Garret Jacob Hobbs, which haunts him. Jack Crawford (Laurence Fishburne) sends him to Hannibal for therapy, which is useful since his new case involves a killer burying bodies and using them to grow mushrooms. Freddie is taking pictures of Will on the job and later assumes a fake identity so he can record a therapy session between Hannibal and Will. Hannibal later confronts her, making her delete the recording.
Hannibal season 1 episode 2 "Amuse-Bouche" finds serial killer Stammet checking out Lounds' blog and using it to help evade arrest. Crawford later threatens to arrest her if she doesn't stop writing about Will since she's impacting the case. She also has a run-in with the killer, who wants to meet Will Graham, as he feels they share a kinship. After he tries to kidnap Abigail - the daughter of Garrett Jacob Hobbs - Will shoots him dead.
Hannibal season 1 episode 2 "Amuse-Bouche" was a good introduction to Freddie Lounds, and while she's not exactly likable, she does correctly deduce Abigail was involved in her father's killings. She also managed to avoid Freddie's grim fate with the Tooth Fairy during season 3's Red Dragon arc - though another character takes her place.