Considering we are still reeling from the pandemic-induced Shecession, it feels appropriate that we have a very special “women in the workforce” episode in this season of The Handmaid’s Tale. At least that’s what I’m calling it since so much of it focused on how two very unlikeable but capable ladies had to overcome barriers, biases, and bro culture in order to do the job they so desperately wanted to do.
There have been several moments over the course of the show where June and Aunt Lydia mirror each other, especially when it comes to their drive. This is one of those moments. Over in Chicago, June is realizing that Leader Steven is way more interested in humping Janine than in actually, you know, resisting. She is desperate to go on missions, help with the trades, figure out how to kill even more people with her bare hands. Over in Gilead, Aunt Lydia is leaving her frustration on that treadmill with an intensity usually reserved for Peloton fanatics right on January 1. A new batch of girls is ready to undergo Handmaids bootcamp and she wants nothing more than to be their drill sergeant.
June, done with any submissive behavior or soft power tactics, tries to be direct with Steven. She wants to go on trading missions across town but, as he points out, “fresh meat stays here.” Excellent choice of words for a guy who charges sex as an entry fee. Lydia, confident that protocol and pious attitude will help make her case to the Head Aunt, is shut down. (I don’t know what the official title for the woman who makes this decision is so I’m dubbing it Head Aunt until someone corrects me.) She then turns to Commander Lawrence for help—okay, to blackmail him into giving her the position. But it’s the only recourse she has left, aware that only a man has the authority to grant her true wish.
As much as I want one of those Gilead bombs to drop right on top of Steven’s head, I can appreciate what the writers are doing with his presence. As any straight woman who might have been wooed by a DSA member knows, just because you and a dude have a common enemy, it doesn’t mean that they actually see you as an equal. (Kidding, kidding! #notallDSA #ivotedforbernietooitsfine) Look to any admirable political movement around the world and you’ll probably find at least one Steven really killing the vibe for the women who have an actual stake in the game. June’s frustration is palpable. She can no longer ride on the infamy that the Angel Flight had granted her in certain circles, and it’s Janine’s wily flirtatious ways that end up swaying Steven. Yet another instance in which the line between Gilead and Not Gilead is razor thin and so often crossed. The same can be said of Aunt Lydia’s more cunning tactics, closer to the traditional male sphere of politics. She too has to carve Not Gilead spaces for herself in order to accomplish what she wants
In other words, men’s bullshit is still running all their lives.
The workplace shenanigans extend to Commander Lawrence’s wobbly position in echelons of power. When the episode begins, he is standing before the Gilead Council in that podium they use for criminals, tortured prisoners, job interviews, I don’t know. It’s a catch-all, but it clearly means that you are several steps down in the hierarchy. He is pushing for a ceasefire at the border to help alleviate the sanctions that have depleted Gilead’s economy and bring in aid. He is voted down, even by Eyebrows. After Aunt Lydia dishes out the dirty secrets of the Council members, Commander Lawrence proposes his ceasefire again. One can assume that he’s let them know he has scalding hot tea and is ready to spill it for this time they vote in favor. With one caveat: they get to bomb the borders first, including Chicago. By then Eyebrows is very well aware that June might be in the city, which not only makes him sad, but will probably lead to a rift between him and Lawrence down the line.
Lawrence. What to do with Lawrence? What to think of him? While Nick’s sole sights are on saving June, I cannot for the life of me get a read on what Commander Lawrence’s end goal is. I even went down a massive internet rabbit hole to refresh his whole trajectory during the course of four seasons and I still have nothing. He’s coming off more and more as the kind of guy who thinks the economy is a god unto itself, meant to justify any sort of horror as long as it keeps churning. His main negotiation with Lydia was based on his own desire to have a seat at the table. Is it pure political pursuit at this point? Were his previous rebellious antics an attempt at finding other paths for glory? It’s not like the ravenous quest for power is out of the realm of possibilities in anyone involved with politics, causing all sorts of shifting positions and hypocrisies. TL;DR it’s getting annoying.
