S03.E04: God Bless the Child

[Ceindreadh]

When June was asked to confirm his identity, I really wanted her to say “his name is Ofjune”

[Empress1]

On 6/12/2019 at 3:11 AM, ElectricBoogaloo said:

I rolled my eyes when all the wives seemed horrified that Aunt Lydia was beating Jeanine. These women have witnessed the ritualistic rape of handmaids every month but somehow THIS is what is unseemly? Did they think the handmaids all complied with the monthly rape out of the goodness of their hearts? How do they think the handmaids became so compliant? Do they really believe it's the result of Aunt Lydia giving the girls nonstop hugs?

I can believe that they can convince themselves that the ritual rape isn't really rape, but Jeanine is standing there with one eye. Commander Putnam is missing a hand. Serena is missing a finger. Two teenagers - kids - were drowned as punishment while the whole town watched. Punishment in Gilead is always violent. They know this.

[Umbelina]

3 hours ago, Empress1 said:

I can believe that they can convince themselves that the ritual rape isn't really rape, but Jeanine is standing there with one eye. Commander Putnam is missing a hand. Serena is missing a finger. Two teenagers - kids - were drowned as punishment while the whole town watched. Punishment in Gilead is always violent. They know this.

I tend to agree that they are obviously aware of the violence, they see the bodies hanging around town, etc.

For the wives though, at a fancy party?  They don't expect to see women beaten, and I can believe they lie to themselves about handmaids being willing, they even know they are lying in some cases.  The handmaids are all fallen women, sinners of one kind or another after all.

Aunt Lydia though?  Isn't a fallen woman, she's not "quite our kind dear" but she's still better than those sinning women who should be grateful they've been saved.  To see her "do her job" so violently could still be shocking, but more because of the setting than the act.  It may have been gauche more in a "she's farting and picking her nose and wiping it on the food" way than in a "OMG, she's about to kill Janine or Of-whoever it is!" but it was still shocking.

I'd like to think that they were shocked because of their delusions about the handmaids willingly "serving" but I agree with you, it would take a special kind denial, and though I think some wives are capable of that?  Doubtful.

[LordOfLotion]

Aunt Lydia has power that the wives don't have. She can read and write, inspect their homes, live in their homes when a baby is on the way, regulate their diets, tell them not to smoke, and who knows what else. She probably writes everything they do in her little brown book. When the wives saw her beating Janine, that was an escalation of Lydia's behavior. They all probably wondered if they were next. The commanders probably had another helping of deviled eggs.

[Umbelina]

7 minutes ago, LordOfLotion said:

Aunt Lydia has power that the wives don't have. She can read and write, inspect their homes, live in their homes when a baby is on the way, regulate their diets, tell them not to smoke, and who knows what else. She probably writes everything they do in her little brown book. When the wives saw her beating Janine, that was an escalation of Lydia's behavior. They all probably wondered if they were next. The commanders probably had another helping of deviled eggs.

Excellent point.

The Aunts don't fit in anywhere, but with other Aunts.  No one likes them.  If anything, their social status is more like the Eyes or Guardians.   Lesser value and importance though, of course, since they are women.

Except of course, Guardians can be promoted, and Aunt's can not.  Both are a version of the Gestapo though.

Edited June 16, 2019 by Umbelina

[scrb]

Don't understand why Luke and June were so into getting Hanna baptized in the first place.  Neither seemed particularly religious and June's mother and Moira were making blunt comments about the Church and neither Luke nor June was objecting too much.

Then Luke and Moira get Nicole baptized, after everything that has gone down?

That's some strong faith right there.

I get that Emily and her wife won't get right back into their relationship, after what Emily has gone through and after all the time they've been apart.  Same for the son as well.

Sure, Emily is still shellshocked, can't even hug her own son.

But once they do bond again and have some semblance of normalcy as a family, Emily's story is pretty much over isn't it?

Unless she takes some big role in trying to smuggle handmaids out of Gilead or something.  But Luke has bene in Canada for years and the most he could do is show up in street protests.  How does he earn a living anyways?

So Gilead has spies in Canada or Luke just happened to be caught on TV and Gilead is able to identify Nicole that easily?

Or maybe it was about letting June know Nicole made it out safe so that she can have that secret smirk at the end.

[Callaphera]

The Eye Dude: "So... is this the baby you gave birth to for the Waterfords to have that the crazy Handmaid 'stole' and ran away with?"
June: "Yup."
The Eye Dude: "And this is your pre-Gilead husband that's holding the baby you gave birth to for the Waterfords to have?"
June: "Yup."
The Eye Dude: "He's in Toronto, at a protest for Chicago, holding the baby you gave birth to for the Waterfords to have?"
June: "Yup."
Also June: *swans out of the room and no one stops her*

That's amazing plot armour. I mean, I was going to poke at how June could wander around the Putman's house without consequence, how she could have conversations with her ex-Commander and her ex-Commander's wife, smoke a cigarette in the pool room, throw herself over Janine's body to prevent a further beating and get away with it. But then that video happened. 

Can we just get rid of June and all the contrived ways they're going to put her and the Waterfords in the same vicinity so that she can continue being marriage counselor to them and just focus on Emily and Moira being awesome as they piece themselves back together?  

[Ashforth]

On 6/14/2019 at 7:14 AM, serenitynow said:

Shouldn’t Angela be older?  That distracted me the entire episode.

Angela's amazing ability to remain around 9 months of age caught my attention last season, and she's still the same many months later. Come on, show.

10 hours ago, Umbelina said:

For the wives though, at a fancy party?  They don't expect to see women beaten, and I can believe they lie to themselves about handmaids being willing, they even know they are lying in some cases.  The handmaids are all fallen women, sinners of one kind or another after all.

The wives definitely don't expect to see the ugly reality of a handmaid's discipline played out at a party that pretends to celebrate the handmaids' "achievements" in producing babies for the ruling class. 

[JasonCC]

The little moments in the Canadian scenes got me the most, like when we saw Sylvia putting her wedding ring back on. The complicated feelings and awkward emotions of everyone there were just done exquisitely. 

I did pause for a second about "would June REALLY have done a baptism?" but overall it did make sense in the not-really-a-believer-but-in-today's-tumultuous-times-let's-return-to-tradition sense. Remember the birth rates were plummeting (the empty hospital) and I think (unlike the Gilead marriage counselor nonsense) Luke, June, Moira and June's Mom all hit the right beats writing-wise on a lapsed, not-really Catholic anymore baptism. June's mom was especially great in that scene. I'm biased because I was just godfather with my husband (I'm a gay male) for his/our niece. Priest knew what was up although nothing was overtly mentioned--he was just happy he had a young couple (my in-laws) who are still into the tradition and at least nominally members of the church with a young, growing family.

