S03.E13: Mayday

[Umbelina]

Season finale.  Let's hope it is good!

[chocolatine]

Too much suspension of disbelief required for the rescue plot. There's a random Martha and child popping up in Lawrence's front yard in broad daylight and June waves a gun at them, but nobody notices? Every commander's house is supposed to have one or more guards, but all the Marthas managed to get out with sleepy, disoriented kids in tow? And there were multiple patrol cars during the walk through the woods, but only one to guard the plane?

But I'm willing to forgive all of that, because SERENA IS FINALLY GETTING WHAT SHE DESERVES!!! Praise be!

Edited August 14, 2019 by chocolatine

[Umbelina]

Well, that was tense, it reminded me of an early The Americans episode in that way.  It was very believable to me that the Martha panicked and ran, and then apparently kept her silence.  How could she though, coming back without the child?  It's probably my biggest quibble with this episode, but maybe it will be explained next year.

I loved/hated the flashbacks of the women being taken and put in cages, a good reminder of what Gilead really is.  Horrifying.

That child actress was very good, it was a teary moment when her dad hugged her.

I loved Serena being arrested!  No redemption or happy ending for you Serena!

All in all, a pretty good finale, and I did appreciate the whole "ruthless" thing.  I'm a bit surprised Lawrence didn't run when he had the chance though, although it was falling apart and he doesn't strike me as a brave man.

Loved Moira doing her thing and greeting the escapees, and Luke hopefully looking for Hannah.  I wish we'd seen Rita tell him what June did, and that she's staying behind to get Hannah out, but that right now they couldn't find her.  I'm sure she will.

ETA

I think most of the guards were at the Senior Staff meeting Lawrence called @chocolatine

Edited August 14, 2019 by Umbelina
eta

[AnswersWanted]

Good dear god almighty, that first scene with June’s face flashing in between strobe light lit closeups was the worst yet. 

I felt like it was the start of a horror flick with a bunch of jump scares, yikes. 

That scene really served to remind me of what this show used to tell us Gilead was like. Terrifying, hateful, cruel, dark, unforgiving, unsurvivable. 

Then they flash to June walking side by side with a guard who doesn’t notice every other fucking handmaid thrusting their hands into her bag like it’s Santa's Christmas sack, especially Janine who giggles like her usual looney self while doing so.

Whatever, if the guards were even half as competent anymore this entire season wouldn’t exist. 

And of course Lydia has a hint something is afoot, but does nothing like take June back to the center to be reassigned because “finale!.”

So a Martha moved during the daytime and brought her kid early, yet that didn’t totally blow the whole plan because “finale!”.

And they traveled from a far distance, through the woods totally undetected? And yet no alarm had been sent up yet? Oh right, because “finale!”.

Oh look at June Wick, wielding her big bad gun like a pro. Who the fuck is this character anymore? 

They’ve ruined her, straight up removed everything and anything redeeming about her. Just so she can be some so called “badass”? What utter bullshit. 

Clearly they have no fucking clue who Lawrence is or what he’s all about. 

This idea that June, handmaid extraordinaire, could just take over his home and strip him of his power because Lizzie lowers her voice a little? GTFOOH. 

Also, are they seriously implying these mf-ers hadn’t even gotten a MAP to chart a safe path to the fucking airport until the evening of????

They had a week!

There was no plan!

Just pulling shit out of their asses at the last goddamn second and making sure it worked out because “finale!”.

Oh fuck you, show. 

Aw, Lawrence had story time with the 52 kids, who all obviously would not be able to WALK all the way to that airport in time unless they grew wings and battle armor to survive the oncoming onslaught of guards headed straight for them.

But sure, because “finale!”. 

Also also, somehow 52 kids are all missing come nightfall, plus a handful of Marthas and handmaids, and Gilead would not immediately have their airport swarming with guards because that shit should be suspicious as HELL.

But gosh golly, of course not because “finale!”. 

Too bad all those brave women didn’t know June really didn’t need their help because she can’t die, ever, so she truly could have faced off with those guards all alone and been just peachy. 

I guess none of them brought a pen...

Hey, she can avoid any and all bullets that would surely kill her, huzzah, another superpower activated! Praise be! 

And of course she got the best of an ARMED GUARD, got him to call off any further search of the area, AND then killed him because fine, sure, yep, why not...

