The Handmaid's Tale Series 4 - finale coming up, no spoilers please.

[Clawdy]

New thread, looking forward to finale, but wishing it really was the last episode, with all storylines and characters ending satisfactorily.

Zebra that would be excellent

So I’m guessing Tuello handing Fred over to Gilead was all above board on his end- his superiors approved it. Otherwise how would he explain the lack of Fred in Geneva?

Yes, the whole 'the ICC has ruled you're not fit for leniency' shtick was odd. So very rapid.

@PitchImperfect I applaud your narrative 👏

I thought June was having to leave because she had just killed a man and would be arrested?

As far as Canada are concerned though, they took the women and left Fred in the custody of Gilead. Assuming Lawrence & Nick cover things up properly, June & the others shouldn’t be accused of anything.

Thinking about the blood again and how June ends up with a man's blood on her face, which got there through anger and through her own agency.

Women are pretty much defined by blood our whole lives:
Waiting for your first period.
Working out your cycle (or non cycle)
That fear of NOT seeing blood when you don't eat to be pregnant.
The opposite when you DO
The blood, the gore, the constantly being damp of childbirth and after
The unpredictability of blood through peri and menopause.
Whereas men tend to encounter blood through accident or violence.

And in tht, it's even more defining, because it helps determine your status. Perhaps by killing Fred and shedding his blood, the women are also rebelling over the roles they were given.

@dapsnotplimsolls

I agree with the PP who mentioned the prisoners, surely any members of the resistance would be up on the wall after a speedy trial?

Not if they're women who can be put to work.

They were dressed in Martha outfits

Kudos to Joseph Fiennes for his consistent and excellent performance too. He's absolutely nailed it! I feel like I actually hate him, Joseph Fiennes, because he plays such an evil unlikable character so well! I don't think I could watch Shakespeare in Love again the same way

@TeaStory

Yeah, I wanted to see Serena being told. I couldn’t believe the nerve of her and her demands at the start.

But who would tell her? It happened on Gilead soil the Canadians wouldn't know he'd died

Some were in Martha outfits, but I watched again on +1 and some were in the same outfit that June wore in the torture episode; beige with a red stripe so they were Handmaids.

Assuming Lawrence & Nick cover things up properly, June & the others shouldn’t be accused of anything.

Scrap that, I forgot about the finger.

But who would tell her? It happened on Gilead soil the Canadians wouldn't know he'd died.

They know somebody’s sent her a finger though.

So what are we hoping for next season?

I'm a bit tired of June staring into the camera. I'd like her story to be a side story next season. I don't think she will go back to Gilead but I do think she will try and fight for Hannah, alone.

Next season I'd love to see:

• Janine and Mrs Keys start a Revolution. mrs Keys is ruthless and nobody knows the ropes better than Janine
• I'd LOVE to see Aunt Lydia do what she does in The Testaments. I know it wasn't a popular arc but it made the book for me and when you read her full backstory it made sense
• Moira to do something other than be Nichole's pseudo-mum. I also don't get the whole "Get her together with Emily" just because they're the only two lesbian characters.
• Luke to find love.

@colouringindoors

Watching again on +1. The gulf between June and Luke is more obvious. June - I'm going to put Fred on the wall. Luke - they're going to let him go, you have to let him go. June - I'm going to put him on the wall.

Luke can't know what she went through, but I'm not convinced he's tried to understand. If I were him, I'd be raging on June's behalf. But many years have passed too. I think it's a insightful portrayal of their situation.

He wants to go back to their former life where they went out for beers and had fun. Like slipping into an old pair of slippers. But June's slippers are fucked, broken at the seams, burnt, damaged and falling apart.

@TheMoth

Thinking about the blood again and how June ends up with a man's blood on her face, which got there through anger and through her own agency.

Women are pretty much defined by blood our whole lives:
Waiting for your first period.
Working out your cycle (or non cycle)
That fear of NOT seeing blood when you don't eat to be pregnant.
The opposite when you DO
The blood, the gore, the constantly being damp of childbirth and after
The unpredictability of blood through peri and menopause.
Whereas men tend to encounter blood through accident or violence.

And in tht, it's even more defining, because it helps determine your status. Perhaps by killing Fred and shedding his blood, the women are also rebelling over the roles they were given.