Also, writers seemed to make a flashback point what ever religious residuals June (barely) had it was Catholic (not Gileadean) with that Church shown and the priest. In the pilot episode wasn't there priests hanging on the wall and a Cathedral being bulldozed?

Edited June 17, 2019 by JasonCC

[PamelaMaeSnap]

On 6/13/2019 at 8:02 PM, Ms Blue Jay said:

I seem to be on a different page than everyone else.  I hate Aunt Lydia and don't care about her!  I fastfowarded her entire "This is my moment to cry alone" scene.  Boring.  

I'm on your page. If they need to kill off a major character, nothing would delight me more than to be rid of her. 

[chaifan]

1 hour ago, JasonCC said:

The little moments in the Canadian scenes got me the most, like when we saw Sylvia putting her wedding ring back on. The complicated feelings and awkward emotions of everyone there were just done exquisitely. 

I was wondering if part of the awkwardness between Sylvia and Emily is that Sylvia "moved on", that she was in another relationship.  I kept expecting another woman to enter the scene. 

[greekmom]

This episode confused me.  I had issues/questions on the following:

1.       As people mentioned before, the fact that the Commanders and wives seemed horrified at Janine’s beating.  Comeon, they cannot be that naïve.

2.       Who do the Aunts report to? I mean I get they are above the Marthas and possibly in a way above the wives because they can read and write. But do they answer to a specific Commander? And if so, who?

3.       Where was Sylvia living?  I thought it was Montreal but Emily got off the Dufferin St. exit on the subway which is Toronto.  Emily commented she was going back to the hotel.  Which is odd because she was in Toronto with Luke and Moira. Wouldn’t she go back to the apartment?

4.       I understand that it’s a transgression in Gilead for Luke to divorce his wife to marry June but the fact that they are harping that June let her daughter go to school ill.  We all saw the scene. It wasn’t like she was callous and did it on purpose.  Hannah wasn’t even all that ill at that point but they made it all sound that June sent Hannah off to school with some fatal disease that would have killed the girl. 

5.       It was commented by Hannah that wife Mackenzie beat her last season.  Now it’s a 160 that wife Mackenize is a great mom to Hannah? Show needs to stick to one path and not change it.  Plus if Wife Mackenzie was such a great humanitarian, she would have adopted an orphan when she was helping the orphans thus not needing to steal Hannah.  (to me, she outright stole the child or Gilead stole the child for her).

6.  The line about how she feels about Waterford, I put that down as Stockhome syndrome. 

One hope that I have is that Canada’s role isn’t like in the book (complacent to Gilead) but more like Switzerland. They have done so many changes from book to show that my hope is a strong possibility.  I also hope that Emily tells Sylvia of the horrors she endured to heal. June is really playing both the Waterfords and I like it.  I hope it doesn’t backfire on her.  I knew that she would never forgive Serena for her part in the rapes and Hannah. 

[Umbelina]

9 hours ago, PamelaMaeSnap said:

ETA That it's entirely possible the choice you mention is in the book or was mentioned in an episode (Omar's wife was the one who said she'd never be a Handmaid but of course she was indeed made one ... wonder if we'll ever see her in a future episode) ... but just saying that Beth told June she'd been given choice between the Colonies and Jezebel 

I would LOVE it if they brought Omar's wife back!  First, she was very good in the role, and second, and even more important to me?  It illustrated how all the women in Gilead really look down on Handmaids.

She was just an econowife, one level above a Martha or Handmaid, but she was delightfully bitchy to June about "her choice" and in denial about what Gilead can and does do to women.  "I would NEVER do that, or let them take my child."  Yeah, hon, good luck with that.

They are doing the "looking down on handmaids" thing a bit now with some Marthas.  "Must have been a great blowjob." but I missed that from the books, and Omar's wife could have told an important story.  The brand new handmaid, the realization that her judging June was wrong, the adjustment, maybe she could have even become involved in the resistance?  June needs a new friend now with Moira and Emily gone, and she and Omar's wife (name?) could have bonded over wanting to rescue their children, a child June has actually met as well.

Another actress I though knocked it out of the park was Luke's first wife.  I wonder whatever happened to her?  Martha or colonies?

8 hours ago, chaifan said:

I was wondering if part of the awkwardness between Sylvia and Emily is that Sylvia "moved on", that she was in another relationship.  I kept expecting another woman to enter the scene. 

I worried about that a bit as well, but I want to stand up and applaud the writers for the incredible handling of Emily's reentry into her real world.  Outstanding writing, and acting all around.

It's been an absolute pleasure to watch this.

7 hours ago, greekmom said:

This episode confused me.  I had issues/questions on the following:

1.       As people mentioned before, the fact that the Commanders and wives seemed horrified at Janine’s beating.  Comeon, they cannot be that naïve.

2.       Who do the Aunts report to? I mean I get they are above the Marthas and possibly in a way above the wives because they can read and write. But do they answer to a specific Commander? And if so, who?

3.       Where was Sylvia living?  I thought it was Montreal but Emily got off the Dufferin St. exit on the subway which is Toronto.  Emily commented she was going back to the hotel.  Which is odd because she was in Toronto with Luke and Moira. Wouldn’t she go back to the apartment?

4.       I understand that it’s a transgression in Gilead for Luke to divorce his wife to marry June but the fact that they are harping that June let her daughter go to school ill.  We all saw the scene. It wasn’t like she was callous and did it on purpose.  Hannah wasn’t even all that ill at that point but they made it all sound that June sent Hannah off to school with some fatal disease that would have killed the girl. 

5.       It was commented by Hannah that wife Mackenzie beat her last season.  Now it’s a 160 that wife Mackenize is a great mom to Hannah? Show needs to stick to one path and not change it.  Plus if Wife Mackenzie was such a great humanitarian, she would have adopted an orphan when she was helping the orphans thus not needing to steal Hannah.  (to me, she outright stole the child or Gilead stole the child for her).

6.  The line about how she feels about Waterford, I put that down as Stockhome syndrome. 

One hope that I have is that Canada’s role isn’t like in the book (complacent to Gilead) but more like Switzerland. They have done so many changes from book to show that my hope is a strong possibility.  I also hope that Emily tells Sylvia of the horrors she endured to heal. June is really playing both the Waterfords and I like it.  I hope it doesn’t backfire on her.  I knew that she would never forgive Serena for her part in the rapes and Hannah. 

