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The Handmaid's Tale S2 |OT| Gilead is within you.
- Thread starter 브라이언
- Start date
Haven't tried the second season.
First season was way too on the nose. Is this season any better?
First season was way too on the nose. Is this season any better?
I may be biased, as I read the book as part of English Literature in high school (and studied, discussed and even did exams on the thing for like two years) - but there's just something about the setting, story - the brilliant actress that plays June - in tandem with the existential dread and excellence of the soundtrack and sound design - that makes this series really powerful and emotive.
The second season is even better than the first so far, as a canon-sequel to the book, it just has so much emotional pull. It has some unbelievable sound cues, it's just so powerful. Loving it.
The second season is even better than the first so far, as a canon-sequel to the book, it just has so much emotional pull. It has some unbelievable sound cues, it's just so powerful. Loving it.
I see your point - but I'm like, 90% sure that might be Margaret Atwood there (the book's author). She's a consulting producer (there's reports she's heavily involved creatively with this) and that literally reads like it's right out of the book. June talks like that for the whole novel, single sentence inner monologue and everything. So though it may be a bit OTT it is true to the spirit of the book.
Really only if your metric for something of consequence is June getting out of Gilead. There are plenty of ways they can shake up the status quo and/or develop the characters and world without that happening though.
I just wanted to drop in here to say I just finished the first season. Amazing show even though I want to know so much more about the "bigger" conflict, the world around the story, how it could happen and so on.
But the show is great so far!
But the show is great so far!
I just finished the latest episode too. I was hoping June's arc would start to conclude. The more interesting parts of the show is how their world came to be and reactions to it
The lady and I just watched episode 1 of season 2 and we're horribly disappointed. Between the indulgently long shots, constant unnecessary flashbacks that add no new depth to the characters we already well know, and lack of plot development we are hesitant to continue on. It just seemed... boring and slow.
Hopefully, the next episode engrosses us a bit more. We enjoyed season one, even if it's a bit frustrating at times.
Hopefully, the next episode engrosses us a bit more. We enjoyed season one, even if it's a bit frustrating at times.
OP
OP
Not everyone's cup of tea plus not everyone has Hulu (people overseas, etc.) and some people would rather wait until the end to binge. (Would not recommend bc my heart can't take it.)
I'm inclined to agree. The season certainly opened strong, but the more it continues, the more I feel the show should have ended with the hanging. It's meandering too much now, especially with regard to June's backstory (particularly Hannah).
Think of it from her perspective. All she knew was that there is supposed to be an airplane thats gonna smuggle her out at 0600 tomorrow, and Omar is supposed to take her there. She gets stranded in Omar's house and the deadline is fast approaching. She can either let things play out and forget any chance of leaving Gilead OR she can take things in her own hands and go to the airstrip. She did the latter. Its not the worst decision she made to be honest. It makes sense, but maybe not in hindsight.
What doesnt make sense is how everyone correctly pointed out that shes fumbling and fidgeting around in Omar's house, peering through windows (!) and just being an idiot. Despite Omar telling her the walls have ears. Plus the fact that she knows her way to the airstrip from the forest based on a map was stretching it quite a bit. Then a random dude shows up and gets shot. When the pilot landed, I was like no way this is safe in Gilead and this dude is gonna get blown from the sky to bits. These things plus her wanting to drive away (!?) in Nick's car to see Hannah in last episode makes me feel like the writers are having trouble this season. Season 1 was tight as fuck.
There's no way in hell she just returns to status quo at Fred's house. I'm really interested/scared to see what they do with her. Remember the chained up handmaid that Lydia showed her in the first episode of this season?
But it's not interesting to me either. Her being imprisoned/tortured for me is more of the same. I want to see the fight
I was worried that June going back to being a Handmaid would be too boring/depressing because it just be S1 all over again but I think there are some interesting dynamics being set up with Serena really losing her marbles and June having to question/embrace her selfishness. June remains in danger but we aren't subject to a re-tread of rape and tazings and whatnot, so the psychological drama is more prominent than ever
God damn Aunt Lydia is one those character I love to hate. Watching her this episode made my blood boil.
Not even the gory stuff, but the small things like her fingers on June's shoulder in that one scene etc.
Yeah, I think it can go in a lot of interesting directions. It will be interesting to see the power struggles within the family and in the system as whole.
I'd like to see the entire thing crumbling under it's own weight.
Not even the gory stuff, but the small things like her fingers on June's shoulder in that one scene etc.
Yeah, I think it can go in a lot of interesting directions. It will be interesting to see the power struggles within the family and in the system as whole.
I'd like to see the entire thing crumbling under it's own weight.