...she got carted out of the woods with the help of the other handmaids with nary a guard or patrol in sight despite the very deceased guard laying just mere feet away who you’d think they’d be trying to contact or find or something...

So Gilead just stopped caring about everything, great, because so have I. 

I’m done. Officially done. 

This entire finale was a pile of fuck you footage to all semblance of logic. 

A “happy ending” submerged in total bullshit and fuckery to get us there. My brain deserves better. 

[Ramona]

1 minute ago, chocolatine said:

But I'm willing to forgive all of that, because SERENA IS FINALLY GETTING WHAT SHE DESERVES!!!

Me too.  Except I feel like the writers still want to redeem her in some way.  I was watching the inside the episode, and Bruce Miller stated that  " the audience has sympathy for Serena," which is what I am sure the writers would like to believe.  But most of us with brains see her for what she is and just because she has some kind of twisted desire to be a mother, does not make her sympathetic.  I think I am done with this nonsense. I make it a rule to only have one ridiculous show on my roster, and Walking Dead is that for me.  

[Umbelina]

We can post this here this week, since there is no preview.

It doesn't add much.

Edited August 14, 2019 by Umbelina

[rideashire]

Never gonna forgive this show for not letting Janine escape, too. She's fucking earned it! I wanted her to have a happy ending more than I wanted it for June.

Also, everyone wearing red running through the woods should have taken that off. Didn't June say in an earlier episode that they make them wear red so they're easy to see if they escape? 

The ones who stayed back all could have rushed that guard when he was reloading. He wouldn't have been able to take them all. Then whoever didn't catch a bullet or two before they stoned him to death could have gotten on the plane, too. Or, maybe June could have used her gun to just shoot him before he ever knew they were there? Was he so far away that she couldn't sneeeek up a bit and nail him?

Having said all that, I got emotional at the end when the kids made it and I don't even like children. There was something in my eye. My contact lenses itched. I don't know.

Edited August 14, 2019 by rideashire

[AnswersWanted]

1 minute ago, Ramona said:

Me too.  Except I feel like the writers still want to redeem her in some way.  I was watching the inside the episode, and Bruce Miller stated that  " the audience has sympathy for Serena," which is what I am sure the writers would like to believe.  But most of us with brains see her for what she is and just because she has some kind of twisted desire to be a mother, does not make her sympathetic.  I think I am done with this nonsense. I make it a rule to only have one ridiculous show on my roster, and Walking Dead is that for me.  

The fact they’ve hinged her arrest on how she forced Nick and June together to make a baby for her totally gives me the inkling they’re going for a redemptive arch.

Especially with both Nick and June still trapped in Gilead. 

They basically want to whitewash her true guilt and crimes with the original deal, and this crime just doesn’t seem like the hill they’re going to have her die on. 

Miller likes Serena and Yvonne, I foresee neither going anywhere anytime soon. 

Same same, for me my other guilty pleasure is AHS so I’m tapping out on this one.

[HeySandyStrange]

I will admit, the ending got to me a little (I blame the Mazzy Star song). But I wonder how the hell Super June will escape the Wall this time. Not to mention how Lawrence will explain why all his Marthas disappeared. 

Glad to see Emily for all the five seconds she earned for the last episode. I really hope, after filming their three scenes a season and picking up their paychecks, Samira, Alexis, and Luke's actor can find some roles that actually showcase their talents. They are being wasted.

The first scene showing the women being rounded up and carted off, Gilead style, was very chilling and maybe one of the most real scenes this show has had in a long time. 

Seriously, will no one think of Janine?!?! Geez, slap the cinnamon roll on the plane, dammit.

Glad to see karma catch up to Serena. It's about fucking time. 

Edited August 14, 2019 by HeySandyStrange

[Umbelina]

Yeah, spoilers thought that Janine made it out on the plane, so that kind of made me really sad when it didn't happen.  While Luke was futilely watching for Hannah, I was watching for Janine and hoping for her reunion with Emily.

[Deputy Deputy CoS]

I haven't watched this show in a few weeks. Wanted to check out how they'll close this season.

Well, all those people get out. I guess it doesn't matter how.

I have such low expectations for this how (hence my quitting) so I am all whatever in the hows and whys this massive undertaking is even possible. They got out. Good.

However, nothing I saw compelled me to tune in next season. I don't even care that Serena is arrested. I am disgusted that agent let her anywhere near the baby in the first place and is shock! that she is a rapist baby stealing heifer! 

