What I’m Watching: The Handmaid’s Tale

The Handmaid’s Tale: Season 2, Episode 5 “Seeds” (B+)

One of the most interesting facets of this show is how those who aren’t in power manage to continue existing in this new world order by accepting the roles that they’ve been assigned by those who feel that they’re able to make such determinations and decrees. Aunt Lydia is one such person who seems to have a true faith in what Gilead stands for, and she also enjoys certain privileges due to her enforcer status. She doesn’t seem to like Serena much, partly because she understands the nuances of trying to humanize the handmaids, once they’ve been stripped of their identities, of course. After Serena managed to get her husband, who didn’t seem to be paying any attention to her, to have Nick married off, she dealt a harsh blow to Offred by dismissing her because the ensuing activities were for “husband and wives only,” neglecting the truth that June is indeed legally married. The introduction of a rabbi who performs lesbian weddings and funerals within the prison camp hit close to home for me since it’s easy to forget that the real world that we know turned into this one, with any other religions quashed completely and rival clergy forced to suffer the same fate as anyone else who doesn’t toe the party line. As the mourner’s kaddish was recited over the recently-wed deceased, what seemed like all hope lost for Offred’s pregnancy turned out to be far brighter, and, most promisingly, we saw June’s spirit return, determined to save her baby and herself from the state in which she seemed previously to have resigned herself.