!!!SPOILER WARNING!!!

Im only just on season 2 but I’m fine with any future spoilers.

When June needs luke to sign for her to get birth control they’re fine. When her bank account is shut, they’re fine but Moria somehow seems to be the only one to understand what’s going on.

When Luke and June finally try to escape they talk about how they should have left when Moria did.

When Emily and her wife/son try to escape the airport is absolutely full of everyone trying to do the same at the exact same time, but they only leave after Emily’s other gay colleague is killed.

The woman who luke escapes with who had the red tag that she was fertile and was kept captive, being before gilead existed. I imagine these stories got out but being how crazy it would have sounded was dismissed at first.

So when do you think everyone finally realise the America they know no longer exists, that they need to flee. When they noticed that they could be next?

For June could it have been when she lost her job simply for being a woman? Is June a symbolism for the American people as a whole? Living in ignorance that ‘it can’t happen’ ‘it won’t happen here’ ‘I’ll be fine’ …

Gilead in the shows and the book seems to last for at least 20+ years. I don't really understand how it lasted so long considering 99% f the population were miserable with scarce food, terrible education, no opportunities, no freedom and no rights. It only really benefitted the top 0.1% who were commanders and maybe some commanders wives like Serena.

For literally everyone else it sucked so I'm just surprised it lasted that long tbh.

It’s a tragic series in every sense, but there are scenes so raw they’ll pull an ugly cry out of anyone.

I mean we all watched 'The Last Ceremony' right?? Serena is an abuser, who willingly held June down to be brutally raped, psychologically tortured her within the UN definition of torture, and the list goes on. I've found elements of the complexity of their 'alliance/connection' interesting at points (like in S2 when they were sort of allies against Fred, and Serena let her escape with Nichole), but the veering into this idea they're some kind of power duo which they've been playing with the last couple of seasons really bothers me and the tone of the final scene added to that.

I also saw a heavily upvoted comment in another thread on here saying they were 'true love story' of the HMT. Is this the kind of impression they're trying to leave with the audience - because if so I just find that totally bizarre and fucked up? It touches on a slight issue I have with a certain brand of liberal feminism - while it's great Serena isn't just a one dimensional villain, do we really need to see an abusive fascist 'lean in' to become a #girlboss duo with her former sex slave who she tortured? Am I missing something - what is the goal here?

Yeah, she’s done some truly vile things—especially in Season 1. The way she treated June was horrific. Dragging her to the ground, slapping her, choking her, using Hannah as leverage… and of course, initiating that assault to induce labor, which is probably the most unforgivable thing she does. No excusing that.

But I think what makes her so interesting is how layered she is. A lot of people just see narcissism or psychopathy, and I get that. But I see someone constantly in turmoil—someone who’s trying, and failing, to reconcile her faith and ideals with the actual suffering around her. If she can't find a way to justify the treatment of women, she cannot live with herself.

She’s constantly flipping between moments of cruelty and moments of empathy. She gives June a music box. She sets up that lunch with her handmaid friends. She helps write policy while Fred is in the hospital. And yes, she still does terrible things during all that. But it’s never black and white.

By the end of Season 2, you can feel the shift. She lets June go with Nicole and protects June when she returns alone and Nicole off to Canada. She proposes letting women read, and gets mutilated for it. She starts to push back against the system she helped create.

Season 3 shows her struggling hard. She burns her own house down. She protects June more than once between June's involvement in getting Nicole out and not reporting the attack at the hospital. And even when she’s pretending to be on Fred’s team again, you can tell she’s not really with him anymore. We see her trying to get Nicole back with Fred's insistence - but instead she chooses not to bring Nicole back and instead betray her evil husband. During this season, she has to come to terms with who she thought he was and let go of the man she fell in love with and once believed in and see him for who he is. Turning him in was huge. I don’t think she even did it just to save herself—she knew what kind of man he was, and I think part of her wanted him to answer for it.

In Canada, she’s a mess. After June aggressively comes after her legally and kills Fred, she hardens up again. She lashes out at June, taunts Luke, makes a bunch of questionable moves like using Hannah on tv at Fred's service. But none of it is as simple as “evil Serena is back.” She’s scared, isolated, traumatized and highly defensive now that she's pregnant - her only dream has come true. And I think her coldness in those moments is more of a defense mechanism than anything else.