I am done but still here for the snark

[mamadrama]

Them carrying June at the end, her cape folded around her to make it look like a coffin. 

So that guard in the beginning, the one whose attention June was trying to get when she wanted to know about Hannah? That's Kiki/Rebecca's dad, right? It looked like it could've been. 

My suspension of disbelief was really tested in this one. They had to come up with "another" plan to get them to the airport because of the guardians, but what was the original one?

I loved every second with NotRory, Rita, and Samira. Wish there'd been more of them.

I did tear up when the kids reached Canada. Many of the scenes just kind of dragged, though, and it made me feel like I was watching Mossy in a vanity project. At one point I wanted to scream, "It's one word, June, one word! Say 'yes' and quit dragging this out!"

Interesting that out of all Serena's crimes that she could have been charged with (ones Canada didn't know) it's weird that it was the Nick/June bit that they chose to go with. What about when Serena held her down so that she could be raped and go into labor? 

I was happy that there was at least a storyline there. I didn't always like it, but it was there. So much of this season has been a rambling, directionless mess. 

I predict that in S4 they'll do a soft reset. June will probably be in trouble and get a slap on the wrist. The others, of course, will all get that special kind of surgery and then a limb hacked off. Because, you know, JUNE. The show likes to leave us hanging but each time the new season has started, things aren't nearly as bad as it looked like they'd be. Within a few episodes, Gilead will probably be back to its normal, psycho self and June will have another epiphany and decide to be a boss woman. Again. Rinse and repeat. 

If the show left us with that final scene because they wanted to shock us or leave us anxiously waiting a year for the new season, then they didn't succeed as far as I'm concerned. I was hoping she was actually dead. 

Didn't hate this episode at all. It was entertaining at least. I did ff through quite a few scenes that just seemed to go on forever, though. 

Mazzy Star...sigh...happy memories. 

[ferjy]

No suspense, no tension, June would, of course, get them out with no major glitches. 

And what a copout. They don’t show how the kids were brought to the house. A room full of kids just magically appear to us already at the Lawrence abode! They must have apparating skills à la Harry Potter. These hacks write like grade schoolers. 

That’s the most well-behaved throng of kids I’ve ever seen marching through the woods. Even the baby cooperated. And the most incompetent guards! Keystone Guards.

Even the last shot was no surprise. Another goddamn June closeup. 

I don’t care that I knew Superjune would survive the gunshot. For a split second I pretended she was a goner, and semi-cheered. That was my sole excitement for the episode. 

[DiabLOL]

I really think they could have done so much more with this episode. This season finale.

Also this season i thought those nutty writers were heading in a Dexter June direction. Ruthless June acquires a taste for offing anyone who gets in her way . Killbot June.

Instead we got June Wick Jesus Christ Superstar.

Is she dead? Will she rise from the dead load another 300 kids and Marthas and Handmaids on a plane again?

Will there be a buddy road trip with Lawrence?

Will we tune in to find out?

[ferjy]

9 minutes ago, mamadrama said:

Interesting that out of all Serena's crimes that she could have been charged with (ones Canada didn't know) it's weird that it was the Nick/June bit that they chose to go with. What about when Serena held her down so that she could be raped and go into labor? 

Interesting isn’t the word I’d use but I’m not sure which expletives are allowed. They’re charging her with that when she had a major hand in forming Gilead? I can’t believe they’d screw up even that! It could have been a powerful scene. 

[Umbelina]

26 minutes ago, mamadrama said:

So that guard in the beginning, the one whose attention June was trying to get when she wanted to know about Hannah? That's Kiki/Rebecca's dad, right? It looked like it could've been. 

Good eyes!  I wonder if it is him, I'm back watching that scene and it could be.  Maybe he used to be an econofamily, then his wife and kid were taken and he escaped?  Hopefully IMBD will have something up so we will know for sure.

26 minutes ago, mamadrama said:

Interesting that out of all Serena's crimes that she could have been charged with (ones Canada didn't know) it's weird that it was the Nick/June bit that they chose to go with. What about when Serena held her down so that she could be raped and go into labor? 

That would have implicated Fred as much or more than Serena, since he was the actual rapist.  I did think they might have more on Serena though.  Interesting that with her deal she was immune from prosecution for "religious practices" though, which kind of makes sense.   