This wasn’t an explosive episode (pun!) and after last week’s sublime storyline with Rita, it felt like a bit of a lull. However, it did lay down some intriguing groundwork for whatever developments are to come. Aunt Lydia again has a realm to lord over and she is determined to get June back in her grip. Nick is also hellbent on finding June. Lawrence now gets to sit with the Big Boys. And June is leaving Steven’s mediocre fight for freedom in search of a group called the Nighthawks, whose signature move is incinerating soldiers.
At least that’s where we think she’s headed until another plot twist falls from the sky.
Stray observations
- Though the city looks like it’s been razed by a feral pack of Big 10 frat bros on Cinco de Mayo, someone behind the scenes clearly loves Chicago! Did you catch all the references? The Art Institute! Sue, the T-Rex! Do-Rite Donuts! Dante’s Pizzeria! June looking like a Naperville mom with that hoodie and Cubs cap!
- If the badassery of border rebels were solely determined by the quality of the tacos in each region, Chicago would be number one. I SAID WHAT I SAID. I don’t care what California and Texas have to say about this.
- Not gonna lie, Aunt Lydia’s retirement facility could take all my money for a chance to spend my golden years there. Give me a puzzle and some comfy couches and I’m good.
- Had a momentary flashback to my Opus Dei high school as Aunt Lydia led the new Handmaids in exercises. In a cold sweat I muttered under my breath our motto, “Para servir, servir” during that whole scene. Seriously, that could easily be put in the Handmaid Bootcamp Diploma and nary would anyone consider it out of place.
- Back to my question from last week about Janine and her decision to acquiesce to Steven’s sexual request: It was revealing to hear her voice out loud how she was doing it out of her own volition and that her dream scenario was having a baby again. Janine has absolutely terrible taste in men, but she is at least clear on what she wants from them.
- If there’s a Coldplay cover sung by a soft-voiced woman, you know executives are confident they’re about to serve you a stirring-emotional-TV-moment. Did it work?
119 Comments
yeah, that lawrence guy, i have no idea what his deal is. I really think he just makes up his mind on the spot depending on his feelings at the time. At first i thought June just had him bullied and had the crazy wife as some kind of power or blakmail over him-now, i dunno whats going on.
They’re trying to say this is what happens when you can’t vote for Obama for a third time.
they didnt account for the return of biden!!
Lawrence’s purpose changes week from week, depending on the need of the writers to cobble together some kind of narrative without paying a new actor.
teared up and moira and june reunion
We all know that Elizabeth Moss is a big Cubs fan IRL – was at all the 2016 World Series games. People forget the 2016 World Series – I understand!
June and Moira’s reunion is right out of Outlander’s Jamie/Claire always-find-their-way-to-each-other CoinkyDink Handbook
Of course it’ll only lead to June deciding she’s staying back to fight Gilead, possibly guilting Moira into also giving up everything and staying, only to be killed in the finale.Next season on The Handmaid’s Tale: After Lawrence’s cunning prisoner trade resulted in the liberation of the Waterfords, they’re given back their old household in Boston and are shocked to find out who the newly recaptured handmaid they have been assigned is.
Allow me to summarize:They should have stopped after season 1.
OR…now, hear me out…you should’ve stopped *watching* after S01.
I don’t understand your reference but that scene worked for me. *sniff*
It seems that each episode tries to out creepy-weird the previous episode.
Lawrence is a guy who goes the way the wind blows, so long as it’s blowing him to the top of the pile. When he had a chance to look like a rebellious savior with Angel Flight, he was with June. After his wife died, so went most of his motivation for doing the right thing (I also think he had something of a death wish at that point, so was assuming/hoping the guardians would kill him when they realized June had escaped). Now that he’s not dead, he’s got to climb back to the top again. He contrasts with Lydia in a way – she genuinely believes those women need her, I think. Her longing to be back in the thick of it is just as much about her wanting to ensure the new batch of Handmaids gets “raised up right” than anything. (Where are they getting the new Handmaids? Enemy takeover of areas in Texas/California/Chicago?)June and Moira finding each other was obviously going to happen (another commenter was right on the money when it smacked of Claire and Jamie), but if Janine is dead I’m going to be so fucking pissed. She certainly seems like she is, given her heroic send-off.
Agreed! It’s so funny cause as I was watching this today, all I thought was how Janine was the main reason I keep watching!
