The Handmaid’s Tale Season 2

[CruCru]

I’ve just heard that this will start in the US at the end of this month but Channel 4 haven’t said when they’ll start showing it yet.

I thought if a handmaid gave birth successfully to a healthy child she received her freedom in return?

Yes, that’s what I thought

No they are just there to provide more dc. There’s only so many fertile women they wouldnt just set them free after one dc when they could have five or six even more.

Handmaids get three postings and if unsuccessful they are sent to the colonies.

A handmaids who gives birth to a healthy baby is reposted until she can no longer have children. Her ‘reward’ for having a baby is to be guaranteed never to end up in the colonies. I haven’t seen/heard it mentioned what does happen to them though, I imagine either they become Marthas or that there’s some kind of handmaid retirement home.

Janine was an exception as her behaviour (and the subsequent refusal of the other handmaids to stone her) got her sent to the colonies.

Aunt Lydia does mention that, long term, try hope that a HM would stay with one family forever and be like a daughter to them instead of moving around, however there isn’t enough of them for that to happen yet.

No they were expected to keep having babies until they weren't able to anymore. They would prob then be utilised in other ways. Handmaids would never be free. Remember Aunt Lydia said that previously they had "freedom to and now freedom from".

X post sorry Witch

I always assumed that, if they had a healthy baby for one household, they were then reassigned to try to do the same for another one.

They don’t have enough fertile women to let them go free after just one healthy pregnancy/birth.

Sorry - massive cross post with everyone else.

My apologies, I picked it up wrongly then.

A handmaid who gives birth to a healthy baby is reposted until she can no longer have children. Her ‘reward’ for having a baby is to be guaranteed never to end up in the colonies. I haven’t seen/heard it mentioned what does happen to them though, I imagine either they become Marthas or that there’s some kind of handmaid retirement home.

Not sure that Gilead is old enough for them to have worked this one out. I suspect if Gilead lasts that long, that the reward would be re-thought because so many of the women would be very badly damaged by the process. I reckon they'd find reasons to send them all to the colonies, but maybe pretend they were going to a retirement home.

I wonder how Aunt Lydia remembers the names of all the Handmaids. They move on after a length of time with a family (nine months? A year?) and a few months after they have produced a healthy child. I would really struggle to remember who was Offred / Ofsteven / Ofglen / Ofjohn etc.

I am pregnant (with my first DC), and found the second series ep1 a harder watch, having that in common with June.

When the nurse was questioning her, did anyone else notice that although June introduced herself by her first name and surname, the nurse kept calling her Mrs her daughter's/husband's surname, and June repeatedly corrected her but to no avail? That struck a chord as my husband and I also have our own surnames. Our DC will get them both though.

I pointed it out to DH and he hadn't noticed, of course

Blair yea it was part of those subtle signs of change. The flashback scenes are very unnerving to watch.

I’m in the US and watched episode 6 on Hulu last night. Without giving too much away, the flashbacks continue and we learn a lot more about the backgrounds of the characters.

East coast there’s a spoiler thread linked if your interesting in dicussing episode 6

Come and join us on the US paced thread, eastcoast

Sorry- see you’re already there

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/telly_addicts/3239228-Handmaids-Tale-Season-2-SPOILERS-VIEWING-AHEAD-OF-UK-SREENING

Simply re-posting a link to the ahead of the UK broadcast' SPOILERS thread for those who are watching ahead or in the US.

Thanks Aridane and Across - I’ve found my people!

BlairWaldorfLovesShopping
Yes I noticed, because it use to happen to me.
There was a school receptionist who always called me Mrs DH name, I always corrected her, it was on all the paper work what my name was, but she continued, she was twat in many other ways too, so I know it was deliberate. The other receptionist use to apologise for her though.

Yes, Morning, I imagine that the reality for the retired handmaids wouldn’t be a lovely life no matter where they end up. I was just speculating as to the loose plan the powers that be might have at this stage.

As we’re only 3 or 4 years into Gilead, they won’t have hit that particular conundrum yet.

Cru, the handmaids stay with each family for two years before being loved onto the next family.

Ah I see. Even so, it’s amazing that she never slips up and calls them by the name they were known as last month.

I do hope we get a backstory for Aunt Lydia. And because there seem to be sparks/some kind of special relationship between her and June - I find myself wondering whether she and June's mother are going to turn out to be part of the same backstory. Hopefully we'll discover that they're both involved with the underground railroad/resistance movement, though I've a horrible feeling that might turn out to be not the case for Aunt Lydia.

Yes, I noticed the thing with the surnames. It used to happen to me when I was with (nasty, abusive) ex-partner and after we'd split up, until I changed my DDs' name to mine. I found that scene in the hospital deeply disturbing as the line between institutions taking their child protection duty seriously, and them interfering in family lives and potentially criminalising parents, is such a difficult one. No doubt the incident was recorded and used to build a case against June for being an unfit mother.

The actress who played Aunt Lydia said that she thought that Aunt Lydia was a teacher before Gilead. June is very bright - I wonder whether that draws the teacher in Aunt Lydia to her?