===

Glad to see I was correct that Spy Guy wasn't Serena's new romantic interest.  Off to prison with you Serena!  I hope they address the fall out from all of this.  A few Martha's were shot, June was shot, Lawrence stayed behind as did almost all of the Martha's, I only counted 3 or 4 on the plane, so Mayday is still basically intact.

ETA I just caught that it was more than 52 kids.  Why were some of the girls wearing blue?  Already pre-wives?  Also, I didn't see any boys, did anyone else?  The girls are, of course, in much more danger, but that surprised me.

ETA I just looked closer and there are boys in blue.  Because of the hats I thought they were girls too.

Edited August 14, 2019 by Umbelina
typo

[ferjy]

2 hours ago, HeySandyStrange said:

The first scene showing the women being rounded up and carted off, Gilead style, was very chilling and maybe one of the most real scenes this show has had in a long time. 

It was chilling. It reminded me of early THT days. And, damn me, when will I learn, I had a glimmer of hope. Then back to Badass Handmaid and the usual letdown. I’m making myself sit in the corner. 

Edited August 14, 2019 by ferjy

[mamadrama]

I did appreciate the way they put the red glowing lamp in the window to parallel the Underground Railroad when the people helping would set out the lanterns. That was a nice touch. 

7 minutes ago, ferjy said:

Interesting isn’t the word I’d use but I’m not sure which expletives are allowed. They’re charging her with that when she had a major hand in forming Gilead? I can’t believe they’d screw up even that! It could have been a powerful scene. 

Yeah, the other words I could use are things that would make a sailor blush. 

Hopefully, with Rita there now, they'll get even more dirt on SJ and make her pay for ALL the shitty things she did. 

[lavenderblue]

Not only did Fred choose something that left his own hands clean (and to me was a bigger knife-twisting, given that his knowledge comes from what she's thrown in his face), he...also chose something that as far as I can guess they really can't do much with legally. Because testimony from June already exists, and didn't she merely tell Luke, on the recording, that Nichole/Holly was conceived in love?

Contrivances throughout aside, I enjoyed this far more than the rest of the season, but do feel they very much wrote the finale and then stumbled to fill in the blanks to get there.

And I too am sad for Janine!

[ferjy]

1 hour ago, AnswersWanted said:

for me my other guilty pleasure is AHS so I’m tapping out on this one.

Ha! I was just thinking thank goodness The Terror is back. 

[tennisgurl]

I admit that the ending did get me in the feels, and I am thrilled that the kids (and Rita) got out alright. The little girl reuniting with her father who was right there was a pretty big coincidence, but still a really great moment. Plus we got to see Luke, Moira, and Emily helping out and doing their thing. Not a bad finale, but its hampered by many of the issues that have hampered the entire season. Superhero June, endless coincidences that allow things to happen, not enough time spent on the more interesting characters. etc. It had its moments (the beginning with the flashbacks to the women being rounded up and thrown into trucks reminded that this show used to be horrifying and tragic at some point) but like with most of the season, I spend most of the time trying to avoid being smacked in the face by Junes bug eyed starring into the camera. 

So next season will they just straight up have June fall down in slow motion in a crucified hero pose with a crown of thorns on her head after she turns water into wine and starts distributing loaves and fishes?

[mamadrama]

When the epi started, my daughter said, "I bet you money that one of the last things we'll see is a shot of June's face in a fakeout to make it look like she might be dead."

I now owe my 8 year old $100. 

[Brn2bwild]

I found this to be more tense and touching than I expected.  The scene in the beginning reminded me of those first three tense episodes. 

I kept expecting we would see the guard from the beginning again, only this time he would help June in some way.  I'm guessing he was the same guard that June eventually killed?

Was Serena going to be allowed to just have Nicole with her all the time now?  Or was she still going to see her in restricted setting?  I can't picture that allowing Serena to go free would end well (not that that will happen now).  

And what was with Truello's "everything Serena did she did because she was under duress"?  He was really going to ignore the awful things she did before Gilead?

There were a few times I actually did wonder if the show might let June die.  Of course not.  Silly me...

June was downright Michael Landonish with her earnest closeups while speaking to awed and reverent children and Marthas.  

[mamadrama]

I understand why some of the handmaids didn't go on the plane, but what about the other Marthas? Wouldn't they expect punishment, most likely death, if they returned "home"?

