'The Handmaid's Tale' Recap: 'Jezebels'

Written by John Edward Betancourt

THIS IS THE EMERGENCY SPOILER ALERT SYSTEM...YOU ARE ADVISED TO READ AT YOUR OWN RISK...

When we last left the disturbing world that The Handmaid’s Tale happens to inhabit, we were left with quite the bittersweet moment. Luke, June’s husband from another and better life was alive and well and living in Canada and at long last he received word that his beloved was alive and as well as can be, and while that seems like it falls on the happy side of the spectrum, instead of bittersweet, one cannot forget that the conclusion of that episode meant one thing…we were headed back to the horrors of Gilead, which would wipe away any joy found in this particular tale.
 
As it turns out, ‘Jezebels’ lived up to that expectation because once again it was indeed back to this twisted and disturbed vision of an America transformed, but thankfully…the audience was once again spared pure horror since this episode instead opted to take us to a side of Gilead we’ve not seen before, one that managed to infuriate this reviewer with the sheer hypocrisy it managed to put on display. But before we get too deep into that particular mess, we do need to take a moment and talk about the other interesting part of this episode first, the fact that the series finally gave us some insight into the show’s new impromptu ‘Romeo’, Nick.
 
By way of flashbacks, we came to learn that Nick, a good man who did his best to care for an ailing member of his family, was pretty lost in the time before Gilead, and with money running low and his job prospects disappearing an act of aggressive desperation found him joining the Sons of Jacob (giving us a name to the group that brought down the U.S.A. at last), and while joining them gave Nick some needed financial stability, there was an added perk to joining this group…a taste of power as well. Because it doesn’t take long for Nick to rise through the ranks and join the Eyes, and his ability to blend in tends to allow for him to uncover pertinent information, since we were also witness to him bringing down a Commander for his immoral acts and all of this was extremely pertinent…because of Waterford’s actions in present day. 

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Because good ‘ol Fred decided it was high time to have a little fun with June while his wife was out for the evening visiting her mother and he made sure to 'pretty her up' with makeup and a sequin dress before dragging her into Boston to a secret speakeasy for a night of drinks and whatever else the Commander had in mind and wouldn’t you know it, Moira turned out to be working in this place as well, leading to an impromptu reunion for her and June, but more on that in a minute because well…this place was yet another example of how disgusting Gilead truly is. It’s disturbing to know that women who cannot assimilate into this society are given a choice of death or servitude in a place like this, and the continued hypocrisy of Gilead’s leadership continues to be exposed thanks to these kinds of locations since it’s clear these men love to live the high life of the old world at night, and preach the gospel during the day and creating brothels and bars such as this, under the guise of providing an outlet for human nature only speaks volumes to how pathetic and egotistical the Commanders truly are.
 
However, this uncomfortable moment was only the beginning and as the show is wont to do, it was time to rob us of hope once again. Because we also learned in this episode that as Nick mentioned weeks ago, everybody breaks in this world and that was never more evident than during June’s reunion with Moira…since Moira seems to have accepted her fate and is oddly at peace with it and the bleakness of that moment, only grew from there since it would seem Nick is having a crisis of conscience over Waterford’s actions, and his own for that matter since he tries to end his affair with June on moral grounds and that’s dangerous talk from a member of the Eyes. Because if he’s already dropped one Commander for immoral acts, he may cause trouble for another...and June, especially considering what he knows about her and Waterford’s night on the town and, that’s how the episode ends, in bleak and unsettling fashion with June once again trying to find the strength, to fight…
 
However, not all hope was lost in this episode. Because at one point, the Commander that recruited Nick into the fold made mention of cleaning up Gilead and Waterford even referenced unrest in other districts. Meaning that the cracks in Gilead’s foundation are starting to grow, and while the fight for freedom may be underway far from Waterford...that doesn’t mean it isn’t headed his way. So maybe, just maybe, the battle to destroy Gilead that we are all hoping for is on its way, and perhaps June’s hope and strength will be rewarded after all. Until next time. 

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