'The Handmaid's Tale' Season 4 Shows No Mercy: Recap

Entering its fourth season (and already renewed for a fifth), The Handmaid's Tale picks up where season three ended, following a severely wounded June Osborne being rescued by fellow Handmaids and taken to a safe house to recover from her injuries. The season starts off strong, fast paced, and spares not a single character from the harsh and tyrannical theocracy that is Gilead. Elisabeth Moss, who portrays June Osborne, makes her directorial debut with the third and tragic episode.

The episode "Pigs" wastes no time reminding viewers that no one just up and leaves Gilead without answering to and suffering its ruthlessness. Aunt Lydia has been maimed during her intensive 19 day interrogation following the mass rescue of former American children. Commander Lawrence has been imprisoned as a result of June's actions. The Waterford's marriage is crumbling rapidly as the other tries their hardest to cancel one another out in a desperate attempt to avoid prosecution. And June manages to drag more innocent people into her plot, increasing the likeliness of swift punishment and execution for more innocent people.

Perhaps the most interesting instance of ruthlessness in episode 1 is June's confrontation with Esther Keyes, a fourteen year old Wife married to a much older Commander. Esther's look and personality are very reminiscent of Serena Joy, and it is only for a moment that viewers believe she is another pious and uptight theocrat. Thankfully, this is only a façade. Deep down, Esther harbors hatred for Gilead and the oppressed lifestyle she is forced to endure. She reveals to June that she (along with many other Wives) is a constant victim of rape and abuse by the men who run Gilead, especially her Commander who orchestrates her sexual servitude. Esther admires June for her courage and acts of defiance and expresses her interest in joining the resistance and Mayday. June initially refuses but it is only after the aforementioned revelation that a guilt-ridden June takes Esther under her wing. When a trespassing Guardian threatening the secrecy of their hide out is brought onto the farm, it is revealed that he is one of Esther's habitual rapists. June then hosts her own 'Particution', sentencing the Guardian to death not just for the crime of rape, but for treason against the former United States of America now known as Gilead. She tasks Esther with carrying out the mans execution, and he is violently butchered to death off-screen. Despite being a child, Esther has a few tricks up her sleeve and makes it known that she is not afraid to give the oppressing Gilead a taste of its own medicine. For this, she earns June's absolute respect.

But Esther isn't the only one inspired by June...

Episode 2, "Nightshade", reveals that June's recent heroic act of extracting the stolen children of Gilead has made its rounds via word of mouth. The resistance is out in the open now; the oppressed have begun to fight back. But the resistance is not without consequence...June's murder of Commander Winslow has resulted in the execution of many 'Jezebels', women who were allowed to break the strict Gileadan laws and utilize prostitution as a way to get what little freedom they could. Daisy, a Jezebel herself, narrowly avoided suffering the same fate and reveals herself to be a reluctant member of the resistance, vowing to help June in her escape. In return, June feels an obligation to rescue Daisy and the other remaining Jezebels. It's not a feat that can be easily accomplished; her Handmaid peers remind her of that. The task itself is made easier when Esther reveals she knows how to concoct poison, which she has been serving to her Commander husband in small doses, enough to ward off his physical and sexual abuse and keep him in a weakened state. It's a prized weapon for June, one that she intends to distribute among the Jezebels to diminish the number of hypocritical and abusive Commanders--and it works. While Gilead suffers another loss, June realizes much too late of another loss of her own. Returning to the farm, the home itself is eerily quiet and exposed. There are even shell casings, a brutal and often fatal reminder that the household has been discovered and punished accordingly. The sympathetic Guardian that June is accompanied by refuses to leave her, and he is gunned down with a bullet to the head as dozens of other Guardians zero in on June. They are led by none other than Nick, a former Eye now turned Commander whom June has a relationship with and who is the father of her second born. He turns her over, for her sake, he says, but a disappointed June says nothing as she is apprehended. It's a major setback, one that puts June directly into the lions pit. Thankfully, the rest of the sought after Handmaids were fortunate enough to escape.

The lion's pit of episode 3, "The Crossing", is as emotional as it is unbearable to watch at moments. June is in custody in a place that is specifically designed for imprisonment and torture. Nick attempts to extract the whereabouts of the rogue Handmaids without resorting to violent means. But June doesn't give in. Aunt Lydia arrives and scolds the rebellious June for freeing the children and for not revealing the whereabouts of the other Handmaids. For her silence, June is subjected to an act of torture most real world citizens cannot stomach: waterboarding. The sadistic "Lieutenant" carrying out her punishment is a villain that fits in all too well with the forces of Gilead; he could be worse. When Aunt Lydia reminds June of how heartless she is, June flips the script and tells the infuriated Aunt that the ongoing and traditional rape culture of Gilead is the result of Aunt Lydia's failure as a protector. As June is about to have her fingernails plied off, a last minute lie is able to thwart off further punishment for the time being. When that fails, June is taken to the rooftop of this totalitarian prison, where she is given another chance to provide the whereabouts. The two familiar women standing on the ledge of the rooftop represent the only two chances she gets at redeeming herself. Guilty and in tears, June again remains silent, and the women are pushed separately to their deaths by the Lieutenant.

That's not the worst of it...

A recently freed Commander Lawrence meets with a mangled and tortured June, advising her that Gilead will move onto an innocent Hannah--June's own stolen daughter--next. When June scoffs at the idea of Gilead hurting a child, Commander Lawrence reminds her of their own twisted conventions and how power itself is the only concern. When June is sent into a room with a caged Hannah, her own spirit is broken due to the fact that a) Hannah is frightened of her, and b) does not recognize her own mother. Defeated, June gives up the location of the Handmaids and her resistance is over...seemingly, that is.

June and the other Handmaids are given another chance at life when execution seemed so likely. Aunt Lydia states that they are slated to be stationed at a breeding colony, where they will not have to be an inconvenience to Wives and Commanders in the home. They will still be visited once a month for the 'Ceremony'. As the van heads for the Colony with June and the recaptured women and Aunt Lydia as passengers, an opportunity presents itself. The Guardian driver stops for the oncoming train and exits the van to relieve himself. In his absence, June attacks and subdues Aunt Lydia, who begs her and the other women to stop. One of the other Handmaids quickly advises June to hurry as they can beat the train if they are fast enough. As the group runs for freedom and safety against the speed of the train, the chasing Guardian begins to open fire, killing two of the Handmaids against Aunt Lydia's protesting. While June and another tortured Handmaid make it just past the train tracks, they turn around in time to see two more Handmaids suffer an unfortunate fate as the train closes the distance, hitting them with its travelling cargo body.

June quickly composes herself and that of her remaining companion. The episode ends with a train separating the two fleeing women from a disadvantaged Guardian and slow-moving Aunt Lydia.

All in all, the first three episodes took many risks that paid off, setting the stage for what appears to be a much more violent and nerve wracking season. "The Crossing" episode is a bold statement, reminding viewers that the journey out of Gilead this time around may just be impossible for the majority of those June is trying to help. It's a realization that will keep everyone on the edge of their seats for the remainder of the season...