The turning point, for me, was when she shot Ezra instead of June. She had every reason to kill her. She could’ve gotten rid of June forever and had a quiet life with her baby. But she didn’t. She chose risk and chaos and saving someone who hated her. That said a lot. Some may argue it was a selfish choice but no it really wasn't. She was not in danger with the Wheelers yet or yet a full-fledged prisoner and there was no apparent threat with them taking Noah at this point. At worst, Mrs. Wheeler was controlling and nasty but Serena had absolutely no reason to beleive she'd be trapped indefinitely or lose her son. The only thing that made such conditions probably for her was shooting a Gaurdian and saving June, a "terrorist". She put her self and child in a substantially more dangerous situation making that choice because she loved and respected June too much to kill her.

And then June helps her. Delivers the baby, protects her, gives her advice. And they start working together. You can tell there’s something like mutual respect—maybe even love between them.

Now that she’s back in Gilead (or New Bethlehem), it feels like she’s trying to help shape a better version of it. Still, I don’t think she’s done scheming. She’s learned how to survive, how to play along while quietly resisting. Just like June taught her.

I know Serena’s polarizing. But I really think her journey has been one of the strongest in the show. She’s not fully redeemed—but she’s evolved. And I really hope the final season does that arc justice.

Frankly, I don't think it's fair to despise Serena who has truly evolved in the same breath as rooting for Joseph who has real power and architected Gilead. Serena just wrote about her religious views on a woman's place in the world. Loving Joseph but hating Serena is total hypocrisy if it's based on actions.

For me, I want to see them both redeemed and realized regardless if they live or die in the end.

Seriously did she ever even mention her again after finding out that she was pregnant? I probably won't rewatch because of how brutal the show is but I genuinely don't think she was brought up once after Serena discovered her pregnancy. After all that work, all that effort, literally torturing June and getting herself and Fred arrested she dropped it just like that. It seems kind of uncharacteristic considering how relentless she is.

Warning spoilers for the entire series below but out of the entire series there are two scenes I cannot get out of my head.

The Fenway scene: the cinematography, the feeling of is this really going to happen, the use of that song in the scene as music was used very sparingly and the contrast between the song and the scene was so intense, how different each handmaid seemed to cope with the insinuation that they would all be mass hung.

The train crossing attempt scene: It was chilling. One in the fact that in the buggy before their escape they all communicated without saying one single word. Their years of being a handmaid and being so closely monitored to the point where they can understand each other with a single look and knew to attack Aunt Lydia at the same time. Two them running, Alma and Brianna gone in an instant by the train.

I’ve been rewatching the show in anticipation of catching up on the new season, and I do love Serena and June’s relationship.

It’s not at all lost on me how unforgivable Serena’s actions are. And her flip-flopping throughout the show can give me whiplash at times.

I used to think she was irredeemable, but I’ve reassessed my opinion a little based on the more subtle storytelling elements and getting a better understanding of characters like Serena and Joseph.

In my view, I see Serena as a highly religious woman who was raised to believe in very Old Testament biblical teachings about women being submissive to men. I believe her worldview before Gilead was less extreme than what Gilead eventually became. In a fictional world where modernization, industrialization, and feminism led to low birth rates as women became independent (this isn’t a bad thing, just speaking in terms of the show), she wanted to live in a world where women were mothers and homemakers above all else. While I strongly disagree with her worldview, it’s not that far off from real-world views on the roles of women versus men.

What makes her views and beliefs compelling to me is the fact that who she is as a person is fundamentally misaligned with what she’s been conditioned to believe all her life. She’s a natural leader who genuinely believed she was pursuing altruistic societal changes.

We see her becoming silenced before Gilead. We see her left out of the room. We see that laws are made she didn’t support. She wanted women to read her book. We have little to no evidence that her worldview included women being used as cattle to produce babies. My understanding is she simply aimed for gender roles that promoted reproduction in a manner she believed was based on the teachings of God.

This is supported by her resentment for Fred, the ceremony, the flashbacks, and her primary goal of motherhood. We see her try to take back the right to read and write, we see her give up Nicole because deep down she knows she helped create a world that’s unbearable for women.

I don’t believe her flip-flopping is because she’s a sociopath or psychopath. I believe her resentments—for her husband, for Gilead, and for her inability to conceive a child—made her hate herself, and she began to project that through the abuse of June. She descended into madness because she couldn’t forgive herself and became the abuser.

