The Handmaid’s Tale Recap: Series Premiere, ‘Offred’

With the premiere of Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale, a new classic is born.

The Handmaid’s Tale has the rare distinction of being a work of dystopian fiction that has a transition – there is a before, and there is an after. The characters remember the “before,” and that’s what makes the “after” so intolerable.

It also has the distinction of being a based on a beloved work by Margaret Atwood, and it’s obvious in the first ten minutes that the utmost care has been taken in adapting it for Hulu. This is The Handmaid’s Tale adaptation that we deserve. Finally.

The series premiere, ‘Offred,’ introduces us to the titular character by showing her running from the inevitable. The first episode isn’t a showy affair – it’s often quiet, subdued. It introduces us to this world using muted colors, hushed tones, and often claustrophobic camerawork.

Those unfamiliar with the source material are either going to be excited to jump right in, or are going to have a difficult time adjusting to a show that isn’t quick to explain itself. Most, however, will be quick to agree that not only is it beautiful, but also that Elisabeth Moss is a true force.

Image Credit: Hulu

Offred is not allowed to speak freely, and so most of what we learn about her is from her own thoughts. These are at times taken directly from the novel, which can be forgiven considering how expressive Atwood’s writing can be. The world of The Handmaid’s Tale is one of pervasive paranoia, and that makes it an uneasy watch. Flashbacks show happier, freer times, but don’t count on levity here.

A handmaid, as the series explains through a scene of what is basically forced captivity and brainwashing, is a woman assigned to a family to have children with the husband. There is a “plague of infertility” that needs to be dealt with. There is a war going on, but The Handmaid’s Tale isn’t concerned with explaining the details of it, and that’s for the better.

The subtext is that if there is conflict, there is an excuse for this way of life. So there is always conflict. People are hung – doctors, priests, homosexuals – and left out as warnings. The brutality shown in ‘Offred’ is not in the violence, of which not much is shown on-screen, but in the deep silences and harrowed stares.

Image Credit: Hulu

Offred’s daughter was taken, and much of the episode is dedicated to the effect of her absence. This is a harsh world, and there are moments when Offred is close to losing her composure. But as we learn, she is now a practiced hand at this. Religion plays heavily in this new world order, and a government-mandated prayer session led by the man of the house leads to one of the most unsettling sex scenes on television.

Offred has no actual friends, though she does have a companion in a fellow handmaid played by Alexis Bledel. She did have a friend, once, named Moira, and the two of them spent time in what is referred to as The Red Center, where women are turned into handmaids.

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When Offred is told that she is likely dead, we can see her inner world collapse, though she doesn’t dare show it. Nobody can be trusted, and anyone that appears nice or generally trusting could be an “Eye.”

In its first episode, it’s difficult to say what audience for The Handmaid’s Tale is going to be like. It is true, sometimes disturbing art, and so it’s anything but an easy watch. But it is, without a doubt, worth watching. Its pace is much slower than other critically acclaimed dramas, such as HBO’s Westworld. Really, there’s nothing else like it right now.

There is a ceremony in which the various handmaids are freely allowed to kill an unarmed who is accused of rape. At the blow of a whistle, they punch, kick, and tear like animals. And then the whistle is blown again, and they are expected to return to their lives.

The episode ends with Offred learning that there an Eye in her house, and the cycle of suspicion and paranoia continues. We learn that Offred’s true name is June, and her daughter’s name is Hannah. This is a show in which names hold great power, and there it’s a striking moment when she lets us in on this secret.

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There is a lot that can be said about The Handmaid’s Tale based on the first episode, but the main takeaway is that it is a beautiful, artfully crafted adaptation that is deserved of the hype.