Good points. I do wonder if Lawrence’s shift depended more on his need of Nick’s support, than on any loyalty toward June. It seems that Lawrence is playing both Nick and Lydia, to be back in power and pulling the strings.
But I also think he’s hoping to be able to bring Gilead down, by way of transforming it back into a non-insane country, and he doesn’t rate the life of a single person above this goal that would be beneficial to many.I don’t think he’s suddenly power-crazy. When we met him, he had willingly distanced himself from power because he didn’t like Gilead’s ways anymore. Now he sees an opportunity to seize power again and steer the boat to some extent.
But when he proposed to Lydia that they team up and right the country together, I didn’t know what he meant or what their common goal is supposed to be. Lydia seems to be a true believer in Gilead and its ways; what is it she wants to fix?
I took that as him telling Lydia what Lydia wanted to hear, but meaning a different thing than she does.
Yeah, I agree he definitely wants to be back on top. Whether it’s to implode Gilead from the inside or just because he wants the power again, I’m not sure yet.I do enjoy how much scenery Bradley Whitford chews on this show though.
Lawrence is so hard to read but I still want to believe he’s good. Here is my very wishful thought…What he said to Nick about trying to protect June with the cease fire. Maybe he’s got his game face on, trying to gain trust from the other commanders so when he’s respected again and in a higher position, he can dismantle it from within. Him and Nick are working together but he has to ‘play the role’. Maybe he’s bluffing because he knows Nick’s in love w June and doesn’t want him to slip up and start making mistakes by showing too much emotion/weakness. Nick telling the Martha’s he cares for her could have been a slip up in Lawrence’s eyes, should that info get back to the other commanders? They need each other to appear strong in the eye’s of the commanders but it’s a marathon not a sprint.
The words I uttered to myself near the end was “Janine better not be fucking dead.” As I mentioned discussing a past episode, I’m just sick and tired of characters getting killed left and right for June’s sake.
Same Janine better not be. I couldn’t tell if that was her silhouette getting rescued through the smoke-filled debris or if it was my wishful thinking.
I hope not, because otherwise it was totally pointless to have Janine change her mind about staying with June.
Right? She would’ve been better off staying with Steven and having his babies instead of following June and dying.
I thought I saw Janine being led off by some relief worker through the haze? I assumed she was ok. But agreed, I’ll be pissed if she’s not. Partly because Janine is a sweetheart who deserves to live and be happy somehow, and partly because how long can they expect us to keep rooting for June if literally everyone around her keeps getting killed and she houdinis her way out of every impossible jam, almost unscathed.
I thought I saw her being led off as well, so who knows.
June is basically a walking grenade at this point, for how much everyone near her dies. It’s becoming ridiculous. I get that they can’t kill her (at least before she records her memoirs, although we could easily say she recorded them in the Lawrences’ basement) but honestly if she puts Moira’s life in danger too, I’m going to riot.
I get that they can’t kill herBecause Elizabeth Moss is an executive producer of the show, so she’s not going to kill herself off. Speaking of, how is it right or fair that Margaret Atwood, who wrote the damn source material, is just a lowly co-executive producer?
I’m no expert, but I’m pretty sure the writer being co-exec producer is about as good as they’re ever going to get, with reason. Exec producers are people with industry contacts who can source financing and the like. I highly doubt Margaret Atwood wants to spend her time glad-handing studio people when she can be telling the writers room “go in this general direction” and then sit back and cash her checks while she does the job she actually likes.
I mean is anyone rooting for June at this points besides from the point of wanting to see the end of Gilead?
What was the point of that extended goodbye scene between June and Janine if Janine was going to reveal she followed June in the next scene?
So they could expand on the “Handmaids walk in twos” scene.
They could do that regardless. They could just part their ways with a sad look and not much fanfare as a lowkey fakeout, since the writers knew the separation wouldn’t stick for a second. Instead, they created this intense goodbye scene where Janine gives June the cap to remember her by, and they were both like, “This is it. We probably won’t see each other ever again!”, but then the very next time we see June, Janine immediately pops up, like, “Hey! I was just kidding! Did you miss me in the 5 minutes we were apart?”(At that point I thought June would ask, “Do you want the cap back?”)