[Andyourlittledog2]

You know I must have missed that shelf in Loaves and Fishes where they have the bottles fo Rohypnol, probably with a conked out woman on the bottle (since words aren't permitted on labels). Really show? The Martha slipped her 'mistress' rohypnol so she could take the little girl?

Love Mazzy Star so that was moving and was very moved by the kids getting out but the rest of the episode had me rolling my eyes. I thought for a glorious second that June might be dead and we'd move to a different handmaid next season but realized quickly that Moss and these showrunners will never get rid of June.  She has a cult-like hold on them all.  

ETA:  There are child rearing practices in severe christianity that teach children to be quiet and obey instantly without question or suffer real punishment from an early age so I could believe the quiet unquestioning kids in that environment. And I imagine they drugged the babies enough to keep them sleeping so that didn't bother me so much. Moving through the woods in red and pink and avoiding all guards with searchlights looking specifically for such a runaway was ridiculous though.

Edited August 14, 2019 by Andyourlittledog2

[ferjy]

56 minutes ago, mamadrama said:

So that guard in the beginning, the one whose attention June was trying to get when she wanted to know about Hannah? That's Kiki/Rebecca's dad, right? It looked like it could've been. 

I’m pretty sure it’s not the same guy. However, I did think that the guard she shot at the end was the same guard from the beginning. You see his face once just before he turns June over. I thought they were going to have a cheesy scene with them recognizing each other (as if he’d remember her) but they at least spared us that. So I’m not sure he’s meant to be the same one but it did look like him to me.

Edited August 14, 2019 by ferjy

[dmc]

I’m not surprised Fred turned on Serena.  I am surprised what they charged her with is forcing Nick to impregnate her.  What about that unsanctioned not ceremony rape?  Technically their religious belief  is the ceremony.  Also what about when June was jailed for over a month?  What about creating Gillead? Yes in ways she had no power but she had absolute power over June in her household.  But yes glad she’s in jail.  I can’t believe they kept planning to let her see Nicole.  
 

The escape plan defied all laws of physics and reason but at least the children are safe.  Godspeed.

Glad Rita is okay.
 

 

[Mommaj]

How many years has it been since Gilead was established? While Kiki/Rebecca was old enough to have remembered/recognized her father from pre-Gilead days, surely the younger kids would have no memory of their pre-Gilead families and were being taken away from the only homes and parents they knew--and yet not a peep out of any of them.

I thought Luke's face as he looked for Hannah to exit the plane was heartbreaking. Of course, he didn't know that she'd been taken out of the Boston district and that June had no way of getting her out, so he must have expected to see her. That was just about the only moment of the entire hour that seemed genuine.

Edited August 14, 2019 by Mommaj

[Umbelina]

2 minutes ago, Mommaj said:

How many years has it been since Gilead was established? While Kiki/Rebecca was old enough to have remembered/recognized her father from pre-Gilead days, surely the younger kids would have no memory of their pre-Gilead families and were being taken away from the only homes and parents they knew--and yet not a peep out of any of them.

I thought Luke's face as he looked for Hannah to exit the plane was heartbreaking. Of course, he didn't know that she'd been taken out of the Boston district and that June had no way of getting her out, so he must have expected to see her. That was just about the only moment of the entire hour that seemed genuine.

5 years was established an episode or 2 ago.  She was 10, so she was probably 5 when taken, unless she was taken later.  

Yeah, "Luke" acted the hell out of that scene.

[ferjy]

20 minutes ago, Andyourlittledog2 said:

Moving through the woods in red and pink and avoiding all guards with searchlights looking specifically for such a runaway was ridiculous though.

I laughed at that. Honestly, how could they have missed them?

[Umbelina]

It was pitch black.

Just watched the final credits.  Different men played the guard in the beginning, the guard that shot June, and "Kiki's" father.  I guess Kiki was her name before it was changed? Or maybe a nickname she had for Rebekah?  

Either way, all different men apparently.

Edited August 14, 2019 by Umbelina

[ferjy]

11 minutes ago, dmc said:

but at least the children are safe

Wait until Kiki/Rebecca finds out she can’t really do anything she wants. 😄

[mamadrama]

49 minutes ago, ferjy said:

I’m pretty sure it’s not the same guy. However, I did think that the guard she shot at the end was the same guard from the beginning. You see his face once just before he turns June over. I thought they were going to have a cheesy scene with them recognizing each other (as if he’d remember her) but they at least spared us that. So I’m not sure he’s meant to be the same one but it did look like him to me.