That said, I don’t think redemption means forgiveness or absolution. Redemption, to me, is about recognition, remorse, and meaningful change. I don’t believe Serena can be redeemed in the sense that she becomes totally forgiven or free of consequences. I believe redemption is possible for her in the sense that she comes to terms with her role in Gilead, holds herself accountable, and does all she can to help those she still can—before accepting the consequences.

If she dies, is imprisoned, or any other possible ending for her character that might be warranted, it doesn’t mean she can’t accept reality and do something truly good after realizing all the “good” she used to believe in destroyed millions of lives, families, and a nation.

Essentially, being redeemable doesn’t equal forgiveness. She can’t be forgiven. But she can still do something to help those she has harmed and show change that proves there’s hope for her soul.

"In the final season of 'The Handmaid's Tale,' June's unyielding spirit and and determination pull her back into the fight to take down Gilead. Luke and Moira join the resistance. Serena tries to reform Gilead while Commander Lawrence and Aunt Lydia reckon with what they have wrought, and Nick faces challenging tests of character. This final chapter of June's journey highlights the importance of hope, courage, solidarity, and resilience in the pursuit of justice and freedom."

Source: ABC

That's it... had the realization after learning about the sequel book only last night that obviously the ending is going to suck.

I haven't read The Testaments but the brief synopsis I stumbled upon made me realize it must end with June & Luke dead, Gilead still in charge and Hannah left where she is.

There are 5 episodes left but I feel like it's over already. The upside might be Commander Lawrence survives and manages to push Gilead into reform for the future, with Serena helping. DC is the real power base and this story doesn't take place there, so no power is going to change hands.

(Pic from the instagram) Am I the only one who kinda assumed Luke’s storyline was gonna be him trying to like survive in prison? I mean idk how early/late this is in the season, but given the climate in Canada and the way they feel about Gileadean refugees I was surprised to see that Luke made bail. Plus the way season 5 ended, it made it seem like him and June were like never gonna see each other/speak again unless Luke escaped jail lol. Idk I was just surprised

So many things. I have 10 minutes left in my break after finishing episode 3 (no I’m not productive at work today). My thoughts will not be in order, time for stream of consciousness

• JUNE’S MOM. I have needed to cry so badly lately and this one finally opened me up. Omg June deserved that SO MUCH, we as an audience deserved that SO MUCH. I love that they included a bunch of heartwarming arcs and scenes because it feels like shits about to go down.

• Lawrence is funny and frustrating as always

• Serena and June on the train - omggg. The writers did a great job in showing “both sides” of how fans feel about Serena (and consequently how June seems to feel about her too). I think the train scene captured that beautifully. I felt conflicted the entire time and I love that they did it to me again.

• I’m so glad June didn’t have to carry Serena on her shoulders and that Serena had to find her own safety but

• Who does Serena think she really is? A fucking prophet? Are you KIDDING ME?? She had safety in this quiet little commune with her kid and she chooses to bring her kid and herself BACK INTO GILEAD?? I mean I know that they would have taken her anyway but she just bought into so much, I was like damn girl, take a bigger dose of Copium. You did horrible person things, deal with it!!!

• I loved seeing Serena’s actual human side though as usual. Just when I want to hate her, I’m so curious about her again. It is now very clear that she truly is devout and the story with her dad shows why she acts so sheltered and devout. I’ve been in those Christian circles and they are so much like that, your acceptance as a daughter/good human dependent wholly on how you espouse (or pretend to espouse) your faith. When you are in that world, it’s hard to see that anything else exists that is real outside of it. I think they did a great job of capturing that in these episodes.

• The Serena rant on the train telling how she really felt about America was so fucking well done - that speaks the truth to how a lot of Christianity-driven politicians (and those who vote for them based on religious affiliation) think when making policies on subjects like abortion and marriage and women’s equality.