I do agree that was poorly thought out
One thing for sure … Lawrence and Lydia make more interesting antagonists / allies than Fred and Serena do. I appreciated Ann Dowd’s reaction when she realized that Lawrence, rather than fearing her attempt at blackmail, was willing to work with her. As for Lawrence, he knew that Lydia had no love for the other Commanders, and he could use that.
Agreed. Fred and Serena just seem like any other bitter couple going through a divorce. Lawrence and Lydia is an interesting mix of True Believer and Cynical Realist that the show attempted to do with Fred and Serena, but could never really commit to.I often wonder what Lydia thinks about the patriarchal aspects of Gilead. (I mean, America is plenty patriarchal, but Gilead is the patriarchy on steroids) There’s nothing in her background to show that she thinks men are in any way superior to women or that women have a biological or religious mandate to be inferior to men. Is it just that she saw the writing on the wall and decided to get in where she could (which is what I believed back when I read the book)? Or does he believe that Gilead will eventually become more egalitarian, but in the meantime she needs to “protect” the Handmaids (in her weird, fucked up way)? Or is she legit a True Believer?
Janine will probably pop back up, like Cloe Bell, “I’m okay!”
i just saw an interview with the janine actress-even she seemd to not know-she said “i guess im in the rubble somewhere”
As much as I love Chicago, nobody gives a shit about their tacos. NOT. ONE. SHIT.Chicago is a great city surrounded by a region that would put gravy on a burrito.
How dare you say something so true.
Sorry man, it’s a running joke among my fellow Latinos about midwestern Mexican food. And only funny because it’s true.
Now I want to see a spin off series about someone running a taco truck near the front lines in the war with Gilead. Today’s taco: Stale corn tortilla filled with MRE mystery meat, and garnished with bomb dust. Price: one hand job.
I’m stealing “Hand Job Tacos” for my taco truck.“Hand rolled?”“Kinda.”
Okay, but you owe me a taco.
I don’t recommend adding their sour cream to the tacos…
Nevermind, just get me a glass of hot fat, and bring me the head of Alfredo Garcia while you’re out there …
As a Californian that line only made me laugh. It reminded me of a time a guy made me and my friend “authentic tacos” that he knew were authentic because that’s how they made them in Boston. He put mayo and frozen shrimp on them.
This show has gotten so bad, but it did lead me to this thread about tacos, so I thank you all.
“I don’t know what the official title for the woman who makes this decision is so I’m dubbing it Head Aunt until someone corrects me.”Clearly her title should be Commanda(u)nt!
Given the teaser photo, I had my hopes up for far more of Samira Wiley than we actually got.
Same here. The part I’m enjoying about this season is learning more about what’s going on in Canada and spending more time with Moira, Rita, and (hopefully more) Emily.
“Here’s your script for the next episode, Ms. Wiley. It’s only your lines”.[Moira stares at June in the distance, befuddled]
I lived near a Dante’s for a few years. Never tried it since they always looked closed and I always ordered from another nearby place. Comes out that that location doesn’t exist anymore.Speaking of tacos, I miss Nuevo León in Pilsen (RIP). Not a taco place, but all of their food was great. They had these really good tacos with steak, beans and cheese that would put you in a food coma.
Review misses out on one major strand, how June is manipulating Janine away from a place were she at least has a modicum of a chance at less-than-perfect happiness. Instead she ends up possibly killed or maimed.
They might all be dead from the bombing.
It is surprising that Aunt Lydia even got a chance to take over handmaid training at all because she is actually a terrible aunt. Even before she could not stop June and the remaining handmaids from escaping this season her record is pretty bad. Emily stole a car and either killed or injured a few guards and when she came back, she tried to kill Lydia, then she escaped with baby Nicole, the handmaid that got her tongue cut off blew up the new red center and herself, Jeanine kidnapped her baby and almost jumped off a bridge with the baby, but wound up jumping on her own, another handmaid stole a guardian’s gun and went on a rampage in a grocery store before being shot, and June murdered a commander, ran away twice and coordinated the flight to Canada for the children. That is not a good track record for an aunt.
We all know that terrible manager who always seems to fail upwards.
Every boss I’ve ever had.
June has run away three times now. End of season one, end of season three, and just two episodes ago. Maybe the other aunts are worse at their jobs though? Maybe they all microwave fish and always hit “reply all.”