1.  Kind of addressed it earlier.  They don't expect them beaten at a fancy party, and yes, I think some are in severe denial still.

2.  Great question!  They seem to have more power than the Guardians, since they boss them around.  I want to know too!

3.  Emily doesn't live with Luke and the gang, she just had dinner there.  I'm not sure if her wife was in a different city but it seems likely.  Some travel was involved.

4.  Babies that lived were almost unheard of.  ANY small thing that endangered them became criminal, or at least an excuse to give them to a more deserving couple.  In addition, obviously, women are blamed for the crisis as much as pollution, and a working mother was WRONG, soon to be outlawed completely.

5.  Yes, the Martha said Hannah had been beaten, but "only twice."  Maybe things are better now?  Who knows?

6. Stockholm possibly, but also, Fred has been a powerful ally to June as well as her jailer/tormentor.  She has seen the real Fred, one that Serena doesn't even really know anymore.  I think including the comment was a mistake by the writers, but I see it as a type of comradery.  Without Fred, she would have never found Moira, she would have never seen her child, and she at least got to read and play Scrabble, and have a drink, and lotion.  Those little things are rather huge, as is the recognition that Fred knows this whole thing is bullshit.  In addition, he could be very useful to her in the future, and he is rather easily manipulated.

I want to move beyond Canada to the world, and with most of the cast now there?  It's time.

Edited June 18, 2019 by Umbelina

[JasonCC]

It was indeed a Boston to Montreal flight that Emily was denied access to during that heart-wrenching, chaotic people fleeing at the airport scene. But, that doesn't mean Sylvia was from Montreal or intending to end up there necessarily. I image when the final USA-to-Gilead transition caused a chaotic, mass exodus of anyone with a foreign passport (like Sylvia & her family) people got on whatever the next flight was to said country regardless of final destination. That scene still sticks with me.

Edited June 17, 2019 by JasonCC

[PamelaMaeSnap]

3 minutes ago, JasonCC said:

It was indeed a Boston to Montreal flight that Emily was denied access to during that heart-wrenching, chaotic people fleeing at the airport scene. But, that doesn't mean Sylvia was from Montreal or intending to end up there necessarily.

What I was wondering was if they were escaping Gilead from a city that, unless I'm mistaken, is Boston, they can't possibly be going as far on foot/back of a car as Toronto, could they? I pretty much assumed it had to be Montreal or somewhere close by, if they were hightailing it through New England. Not saying that refugees didn't eventually end up in Toronto (the Chicago subplot suggests there is indeed midwestern action), just that in this case I would guess the quickest escape to a Canadian city from where THESE people are across the border would be Montreal. 

That said, I haven't been to Canada in SO long (though going to QC this summer) ... someone here must have recognized the bridge under which Emily tried to cross the river, yes?

Also ... Umbelina, agree completely on Omar's wife (I can't even remember if we ever learned her name) ... and just to throw this in here, I was so excited that both Handmaid's Tale and Black Mirror returned the same day ... the actor who played Omar (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) was one of the leads in the first episode of Black Mirror and was amazing. 

[JasonCC]

PamelaMaeSnap: No I meant the flashback scene at the airport---before it was full-fledged Gilead and Emily was attempting to leave with her wife and son but was denied. They'd already repealed any recognition of Emily as the child's legal mother and they were asking some really creepy questions about how he was conceived (IVF? whose eggs?). I remember people here speculating it probably was an early Gilead method of sussing out which "gender traitors" (lesbians) could be "salvaged" as Handmaids before Gilead gave the green light to start rounding up homosexuals for execution/the Colonies. The airport flashback is before that started happening--and Emily was trying to leave legally/normally (not refugee) as the spouse of a Canadian citizen (Sylvia).

Edited June 17, 2019 by JasonCC

[Umbelina]

Yes, if Emily had known to lie, she would have been let go.  "I used a donor egg."

[Kel Varnsen]

On 6/12/2019 at 4:24 PM, DiabLOL said:

How stupid is Luke to show up on TV with a "stolen" baby especially with June still in the colonies and Emily running away. Like there won't be any connection to June with all that let alone the WTF of June straight up admitting to knowing him?!?

Not sure what else she was supposed to do, as it was obviously a lawyer style ask a question you already know the answer to. June could figure  if she says no, they could haul her away for lying.

On 6/12/2019 at 4:57 PM, Baltimore Betty said:

I think it is being handled pretty well, I could not imagine being in Emily's shoes and trying to get used to freedom is one thing but trying to deal with the mental and physical brutality might take a bit of time.  

On top of all the other shit she is processing there is also the fact that she killed 2 people. Sure it is basically war and they basically had it coming but it still has to add another layer on top of everything else that would mess with your head and make it hard to deal with your family.

On 6/12/2019 at 12:36 PM, nodorothyparker said:

They obviously already knew that Luke was the man on the video, but I really wish June hadn't confirmed it for them.  This now runs the danger of turning into an international kidnapping thing that looks bad for Canada because good old Commander Fred is still Nichole's legal father of record regardless of what everyone thinks they know about Gilead's handmaid setup.  I doubt that occurred to June in her obvious relief to see them okay and together, but I hope Luke has his papers in order and Canada doesn't give any ground.

I really hope they don't  do some kind of stupid international incident plot or have Gilead operatives kidnap June's baby from Canada. Because does Gilead really want to go starting shit with other countries? Yes Canada doesn't have a huge military but Gilead can barely seem to maintain the fight against the former US. Plus Canada has lots of friends that we have mutal defence treaties with. And I could only see those  treaties  getting stronger as the US falls apart. Especially if, as it seems,, everywhere else hates Gilead.

Also on a lighter note, I found it hilarious that these super fanatical religious people were serving deviled eggs at their fancy party.

[Ashforth]

1 hour ago, Kel Varnsen said:

Also on a lighter note, I found it hilarious that these super fanatical religious people were serving deviled eggs at their fancy party.

LOL thank you for the levity. So funny!

[AnswersWanted]

On 6/16/2019 at 11:28 PM, Callaphera said:

The Eye Dude: "So... is this the baby you gave birth to for the Waterfords to have that the crazy Handmaid 'stole' and ran away with?"
June: "Yup."
The Eye Dude: "And this is your pre-Gilead husband that's holding the baby you gave birth to for the Waterfords to have?"
June: "Yup."
The Eye Dude: "He's in Toronto, at a protest for Chicago, holding the baby you gave birth to for the Waterfords to have?"
June: "Yup."
Also June: *swans out of the room and no one stops her*

That's amazing plot armour. I mean, I was going to poke at how June could wander around the Putman's house without consequence, how she could have conversations with her ex-Commander and her ex-Commander's wife, smoke a cigarette in the pool room, throw herself over Janine's body to prevent a further beating and get away with it. But then that video happened. 

