I was really glad to watch Serena tell Fred how she had betrayed him. He deserves the pain. I hope we see him convicted of war crimes, though next episode seems kind of quick for that to happen so maybe next season?
Post by theoverlander on Aug 14, 2019 10:08:06 GMT -5
I had to pause the episode midway through and find an episode recap on the internet. I literally could not get through it without knowing what was going to happen at the end. Even with the spoilers I was sobbing for the last 10 minutes or so.
The starting scene was weird - emotional and beautifully shot as always, but kind of out of place for the episode. I wonder if it was added closer to the end of production because of the parallels with the immigration stuff right now. That's all I could think of with the cages and the cattle trucks and the fear and the guards - how that shit is happening right now in the US.
The level of stress and anxiety I had during this was intense - even if I had to suspend belief a little as they move 100 people through the woods and don't get caught. I literally was on the edge of my seat.
Yeah I sobbed through the whole thing in the hanger. Rita is my hero. And Luke's face as he was watching the kids coming out of the plane.
Also, I'm so glad they got Serena, but I'm pissed that it was Fred got the satisfaction of that. Plus he's even creepier looking than even last week.
The one thing I wish had been in the episode was Gilead finding out what had happened - the reaction to the flight. I would have been gleeful to see that.
How the fuck is season 4 going to go?!?!? All those kids, the handmaids, the marthas, the parents murdered. How does Gilead even start to deal with that level of treason and keep the show going? Especially without Gilead characters to center around - all of our obvious antagonists are out - Fred, Stabler, etc ...
“With sorrow—for this Court, but more, for the many millions of American women who have today lost a fundamental constitutional protection—we dissent,”
Post by foundmylazybum on Aug 14, 2019 11:37:57 GMT -5
So, some Martha's and handmaids obviously went on the plane but not all?
Kind of a similar question as PP, what was the plan there? Those women who didnt leave are going to what now? Go free and just go back to life as usual in Gilead? Be captured and tortured and die? It seems like they are in extreme danger and it was all about these children. Which I get. Freedom for the future..at the martyrdom cost of now?
I liked the tie back symbolism of the rock throwing. From where the handmaids rebelled and wouldnt stone their own to where the women gathered together to stone the Guardian. That was good.
It was actually pretty sad to watch Luke tearfully waiting and hoping for Hannah and knowing that she wouldnt be coming and that as Rita said "june did this."
June was both ruthless. She got all those kids out, and reckless. She was out of control when it came to Hannah, her actions forced Hannahs "family" to move (while June was never punished..how does that work). She had opportunities to get Hannah on the plane but she was so, so close to it, her self regulation was bad and..the plane left minus one precious soul.
I think the show kind of played around with the idea that June could be an anti hero..in the fact that anti heros can do great things but can be lost.
“With sorrow—for this Court, but more, for the many millions of American women who have today lost a fundamental constitutional protection—we dissent,”
June was both ruthless. She got all those kids out, and reckless. She was out of control when it came to Hannah, her actions forced Hannahs "family" to move (while June was never punished..how does that work). She had opportunities to get Hannah on the plane but she was so, so close to it, her self regulation was bad and..the plane left minus one precious soul.
That may be the most emotional television I have ever watched.
I agree with the above about Serena, but being upset that Fred gets to gloat in that. God, he is creepy as fuck. They've done an amazing job with his character and makeup. Fuck her.
The scene in the dining room between June and Lawrence was badass. I loved her taking charge like that.
The scene with Lawrence reading to all the kids choked me up a little.
I thought I was going to have a heart attack when they got into the woods and sobbed so hard I was shaking when Moira stepped into the plane and saw all the kids, and then pretty much sobbed my way through the entire hangar scene, especially the part where the girl was reunited with her dad. Holy hell. I'm so glad Luke knows it was June who masterminded this. And I'm thrilled that Rita got out.
I know June has her flaws, but I am so incredibly proud of her and the handmaids and marthas who risked everything to join her.
It may be that I'm feeling really emotional right now, but I kind of take issue with the quote above. Was she reckless in trying to see her daughter? Sure. Of course she was. I literally cannot even imagine what that would be like. She didn't know she was going to have a real out for these kids when she was trying to connect with Hannah. She couldn't know the future. Yes, she fucked it up. She also fully acknowledged that in the last episode with Mrs. Lawrence. This feels like unnecessary blame on a woman who gave everything she had to ensure the safety and freedom of dozens of children. And there are hundreds, thousands of kids in Gilead, so it's not as if June got everyone out except her own daughter.
How the fuck is season 4 going to go?!?!? All those kids, the handmaids, the marthas, the parents murdered. How does Gilead even start to deal with that level of treason and keep the show going? Especially without Gilead characters to center around - all of our obvious antagonists are out - Fred, Stabler, etc ...
I feel like there's plenty of room for other Gilead antagonists to step in. But I sort of hope the show shifts to a focus on the kids in Canada, the people who are out, and how Canada is fighting back. But I'm struggling with what is going to happen to the handmaids who survived and are taking June back. I assume they can go back to Lawrence, but then what? I am assuming June is alive and think she'll be fine since it doesn't seem like anyone necessarily knows it was her, and she has Lawrence. But what about the other 6?
