Francis Dolarhyde arrives in tonight’s Hannibal season 3, episode 8, but how does he lure Will and Hannibal together?

The opening five minutes of Hannibal‘s “The Great Red Dragon” featuring Richard Armitage’s introduction set the tone for the remaining stretch of the series. It was dark, twisted, and torturous, a new beginning, the becoming of the Dragon, set against the familiar score of Hannibal.

Recaps and reviews can offer only so much. This recap cannot do justice to the performance that Richard Armitage gave to the role of Francis Dolarhyde. Not speaking a single word in 43 minutes, Armitage moved through the motions of the Dragon’s discovery through his first killing spree.

Dolarhyde’s transformation begins with the discovery of the “The Great Red Dragon and the Woman Cloaked in the Sun” feature in TIME magazine. The painting by William Blake awakens something deep inside Dolarhyde, a voice he cannot shut out. As he contorts his body, testing his own strength, a larger replication of the portrait taunts him from across the room. The transformation continues with new dentures, jagged teeth fitted to cover his own, and a full back tattoo fusing the image of the dragon to his own body.

Three Years Later

Hannibal’s arrest and transformation takes him from a free man listening to a choir boy in the Norman Chapel to a man behind glass, a prisoner on display. Alana Bloom sits opposite him, dressed in a suit that rivals some of Hannibal’s best. Betrayed by his good taste, the monster declared insane by the state, openly talks of his crimes, a baker’s dozen counting Mason. His tastes changed the tastes of Alana, who switched to wine after contemplating what, or who, Hannibal was adding to her beer. Looming over their session, however, is the promise Hannibal intends to keep — he will kill her.

Running through vocal exercises, practicing “s” to counter his repaired lip, Dolarhyde is haunted by his appearance, his past, and the Dragon playing with his head. Breaking the mirror, Dolarhyde’s distorted face fades into the night as he rises covered in blood, his first family desecrated under the light of the full moon.

Chilton, making a pretty penny after his Hannibal the Cannibal tell-all, indulges a few of the doctor’s tastes. Just as the novelty of human blood has worn from Hannibal’s meals, so has the tired tale of his career. A new case study, The Tooth Fairy, intrigues with his lack of elegance, destroying the American Dream.

Chilton’s underlying mission is to get the young Turk to inspire the Lithuanian.

The two are already closer than they realize as they each create clippings of the other’s crimes. Dolarhyde’s giant book, an old ledger, opens to a page with a passage from Revelations referencing a great dragon rising. He turns the pages passing the TIME article, Hannibal’s profile, and an image of him and his grandmother. The final addition, a piece on “The Tooth Fairy” is added as both Hannibal and Dolarhyde reject the name with black ink.

Hannibal takes a pen to compose a note to Will.

The news of the family killer has reached Will Graham, who now lives a quiet life with his wife and stepson. Jack Crawford, getting nowhere in his hunt, calls upon Will, who believes he will be of no use to the investigation. Adverse to returning to his former life, Will walks away from the proposal, taking with him a photo of the murdered family, leaving Jack to convince Molly.

Fuller’s Molly Graham is much more open to Will returning to a life Will abandoned. As she sleeps, Will takes a letter out of his drawer, and reads Hannibal’s words encouraging him not to revisit the dark halls of their memory palace — madness waits.

Along his way to the most recent massacre, Will traces his way through the house, seeing the family in their beds, placed there after they were arranged for the presentation of his masterpiece. Having a harder time than he used to, Will finally gives in, closes his eyes and wipes the scene clean.

The Leeds family slept as Dolarhyde slipped in, cut the husband’s throat, shot Mrs. Leeds, and walked down the hall to murder the children. He put the family on display to carry out his final unspoken and unseen act, the one Fuller previously mentioned he would not explore in this arc. Placing polished glass on her eyes and mouth, Dolarhyde removed his gloves to touch her skin before leaving.

Special Agent Jimmy finally returns to examine Mrs. Leeds’ body hours before she was to be buried. While Brian comes in with a piece of cheese to examine.

Nothing of significance reveals itself to Will, who still has ample time, 27 days to be exact, until the next full moon to find a lead. But Will does not want to wait until he is driven to desperation.

There is an opinion, a mindset he needs to recover — he has to see Hannibal.

Meeting in the Norman Chapel of their minds, Hannibal and Will face each other once more.

Watch Hannibal season 3, episode 9, “…and the Woman Clothed with the Sun,” next Saturday, August 1, at 10:00 p.m. ET on NBC.