Can we just get rid of June and all the contrived ways they're going to put her and the Waterfords in the same vicinity so that she can continue being marriage counselor to them and just focus on Emily and Moira being awesome as they piece themselves back together?  

The only way that scene could have ended even more incredulous would have been if the guard had tried to go after her but Fred puts up his hand to stop him and says: “She just needs a minute, okay? Give her some time.”.

On 6/16/2019 at 11:28 PM, Callaphera said:

Can we just get rid of June and all the contrived ways they're going to put her and the Waterfords in the same vicinity so that she can continue being marriage counselor to them and just focus on Emily and Moira being awesome as they piece themselves back together?  

All the hell yeses for this. I find it so irksome those two get so little screen time and attention. I like the actresses and characters more, it may be due to my bias as being a queer woman myself, heh, but seriously there’s so much undermined gold there. 

[SourK]

Ugh. The show's doubling down on everything I didn't like last season, and this episode is the perfect example of it. Deliberately slow and ponderous; long, long closeups of people's faces doing nothing; June's Christianity being a shorthand way of telling us she's a good person; everybody having a dramatic crying scene for Emmy reasons.

The thing that annoyed me most was Lydia's outburst toward Janine. The better scene, IMO, was the one where Janine was hovering around her talking about how she prayed for Aunt Lydia to get well -- it's creepy and wrong in a subtler way, because we remember that the only reason Janine acts like this is because Aunt Lydia tortured her into being the perfect pupil. Having Aunt Lydia flip out for no reason is more dramatic, but it's overkill.

The thing that used to be scary about this world was the insidious way it corrupted small interactions -- not random acts of violence.

On 6/12/2019 at 3:11 AM, ElectricBoogaloo said:

I rolled my eyes when all the wives seemed horrified that Aunt Lydia was beating Jeanine.

...

Why on earth did June admit that she knew Luke when they showed her that footage of him holding Nicole at the rally?

For the first thing, it's confusing, but in this case, I think, on paper, the characters were shocked by the breach in decorum (Aunt Lydia should have led Janine away and beat her somewhere else instead of interrupting the party), but the actors' faces showed a reaction more appropriate to being shocked by the fact that something violent had happened at all.

For the second thing, I forget if June knows this, but Fred has met Luke before, so there would be no point in lying if Fred's standing right there.

On 6/12/2019 at 7:18 PM, rubinia said:

How many times in the past seasons has June gotten close to Serena only to be “surprised” when Serena turns on a dime and treats June cruelly again?

Same. This isn't just me being picky -- I honestly don't understand why June assumes that making Serena powerful again will do anything but restore Serena's power to hurt her. Everything we've seen from her so far has shown that she has no real problem with what's happening until it affects her. So, if June somehow convinces Fred to give Serena what she always wanted/expected and make her personally immune from subjugation, why wouldn't Serena just become even more effective in subjugating others?

Maybe it goes back to what that other dude said last week -- that June wants to believe that everybody has some kind of humanizing narrative where they secretly want to do the right thing.

On 6/16/2019 at 7:46 PM, scrb said:

Don't understand why Luke and June were so into getting Hanna baptized in the first place.  Neither seemed particularly religious and June's mother and Moira were making blunt comments about the Church and neither Luke nor June was objecting too much.

June's religiosity is creeping me out, and here's why: the whole principle of Gilead is that Christianity is law, and by making June a super Christian hero, the show's kind of side-stepping the issue of whether it's okay to live in a theocracy at all and instead focusing on whether the people running Gilead are the "right" kind of Christians.

I get it -- "real" Christians believe in love and wouldn't build a world full of punishment -- but also maybe it doesn't matter what kind of Christian you are when there are appropriate boundaries between laws and religion.

To me, the freaky thing about Gilead isn't that the wrong kind of Christians took over -- it's that secular government was overthrown by a religious order of any sort. So it worries me that the show is so focused on what the right way of being religious is.

[Scarlett45]

@SourK I didn’t interpret June’s religious portrayal that way (not saying your wrong though). I think it was to demonstrate that human beings make the choice to be corrupt and cruel to those underneath them in the social ladder, and that the religious fervor has nothing to do with it (it’s just an excuse).

Hannah’s baptism juxstaposed to Angela’s baptism is to show the difference between a family engaging in a religious ritual due to personal reasons and a sense of community, compared to baby theives using a ritual that on its face is completely benign (water on a baby’s head) to promote their baby theiving and torture of the child’s mother and all women. 

All cultures tend to have a “post birth welcome to the community” party for a new baby, Gilead’s version is just a reflection on how fucked Gilead is. Not that our “pre Gilead” culture was perfect, but Hannah’s baptism showed people who loved her coming together- the point. 

[Kel Varnsen]

6 hours ago, SourK said:

Ugh. The show's doubling down on everything I didn't like last season, and this episode is the perfect example of it. Deliberately slow and ponderous; long, long closeups of people's faces doing nothing; June's Christianity being a shorthand way of telling us she's a good person; everybody having a dramatic crying scene for Emmy reasons.

The thing that annoyed me most was Lydia's outburst toward Janine. The better scene, IMO, was the one where Janine was hovering around her talking about how she prayed for Aunt Lydia to get well -- it's creepy and wrong in a subtler way, because we remember that the only reason Janine acts like this is because Aunt Lydia tortured her into being the perfect pupil. Having Aunt Lydia flip out for no reason is more dramatic, but it's overkill.

The thing that used to be scary about this world was the insidious way it corrupted small interactions -- not random acts of violence.

For the first thing, it's confusing, but in this case, I think, on paper, the characters were shocked by the breach in decorum (Aunt Lydia should have led Janine away and beat her somewhere else instead of interrupting the party), but the actors' faces showed a reaction more appropriate to being shocked by the fact that something violent had happened at all.

For the second thing, I forget if June knows this, but Fred has met Luke before, so there would be no point in lying if Fred's standing right there.

Same. This isn't just me being picky -- I honestly don't understand why June assumes that making Serena powerful again will do anything but restore Serena's power to hurt her. Everything we've seen from her so far has shown that she has no real problem with what's happening until it affects her. So, if June somehow convinces Fred to give Serena what she always wanted/expected and make her personally immune from subjugation, why wouldn't Serena just become even more effective in subjugating others?