Thanks. The show is so dark that even watching in a dark bedroom with all the lights off it's still hard to see faces clearly. 

[paulvdb]

1 hour ago, mamadrama said:

Interesting that out of all Serena's crimes that she could have been charged with (ones Canada didn't know) it's weird that it was the Nick/June bit that they chose to go with. What about when Serena held her down so that she could be raped and go into labor?

I'm assuming that she could not be charged with that under her immunity deal because she presumably was forced to be involved in that and any other crimes involving Fred. Nick/June was one of the few things she did that Fred was not involved in, so that would be why she could be charged only for that.

[mamadrama]

19 minutes ago, paulvdb said:

I'm assuming that she could not be charged with that under her immunity deal because she presumably was forced to be involved in that and any other crimes involving Fred. Nick/June was one of the few things she did that Fred was not involved in, so that would be why she could be charged only for that.

I guess I should've worded my post better. I meant "interesting" in a sarcastic kind of way. I pretty much figured out why Fred brought that one up. 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I was trying to figure out how they managed to get 50+ kids to creep through the woods silently. Then I remembered these are girls in Gilead so they've been raised to be quiet and obedient.

The whole Fred/Serena situation has me so conflicted. On the one hand, I'm glad that Serena is going to have to answer for at least one shitty thing she did. On the other hand, I hate that Fred got revenge by reporting her. Fred should have no victories, damn it!

I'm glad that Rita was able to get the hell out of Gilead. I wonder if they'll ask her to testify in Fred or Serena's trials.

Edited August 14, 2019 by ElectricBoogaloo

[steph369]

3 hours ago, mamadrama said:

I understand why some of the handmaids didn't go on the plane, but what about the other Marthas? Wouldn't they expect punishment, most likely death, if they returned "home"?

Stupid showrunners. No one fears anything anymore. They’re all superheroes now. 

[mamadrama]

41 minutes ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

I was trying to figure out how they managed to get 50+ kids to creep through the woods silently. Then I remembered these are girls in Gilead so they've been raised to be quiet and obedient.

The whole Fred/Serena situation has me so conflicted. On the one hand, I'm glad that Serena is going to have to answer for at least one shitty thing she did. On the other hand, I hate that Fred got revenge by reporting her. Fred should have no victories, damn it!

I'm glad that Rita was able to get the hell out of Gilead. I wonder if they'll ask her to testify in Fred or Serena's trials.

That's where I'm at, too. Glad that Serena will have to answer to her crimes, sorry that Fred and his smug little grin had to be the one to turn her in. 

[steph369]

4 minutes ago, mamadrama said:

That's where I'm at, too. Glad that Serena will have to answer to her crimes, sorry that Fred and his smug little grin had to be the one to turn her in. 

Wouldn’t they be able to find out that Serena was part of starting Gilead and charge her with that too? Or maybe that’s still to come next season. Maybe they’ll find out during the trials.

[mamadrama]

13 minutes ago, steph369 said:

Wouldn’t they be able to find out that Serena was part of starting Gilead and charge her with that too? Or maybe that’s still to come next season. Maybe they’ll find out during the trials.

I think they might already know that and it's one of the things she has immunity from.If they're going to stick her with things, looks like it's going to be the rapes. Hell, I'd stick her with unlawful imprisonment and abuse. I bet Rita knows stuff...maybe even about the first handmaid who died there.

[maggiegil]

At least with Serena being charged with the June/Nick impregnation we now have a reason for the character of Rita to be involved now shes in Canada. It will be interesting to presumably see her turn on Serena especially since Serena is convinced they're close.

ICC (International Criminal Court) cases are public knowledge in our world, Serena now being charged will be a big deal. Are they going to keep the June/Nick impregnation a secret given both of them are still in Gilead and they would be killed if it got out? Is Gilead considered like prison where any sex even consenting is considered rape because of the status of the handmaids? What will all this mean for Nick if he ever gets out?

Junes actions felt too folk heroey for me. If someone else was telling the story from Canada about June saving them you'd buy it more because you'd know that it was embellished but we're supposed to believe that this madcap scheme went so well they got all the children out.

So the guard never returns back to base for the whole night (the incident happens before midnight and the bodies are still there at first light) and no one comes looking for him even though they know he was in the vicinity of where a huge plane just took off from and had reported trouble earlier?