I was thinking along those lines. It’s not as though we’ve seen a ‘successful’ aunt, so we don’t have a comparison. Perhaps Lydia is seen as successful because of the number of births on her watch.
Sigh… kids, this is what happens when you fail to do any world building.1) Why is Nick in charge of a military operation? Two years ago, he was a bodyguard. Do they not have a proper military with ranks and training, and generals, or WTF? And why would Gilead soldiers obey orders from a guy who’s never been in the military? Nonsense all the way down.2) The Gilead patrol saying “watch out for IEDs” made me LOL. So stupid to do a foot patrol and then say “search every building” and then do nothing but shine flashlights into a dark room on a sunny day, a situation where you cannot see anything. 3) Where IS the Gilead high council? Boston? DC? And is the whole country run by seven men? And why is every single man’s rank “Commander”? Pure nonsense.4) Why are the rebels all in different groups, doing swap meets? What kind of Walking Dead nonsense is that? 5) Again, where the hell is Gilead getting all their gasoline considering California, Texas, and Alaska are not theirs? Because they sure burn a heck of a lot of it. 6) Is Chicago supposed to be surrounded? Why are the rebels living in warehouses instead of just using them for military actions? Is no one able to grow food somewhere? It’s been years since Gilead took over, and they’re surviving solely on MREs? Fail whale.7) Last episode, Steven said food is scarce, but now he wants to trade food for “batteries and fuel.” Fuel for what? The truck they used once to grab a dozen MREs from a train? And other than lights, they don’t use anything else with batteries (like, say, some RADIOS, which might come in useful if you’re supposed to be an organized rebel group), and one raid on a camping store will get you dozens of hand-cranked lanterns or propane-fueled ones.8) Not a single person in Steven’s camp seems to respect Steven, and there’s zero indication as to why he’s their leader. He certainly sucks at conducting ops against Gilead troops. The sharp cheekbones Black lady seems like she’s far more in charge than Steven is.9) How the hell did anyone see two Handmaids “heading to Chicago” when June and Janine slipped unseen inside a milk car and rode the whole way to Chicago out of sight of anyone? 10) What, exactly, does an Aunt do BESIDES manage the Handmaids? Just play cards all day long?11) Why is Gilead anti-electricity (except for interior lights and for hospitals) but the Aunt HQ has not just a treadmill but a TALKING TREADMILL WITH A WOMAN’S VOICE? Ridiculous. 12) When the Head Aunt came into the Aunt HQ room, she said “listen up everybody” but then she only talked to Lydia and then left.13) The Nighthawks clearly used an explosive to kill that Gilead soldier, so who the hell covered his dead body with a blanket? And why?14) All this talk about “the economy” made me laugh. Nobody in Gilead works except as a Commander or a domestic servant or on a farm. Why do we never see a “regular” Gilead citizen doing anything? 15) How did Moira get to Chicago? Did she fly from Canada? If so, where did the plane land when the entire city is a bombed out wreck? And in the “previously on” her gf mentioned going to Thunder Bay for work. Was that NGO work or was it something unrelated? Thanks for NOT saying!16) Why were the new Handmaids all in their 20s when it’s clear that they’re grooming the Hannah generation to serve as soon as possible, i.e. as soon as they menstruate, so far younger than 20? Or did they somehow capture some fertile rebels, all of whom happened to conveniently be young?But yeah, other than that, June continues to be the only thing Lawrence, Nick, the rebel Marthas, Luke, and half the population of Toronto cares about, so long live the Handmaid’s Tale!
Great post, but anyone still watching the Handmaid’s Tale after all this time is clearly uninterested in any kind of rational narrative.
man, holy shit. well done.
Only one I can attempt to explain is that it seems like in order to become a Handmaid you have to be proven fertile, so maybe the new Handmaids were econowives with children who fucked up somehow and became Handmaids?I think they mentioned that that’s what happened to the wife of that man who was killed for hiding June in his house.
I was looking for Mrs. Keyes in the faces they were showing. I’m guessing this is what happens to her.
On point 10, I’m not sure, but there was that sequence a couple seasons back where June stayed with a couple who seemed to live in a relatively normal-life part of Gilead, families who are apparently not part of the Commanders/Wives/Handmaids system but live on their own in apartments. I guess it’s that those women aren’t fertile but aren’t criminals or servants either, they have husbands; I don’t know if it was clear whether they worked at jobs or anything.
