Diksha Sundriyal
The seventh episode of Hulu’s ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ Season 6 picks up in the aftermath of what could be one of the worst betrayals in the story of its protagonist, June. In the previous episode, she found herself at the mercy of Commander Lawrence and Nick while stuck in Gilead following a botched mission. Because she had Nick, she didn’t really worry about her getting arrested or anything going wrong. All this time, he has done whatever needed to be done to keep her safe and alive. However, she didn’t anticipate that he would do the same for himself. SPOILERS AHEAD.
June Recalibrates Her Feelings for Nick
Discovering that she has been betrayed by Nick, while being stuck in a closet with him, is too much for June to handle. She is forced to hear about the details of the backstabbing from Commander Wharton, who boasts to Serena about how, based on Nick’s intel, he decided to shut down Jezebel’s for good. June has spent enough time in Gilead to know what happens to women when they are of no use anymore. We see the horror unfold as all the women in the brothel are lined up in the bathroom stalls and are shot down. The only one to survive this ordeal is Janine because someone found her too valuable to be killed this way.
June, however, is in no condition to hear about the bloodbath. Nick tries to explain to her why he did it, but she asks him to drop her off at the border. Once there, he confronts her about her hypocrisy, where she doesn’t mind it when he does bad things to save her, but is appalled when he did the same to save himself. She is too stunned at his words and is unable to respond. When she gets back to Mayday, Luke is relieved to see her alive and well. The news of what happened at Jezebel’s has been related to them, too, and everyone is in shock about how quickly their perfect plan went down the drain.
When Luke wonders how it could have happened, June confesses that she told Nick because she thought she could trust him, and he became the leak that ruined everything. This revelation leads Luke to lash out at her for her feelings for Nick and clouding her judgment in the process. He accuses her of being in love with the Nazi commander despite knowing what he is, while also questioning the nature of their marriage to each other. Later, when things have calmed down a bit, June and Luke talk again, and they wonder if Hannah is the reason why they are still together. The conversation ends with both accepting that they couldn’t leave each other even if they wanted to.
Janine’s Situation Worsens While Serena Makes a Power Move
When all the women in Jezebel’s are shot down, Janine is the only one kept alive on the orders of Commander Bell, who brings her to his home as his Handmaid. When Aunt Lydia finds out about this, she is ecstatic because she thought Janine has been killed. She is happy to discover that not only has she been saved, but she has also been restored to the status of a Handmaid. She tries to visit Janine, but Bell makes it clear that he is in no mood to let her out. This only worsens Lydia’s concerns, especially after she gets a glimpse of her favourite girl being pulled away from the window.
Meanwhile, Serena gets a bridal shower where she meets with the other wives who don’t seem to be very happy about her work at New Bethlehem. It seems that they are happy with the way things were originally and don’t believe that Handmaids should get a second chance to build their lives. When Serena tells them about the clinic she is thinking about, they dismiss her idea with scorn, which is when she realises that despite her upcoming wedding to Wharton, no one really cares for her ideas. When she shares this concern with Wharton, he tries to console her, and their conversation spirals into the decision that their wedding should be a huge affair.
Previously, they had decided to keep everything low-key, particularly because Serena wanted it so. But now, she needs to show the other wives what her status really means, and for that, she wants the grandest wedding there could be in Gilead. This also means that all sorts of people will be invited to the wedding, including the Handmaids. Janine, however, wouldn’t be so lucky because Bell has decided to keep her locked in the house, no matter the occasion.
Mayday Comes With a New Plan for the Revolution
When things went south with the Jezebel’s plan, Mayday wasn’t the only one to have received a major setback. Commander Lawrence also had a huge stake in the operation because he knows that as long as the other Commanders are alive, he would be sent to the Wall, sooner rather than later. He wanted all those Commanders, especially Bell, gone, but now that the plan is no more, he is agitated. He visits June, knowing that she is heartbroken over Nick’s betrayal. The only good news he can give her is that Janine is still alive, though it’s not really great for her being stuck with Bell. He also talks about Serena’s wedding, which gives June a new idea.
Knowing that they have foiled a major plan, the Commanders of Gilead are expected to relax a bit. All of them would be there for Wharton’s wedding, which would be a much better turnout than Mayday expected at Jezebel’s. June has complete faith in Serena and will try to make it as grand an affair as possible. This gives Mayday ample opportunity to sneak in and go forward with their plan. It will unravel the same way, only at a different location. Once again, June and Moira volunteer to go in, and this time, June is in no mood to make any errors by trusting the wrong person. Lawrence gets them back across the border, where a Martha close to Aunt Lydia turns out to be working for the revolution. She hides the duo in the basement, though she makes the mistake of inviting Aunt Lydia’s scrutiny. In any case, she reveals that the Handmaids, except Janine, have been filled in on the plan.
June takes it upon herself to find and rescue Janine. If all goes as planned, she knows her friend will need rescuing. Moreover, there is another person who is working on the inside for them now. In the previous episode, when June asked Rita to work for Mayday, the latter revealed that she is there for her family and does not want to jeopardize it by getting involved in anything risky. June understood her stance and did not push her. In this episode, when Rita meets with Nick, she doesn’t realise that he is in no mood to talk to anyone. He is still reeling from his last interaction with June and tells Rita to leave him alone. She takes it as a sign that he cannot be trusted to deliver on his promise of saving her family. So, she takes the next best option and joins Mayday’s plan to help wreak havoc on Serena’s wedding day.
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