Plans never work out in The Handmaid’s Tale, so I don’t think it’s that surprising to find out the dry run to Jezebels doesn’t quite work out the way it was planned. And yes, once again, it’s June causing some of the issues in The Handmaid’s Tale season 6, episode 5.
Caution: This post contains SPOILERS for The Handmaid’s Tale season 6, episode 5.
Okay, I take it back a little, because June and Moira both acted to protect themselves, the women at Jezebels, and May Day. They were stuck between a rock and a hard place, and they had no choice but to take the action they did. Of course, with June killing a certain high profile commander a few seasons ago, it wasn’t surprising to find out that security in Jezebels had clamped down and the two didn’t have a lot of time to escape.
June and Moira get trapped in the trauma comparison mentality in The Handmaid’s Tale season 5, episode 6
It’s super easy to start comparing your trauma to someone else’s. We all think that what we’ve been through is worse than someone else. Or maybe we hear about the trauma and we think that ours wasn’t that bad after all. Anyone who has made it through PTSD — or is working through it — will know that comparing trauma isn’t helpful.
We all experience situations, and some of us will suffer more than others mentally. That doesn’t mean we had it worse. As Moira and June start to compared, June stops herself, and she says something so profound that I hope Moira remembers it in the future.
If they keep comparing, then the men of Gilead have already won.
And that is so true. Gilead wants the women to be at each other’s throats. If the women aren’t working together, they can’t rebel. The best way to do that is to make them compare and get angry with each other.
Janine shows there are no hard feelings (just yet) in The Handmaid’s Tale
Someone who has every right to get angry with June is Janine. June left Janine behind in Chicago. Now yes, June had no choice in the matter. She couldn’t find Janine, and June was lucky to get out and get to Canada after all that. Trying to get both June and Janine out would have been impossible.
That doesn’t stop June from blaming herself for Janine ending up back in the hands of Aunt Lydia and the Commanders. Now she’s at Jezebels, and she’s the reason June wanted to go inside in the first place. Yet when Janine sees June, there isn’t a hint of anger there. She’s happy to see June, and it made me feel a little better. Janine is so angry at Aunt Lydia, Commander Lawrence, and others who run Gilead, that she’s able to overlook the fact that she got left behind.
We also see just how strong Janine has become mentally. She’s able to switch into “Kitty” in the penthouse suite after giving June a key card, and she chooses to stay to get the other women out of Jezebels after she hears about the plan. She’ll need to be much stronger, though, as it looks like the entire plan isn’t going to work.
Janine is even able to look at Lawrence in a different way. He does protect her in some way. This guy isn’t like the other commanders, and he does genuinely want New Bethlehem to work. Janine knows that it won’t, though, and after taking Lawrence to a room, she lets him spy on the other commanders while she rushes off to speak to June and Moira.
I have so many conflicted feelings when it comes to Lawrence. This is a guy who helped make Gilead what it is, but I don’t think he really wanted it to become exactly what people like Waterford and Putnam created in the end. There’s a reason he keeps pushing for New Bethlehem to be a success, and I absolutely hate to say it because there’s still oppression, but maybe it could be a success if allowed to work.
Will overhearing the other commanders lead to Lawrence working with May Day? With the way The Handmaid’s Tale season 6, episode 5 ended, I could see that happening. But I could see it coming with a request that New Bethlehem remains available.
June still trusting Commander Lawrence is somewhat surprising. She knows that this man has lied to her about where Janine was, and Lawrence has created New Bethlehem and not helped get Hannah. She had no idea what Lawrence heard, and yet, when she and Moira kill a guard to protect their own lives and May Day’s plans and the hotel is shut down, she turns to Lawrence for help. This isn’t the first time Lawrence has smuggled June out, but can she actually trust him? It’s funny the amount of men who will go against Gilead for the sake of June.
Serena and Aunt Lydia come to an understanding
While all that is going on, Serena gets a visit from Aunt Lydia in her New Bethlehem home. After the failed attempt to save Janine and her girls via Commander Lawrence, she decides that Serena Joy may be the one to help. After all, it’s clear that Commander Warton is interested in Serena, and he is one of the highest-ranking commanders.
Again, I end up conflicted with these two characters. They have both done so much evil in The Handmaid’s Tale, and they’re not exactly seeking redemption. Serena couldn’t even keep her views about women to herself to save her own life. And yet, she is here trying to offer some sort of empathy for the Handmaids who have provided for Gilead.
Lydia is a little different considering what I know from The Testaments, and she really needs to see what Gilead has actually become. She and Serena come up with a great plan to further Gilead and protect women like Janine. They can move to New Bethlehem to work at the fertility center that Serena wants to set up.
You know what, I’m actually for a fertility center in this world. We know that the birth rates dropped to an alarming rate, but that Gilead has helped to change a few things. Women still want to have children, but they’re finding it hard, so a fertility center could help. Having women who have been through child birth themselves isn’t necessarily a bad idea, although I feel icky typing that considering the oppressive world The Handmaid’s Tale is set in.
Serena continues her growth of power in this episode, with Commander Warton unsurprisingly suggesting marriage. He promises that she won’t have to give up writing, but I can’t tell if he is actually telling the truth. Part of me wants to believe it, but he didn’t want New Bethlehem in the first place. Is he changing his mind, or is he telling Serena everything she wants to hear like Fred once did just to get her back in line?
Whatever it is, the two are getting married. Considering the state affair that Fred’s funeral was, this wedding is sure to be much bigger!
The Handmaid’s Tale airs on Tuesdays on Hulu.