‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ Recap: ‘Useful’

Written by John Edward Betancourt 

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Over the past few recaps, we’ve definitely had some healthy dialogue about the past and present and potential future of The Handmaid’s Tale. Because many of us are invested in this storyline, and we’ve followed June’s harrowing journey for several years now and the future is definitely on the minds of the fanbase because there really is only thing we want to see from this series; revolution. For we know at this point that the Republic of Gilead is a vile place, and we know that its leadership and law enforcement caste care little of anyone’s rights outside of white males and well, seeing this awful place collapse and burn, and seeing America restored would be the best possible way to reward the fans for sticking by a story that quite frankly, has socked us in the gut more times than we would care to admit and it would seem, that we are finally marching toward that proverbial reward at long last.
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Because ‘Useful’ is quite the important chapter in this harrowing saga, simply because, I would like to think that this episode will signal the beginning of a grand fight to bring Gilead to its knees. For a lot of what happened here, felt as though we were bearing witness to the proverbial spark needed to start a revolution and oddly enough, we have the structure of Gilead and Commander Lawrence to thank for that because the veil surrounding him was lifted away in this episode, allowing for us to get a better understanding of what the man really stands for and well…suffice to say what we learned about Lawrence was supremely disappointing when all is said and done. Because the fact of the matter is, he’s no different than anyone else when it comes to the leadership branch of Gilead, if anything, it would seem that his vision of Gilead and what it stands for was designed to outright amuse him and give purpose to a world that he incorrectly views as chaotic and lost and that’s a shame, because it really did seem for a moment there like Lawrence had potential.

But his desire to see people be useful in this world and toy with them and their morality, brought about some serious conflict with June as the episode rolled on since he outright asked June to help him with one twisted conundrum. For the city of Chicago was about to become part of Gilead, and that meant prisoners were already showing up in Gilead facilities, meaning that fates had to be decided and with only so many slots open in the city, many would be sent to the Colonies to die and Lawrence, wanted June’s help in deciding who would live and suffer, and who would suffer and die and that…damn near broke her. Because no one should ever have to face that kind of decision, but here was June, tasked with either making the choice or letting Lawrence do it as he has many times before and it was in that moment that she came to realize that she would never find any allies in the executive branch of Gilead’s leadership, and for a time, she was listless and afraid, and that was only compounded further by the fact that Nick is being plunged into that caste of cold-hearted men since he’s now a Commander, one that will lead the final push to re-take Chicago and other disputed territories and June may never see him again.

Which when you think about it, all of that sounds pretty hopeless and awful, to the point where no spark can come about from that kind of despair. But therein lies the trick. For this story also focused heavily on Serena Waterford as well, and she was equally as listless in this tale since she couldn’t reconcile the pain of Nichole’s loss and where her life had taken her. For Fred was now demoted, and she lost a finger for her role in this mess and well, it became clear to her while she was at home with her mother that her desire to perfect the world, instead ruined it and countless lives, and a visit with June only helped her to reinforce this epiphany and well, it would seem an unspoken bond was created between these two women, the kind that finally saw them come to an understanding about what must be done when it comes to Gilead. And the closing moments of this episode, wherein June began to outline her plans for the future, is what gave me a sense of hope and direction. Because June did make the hard choice after all, and she picked the smartest and most cunning women she could find, so that they could join the fight and now, with June’s leadership, the clock is now ticking on the Republic of Gilead. For minute by minute, and hour by hour, while the men of Gilead go about their day believing that their utopia is safe, the silent women of this awful place will be plotting and planning and working…to bring it to an end.

If anything, this is hands down the most inspiring episode of this series I’ve seen to date, and while there isn’t a grand plan for revolution in place just yet, who cares? Because June is slowly starting to bring it all together, and it seems she finally has the right ally in Serena, since she can hopefully provide the resistance with intel and information, the kind that will bring Gilead to its knees in record time and well, this really is the moment we’ve all been waiting for, and while some have said, this has taken too long to get to, I’m not sure I agree with that. For sometimes in life it takes us forever to wake up and make the changes we need for whatever reason, so there’s a sense of relatability when it comes to June’s decision to act now and to push hard to end this madness and well, I’m more excited than ever to watch this series and I’ll definitely be counting down the minutes to tomorrow episode to see what the next steps are in the fight against Gilead. Until next time.  

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