Diksha Sundriyal
With only one episode left in Hulu’s ‘The Handmaid’s Tale,’ which will bring the six-season series to an end, the rebellion finally breaks down the doors of Gilead. But everything comes with a price, and June Osborne, above all, knows the sacrifices that have to be made to get back the freedom of the people one loves. The previous episode ended with June, Moira, and the other Handmaids killing the sedated Commanders following Serena and Wharton’s wedding feast. This episode picks up on the same night, as the bombs go off all around the city, marking the beginning of the end for the oppressive regime that Mayday has been trying to bring down since Day 1. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Rescue Arrives Too Late for June and the Handmaids
Having killed the Commanders, with some going as far as to kill the Wives, the Handmaids make their way to the truck that is supposed to escort them safely out of Gilead and to their freedom. The plan is for June, Moira, and the rebel Aunt (whose real name is Ava, and she apparently took classes in community theatre back when the world was normal) to stay back in Gilead and help the American government continue their fight. When Janine discovers this, she decides to stay because her daughter is still there, just like Hannah. However, the women never get that far as the truck is intercepted midway by Guardians and all of them are taken back to the hell they were trying to escape. June is separated from the herd and meets Wharton face to face.
At first, she believes that Serena sold her out, but she has no idea that her former mistress ran away from her husband’s house after discovering that he wanted to keep a Handmaid in their marriage. While the bombs were going off, Serena was out in the streets, witnessing the bloodshed at the hands of the Handmaids. She finds refuge in Lawrence’s house, but the next day, Naomi calls Wharton as she believes that Serena should submit to her fate and let the men save them from the wrath of the women they all wronged. Wharton apologises to her about his outrage the previous night and even agrees not to have a Handmaid. He also tells his wife that he and the other Commanders are going to DC in the evening to gather support against the rebellion. But first, he needs to deal with the rogue Handmaids.
Wharton has a brief meeting with June, during which he rebukes her for stoking rebellion while she tries to talk sense into him in the hopes that he will spare her friends. But he has no such intention, and June and the other women, including Aunt Lydia, soon find themselves facing the rope. When Wharton blames Lydia for not handling the women well, she lashes out at him and the government, which shocks June and the other women, but also warms their hearts. At the same time, June, too, gives a speech, which she starts with asking god for forgiveness, but then turns into a call for arms to keep the rebellion going even if she dies. She is strung up for execution, but is saved in the nick of time by Mayday.
Gilead Meets Full Force of the Rebellion
While June and the other women have ropes being put around their necks, Luke, Rita, and others slowly make their way through the crowd with weapons in their hands. The moment June is hanged, they attack, killing the Guardians. Wharton is taken away from the scene for his own protection, and as the Handmaids are freed, they too pick up weapons and attack the enemy. Meanwhile, Rita finds a way to bring June down to the ground and save her from choking to death. When she opens her eyes, she sees Luke in front of her and American fighter jets in the sky. With this, everyone is saved, but that is just the beginning of the fight. Almost dying during her public execution does nothing to stop or slow down June. In fact, this win sparks in her the desire to see the whole thing through.
While a lot of Commanders were killed the previous night, some major ones are still alive, especially Wharton. Mark reveals that they have been trying to figure out where the Commanders are holed up. It is imperative to catch and kill them while they still have time on their side. If they escape, they will gather their forces, and all that happened so far would be for nought. June also discovers that they have Serena in custody, and she might be the only one who can tell them where the Commanders are. June immediately visits Serena, who is happy to see her, but when asked about Wharton, she is hesitant to reveal anything. This leads June to conclude that she has learned nothing from their experiences so far.
Eventually, Serena does break and tells her about Wharton’s plans to leave for DC that evening from Bedford. Seeing that Wharton and the remaining Commanders are going to DC to get backup, it becomes even more important to stop them. This is where Lawrence comes in. Considering that he, too, is a Commander and his collaboration with Mayday has not come to light so far, it makes sense that he should be the one to get a bomb on the plane. All he has to do is arrive earlier than others, place the bomb, and get off the plane. When the Commanders fly away, he will be safe and sound, and Mayday can do their job. Or at least, that’s the plan.
Lawrence’s Sacrifice Saves the Day
When Lawrence is told that he should be the one to place the bomb on the plane, he is not sure about it. To give him confidence, June decides to drive him to and from the hangar. At first, he tries to dissuade her from accompanying him, but then, he relents. As planned, they find their way to the plane, but the other Commanders show up before Lawrence can do his job. It turns out that they were too eager to leave for DC, so they decided to leave earlier than planned. While the other Commanders lash out at Lawrence for sympathising with the Handmaids and trying to become more liberal with New Bethlehem, Wharton shuts them up by telling them they must present a united front in DC.
At that moment, Lawrence realises that he will not be able to get out once he gets on the plane. He also knows that if he doesn’t take the bomb with him, Mayday will lose its fighting chance. Walking up the steps, he looks back at June, hiding behind the car. They exchange a look, and it becomes clear that Lawrence knows he will die but will get the job done. It is heartbreaking to see the man, who became her good friend and a strong ally to the cause, walk towards his death, but June knows that it is necessary. What truly shatters her is when she sees a car come up and Nick step out of it.
A Shocking Arrival at the Airport Forces June to Make a Hard Choice
June didn’t think that since he is also a Commander, he would be required to join the others. In fact, he should have stayed back after Rose complained of sudden pain. While chaos unfolded outside, Nick was at the hospital next to his wife, where he discovered that the minor complication arose because she consumed the cake, which was spiked with sedatives. Now that she and the baby are fine, Rose tells Nick to go with her father and fight for Gilead and do away with June once and for all. If it weren’t for her words, Nick would have preferred to stay by her side. Instead, he decides to join Wharton, entirely unaware of what is about to go down. As he walks into the plane, he stops for a moment, as if he were going to turn around and see June. But he doesn’t.
Surely, it goes through June’s mind to call out to him or distract him so that he doesn’t get on the plane and fly to certain death. But saving him would be too big a price to pay, and this would be something that Mayday could never recover from. Had Nick not betrayed her the last time, she might have been moved to do something. But now, she stays quiet. On the plane, he asks Lawrence if June made it out. He is relieved to hear that she is alive and reveals that she once asked him to join the rebellion and do away with the Commanders. Lawrence remarks that he should have done it, which surprises Nick. Meanwhile, June looks on helplessly as the plane flies away and then bursts into a ball of fire in the sky as she says a silent goodbye to the man she loved.
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