The Econowives/their husbands are people in Gilead who have committed no sins (or what Gilead considers a sin, anyway) – but if the Econowives do “sin” in some way (have an affair, separate from their husband, shelter a rogue Handsmaid, work against Gilead, etc), they will generally be turned into Handmaids or Marthas, depending on age and fertility.
Nick is an Eye and supposedly was critical to the founding of Gilead – but I agree, flesh it out!
The economy is important because of the sanctions on Gilead. They aren’t getting the things they need in trade so things are scarce. Visits to the store sort of show this (despite the store looking like a text-free Whole Foods) – they announce availability and limits over the intercom. Gilead also needs foreign stuff for the constant war machine.
I think the “retired” aunts are pious old ladies who helped Gilead come to fruition, and have earned their reward.
June’s plot armor is not only heavy duty, but also highly magnetic – it attracted her BFF right to her!
I know it was supposed to be poignant or moving, but that ending was the most ridiculous thing I’ve seen since Spielberg’s War of the Worlds when Tom Cruise’s son showed up at the end.
Why is Nick in charge of a military operation? Two years ago, he was a bodyguard. Do they not have a proper military with ranks and training, and generals, or WTF?Certainly you can think of a few parallels in our government elections/appointments in the past few years…
I’ve started watching Young and the Restless again in a fit of nostalgia. When Moira came out at the end, I thought Y&R has more realistic storylines than this shit. As Commander Lawrence said, it’s a big country, but Nick is now in charge of the military? And Moira finds June in the wreckage??? Ok, show. I also wondered about why they are all Commander, but reasoned that was an attempt to create the appearance of equality because no one man can rise up to be in a position that could make him feel god-like, when the truth is that there is definitely a hierarchy.
As for the fuel thing, they’re probably still following the age old tradition of buying it from the Middle East.
At some point somewhere in the book or movie or TV show I swear they mention Mideast allies. If Gilead’s ascent is remotely based on the real world I’d expect it was done with the backing of various repressive oil producing kingdoms, possibly even Russia as well.
I had few of these doubts in last week’s comments but my comment is still pending approval, so… I don’t understand a lot of things about how Gilead works, I wondered why Nick doesn’t have a Wife and a Handmaid. I also wondered where June and Janine were, because I didn’t think there were any references to them being in Chicago but yet this episode, Chicago was plastered literally everywhere. June is far from Gilead. She’s still thinking about saving Hannah, understandibly so; but how was she planning on doing that while fighting in Chicago? I’m lost about her plan. Like she’s planning on doing like a coup on Gilead or something?And don’t even get me started on how Moira got there so fast. I mean, if we were to assume that the refugees in Canada were somehow “checking in” on that territory, it would be safe to assume that they know about the rebels and they would have been supplying them with food, no? And if they flew there, then someone has to explain who has the control over air traffic because if Gilead can bomb them I would assume they could also see a Canadian aircraft aiding insurgents. I have so many questions. BUT I have to admit I was pretty damn happy when they saw each other. I was sure it was a dream, until I watched next week’s sneak peek.
You are mostly nip-picking, most of those thing have a explanations, but this point – Why are the rebels all in different groups, doing swap meets? What kind of Walking Dead nonsense is that? – are you for real? This is the most realistic thing that could have done. Humans NEVER agree on anything, we are never united and we always choose to fight.
15) How did Moira get to Chicago? Did she fly from Canada? If so, where did the plane land when the entire city is a bombed out wreck? And in the “previously on” her gf mentioned going to Thunder Bay for work. Was that NGO work or was it something unrelated? Thanks for NOT saying!Moira didn’t even show up until literally the last few seconds of the episode. Give her a chance to explain next week, yo. Damn.
youre right. Its dumb and inconsistent, a lot. But the nick thing, i think he was always high up in their spy network and the bodyguard thing was a cover.