Maybe it goes back to what that other dude said last week -- that June wants to believe that everybody has some kind of humanizing narrative where they secretly want to do the right thing.

June's religiosity is creeping me out, and here's why: the whole principle of Gilead is that Christianity is law, and by making June a super Christian hero, the show's kind of side-stepping the issue of whether it's okay to live in a theocracy at all and instead focusing on whether the people running Gilead are the "right" kind of Christians.

I get it -- "real" Christians believe in love and wouldn't build a world full of punishment -- but also maybe it doesn't matter what kind of Christian you are when there are appropriate boundaries between laws and religion.

To me, the freaky thing about Gilead isn't that the wrong kind of Christians took over -- it's that secular government was overthrown by a religious order of any sort. So it worries me that the show is so focused on what the right way of being religious is.

It also seemed interesting that June's  daughter's appeared to be both baptized Catholic and as we have seen so far from who ends up on the wall, Gilead doesn't like catholics.

[PippiLongstockng]

17 hours ago, AnswersWanted said:

The only way that scene could have ended even more incredulous would have been if the guard had tried to go after her but Fred puts up his hand to stop him and says: “She just needs a minute, okay? Give her some time.”.

All the hell yeses for this. I find it so irksome those two get so little screen time and attention. I like the actresses and characters more, it may be due to my bias as being a queer woman myself, heh, but seriously there’s so much undermined gold there. 

They are better actresses so count me in as another who would prefer to see more of them. I zip by so much of June's material to get to Emily's. I don't know whether it's because it's a better story or it's the acting that draws me to her. And please, can we get rid of the slowed down scenes. Yawn. They are not as mystical as the director thinks they are.

[marinw]

Aunt Lydia's freakout and subsequent shakiness was the most compelling thing about this episode IMO. Outstanding acting by Ann Dowd.

[SuzieSioux]

14 hours ago, SourK said:

June's religiosity is creeping me out, and here's why: the whole principle of Gilead is that Christianity is law, and by making June a super Christian hero, the show's kind of side-stepping the issue of whether it's okay to live in a theocracy at all and instead focusing on whether the people running Gilead are the "right" kind of Christians.

I get it -- "real" Christians believe in love and wouldn't build a world full of punishment -- but also maybe it doesn't matter what kind of Christian you are when there are appropriate boundaries between laws and religion.

To me, the freaky thing about Gilead isn't that the wrong kind of Christians took over -- it's that secular government was overthrown by a religious order of any sort. So it worries me that the show is so focused on what the right way of being religious is. 

👏 You said so much better what I was trying to put into words (badly) in my post. This is what creeps me out about it too.

[Joana]

On 6/13/2019 at 1:06 PM, deerstalker said:

I think Luke deliberately exposed himself and baby Nichole, in the hope that word would trickle to June that the baby is safe with him, and loved. 

I’m not sure that the baby ending up with Luke really implicates June. They “know” that Emily kidnapped the baby, and that Emily knows June. Once she escaped to Canada, why wouldn’t the baby eventually find its way to June’s husband? June’s knowledge or help is not needed for that to occur. 

I totally agree. Or rather, I don't think it implicates her any more than she's already implicated because no one can be that dumb to seriously believe that her baby just happened to be randomly kidnapped by her former shopping partner without her having any knowledge of it, especially with her history of trying to escape 58 times already. So, if TPTB already let it slide because June is the protagonist of the show and we can't have her hanging on the wall just yet in order to save Fred's face, I don't see how her admitting that she knows Luke (which again is an easily verifiable fact) would additionally incriminate her. If anything, lying about it would probably get her into more trouble and I'm glad that for once she did a sensible thing. 

And speaking about it, I thought the TV footage of Luke and the baby was entirely unnecessary, unless they want the viewers to hate Luke more than they already do (although, I must say I'm honestly baffled as to why a simple act of taking a baby to a protest can inspire so much vitriolic hatred?). I'm assuming Gilead has its spies in Canada who can easily track Luke down and it would make perfect sense to keep an eye on him and see if June's baby eventually shows up there. 

[secnarf]

Finally caught up on this - and I decided that I want Emily to have her own spinoff and then we can just follow her story without June.

I was mesmerized by all of Alexis Bledel's scenes, and had to pause to collect myself after both the initial scene with Oliver and his fossils, and the bedtime story scene. I understood Sylvia's hesitancy, trying to respect Emily's space and boundaries, but I really just wanted Emily to be able to feel safe with someone and I can't wait to see them eventually get there. I am so glad Sylvia isn't with someone else (and I really hope they don't subsequently decide to introduce that plot point). I honestly just want to watch Emily learn to live a normal life again with Sylvia and Oliver, and develop a friendship with Moira. Alexis Bledel is knocking it out of the park and she deserves all the awards.

Not very enamoured with the rest of it, though I did think it was cute that Luke and Moira baptized Nicole. Catholicism and I really do not get along, but it was the thought that counts. Luke was a moron though - he had to know that if it got back to Gilead that Nicole was with him, it could cause problems for June. Of course, June doesn't seem to realize that either, so there you go. I sure hope Hannah ends up smarter than her parents.

I don't think June had any other option other than to identify Luke. I also don't think any sort of plausible alternative explanation, of which there are several, would be considered by the Eyes to allow June to escape punishment, notwithstanding June's Plot Armour.

Lydia's reaction at the end, to me, was more a fear of losing her status and power, and losing control. It is in bad taste to beat someone, even a handmaid, at a celebration in front of everyone. It shows she is losing control of herself, and therefore at risk of losing her place in Gilead. I think she has also shown she is touchy about being seen as weak (possibly also because she fears loss of her job as an Aunt), and if she cannot control herself and her handmaids, she may be seen in a similar light.

[DrSpaceman]

It really is beyond stretching, its like stretch Armstrong stretching to the breaking point, that June is still alive after all this.  Or at least not at the colonies. 

Don't really understand the extreme tension between Emily and her wife/son.  I know, their is an adjustment period, they have been through a whole lot, but still, you'd think there would still be some more emotional connection between them that what is shown. 

The show jumped the shark when June decided to stay and not escape at the end of last season.  Anything now I am just watching out of habit, not that invested in the story.

[AngelaHunter]

On 6/12/2019 at 4:48 PM, Baltimore Betty said:

, SJ can turn on a dime and might if she can get what she wants and then June is left in the wake to fend for herself.

