This show continues to be the most nauseating hour on TV (or streaming services).
Offred, aka June, (Elisabeth Moss) almost escapes, twice but she doesn't. The first time, she was captured back but the second time, she opts to stay behind just in case there is any chance she can be reunited with her daughter, Hannah, the daughter she created in love.
Yes, her pregnancy continues and she's able to get away with more than before because she's pregnancy but the world moves on around her, including a bombing which forces Janine (Madeline Brewer) and Emily (Alexis Bledel) back from the treacherous and disgusting colonies. Emily's second posting is a particularly bizarre one but it allows her to get away with murdering Aunt Lydia (Ann Dowd), shockingly no the most evil character this season. Sure, she's awful but Serena (Yvonne Strahovski) and Fred (Joseph Fiennes) are far worse, as they both rape (I mean, really rape) her to induce labor. But you see a different side of Serena this season, she steps it up and has no problem going back to work while Fred is recovering from nearly dying and is punished for doing so. In the finale, when she urges all the children of Gilead to be taught how to read so they can read the word of God, she has a finger cut off. And she loves baby Holly (June's baby) even though she is also sick, having created the concept for this world and that she was fine with making all these sacrifices just so she could have a baby. She doesn't think about what it does to June. But fortunately, she lets the baby go to freedom, making the ultimate sacrifice, knowing that Holly deserves a better life than Gilead can give to her.
Now, the season also gets wonky with having Nick (Max Minghella) get married to a young farm girl, Eden (Sydney Sweeney). She's sweet enough and pious enough but Nick doesn't love her. It must be so dreadful for him to have to sleep with someone he doesn't love (June's words, not mine). But he is still nevertheless quite upset when she dies. She runs off with a Guardian and her love, Isaac (Rohan Mead), who is a bit of a jackass and foolishly goes to parents' house and doesn't repent and they are both drowned.
That is the problem with Gilead. There is no room for love in this troubled world. And the little love in this world (between mother and child, actual mother and baby) is stomped out. Which is just wrong and unacceptable. And the rest of the world is relatively normal and the secret Martha letters go viral in Canada, which is a truly great moment as Gilead becomes more and more isolated from the rest of the world. Yet, no one is willing to intervene to stop the abuse and needless violence. It would be better for child to be conceived in love and raised by those parents who love them.
I also wish that June and Luke (O-T Fagbenie) met under different circumstances, without June being the other woman, helping end his first marriage. And when June goes into labor, that is a lot of blood, too much as far as I'm concerned, but then again, I've never had a baby before (to my knowledge).
Still, the performances are truly brilliant and none of these can be easy as they are bringing a truly dreadful time to life and they do so perfectly. Grade: A-
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