How long do you expect broken June to be a thing before she ends up reverting back to her old self? Here's hoping there will be moments of levity to balance out the despair. Perhaps they may pad out the next few episodes with the side characters to allow the June/Waterford situation more breathing space so that when the time comes for June to come around enough time will have passed without having to focus all of season 2 on the banality of her being in bondage.
Realistically though, had she escaped, the show would have lost a vital high stakes component to it -- especially when you factor in the dynamic between June and Serena, who I personally believe is being positioned as June's arch rival in the series, at least on a themetic level.
Season 1 did a good job of fomenting the seeds of rebellion. Since the show has unabashedly tapped into the #RESIST sentiment of viewers, I hope that they don't lose sight of that and make it all about living under oppression. It wasn't the gory brutality or cruelty of Gilead that drew people into season one, but the ability for those living under it to not lose their humanity in spite of that which set it apart from another show about a fascist dystopia, Man in the High Castle.
For me, the more poignant moments of this season has been stuff like Janine reuniting with Emily at the colonies, June making the wall memorial at the remnants of the Boston Globe, and even June's passive aggressive moments toward Serena, throwing back at her the same chilling words she used against her in season one's finale. She did this again in this episode too! The other swipe she takes at Serena that sets her off was the one where she tells her that she had given away half her baby show gifts when she was pregnant with Hannah. Forgive me for not understanding the context of June's statement, but what was she implying? I'm a guy, so I don't understand this. I just assumed that you kept all the gifts after a baby shower.
I really hope they can avoid retreading season one material now that June is back with the Waterfords (ughhh). Her having some kind of mental breakdown (?) is interesting, but I don't know if I want to watch a broken woman get tortured every week...
Anyway, I thought it was interesting that we learned the fate of the people who helped her in last week's episode (I thought they were going to leave it ambiguous so we would wonder if June made the right choice in leaving or not). I wonder how they got found out? Did someone see the guy sneak June into their apartment? Or maybe they saw June peering through the windows while the family was at church? Maybe everything was going fine with them, even though they were late, and June jumped the gun by leaving, and in the process was seen leaving and that's what got the family captured? I guess knowing the families' fate still leaves us with a lot of questions...
Anyway, I thought it was interesting that we learned the fate of the people who helped her in last week's episode (I thought they were going to leave it ambiguous so we would wonder if June made the right choice in leaving or not). I wonder how they got found out? Did someone see the guy sneak June into their apartment? Or maybe they saw June peering through the windows while the family was at church? Maybe everything was going fine with them, even though they were late, and June jumped the gun by leaving, and in the process was seen leaving and that's what got the family captured? I guess knowing the families' fate still leaves us with a lot of questions...
*looks at door*
*dramatic pause*
*looks at stairs*
*dramatic pause*
*looks at room*
*dramatic pause*
*dramatic pause*
*looks at stairs*
*dramatic pause*
*looks at room*
*dramatic pause*
If she really goes through a mental breakdown, someone else needs to step up to pull her out of it. She has done everything she could and failed. She can't really start anything now, especially with all eyes on her. Maybe Nick will be more active? I mean, it's (probably) his kid she is having too. I'd also love to see some of the believers be put in moral conundrums, the word of god vs. the cause.
I'm not really sure what the baby shower comment meant either, but I'm guessing it's about the fakeness of it all. The were saying stuff like "So much love for the baby" right before her comment. Serena is trying so hard to do what's expected of a mother, but June is basically saying "all of this doens't mean shit, you don't know how to raise a child".
What do you think was the significance of the power cut (when June was in the bath)?
I'm hoping stuff like that will start happening more frequently and hopefully show that Gilead is slowly falling apart (basic things like infrastructure etc.).
Also, interesting about the Canada stuff - they made it seem like there are still diplomatic relations between Gilead & Canada, which makes me wonder why the Canadian troops are training at the border.
I'm hoping stuff like that will start happening more frequently and hopefully show that Gilead is slowly falling apart (basic things like infrastructure etc.).
Also, interesting about the Canada stuff - they made it seem like there are still diplomatic relations between Gilead & Canada, which makes me wonder why the Canadian troops are training at the border.
I thought the same exact thing, in episode 3 I was hoping they'd finally break the mold. That whole escape arc was freaking unbelievable. So thrilling and tense. Now it's (sort of) right back to status quo again. I still love the show, but if they don't break the monotony by the end of this season, then I will be disappointed.
This episode was so frustrating to me. Ten steps forward, 15 steps back. We're worse off than before. They've done an escape plot so that storyline is burnt. I found this episode the truest example of torture porn ever.