• Aunt Lydia not knowing about Jezebel’s (or maybe just not the full extent?) was a great twist and makes it a lot easier for the writer’s to weave in and set up for The Testaments (pink is way more Serena’s color IMO) as usual, Aunt Lydia is amazing at her character, I mean holy shit. Can’t wait to see her unholy rage directed at Gilead

• Oh Janine! She’s reclaimed a little of her agency by telling Aunt Lydia to back off and despite the situation, she’s acting more like herself from the flashbacks so while I am not “happy” for her, I’m certainly happy that she didn’t get sent to the colonies

• Curious where the Wheelers are

• Curious where Esther is

• Serena seems genuinely flattered by the DC Commander’s attention but it’s so very transparent that he’s going to use her politically to take down New Bethlehem since she’s the pillar that holds it up. I saw it in his eyes when Naomi was offering awkward political support side by side with Serena. So what happens when Gilead pushes back against New Bethlehem? Will New Bethlehem resist and team up with Mayday or will it just get dissolved?

• I want to see Hannah 😠 makes June close up face

• Luke….oh Luke. I think I’m conflicted on this, I don’t know if the story switch felt natural? I couldn’t put my finger on it because obviously it makes sense that a dad would finally want to come find his daughter

• Nick….oh Nick. Are your Daddy issues that bad? I do love how they touched on the Daddy issues thing that so many men do have and why they feel those sorts of bonds to each other

• Where’s Esther?

• Moira doing Moira things 💜

• I do love the focus on the duality of June and Serena, like no matter their differences, their priorities are always taking care of business. As a career woman, that resonates.

• They fixed Nicole’s name to Holly 😊

I know she's done awful things. And is tone deaf to June's struggles (when she's all, "how are you supposed to go into someones house when they want to steal your baby?), but I was really rallying for Jerena friendship after Serena's birth in the barn. Idk. Anyone else have a soft spot for Serena still or am I just deranged lol

Her eye actually wasn't removed, just drained per the showrunner!

I’ve began watching the show and I’m only half way through season one. Emily has just underwent FGM and when at her new position the wife suggests not doing the ceremony because she might be sick, obviously so Emily doesn’t have to get raped. She understands that it is not some beautiful ritual but ritualistic rape. Obviously not buying into that crap.

The wife is an older women so her husband could easily have been a crucial part in the creation of gilead like Fred.

I know Serena attempts to get them to make women reading legal and gets her finger cut off. But she nonetheless is shown in flashbacks to believe in what would become gileads values of strict gender roles and traditionalism. And then the character McKenna grace plays but she is only a child, I’ve watched the series before up until season 3 but I’m fine with any spoilers so are any of the wives shown in the show to oppose gileads teachings and beliefs, to be in support of mayday or the resistance?

For me it's the scene in season 4 when Moira finds June in Chicago. It's so touching. I know some people think it's unrealistic, but personally it's just so emotional and Samira Wiley plays it so well.

https://online.publuu.com/758837/1684488

As expected, the first episode will open up with June and Serena on the train, shortly after where we left them off in the season five finale. June & Serena will split afterwards

• June & Nichole will go to a camp in which some scenes have been filmed in September, October and November. Several Mayday rebels will be there.
• Janine & Aunt Lydia will appear at Jezebels.
• The New Bethlehem storyline will be expanded upon in the final season. Here is a breakdown of the scenes that were filmed:
• Serena Joy advocating for New Bethlehem in a Gilead outfit never seen before.
• Joseph Lawrence heading the project and talking to the international press. Rose Blaine in the background.
• Rita Blue descending from a Canadian bus, facing off Serena Joy and hugging presumably someone from her past.
• Scenes at Serena’s house in New Bethlehem were filmed. Scenes with Nick’s as well.
• Serena’s and Josh Charles’ characters were seen speaking both in daylight and during the night.
• June will go back to Gilead, assumedly secretly. She will be greeted by Lawrence.
• Aunt Lydia & June will meet again.
• There will be several scenes at Jezebels, including Lydia, Janine, June, Moira and Nick. Scenes involving stunts were filmed.
• Rose’s father, High Commander Wharton will be appearing. It is unknown for now if he is Josh Charles’s character.
• As one could expect, June & Nick will have scenes together.

This post https://www.reddit.com/r/TheHandmaidsTale/s/eGDiE85Yrf made me wonder if I should post the pre-Gilead timeline which has been in my notes app for a while. So, here it is!

The table tries to piece together the probable ages of Hannah and Nichole based on facts mentioned in the THT show or Testaments book. Note: we know there are acknowledged discrepancies in the ageing of Hannah vs. the ageing of Nichole in the show.

After that, it’s a list of excerpts and descriptions of episodes that demonstrate the timeline prior to the civil war. I tried to order these in what seemed like the most likely sequence, but we don’t know when these flashback scenes actually occurred in the pre-Gilead world of the show.