Not to mention they clearly reprogrammed the treadmill to say “blessed day”. WTF? So there’s Gilead tech bros? Who are somehow down with a regime that wants to LARP as colonial williamsburg and eschew capitalism for some god damn reason? And wear suits constantly? Also, the gas thing reminded me, we see Gileadean license plates. So they have a DMV?? Who – how? Atwood wisely left a lot of the world building details vague enough so that you didn’t need to suspend disbelief. Every time I see like somebody staring out a window next to a fireplace I’m just like…who would willingly subject themselves to such a boring existence? It just doesn’t make any sense lol
It feels like you’re living in my brain.
The benefit of the book is that it’s such a solipsistic narrative, so rooted in June’s first-person perspective that all these questions can exist without being problems for the story. Once you stick an omniscient camera into this setting and let it roll for a few seasons, the questions start to pile on.
I commend you, writer. There is a spot, and you are on it.
“Great Aunt” was *right there*
I would have gone for Aunt Superior.
Aunt Superior jumped the gun…
(it took me some googling but a star for you!)
Aunt Augusta
I believe the leader of an colony of aunts is called a queen.
If there’s a Coldplay cover sung by a soft-voiced woman, you know executives are confident they’re about to serve you a stirring-emotional-TV-moment. Did it work?Nope. It weakened the moment – extremely poor choice if you ask me. It has been hit and miss with music on this show, with both really good and really bad examples.
It wasn’t even Coldplay, it was a Snow Patrol song…
I vaguely recognised it but that’s about it so I assumed Coldplay was correct. Coldplay would have been a bad choice too.
Wait, what? It wasn’t this?
You are correct! I thought it was Chasing Cars by Snow patrol. My bad!
I mean, it’s kind of six of one, half a dozen of the other, no?
lmfao Chicago doesn’t even have the best tacos in the midwest let alone better than SoCal, Texas, or all of SW give me a break the badassery of border rebels were solely determined by the quality of the tacos in each region, Chicago would be number one. I SAID WHAT I SAID. I don’t care what California and Texas have to say about this.in Chicago you can get sub-par pizza pretending to be excellent lasagna, some amazing Italian and Polish food, and lots, and lots, and lots of hot dogs. but you can’t get anything even close to #1 tacos lol.
When I think of top tier tacos I think back to my vacation in San Diego. Never had tacos in Texas so I can’t speak to those. But anywhere in the midwest? nah
I think we’re agreeing here, what I’m saying is chicago’s tacos not only don’t compare to those you can get in the american southwest, they ALSO aren’t the best in the midwest.I’m not (nor would I) compare the tacos of Detroit (where the actual best tacos in the midwest are) to those in San Diego, Texas, Arizona, etc. That would be bananas. Although, the taco scene in SW Detroit, which has a large Latinx population, does have some pretty, pretty fuckin good authentic ass tacos that shit on the tacos you can get in Chicago.
I found a really good Mexi taco bar near the Chicago History Museum, but the name escapes me.
I’m sorry but what planet do you live on? Carnitas Urupan. Atoltonilco. Don Pedro. Los Comales. Birreria Ocotlan. And those are just a handful in Pilsen. The really good secret stuff is at Maxwell Market when it reopens. This is literally offensive.
I live on the planet where Southwest Detroit has better tacos than Chicago.
The planet of garbage opinions isn’t a real place
that’s no way to talk about Detroit, damn.
lmfao Chicago doesn’t even have the best tacos in the midwest let alone better than SoCal, Texas, or all of SW give me a break the badassery of border rebels were solely determined by the quality of the tacos in each region, Chicago would be number one. I SAID WHAT I SAID. I don’t care what California and Texas have to say about this.in Chicago you can get sub-par pizza pretending to be excellent lasagna, some amazing Italian and Polish food, and lots, and lots, and lots of hot dogs. but you can’t get anything even close to #1 tacos lol.
Janine has absolutely terrible taste in menUh, this goes a bit beyond “terrible taste”. Janine is pretty obv mentally ill.
If there’s a Coldplay cover sung by a soft-voiced woman, you know
executives are confident they’re about to serve you a
stirring-emotional-TV-moment. Did it work?
No, it was corny as hell. At least use a deep cut.
It’s one of my favorite songs that makes me cry if I’m in the wrong/right moment. I’m also grieving the sudden passing of my long term boyfriend to covid complications. When it started up, I was worried what it was going to do to me emotionally. All it got from me was an eye roll.