I'm so disappointed in the lack of Nick this season.

It wasn't a great ep overall but Luke searching for Hannah and Rebecca reunited with her Father both had me tearing up.

[mamadrama]

I know this is going to sound weird, but I kind of feel like the series in general was rushed. When we started the series it was already several years into the Gilead reign. S1 showed a lot of the Gilead and Handmaid world, but S2 went right into June escaping the Waterfucks for a while and plotting. S3 was literally about getting people out. Now that the Waterfucks are in Canada and Rita's escaped (along with Emily and Moira), and June is probably NOT going to go back to Handmaiding it, I feel like a big bulk of the story is over. I honestly wanted to see MORE. I want to see more of the Gilead world. In a terrorizing regime like that, it's often the tiny little details, like no words on food containers, that are the scariest things. I wish the show had devoted more time to that. I feel like I could get to know Gilead and the laws, entertainment options, socialization of the Econos, holiday celebrations, etc more. I just feel so rushed. Now that S4 will probably focus on fighting with the resistance, we're going to lose a lot of that stuff because Gilead will have to batten the hatches. The show was so intent on showing the BIG things-June's rape inducing labor, cutting off SJ's finger, SJ's spanking, etc-when I honestly think they missed the boat a little. The show's been the best when it's far more subtle IMO. 

I'll say it again...I didn't hate this episode. I quite enjoyed parts of it as long as I was just processing it as midnight viewing fun. But the fact that things could have been better bugs me. As long as Mossy is a producer and has so much control, this is going to trn into the exact thing she SAID she didn't want-a vanity project. They can't even see the issues that most of us are aware of. 

[revbfc]

What I did like: June got more people out, and now she’s a legend in the free world.  It’ll be tough to execute a famous political prisoner, no matter what Gilead demands (so, finally some earned plot armor).  It also takes some of the sting off this never-ending Gilligan’s Island rule the show has for June.  

[dmc]

1 minute ago, revbfc said:

What I did like: June got more people out, and now she’s a legend in the free world.  It’ll be tough to execute a famous political prisoner, no matter what Gilead demands (so, finally some earned plot armor).  It also takes some of the sting off this never-ending Gilligan’s Island rule the show has for June.  

Usually the countries that want to execute political but can’t find ways for them to die.  I mean in this show nothing will happen to June but it real life it would be different 

[revbfc]

3 minutes ago, dmc said:

Usually the countries that want to execute political but can’t find ways for them to die.  I mean in this show nothing will happen to June but it real life it would be different 

It’s still more acceptable plot armor than “Because we say so.”

[kbw100273]

So isn't there a possibility June could be pregnant from that one ceremony she had with the Lawrence's ?  If so that may give her some wiggle room in Season 4 ?  Although I don't know how one baby will make up for 52 children.   Maybe since the head honcho commanders Waterford and Winslow are gone they will make Lawrence a higher-up again  ?    Season 4 should be interesting. 

[Ariam]

I was sick at home so I ended up watching both the last episodes. First thoughts on the finale before I read anything else. Apologies if I'm repeating what's already been said.

WTF with June being allowed to talk that way to Aunt Lydia?!!!! 
DEspite the story being hard to swallow as it has been shit all season, , there was something about the tension and the flashbacks that I appreciated. But then those were flashbacks to a time when June still made sense to me, and there was real horror to what Gilead was like. They couldn't put any of that tension into now because now there are no guards in mr Lawrence's yard, he has no eye appointed to his house and everyone can go around planning for 52 kids to escape (and implementing it) with relative ease. 

The kid who came up during daytime made no sense. Wouldn't her parents have sounded an alarm? If she didn't remember "before" then how come she went along? How did she not remember her parents, she should be old enough. 

How the fuck can june think she's going to shoot a gun without anyone hearing her and truckfuls of guards coming in to take them all away? How on earth did that martha escape and not get punished/tell what was going on as she cared more about her ass than anything else? The way SuperJune was bossing around her commander also made no sense, it was repulsive. It just makes no sense whatsoever that he would take that from her, he's the man that created the colonies= a man that feels no pity, a proud man, who has power where he is. Why would he let her speak that way? The whole time they have been together in the same house she has behaved in such a way that he would hate her. He has so much power he could get her on the wall that instant. Why would he still want to get out of Gilead, when he lost his wife, the reason he was leaving? 