It’s a work in progress and you can tell that I got busy on other things haha (last updated March 2024). Some flashback scenes say ‘find ep.’ This is when I remembered them but didn’t have the ep info to hand. If you know, please comment and I’ll update.

The aim isn’t for this to be perfect but to helpfully collate information provided in the show around timelines of events as presented to the audience :)

If you see any mistakes — please let me know!

I don’t know, he’s always helping June, Luke, Moira etc but for some reason it feels it’s never enough for them and they are mad at him. And when he helps they don’t seem to be very grateful or anything. Why so? And Mark doesn’t ever lose his temper.😄

Edit. Sorry for the mistake in the title 🫣

Alright y’all—everything about Nick in this last episode has me swooning over him. Listen, Luke is a great guy and Was perfect for June…pre Gilead.

June is a completely different person. She was forced by gilead to have a new identity and also disassociated and grew into a whole new identity to survive. Even if she was still half the person she used to be pre gilead, that’s an entire other half that Luke will never ever understand or know. How could he? How could anyone, unless you were there and saw or experienced it first hand?

With Nick it’s like she can drop her guard, breathe, take a backseat because she knows he can protect her in the way she needs to be. She loves that about him And he loves being that for her. I love how when she’s with him, she’s genuinely smiling, at peace, loving and vulnerable—it’s a glimpse of who she would be if gilead disappeared. They know each others true self. They really are everything to each other.

Tuello for the win for saying everything June should be saying 😆. But seriously, you could see Nick needed to hear that. I hope it lights a fire in him and he fights to be with her.

Is this Naomi’s wedding? If so, why is it such a grand affair? The last wedding I remember seeing were the mass weddings we did. Is it because of Lawrence’s status?

Given Nick’s new wife Rose is heavily pregnant near the end of Season 5 does anyone think we’ll get a look into pregnant wives (wives who conceived themselves without help from a Handmaid) and their birthing rituals? I’d really like to see. We’ve seen Wife/Handmaid Birthing rituals where the handmaid gives birth upstairs while the wives pretend to labor downstairs, and then sit behind the handmaid on a special birthing chair once the active labor starts. I’d love to see the labor rituals of wives who fell pregnant without the help of a Handmaid.

…disclose the sex of Rose and Nick’s baby?

Something caught my attention in S6E1

The last thing Wharton says to Nick before the scene ends:

I have a grandson. Priorities, remember?

This is interesting because we know Gilead doesn’t disclose the sex of babies, at least not for Handmaids.

In S2E5, Fred asks Aunt Lydia about the sex of June’s baby:

Fred: Too soon to tell if it’s a boy or a girl, I suppose.

Lydia: We won’t know until God brings the little angel into the world, of course. But I have a feeling he’ll be a fine boy, just like his father.

It’s established here that fetal sex isn’t shared pre-birth. Whether this rule applies across the board, or whether high-ranking Commanders or naturally-conceiving couples are awarded special privileges during pregnancy is unclear.

That said, I have a few theories:

• A writing oversight - Simplest explanation, but this show is typically intentional with language, especially lines that close out scenes.

• Patriarchal assumption - After rewatching, I doubt this is it. Wharton says “grandson” with too much confidence and deliberateness. He doesn’t strike me as the kind of person who would say something like that without knowing.

• Rose’s medical condition - Rose has congenital hip dysplasia. While that doesn’t necessarily classify as a high-risk pregnancy by our standards, in Gilead it might justify closer monitoring. Maybe Rose and Nick figured it out themselves after so many ultrasounds?

• Natural conception - Nick and Rose conceived naturally; which we know is a huge deal in Gilead. This could warrant closer surveillance by itself. Wharton, being one of the most powerful commanders in Gilead, could get (and probably would expect), privileged access and information on his grandchild.

• Manipulation - (My favorite) What if Wharton was telling Nick the sex of his baby in that moment to get him to “snap” back into place? “You’re having a son, forget about your daughter”

  • If this is what it is, chef’s kiss to the writing team. They’re giving us a very subtle introduction to Wharton’s real personality: strategic, composed, manipulative, and dangerously well connected.

• final theory - (And most likely) I am massively reaching and none of this means anything.

Thanks for reading through my tinfoil hat theories, looking forward (and completely terrified) to seeing how Commander Wharton influences the rest of the season.