Just watching now. Yes, I agree. I was half expecting Serena to grab June and throw her in the pool while they were enjoying a little ciggie break because that's the way Serena rolls. Freddy doesn't understand why his wife is a little upset with him? I think the whole "he cut my finger off" might justify the silent treatment.  I never noticed before, but would Serena be wearing high heels? Wouldn't those be considered a sign of vanity and be banned?

At this point, June has so much freedom I think she could just decide to leave and no one would stop her.

I was shocked and pleased that for once we saw a house that is light and bright and not full of gloom, ancient fixtures and dreary circa 1940 wallpaper.

I just FF through the Luke/Moira scenes now. They do nothing for the story and he's such a big, whiny nu-male faux-hipster I just can't.

I'm only half-way through the ep, so maybe it gets better.

[Scarlett45]

On 6/19/2019 at 7:20 AM, DrSpaceman said:

Don't really understand the extreme tension between Emily and her wife/son.  I know, their is an adjustment period, they have been through a whole lot, but still, you'd think there would still be some more emotional connection between them that what is shown. 

I understand the tension. Emily has been raped, tortured, kidnapped, mutilated, enslaved for YEARS and is now finally free. It’s going to take her longer than a week or so to begin interacting with Her wife and her son in in a “typical” way again. She’s only been free a few weeks at this point. Add that to fears that her wife moved on, or Oliver didn’t remember her any more, she’s holding it together as best as she can. 

[Kel Varnsen]

51 minutes ago, Scarlett45 said:

I understand the tension. Emily has been raped, tortured, kidnapped, mutilated, enslaved for YEARS and is now finally free. It’s going to take her longer than a week or so to begin interacting with Her wife and her son in in a “typical” way again. She’s only been free a few weeks at this point. Add that to fears that her wife moved on, or Oliver didn’t remember her any more, she’s holding it together as best as she can. 

Makes sense to me too. It is basically a really well acted version of the combat veteran/POW comes home from war and can't deal with their family that has been in a ton of tv shows and movies over the years.

[Ceindreadh]

On 6/19/2019 at 1:20 PM, DrSpaceman said:

It really is beyond stretching, its like stretch Armstrong stretching to the breaking point, that June is still alive after all this.  Or at least not at the colonies. 

Don't really understand the extreme tension between Emily and her wife/son.  I know, their is an adjustment period, they have been through a whole lot, but still, you'd think there would still be some more emotional connection between them that what is shown. 

The show jumped the shark when June decided to stay and not escape at the end of last season.  Anything now I am just watching out of habit, not that invested in the story.

June is fertile and has produced two healthy children.  That’s got to earn her some leeway. 

[DrSpaceman]

On ‎6‎/‎22‎/‎2019 at 3:01 PM, Ceindreadh said:

June is fertile and has produced two healthy children.  That’s got to earn her some leeway. 

Neither of those children are currently in Gilead, both cause she snuck them out. 

That more than negates her value to the government

[DrSpaceman]

On ‎6‎/‎21‎/‎2019 at 4:05 PM, Scarlett45 said:

I understand the tension. Emily has been raped, tortured, kidnapped, mutilated, enslaved for YEARS and is now finally free. It’s going to take her longer than a week or so to begin interacting with Her wife and her son in in a “typical” way again. She’s only been free a few weeks at this point. Add that to fears that her wife moved on, or Oliver didn’t remember her any more, she’s holding it together as best as she can. 

I don't expect her to interact in a "typical" way. 

But there is a vast divide between that and what is being portrayed. 

[Umbelina]

19 minutes ago, DrSpaceman said:

On 6/22/2019 at 12:01 PM, Ceindreadh said:

June is fertile and has produced two healthy children.  That’s got to earn her some leeway. 

Neither of those children are currently in Gilead, both cause she snuck them out. 

That more than negates her value to the government

Hannah is still in Gilead.

Most believe Emily kidnapped Nicole.

She's still valuable, she's probably got 2 more "placements" before they send her to the colonies.

[Scarlett45]

2 hours ago, DrSpaceman said:

Neither of those children are currently in Gilead, both cause she snuck them out. 

That more than negates her value to the government

Hannah is in Gilead.

 

2 hours ago, DrSpaceman said:

I don't expect her to interact in a "typical" way. 

But there is a vast divide between that and what is being portrayed. 

I disagree. When I see Emily with Sylvia and Oliver I see lots of apprehension, but a familiarity and eagerness. Sylvia is being very careful to give Emily space but she’s making it clear that they are ecstatic she made it back to them alive (Oliver’s drawings for example demonstrated Sylvia talked about her all the time and kept hope she would be okay).

Emily told Oliver they could hug when they were BOTH ready.

The family is going to be rebuilt but that’s going to take time. From what we were shown on screen it had been a few days at most since they have been reunited. 

[Olive]

I loved everything about all the Family Emily scenes (shout out 90dayers!)  Emily has been through just about the worst a human can go through and there is a lot of trauma, and trauma wreaks mental havoc on your sensibilities.  I love that they are showing it in a realistic way.   I see Sylvia as a woman who is seeing her greatest dream come true but she is working very hard to avoid further traumatizing her wife.  And doing a great job of it, especially with the little boy.  Who by the way I am thrilled to see is an Emily mini-me science nerd!  What an awesome way for the show to have them begin to bond and to remind Emily's character that he is in fact still her son.

Edited June 25, 2019 by Olive

[Lukeysboat]

I thought the behavior of the foursome in the church on Hannah’s baptism day was disrespectful. 

It is utterly ridiculous that Angela is still portrayed as such a young baby. 

I’m hoping for a backstory for Lydia. 

Luke sucks. 

[paramitch]

It's so interesting to come in late here, and everyone hates the show so much, and I'm honestly having a blast so far in season 3.

Is it perfect? No, but I think it's still a smart show (beautifully acted, designed, and produced) that is asking some interesting and incredibly important questions about what human beings are capable of (and how we process trauma).

Last season was sometimes so boring to me because it was just June being pregnant and miserable and trapped, day after day. This season, everyone is already so much more interesting, fascinating, and galvanized. Shuffling the chessboard worked miracles for me.

To answer what seems to be the main issue with this episode, I do think it's possible and even understandable for June to have really confused feelings about both Fred and Serena. Who, yes, should die in a fire, the sooner the better, don't get me wrong.

But because they are human beings, and she was literally a forced family member for over a year, there is all this messiness in there too. I can believe she still thinks there is good in Serena, because while she saw her do horrible things, there were all those other times when they felt connected, even loving. Some days a slap, other days, a hug. Classic abuse. Even Fred was somehow a part of this mix in this horrible way, thanks to the awful forced intimacy of the rape ceremonies, her fake-mistress period, and then of course that final horrible pregnancy rape by them.

