‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ Recap: ‘Pigs, Nightshade, & The Crossing’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episodes 401-403 of ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’.
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It is definitely safe to say that revolution is a word/concept, that modern American society romanticizes, and it is understandable as to why. After all, we live in a nation that was born out of revolution and that has helped us to adore it and celebrate it on a consistent basis, and outright support it and call for it when another nation feels as though the time has come to indulge in it. Simply because we want that country to understand the wonder of freedom and what it means to have seized it of their own accord. In fact, we adore it so much, that we even eagerly await it and cry out for it in fictional stories where the characters are oppressed and yearn to be free and one such series that fans have done with this, is The Handmaid’s Tale on Hulu. For the nation of Gilead is in fact, a bastardized and insulting iteration of the United States of America and seeing it fall in a powerful uprising would give so many that tune in great satisfaction and when we last left June Osborne and her fellow Handmaids in this story, it appeared as though revolution had arrived.

For Mayday helped June rescue eighty-six children from this vile nation and send them off to safety in Canada. A move designed to badly damage Gilead’s image around the globe and rattle the nation from within, to the point where hopefully others would rise up and begin to bring this nation to its knees. But therein lies the trick about romanticizing and celebrating revolution. For going that route would make the series nothing more than an everyday patriotic story, one that could go so far as to show June draped in the American flag as she watched Gilead’s new center of power burn in dramatic fashion. But that’s just it, our romanticization of revolution blinds us to the fact that such an act is a scary and violent process. One that offers no swift path to justice or freedom. No instead, revolution is wrought with pain and suffering and fear, and incredible losses before freedom can finally be declared for all involved and it just so happens that the season four premiere of this series, makes it clear that the easy way out is not its style, by taking the time to teach us about the difficulties of revolution.

Because ‘Pigs, Nightshade, & The Crossing’ wastes zero time in showing us that June’s bold action, brought forth a great deal of negative repercussions. The kind that has Gilead pondering upon an all-out invasion of Canada to bring their ‘lost children’ home, which is a terrifying prospect in its own right, since it could plunge the world into a third world war. One that might not see an easy end. Plus, we also came to learn… that the pomp and circumstance of sending those kids to Canada, did not bring forth the grand uprising that June expected either. Largely due to the fact that Gilead’s top brass opted to do everything within their power to keep it a secret, for that very reason. Granted, we do also come to discover that word has slipped out and brought about some measure of revolution and resistance, but nothing on the full-scale level that anyone would have liked and to complicate matters further, this premiere also makes it clear… just how hard it is to escape the clutches of a far-reaching oppressive government when one wishes to indulge in revolution. 

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For June does find herself captive once again at the hands of Gilead’s forces in this three-hour premiere and that does indeed lead to some of the most troubling sequences imaginable. Since she was outright tortured both physically and mentally at the hands of Gilead’s finest monsters, in the hopes of getting her to fess up to the location of her fellow Handmaids and despite her best efforts to stay strong in the face of adversity… seeing her daughter in play for harm finally motivated her to open up and well, this rough yet familiar sequence, absolutely gave the audience pause. For it made it seem briefly as though season four would be another year of storytelling filled with sorrow and strife. One that would make everyone ponder upon the worth of a revolution and why on earth anyone would even think about committing to one when it is obvious the all-powerful house wins more often than not and that’s when the show took quite the turn for certain.

For the closing moments of this story, saw June and her beaten and broken friends and surrogate family, make a run for it once again, rather than be subjected to the horrors of a breeding colony. And their costly fight to make it but fifty feet away from agents of Gilead speaks volumes as to why revolutions are indeed important. Because they truly speak to the fact that atrocities and horrors cannot stand, and that freedom is indeed something that everyone around the world should enjoy. Which makes them a necessity, to end the nightmares and to bring peace to those that so desperately need it, but they will come at a great and powerful cost. For this is but a taste of the sacrifice and the terror that goes into starting one and the losses suffered in those closing moments, speaks to the fact that things will only get worse before they get better. But eventually, it appears as though things will indeed get better in Gilead and that the end might finally be in sight for this awful nation, now that June is out in the open and able to spread the influence, she showed hints of here. 

If anything, this was one powerful season premiere when all is said and done. For it did a wonderful job of showing the viewer the harsh realities that revolve around revolution and it deserves serious credit for that alone, since we do hold it in such high regard in America. But while that could have carried this tale on its own, what truly made it so worth our while, is that it did a wonderful job of immersing us back into this world after a year-old pandemic related break, since you walk away from this one with fresh hate for Gilead and everything it stands for. Plus, it was filled with powerful and compelling performances all around, the kind that spoke to how miserable everyone is, in this world at the moment, and how the fall of Gilead might be the only thing to save the mental health of the citizens of this tortured land. And now that we are back in the thick of it, it really is only a matter of time before change begins to take hold and now at least, we’re ready for the hardships that will come with that as the beginning of the end for Gilead, gets underway. Until next time.

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