So true.

I'm old enough to remember the screen adaptation of The Company of Wolves based on Angela Carter's novel, a dark retelling and subversion (aren't they all?) of Little Red Riding Hood with a lot of red.

@DontDrinkDontSmokeWhatDoIDo

Even though Luke can't imagine what June went through, surely he has hate in his veins because Gilead / Fred / Serena took his daughter from him?

Why is he so forgiving???

Fury is exhausting. I volunteer at a local support group for women who have been victims of sexual abuse and you would be surprised at how many people actually don't want revenge, or retribution, they just want to lead a normal life. They want to be happy with simple things in life like going for a beer, and anger is a huge barrier to enjoying the day-to-day. Not every woman is like that, and they all have trauma to process, but everybody still has to get up, go to work, feed the kids, pick a film on Netflix etc and being consumed by any one emotion is no fun.

Once they had the 22 woman who fred said weren't alive they knew he was a liar and couldn't trust him its what sealed his fate.

[quote namechange7865]@Pieceofpurplesky I've read it and completely forgotten everything that happens in it 🙈🙈[/quote]
I won't say as it may spoil things for those who haven't read it!

As an aside - how are they all affording to live in Canada? Do they have jobs?

And what did June say on that tape? I thought they were going to show it at the end? What was the significance of her being alone when she recorded her piece?

Nick and Lawrence handed Fred over to "the eyes". The eyes will get the blame/credit for what happened to Fred.

I found that last episode to be a bit crap. She would never have been allowed to be alone with Fred in that room. Plus the whole No man's land bit just seems implausible even though did anyone notice it was at the same place June and Hannah were captured? He fell by where they hid.

I just feel like this series is going to go the same way as all of these kind of shows where they drag them out to the point they are so ridiculous they end up being cancelled.

Re the women becoming a pack of animals - isn’t that the point? They’re treated like breeding cattle in Gilead - no individuality, no rights - they are merely breeding stock.

I thought it was a fantastic episode. Loved that June thought of a way to manipulate the situation and get Fred the ending he deserved.

I'm assuming that no mans land means no one can be prosecuted for what happened?

As soon as a June kissed Nick in front of Fred I knew he was going to be killed. There was no way Fred could know about them.

I assumed the 22 women were being held and tortured to provide information to Gilead about who was in the resistance.

Tuello's boss could see they'd got as much as they were going to get out of Fred so it was worth throwing him back to Gilead in exchange for the 22 women.

Can't wait to see Serena's reaction when she learns that Fred is dead. She might live to regret the petty demands she was making on Tuello.

No idea what will happen in S5. Maybe Esther is Nicks handmaid? Maybe AL switch sides? Can't wait. Loved this series. Not sure why people who clearly don't enjoy it come on this thread and slag it off

Felt disappointed by the episode.

June wanted Fred to feel fear, to be scared for his life. And I obviously get why.

For me, what would have been more fitting, is them scaring the shit out of him. And cutting off his finger - see how you like it, you bastard.

But then to have stopped and handed him back to The Eyes. And for him to have been tried, convicted and sentenced under the rules that HE helped to create. And to end up being taken to the wall - those final moments would have struck absolute fear in him. Literally hoisted by his own petard.

Not every woman is like that, and they all have trauma to process, but everybody still has to get up, go to work, feed the kids, pick a film on Netflix etc and being consumed by any one emotion is no fun.

Well, yes. But, when you dig deep, an awful lot of rape/sexual abuse survivors do have revenge fantasies that aren't so different to what we saw tonight. Yes they hide them well...they continue to get up, go to work, feed the kids, pick a film on Netflix etc. What June and co. did to Fred tonight gave them recognition.

FWIW I think June will go back into Gilead to get Hannah out and Nick will help her because he loves her. He's no more 'a good man' than she is 'a good woman' (they've both transgressed the rules for either of those accolades!) They'll probably both die saving Hannah. Luke, Moira, Emily and Rita will raise Hannah and Nicole.
I'm hoping Serena's baby is removed from her at/shortly after birth - just so she knows how it feels...

I'm looking forward to many more series of THT - the world has become slightly more aware since MA wrote the book so it may just be seen as a documentary....

Not sure why people who clearly don't enjoy it come on this thread and slag it off

Me neither. Who does that?