I am not saying June loves either Fred or Serena, exactly. But I think she has deep, very confused, complex feelings about them. With Fred it's more like she sees him as a pathetic object -- he's a paper tiger, easy to manipulate once you figure him out. Yes, he's done horrific things to her but the main thing June feels for Fred is amused contempt -- she is less afraid of Fred the individual than of Fred the bureaucrat/dictator.

Speaking as a past abuse victim myself, there is a reason some traumatized people will still cry, for instance, when their abuser dies. There is sometimes a little bit of confusing unwilling love mixed in with all that hate. Sometimes even a lot of love.

It's what I see happening with June and Aunt Lydia at times, for instance, as here. Speaking of people who need to DIAF, Aunt Lydia is top of my list. But goddamn it if sometimes I also do believe she loves these women she has so horribly harmed, killed, traumatized. This episode was all about how each of these women's places is shifting, changing -- and June, Serena, and Aunt Lydia all see that.

That's also primarily what I see happening with June and the Waterfords. Especially with Serena. June won't shed a tear for Fred, but she might for Serena -- who, yes, is monstrous and what she did to June was unforgivable. But then she she seemed to become a partner to June in a weird way -- first, in their shared love of Holly/Nichole, and then when Serena became a victim herself (the reading advocacy, the beating, her losing the finger). And then at last, Serena giving up Holly/Nichole for the greater good. There is genuine feeling and sisterhood underneath (maybe 10% love, mixed in with the 90%  of the rest of the hate/rage June feels)

On 6/12/2019 at 12:11 AM, ElectricBoogaloo said:

I rolled my eyes when all the wives seemed horrified that Aunt Lydia was beating Jeanine. These women have witnessed the ritualistic rape of handmaids every month but somehow THIS is what is unseemly? Did they think the handmaids all complied with the monthly rape out of the goodness of their hearts? How do they think the handmaids became so compliant? Do they really believe it's the result of Aunt Lydia giving the girls nonstop hugs?

It totally made sense to me. Those "genteel" men and women were just like the Nazis having cocktail parties while presiding over concentration camps, who spoke in euphemisms and even in their own diaries bemoaned "what they were forced to do/witness." Like they weren't actively complicit.

The people in that dining room may know intellectually what happens to handmaids but they can lie to themselves about greater goods behind closed doors. What they do not want is to be faced with a woman savagely bludgeoning poor sweet addled one-eyed Janine, huddled defenseless and confused and questioning on the floor in front of them.

They were horrified at what they were seeing in front of them -- happening right there -- and horrified underneath that because they couldn't look away from what they had created.

And Aunt Lydia knew it. She had been made to sit in the hall, reminded not to enter the main room earlier, reminded that she is not one of them. So when she got the chance, her rage slipped out and she overstepped.

For me, the entire episode was about these women and where they fit as they found new places and ways to live. June ascends to more power because Serena offers it and so does Fred, believably, because he wants to get back with Serena, and he sees the kinship Serena feels with June. He also continues to feel that icky misguided "maybe June really still likes me!" incel thing, of course, too, because Fred is awful and weak at the same time.

That room was just as pearl-clutching as those Nazi officers' wives would have been in the same situation. And they resented not being able to lie to themselves because of it.

On 6/12/2019 at 7:14 AM, LordOfLotion said:

OK.. the nerve of Fred standing there all repulsed at Aunt Lydia beating the crap out of Janine when he beat Serena and HAD HER FINGER CUT OFF. But Lydia takes a couple of whacks at Mad-Eye Moody and and that's going too far. 

Sure he would. Because Fred thinks he has a right to do what he did to Serena (and reminds himself how nobly he apologized to her beforehand, so sad at what he was "forced" to do), Fred as with these other Gilead men thinks that he is sanctioned by God to do that. He watched that and felt smug and horrified, that he would never, ever cruelly beat a defenseless woman like Lydia did. He'll never even see the hypocrisy in it. And to me, that's great and very nuanced writing.

On 6/12/2019 at 8:22 AM, AnswersWanted said:

Oh, but of course, this is June we're talking about. She who is the oh so famous repeat offender handmaid, the one who causes the most trouble and conflict and disobedience, but I suppose even Gilead has given up on trying to keep her in line. Clearly she's "a woman on a mission".

Next time she will wrestle a guard or steal a car and everyone around her will be powerless to stop her.

June wasn't reprimanded because Aunt Lydia was too shocked at her own actions there to register much more beyond that. Everyone in the room could see that Lydia had become unhinged. Instead of simply escorting out a visibly confused and vulnerable Janine (a minor blip in the party), Aunt Lydia bludgeons the girl in the middle of the living room at the elegant party where she was not welcome to begin with.

To me it's believable that June impressed most of the people there by being brave enough to stop it -- and she was willing to risk her own life to do so. June made the ugly unseemly incident stop. They were grateful to her (and her action allows them to think of themselves as good people again). And Aunt Lydia won't blame June because Aunt Lydia absolutely knew she herself had overstepped, irrevocably. And in front of the entire upper crust of their city all at once.

There are times I do agree that June wears plot armor, but this wasn't one of those times for me.

There's also the added complexity of the fact that June has something on four or five of the people in that room and could do them or a loved one serious harm if she spoke up. Even Serena and Fred tacitly admit that June has power -- for the moment -- in separate scenes.

On 6/12/2019 at 9:36 AM, nodorothyparker said:

They obviously already knew that Luke was the man on the video, but I really wish June hadn't confirmed it for them.  This now runs the danger of turning into an international kidnapping thing that looks bad for Canada because good old Commander Fred is still Nichole's legal father of record regardless of what everyone thinks they know about Gilead's handmaid setup.  I doubt that occurred to June in her obvious relief to see them okay and together, but I hope Luke has his papers in order and Canada doesn't give any ground.

The Emily scenes were really lovely with all their hesitation and restraint so as not to overwhelm her and I wish we'd gotten more of them.  The scene of such a simple thing of trying to read a book to her son after Gilead had taken that too was exquisite.

I loved the rest of your post -- meanwhile, I agree on Luke, but I also felt like it was a setup and June was in a lose-lose situation. The moment June sees Luke's face they know she recognizes him (not to mention that they already 100% know that it is Luke and that June is his wife thanks to Fred's previous encounter with him). Her denying that here I really think wouldn't have accomplished anything.

Everything with Emily, meanwhile, has been exquisitely (excruciatingly) observed and performed, and breaks my heart.