Why is the interrogator calling Fred Waterford Commander????? Makes no sense at all. They are giving him way too much respect. He was a nobody in the USA and I don't think they would hold him in such a cushy hotel/whatever detention let alone address him as commander. Where's the waterboading? (Ok I find waterboarding appalling but the point is americans aren't known for treating their terrorists very kindly, and he is a terrorist of the worst kind). 

It also makes no sense to me that having june sleep with nick is what serena went down for. Although it was rape, it was also something that kept June from the colonies, in a sense she agreed. Why did they not arrest her for being part of destroying the US government and writing Gilead's laws before the whole system started and she was denied of any power? That's her real crime against the nation. Also, raping June before the birth was not something that was necessary or done under duress. 

I'm still not finished with the last episode, so i'll send this before I finish it.





 

[AllyB]

I honestly found the episode really, really boring for the most part. Just so many long, long scenes of June moving slowly and close ups of her face as she emotes. As has been said, the initial scenes were good, bringing back the sinister feeling of the first days of Gilead. The nastiest part being that the first prisoners June saw being moved were mainly disabled people and undoubtedly this was for a Gileadean version of the Nazi's Aktion T4.

Then we had to move on to June and her handmaid fans being really, really obvious that something was up while her one on one "ruthless" guardian was entirely oblivious. Aunt Lydia knows something is up but settles for berating June a little while June mouths off and Aunt Lydia just lets it all slide. Then we get 10 minutes of soap and sandwiches. Entertainment and tension building at it's absolute finest. I don't know about everything else but I really was worried about how the kids would manage if they didn't have healthy snacks on the short flight and I just really, really needed to see long scenes of sandwich making, lunch wrapping, bottle filling and 50+ backpacks being packed and stacked. I also thought it was just great that Beth had the prescience to tear up sheets to use as route markers on the walk they didn't yet know they were going to be taking while Sienna watched her portentously. 

The lamp in the window may be a nod to the underground railroad but it's just great that none of the Guardians or Commanders could figure that out while searching for a missing child. And what sense it made for Beth to light the lamp, as June smiled on, hours before they were ready to start gathering and then get annoyed that after they lit the beacon the first Martha and child showed up. How badass of June to wait until the day itself to figure out how she'd get those kids to the airport, and again, lucky that Beth had the torn sheets ready to go. And obviously, the morning after the Pied Piper has seemingly danced through Boston despite a Guardian lock down, 6 handmaids can meet for an unsupervised walk in the woods near the airport that a plane just flew out of and a guard went missing from.

So little of it even makes sense. That's before we get to the fact that as of Smart Power, Canada isn't supposed to be trading with Gilead even though Gilead is desperate to and the flight was initially set up to be an unsanctioned Mayday flight. Then last week the Commaders are threatening to cut off trade with Canada because of the Waterfords' arrest and Winslow's assumed abduction so Lawrence has to use Eleanor's death to make the other Commanders feel sorry for him (a totally legit way for Gileadean leaders to act) and continue trading for one more week so the flight, which is now a part of Gilead's official trade agreement with Canada, will still happen. 

I hate this show.

[BrindaWalsh]

I liked it.  Table for 1.

We left Atwood's Gilead and writing a long time ago.  Even before season 3.  The book was brilliant, the story was brilliant, but I decided to stop expecting Atwood and it makes the show significantly more enjoyable.  

Even the opening scene didn't have her subtlety.  Those guards herding the women into trucks and cages wouldn't have been cursing and yelling bitch at them.  They would have been doing their job with a stone cold precision and barking military like orders without the profanity.  Speaking of that opening scene, seeing them separate those women with special needs literally made my stomach turn. 

My favorite part of the episode was Rita arriving in Canada, especially her excitement to meet Luke. 

I'm still processing a lot of the show but I just wanted to say that I liked it.  

And shout out to Stone Harbor - the best shore town in NJ!

Oh.  And was anybody besides me irritated by the eastern university ads in the commercials?  I don't need a real ad for highly conservative university with courses "rooted in christianity" when I'm watching tv show based on what happens when a twisted brand of christianity takes ahold of and brings down the US.  

[goldilocks]

1 hour ago, Ariam said:

WTF with June being allowed to talk that way to Aunt Lydia?!!!! 

That was a moment, wasn’t it? Unbelievable. “You got it,” instead of the usual “Yes, Aunt Lydia.” As if Aunt Lydia would let that go.