It's probably gonna be good 2 or 3 episodes for Offred to come out of her funk. I understand what the creators are trying to achieve. June back to being a Handmaid is supposed to be frustrating and it drives home how futile everything is. It's supposed to be drowning and over-encompassing. I hope other Handmaids pick up the story while Offred's story goes in circles for couple of episodes.
Wasn't loving this one TBH, and I've adored everything thus far. Felt like the story was going in a new and exciting direction for the first trio of episodes, but June getting captured has pretty much teleported her back to the beginning of season 1 with only subtle changes. I do like the 1984 "broken by the state" angle but her attempted escape was way more exciting and much more compelling television.
That's one element of the show I find endearing (and fucking frustrating) condensed into an episode. It also highlights the beginnings of what could be Stockholm Syndrome for June. In any case, I really do hope there's a finale where somebody fucks something up. I mean...some catharsis would be nice.
I absolutely loved this episode.
I was worried we were in for a sort of torture-porn punishment episode (in the physical sort of sense).
Instead we got what was, IMO, a beautiful portrait of descent into stockholm syndrome, of guilt, of shame, of surrender.
And not just on June's part. But we see some of the wife's difficulty here too, in a different way.
The core theme of the book really is about how circumstances can change you. The struggle not to change, to remain who you are, who you were. The way things can creep in on you, and become normal without you noticing. The book never reaches the kind of depth of surrender that this episode does. And I guess it leaves the story open again. I know some might see that as a frustrating reset, but really she's in a different place now than she ever was before. We've sort of lost her as the viewer's proxy now also, which will be interesting to see handled.
I was worried we were in for a sort of torture-porn punishment episode (in the physical sort of sense).
Instead we got what was, IMO, a beautiful portrait of descent into stockholm syndrome, of guilt, of shame, of surrender.
And not just on June's part. But we see some of the wife's difficulty here too, in a different way.
The core theme of the book really is about how circumstances can change you. The struggle not to change, to remain who you are, who you were. The way things can creep in on you, and become normal without you noticing. The book never reaches the kind of depth of surrender that this episode does. And I guess it leaves the story open again. I know some might see that as a frustrating reset, but really she's in a different place now than she ever was before. We've sort of lost her as the viewer's proxy now also, which will be interesting to see handled.
How much back and forth should there be to balance optimism and despair? When she escapes again, it'll have to be for good. They can't play that hand again. Also, 9 episodes left. What event could you see jarring her back to her senses? And when do you see it taking place? A coworker said that they should cover the side characters for the next few episodes and return back to June when they're ready to begin to focus on rebuilding her.
Would having June give birth, and thus have to lose her child to Serena be a rehash of Janine's arc from season 1? It's why I wonder if they'll have her miscarry by Serena's mistreatment. That could allow the writers to extend June's residency at the Waterford home. When you get down to it, it is Hannah that is where the true stakes for June lies in the long term.
Nick will possibly be offered a promotion to commander. What if he ends up being assigned to Omar's wife? Omar's wife commits suicide out of despair at losing her son, which in turn shocks June to her core and sets things in motion for her reawakening.
Maybe Emily ends up being the proactive vessel that gets things moving, while June remains on the sidelines. I really don't want that to be the case though, as I feel that June needs to have a few moments of levity and triumph to balance out the utter despair of these past couple of episodes.
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I just had a thought. Does anyone think it would have been better to have June captured at the end of this season for a big cliffhanger for season 3, or is there a greater purpose in going the route they are taking?
No. That should happen toward the end of the series. They should introduce a few new characters of Gilead to take the bullets instead. Commander Pryce has a very Mike Pence vibe to him imo. And I was surprised to see Warren Putnam back. I figured he would have been written out with a missing arm. Will that present challenges for the writers and cinematographers? It's probably why the writers of the Walking Dead never had Rick lose an arm. The long term logistics probably wasn't worth it in their minds.
This show is so BEAUTIFULLY shot. The dreariness is everywhere. I've had it up to here though with everything Gilead. Give poor June some hope.
I don't know how the show runners would allow Serena to come out the winning end on this given how they've already explored Gilead's child theft practices through Janine. Let's assume she takes possession of June's child. Now what? June therefore loses all leverage in this show.
Yep watching her annoying Serena has been fun, i guess she will be sent somewhere nasty and come back for the baby (and revenge), or run with him again, somehow.
Another thing is if June becomes a good girl they don't have reason to attack her so something is going to happen soon
Wow, she really is sweet. <3 Also looking up on Wiki, she's local (MA). I would have never guessed from her voice- she doesn't sound American honestly. Maybe it's from her theatre background?
And I'm surprised she thought she had "no chance" of winning. She completely nailed Aunt Lydia.