On 6/12/2019 at 2:07 PM, ElsbethTascioni said:

The scene with Lydia beating up Janine made sense to me. The commanders and wives watched in horror not because they didn't know this crap was going on, but because they want to pretend everything is nice, and everyone plays their part willingly. It's no different than any other fascist who pretends that his vote or his actions don't directly cause harm to someone else. What Lydia realized was that not only was she a shitty human being, but that she sold her soul for people who want them to do their dirty work but still treat her like garbage (not that she deserves better). It's also an aspect of the whole cognitive dissonance going on with this society.

This, this, this! Thank you, you said it perfectly. That's it exactly.

[crashdown]

16 hours ago, paramitch said:

It's so interesting to come in late here, and everyone hates the show so much, and I'm honestly having a blast so far in season 3.

Is it perfect? No, but I think it's still a smart show (beautifully acted, designed, and produced) that is asking some interesting and incredibly important questions about what human beings are capable of (and how we process trauma).

I'm really enjoying your posts about the show, and I hope you keep them coming. I agree with you. The show isn't perfect, but it's ambitious and it does some things very well. Not all of us are hate-watching!

16 hours ago, paramitch said:

To answer what seems to be the main issue with this episode, I do think it's possible and even understandable for June to have really confused feelings about both Fred and Serena. Who, yes, should die in a fire, the sooner the better, don't get me wrong.

But because they are human beings, and she was literally a forced family member for over a year, there is all this messiness in there too. I can believe she still thinks there is good in Serena, because while she saw her do horrible things, there were all those other times when they felt connected, even loving. Some days a slap, other days, a hug. Classic abuse. Even Fred was somehow a part of this mix in this horrible way, thanks to the awful forced intimacy of the rape ceremonies, her fake-mistress period, and then of course that final horrible pregnancy rape by them.

This is a big issue in this particular episode, of course, and it continues as a fascinating dynamic throughout the show. I'm particularly intrigued both by June's feelings about Serena (I think her feelings about Fred are a lot simpler--she mostly has contempt for him and is adept at manipulating him) and the HMT fandom's reaction to the show's presentation of those feelings. There's a lot to unpack there both within the show and on the meta-level, and I'll be very interested in what you think as you move along. Thanks for the thoughtful comments!

[crashdown]

17 hours ago, paramitch said:

That room was just as pearl-clutching as those Nazi officers' wives would have been in the same situation. And they resented not being able to lie to themselves because of it.

Your post is so filled with good stuff that I have to add a couple of P.S.'s. This is really spot-on, both for this particular scene and as a theme throughout the show in general. I remember that episode in season two when Serena was trying to be nice to June and show her the nursery, and then June suddenly breaks "handmaid" character, tells her a little about her life with Hannah, and then asks if Serena could let her see Hannah from a distance. Serena goes nuts and sends June back to her room, but she does it with tears running down her face. Then she goes into her greenhouse and furiously prunes her flowers. She's angry for the same reason you're mentioning above: June has forced her into seeing handmaids as PEOPLE, as MOTHERS, and she just can't allow herself to go there and keep up her own carefully constructed little world. That was nicely nuanced writing too.

[paramitch]

On 11/16/2022 at 12:44 PM, crashdown said:

I'm really enjoying your posts about the show, and I hope you keep them coming. I agree with you. The show isn't perfect, but it's ambitious and it does some things very well. Not all of us are hate-watching!

Thanks so much! It's a little embarrassing to be so late, I'm just a wimp at times on my TV-watching, so I took breaks on this one, although I loved season 1. I so appreciate the kind words!

Quote

This is a big issue in this particular episode, of course, and it continues as a fascinating dynamic throughout the show. I'm particularly intrigued both by June's feelings about Serena (I think her feelings about Fred are a lot simpler--she mostly has contempt for him and is adept at manipulating him) and the HMT fandom's reaction to the show's presentation of those feelings.

Well said! I think one of the things the show is trying to explore here is this question of solidarity along gender lines. It can be such a real and beautiful, tangible thing -- but also, such a complex and difficult one, as well. It can be the quiet sisterhood of the Handmaids and Marthas -- or it can be the twisted silence of the wives or the toxic entitlement and arrogance of the Gilead husbands and other men.

I have never found the little moments between June and Serena to be unbelievable or forced. Nobody is one thing 24 hours a day. We are programmed to seek approval and support, kindness, affection. June needed those things and sometimes, arbitrarily, Serena would provide them (to her, and to Rita, etc.). Causing her to yearn for that approval, kindness, affection. To crave them.

And that's before the incidents that complicated things for June -- the working alliance between them (June was an editor before, Serena was a writer -- both of them got to be themselves, professionally again -- teaming up -- that's powerful stuff). Then Serena joins the ranks of abused women right in front of June's eyes -- beaten brutally, having a limb amputated. Then showing her willingness to give up baby Nichole (however temporarily) for the greater good.

June not only empathized with Serena in those moments, it's a fully understandable survival reaction. June was not only reacting emotionally in genuine support, she was also reacting intellectually, seeking to enhance and strengthen those connections, which could help her going forward.

On 11/16/2022 at 12:53 PM, crashdown said:

I remember that episode in season two when Serena was trying to be nice to June and show her the nursery, and then June suddenly breaks "handmaid" character, tells her a little about her life with Hannah, and then asks if Serena could let her see Hannah from a distance. Serena goes nuts and sends June back to her room, but she does it with tears running down her face. Then she goes into her greenhouse and furiously prunes her flowers. She's angry for the same reason you're mentioning above: June has forced her into seeing handmaids as PEOPLE, as MOTHERS, and she just can't allow herself to go there and keep up her own carefully constructed little world. That was nicely nuanced writing too.

This is a great example of something I think the show does beautifully -- with Serena and Aunt Lydia particularly. First off, the frequent intentional shades of DARVO, the classic abuse cycle of Deny, Abuse, Reverse Victim & Offender.

That combination of uncertainty works for a reason. Never knowing whether you will be hugged or hit. Kissed or killed. It's especially effective with the women because in this dystopia, June can cuddle an abused Serena, who accepts the kindness, yet then betrays her the next day (with genuine tears, as in the greenhouse).

People are complicated. The lines start to be muddled. I absolutely believe, based on this show, that June hates and loves Serena. I also believe Serena hates and loves June.

The effects of their world are radioactive: Serena can no longer detach herself from the abuses she witnesses (she has gone too far and begun to personalize them, as you point out -- they affect her personally too -- even when she is the abuser). And June has also tasted power, and what it is like to use that power. And to enjoy that power.

I've been very interested this season because the show is asking us to watch those roles begin to blur.