How the fuck is season 4 going to go?!?!? All those kids, the handmaids, the marthas, the parents murdered. How does Gilead even start to deal with that level of treason and keep the show going? Especially without Gilead characters to center around - all of our obvious antagonists are out - Fred, Stabler, etc ...
I feel like there's plenty of room for other Gilead antagonists to step in. But I sort of hope the show shifts to a focus on the kids in Canada, the people who are out, and how Canada is fighting back. But I'm struggling with what is going to happen to the handmaids who survived and are taking June back. I assume they can go back to Lawrence, but then what? I am assuming June is alive and think she'll be fine since it doesn't seem like anyone necessarily knows it was her, and she has Lawrence. But what about the other 6?
I feel like when they raid Lawrence’s house they will find signs that 53 kids were there. Plus his handmaids and Martha’s were gone. They are going to assume he was in on it.
I feel like when they raid Lawrence’s house they will find signs that 53 kids were there. Plus his handmaids and Martha’s were gone. They are going to assume he was in on it.
I guess they didn’t have enough time between distracting the guard and getting to the plane before it took off? I wondered the same.
Also, was it just the one guard? Why didn’t June just shoot him?
She needed him to give the all clear and I don't think she would have had a very good shot if she had done it over the wall while he was protected by the car. That would have given away that she had a gun.
I did wonder though why she didn't just pretend to be shot earlier in the chase scene if that was her plan all along (which was an excellent one).
Oh, I like this idea for the Season 4 focus from Vox.
"Much of season three’s best material was in Canada, and if season four is going to set up some sort of Underground Railroad parallel to get kids and women out of Gilead with June and Janine on one end (with an occasional assist from Lawrence) and Moira, Emily, Rita, and Luke on the other, then I’m all for it, as a way to knit the Canada characters into the story. (That June is now sort of symbolically Harriet Tubman is, like, what’s pictured in the dictionary next to the definition of white feminism, but let’s set that aside for a second.)"
eta: And this summarizes my feelings about Season 3's direction overall:
"As has proven to be a pattern with The Handmaid’s Tale, at least for me, none of the ideas I thought were potentially interesting ever got much screen time (I still have no idea what Joseph thought he was doing building Gilead, and boy did Emily disappear after a few episodes). Instead, the show devoted itself to the things I did not care about, like June being special and Serena being sad. While there were a few stray great moments to mine from those plot lines (June trapped in the hospital, Fred and Serena talking in the forest), by and large, they never rose above the level of “generic government resistance stuff I could find on many many other TV shows.”
And lol to this:
"So here’s to what is most likely going to be another season of getting frustrated with The Handmaid’s Tale, of badly wanting it to be a show that it is not interested in being, but still holding out hope while watching it do something lazy and mediocre instead. Cool."
I guess they didn’t have enough time between distracting the guard and getting to the plane before it took off? I wondered the same.
Also, was it just the one guard? Why didn’t June just shoot him?
She needed him to give the all clear and I don't think she would have had a very good shot if she had done it over the wall while he was protected by the car. That would have given away that she had a gun.
I did wonder though why she didn't just pretend to be shot earlier in the chase scene if that was her plan all along (which was an excellent one).
What? June was alone and going to throw a rock at the guard.
Why show the gun earlier as a threat she would clearly use (point at a child!) But then choose a rock over a gun? And beyond that the entire reason she went there was to draw attention away from the children crossing so a gunshot would be fine.
Also..and she was behind a wall which provides cover as well as stabilization to take a shot at the guard.
She needed him to give the all clear and I don't think she would have had a very good shot if she had done it over the wall while he was protected by the car. That would have given away that she had a gun.
I did wonder though why she didn't just pretend to be shot earlier in the chase scene if that was her plan all along (which was an excellent one).
What? June was alone and going to throw a rock at the guard.
Why show the gun earlier as a threat she would clearly use (point at a child!) But then choose a rock over a gun? And beyond that the entire reason she went there was to draw attention away from the children crossing so a gunshot would be fine.
Also..and she was behind a wall which provides cover as well as stabilization to take a shot at the guard.
I thought there were two guards and they took the one out with the rocks and the other was on the other side of the car.
Post by foundmylazybum on Aug 14, 2019 19:00:34 GMT -5
Somethings dont make sense and I feel like they are meant to ignite my senses but then they feel hollow bc they really just..like mofongo said I have to really suspend reality.
53 children go missing, handmaids and Martha's are running all over, a gun battle happens near the airport, a plane leaves.
Next morning:
June, is still somehow out in the vicinity where gunshots and a missing guardian are.
She should be found by other guardians but no. Instead roaming handmaids find her! How. How are handmaids still roaming around after 53 children and a handful of Martha's and maybe handmaids get out?
They pick her up like jesus, and we hear a line kind of like she is.