I’m sorry for your loss.
I thought it was terrible and completely unrealistic.
The ending with Moira was a little bit of light in the dark, dark world of this show. It made me so happy! However if June decides to stay STILL I am going to be livid! She needs to get out and we need to see the fight to defeat Gilead from the rest of the US. Not more repetitive torture.
The ending made no sense.
Ines, I loved every word of this chippy re-cap. I’m from Los Angeles, but bravo, get your Chicago on!! Sarcasm, snark, men are shit. It’s all here!!
Please protect Janine. If June dies at the end of this I will be fine, but I want Janine to make it out alive. While the end of the episode had me holding my breath, I’m one of those “need to see a body” types when it comes to major character deaths. She’s fine. Janine is gonna live, I gotta believe it!Honestly, June is one of those lead characters like Batman or Harry Potter that I just don’t connect with. I don’t mean that to say that I hate them or they’re the worst, but if it was just her on this show I wouldn’t watch it.
Shouldn’t that be the razor-thin line between Gilead and Ungilead?
i cant believe Moira went back there. That is fucking INSANE. But as usual, theyre like fuck logic or human behavior, just do what they want
Lawrence’s motivation is easy to explain. It’s the personal kink of power dynamics and he’s a switch.
“If there’s a Coldplay cover sung by a soft-voiced woman, you know executives are confident they’re about to serve you a stirring-emotional-TV-moment. Did it work?”If you’re referring to the song that plays while June is trying to regain her senses after the explosion, the answer for me is no. No it did not work. This kind of underscoring is precisely what makes me fear the road Handmaid’s Tale is going down. That scene didn’t need it. Just like the wildly inappropriate song they played after one of the handmaid’s blew up the Leah and Rachel center in season one, I think. It’s too self-aware, and I think it plays down to the audience. I’ll stick with the show, because I do enjoy it, but this kind of shit really annoys me.
Janine is the worst. Otherwise I love this show.
“Did you catch all the references? The Art Institute! Sue, the T-Rex! Do-Rite Donuts! Dante’s Pizzeria!” Also, the Nighthawks named themselves after the most famous painting in the AIC. I can see them taking the picture to decorate their bunker, like a common Waterford.
These “star vehicles” are trash. Once they leave the quality source material – if they ever bothered to indulge it to begin with- these productions go in the crapper. The utter lack of writing quality, editing, continuity, pacing- all to have an acting / directing extravaganza. I feel like Moss is just trolling us as if we are all the mean ones who told her she’d never be a star. Now she makes us all stare at her giant face on the big screen over and over again while the story and plot goes to hell on so many levels (see Sam Ursu’s post…). As has happened with other series (particularly HBO productions) , I committed to it early and am now compelled to see it through as hate-watching. It’s aggravating and it does not have to be this way. FWIW, “The Americans” was pretty much top notch for years, until the very finale, which was admittedly a miss. not horrible, but very “meh’ after all that build up. “Handmaid’s Tale”…it’s just a complete mess on almost every level now but cinematography. It still looks great, but almost everything else elicits a AYFKM response the longer this goes on. (Again, see Sam’s post…)Adhere to some classic writing and directing forms – they work. Over-reliance on red herrings is bullshit. Checkov’s Gun. Move the story forward. They’re not out-of-date, or old fashioned, or overdone practices- they are effective. Let real writers write and real directors direct. If all you’ve ever been is an actor, just be an actor until you get some practice on more manageable productions in those capacities. No shame in that. It’s just damned disrespectful to those who ARE skilled at writing and directing when their jobs get taken over by a few stars with giant egos who are working out of their depth.
I liked this episode. I quite like the fragmented ones where we get to see what a cross-section of the characters are up to. Among other things I really liked that we saw some sort of consequences for June’s actions and that at least some of Mayday are now fed up with her short-sighted attempts to take swipes at Gilead.I enjoyed the insincerity of Lawrence’s initial speech to the commanders. My guess is that he’s trying to regain some power to primarily save his own skin but also if he can stick it to some of the people he doesn’t like in the process, so much the better. I did wonder if he thought it would be best if June did die at the front both to spare her from Aunt Lydia and also because her actions tend to lead to some not great consequences for the people around her.