‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ Recap: ‘Sacrifice’

Written by John Edward Betancourt 

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We are taught from a very early age, to not relish in the misfortune of others. That we should always take the high road in situations like that and be humble and never gloat, and there is a lot of merit when it comes to doing just that. But human nature loves to look for loopholes, and let’s be honest, when bad things happen to bad people, we tend to find joy within it and not think twice about it, and that particular indulgence was downright irresistible when it comes to the next episode of The Handmaid’s Tale since ‘Sacrifice’, allowed for the audience to watch some of Gilead’s greatest monsters suffer for their endless crimes.
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Because this episode took the time to catch up with the Waterford’s to show us how their little trip to Canada is going and it turns out, they were finally paying the piper for everything they’ve done. For Fred finally learned that his wife sold him out to get a chance to be with Nichole and seeing him undergo interrogations and face Luke’s fury was oddly satisfying to say the least, as was Serena’s story in this tale. For while she expected more freedom with her surrogate daughter, social services helped to make it clear that she was in no way the baby’s mother, and Moira also made a point to enlighten her on how she’s helped evil win in this world and it was just fascinating to watch someone who is always in charge, take orders for a change and be forced to listen.

But, while that was quite the indulgence for the audience, there was still plenty of story to tell in Gilead, and as it turns out, there were real consequences brewing for Serena’s actions. For the commanders were in a panic at learning one of their own was in Canadian custody, and they also firmly believed that Winslow was behind bars up north as well, absolving June of any wrong doing for the time being. But I digress, because I mentioned consequences and well, this ‘act of aggression’ had many of the commanders ready for war and it took every ounce of effort on Lawrence’s part to get his cohorts to stand down since he was aware of the fact that a battle with Canada, would spill over into a greater conflict. Yet, while it was interesting to see Lawrence do the right thing for a change and work to prevent the next World War, an unexpected surprise came about for him and his household in this particular tale.

For Eleanor was at her worst, mentally, and in a desperate attempt to find some kind of joy in this madness, she began to try and tell everyone and anyone about June’s plans to get the kids out. An act that led to a fiery confrontation with June, as she tried to talk some sense into Mrs. Lawrence. But sadly, that moment didn’t quite have its intended impact, and it sent Eleanor spiraling downward and she took her own life by downing as many pills as she could. An act that June oddly could have saved her from, since she did find her in a sedated state before she slipped away, but she let her pass, in part out of mercy and in part out of concern that she might ruin the plan, especially if she ended up in the hospital and it would seem that this decision may or may not backfire when all is said and done, since Commander Lawrence, seems suspicious of what happened in his home.

Either way, this was a tough ending to watch simply because Eleanor Lawrence was indeed one of the good guys and this horrible world swallowed her up and while some will fault June for not doing more to save her, I oddly understand her decision. For this is war, and Eleanor was a liability and my only lament here is that June didn’t find a different way to keep Eleanor on the level in regard to the mission. But, what’s done is done and the clock is ticking to get these kids out and it should be interesting now, to see if June will able to accomplish this astronomical task and wound Gilead in the process, or if a heightened state of awareness in this rattled nation will ruin her opportunity to save lives. Until next time. 

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