I mean, that scene the next day looked great but..yeah, how were these women just walking around free? How was she not found?
Yeah, I don't understand how this is going to end well for the Marthas and Handmaids whose families lost children (and where the adults are dead). I don't even understand how they could get back home and then out the next day to find June. They've hung people for much, much less.
So I’m trying to figure out why Serena was arrested. Her crimes were pardoned because she was under her husband’s control .... so when she held June (and other handmaids) down so Fred could rape them, they decided that ultimately Serena wasn’t responsible. Even when Serena had the idea to hold down a 38 week(ish) pregnant June so that Fred could rape her, to supposedly spur on her labor.... not going to hold Serena responsible. But June and Nick? They will arrest her for that? That threw me for a loop.
Don’t get me wrong, I think she should pay for all of it. I’m just trying to figure out why they drew the line there.
The thing (one of others mentioned here) that didn’t make sense to me was that they ripped up all of those sheets into strips way before they knew they were going to have to mark off a trail through the woods.
So I’m trying to figure out why Serena was arrested. Her crimes were pardoned because she was under her husband’s control .... so when she held June (and other handmaids) down so Fred could rape them, they decided that ultimately Serena wasn’t responsible. Even when Serena had the idea to hold down a 38 week(ish) pregnant June so that Fred could rape her, to supposedly spur on her labor.... not going to hold Serena responsible. But June and Nick? They will arrest her for that? That threw me for a loop.
Don’t get me wrong, I think she should pay for all of it. I’m just trying to figure out why they drew the line there.
I think bc she acted without the direction of her husband and therefore was not acting under duress.
The thing (one of others mentioned here) that didn’t make sense to me was that they ripped up all of those sheets into strips way before they knew they were going to have to mark off a trail through the woods.
I thought about this too and decided to ignore it. Lol
The thing (one of others mentioned here) that didn’t make sense to me was that they ripped up all of those sheets into strips way before they knew they were going to have to mark off a trail through the woods.
I thought about that too but decided it could have been that they were ready to use in case someone got injured and they needed to stop bleeding (can’t spell the word for that). Probably just an editing oops but it helped me ignore it.
I was riveted through the whole thing. The whole rock throwing thing actually made sense to me - there was more than one guard (one got taken out by a rock) and they needed time. Yes she. She could have shot the guard, but he also might have more easily radioed for backup if not for the confusion they caused (or that she might have caused on her own).
So I’m trying to figure out why Serena was arrested. Her crimes were pardoned because she was under her husband’s control .... so when she held June (and other handmaids) down so Fred could rape them, they decided that ultimately Serena wasn’t responsible. Even when Serena had the idea to hold down a 38 week(ish) pregnant June so that Fred could rape her, to supposedly spur on her labor.... not going to hold Serena responsible. But June and Nick? They will arrest her for that? That threw me for a loop.
Don’t get me wrong, I think she should pay for all of it. I’m just trying to figure out why they drew the line there.
Oh, they wanted to get her for raping June via Fred as well, but there are protected religious rituals that unfortunately are harder to prosecute. But Nick didn’t fall under the protected religious ceremony. I thought it was clear that the Canadians rightly considered it all rape but couldn’t interfere with religious rituals, and Nick didn’t fall under that.
Post by beachbum22 on Aug 14, 2019 21:30:23 GMT -5
leeba25 - I wonder if they drew the line there because Serena ordered Nick to impregnate June on her own accord, without Fred's knowledge? They could say she wasn't under duress at that time, because Fred wasn't present, possibly?
TR - I thought the same thing! They had planned to take a truck (or trucks?) to the plane, so why would they need markers?? Maybe the markers were originally going to line the trail to Lawrence's house, so the Martha's could find their way safely in the dark?
ETA - I need to learn to refresh before I respond lol. I agree with TR and @onegirlinalltheworld about why Serena was arrested.
What I couldn’t figure out is why they didn’t have a plan to get everyone to the airport in advance of the actual day of Mayday. She didn’t even know how far away the airport was until after everyone was already scheduled to show up at her house! She sure is lucky that there was a walkable path through the woods from her house directly to the airport. And how did they walk the entire way there to mark the path, and then back again, and then back to the airport one more time all within the span of one early evening? I had to suspend a lot of disbelief with this episode.
What I couldn’t figure out is why they didn’t have a plan to get everyone to the airport in advance of the actual day of Mayday. She didn’t even know how far away the airport was until after everyone was already scheduled to show up at her house! She sure is lucky that there was a walkable path through the woods from her house directly to the airport. And how did they walk the entire way there to mark the path, and then back again, and then back to the airport one more time all within the span of one early evening? I had to suspend a lot of disbelief with this episode.
She had a plan. Commander Lawrence had arranged a van and a meeting to move security away. Then when the Martha showed up early it triggered alarm bells and Lawrence reneged on his part of the plan.
They said it was 5 miles by road, way shorter on foot, to the airport. So that didn’t seem far fetched to me. Average walking pace is 3.5-4 miles per hour, so if it’s knly like 2.5-3 miles the timeline actually does make sense.