This is me reminding you to talk about hannibal and fruit in the near future
okay i am far more able to explain now!! this will super duper have spoilers!! so the very first time hannibal appears, the shot begins by the camera panning up and showing his set table as he eats. the first thing you see is a platter of fruit. specifically, figs, a pomegranate, and a strawberry. given how much hannibal is absolutely dripping in allusions to the bible, homeric lit, dante, etc. these are super not an accident.
first off, figs are SO associated with achilles and patroclus (and kind of greek heroes in general). unequivocally, hannibal is achilles and will is patroclus. this is drilled into you time and again as you watch hannibal commit such profound acts of brutality and cruelty and come back to will for validation. hannibal and will also draw direct parallels between themselves and achilles and patroclus.
Hannibal Lecter: Achilles, lamenting the death of Patroclus. Whenever he’s mentioned in the Iliad, Patroclus seems to be defined by his empathy.
Will Graham: He became Achilles on the field of war. He died for him there, wearing his armor.
Hannibal Lecter: He did. Hiding and revealing identity is a constant theme throughout the Greek epics.
Will Graham: As are battle-tested friendships.
Hannibal Lecter: Achilles wished all Greeks would die, so that he and Patroclus could conquer Troy alone. Took divine intervention to bring them down.
Will being framed as the Ripper and Hannibal killing the Red Dragon (Hector) are also very Achilles and Patroclus.
figs are also super duper about consumption. like, the very nature of them is about something being consumed. figs need wasps to become fruit and the wasp will die because of that. for will to become something that hannibal can consume, he must kill. tbh, if i had to pick one word to describe will and hannibal, it would be consumption, or maybe even fig. 
pomegranates! so super associated with hades and persephone but the gist of it is about marriage and consent. will is irrevocably tied to hannibal from episode one but he did not choose that. in episode two (maybe three) hannibal feeds will and from that point on, there was no chance of will escaping. they’re also super duper associated with empathy (will fucking graham) and fertility which is like,,, such a thing. both with abigail being a pseudo daughter for will and hannibal (and she’s also introduced in episode one) but also the shifting dynamics between will, hannibal, alana, and margo. also the way that abigail is not always there and dies multiple times is super significant to the cyclical nature of the fertility that’s implied through pomegranates. in ancient rome, pomegranates were given to brides as a blessing to be fruitful. however, because of the figs, it could also be argued that it isn’t actual children being sought but just the act of being fruitful. for will to be fruitful, to be the fig, he must kill. it’s hannibal tying will to him and making his descent into murder a product of that marriage.
and strawberries… oh boy strawberries. they are about sensuality, the ephemeral, and righteousness. it is the earned pleasure after labor, something that is meant, inarguably, to be eaten. more so, it is something that cannot last. a reward whose end begins the moment it is received. for will and hannibal to have their reward, to achieve such righteous pleasure, they are also agreeing to the end. if you’ve seen the last episode of hannibal… oh my god. as they kill the red dragon and stand on the edge, will not only understands but chooses to partake in the pleasure of the consumption. he sees the beauty in it and he wants it. strawberries have this air of carnality because of how visceral it is to experience them, and that tone is just screaming in all of the last episode.
basically, the platter of fruit depicts will and hannibal’s entire relationship with will being both the consumer and the consumed. more so, having it be fruit rather than meat implies a level of respect and care that hannibal feels for will that he does not feel for the people he eats. hannibal wants to consume will, not just eat him, and that can only be accomplished through fruit.
