'The Handmaid's Tale Delivers' an Explosive, Tragic Twist in the Penultimate Episode

Elle

20-05-2025

Spoilers below.
Rebellion requires sacrifice. Many have died in the fight against Gilead, and the penultimate episode of The Handmaid's Tale only spills more blood. The Mayday rebellion set out to kill commanders by lacing Serena (Yvonne Strahovski) and Commander Wharton's (Josh Charles) wedding cake with a strong sedative. June (Elisabeth Moss) and Moira (Samira Wiley) disguised themselves in red robes to secretly distribute weapons to the handmaids during the nuptials and reception. Almost everything went according to plan. However, like any other operation executed in this world, there are immediate repercussions.
June, her fellow co-conspirators, and even Aunt Lydia (Ann Dowd) don't get the benefit of a trial before their punishment is decided. It is a tense hour of television (though I wouldn't expect anything less) that puts many lives on the chopping block, and two big characters meet an explosive end in the final moments. Moss plays double duty, directing an episode for the third time this season, and once again, the Emmy-winner shows poise in front of and behind the camera. Read on to find out who makes it to the final episode alive.
The episode opens with June, Moira, Janine (Madeline Brewer), Aunt Phoebe (D'Arcy Carden), and the other handmaids running toward freedom with 'Look What You Made Me Do' by Taylor Swift soundtracking their escape. It is an appropriate song choice for this brief respite. Everything appears to be on schedule, but nearby explosions indicate that Gilead's Guardians are starting to retaliate. .
In the trucks, Phoebe reveals to June that her real name is Ava. 'I guess all that community theater finally paid off,' says Ava. Discussion turns to who is going to stay and fight. June wants the women to live their lives, but Janine won't leave without her daughter Angela. Unfortunately, the Guardians block the gates, ready to take the handmaids into custody. First, they demand June reveal herself, which she does when they threaten to shoot other handmaids. You would think everyone in Gilead knows June's face by now.
Serena also learns that she has very few options to escape. As the bombs go off in the distance, Serena runs to Commander Lawrence's (Bradley Whitford) house to seek refuge—and witnesses a handmaid stabbing a wife on the way. Naomi (Ever Carradine) is bewildered that Serena left her husband on their wedding night because that thought would never occur to her. The following morning, Naomi takes it upon herself to call Wharton to let him know his bride's location.
Commander Wharton is a man who can multitask as he first meets with Lawrence to discuss the next steps after the massacre they suffered. Next, he asks for Serena's forgiveness. Serena says having a handmaid is a deal breaker, and to her surprise, Wharton agrees to try for a baby on their own. Serena is still skeptical about the whole thing, which is why it is a little too neat that Wharton spills the beans that June used their wedding to plan the attack that left 37 commanders dead. He is reminding his wife that Gilead is good and June is evil. 'I thought that we were friends,' Serena says. Wharton reassures Serena that 'God's justice will be served.' However, the new Mrs. Wharton's concerned reaction highlights that she disagrees with Wharton's intended retribution.
'So, was it the bride who figured it out?' June asks Wharton. To give a sense of his 'civility,' Wharton lets June out of her Gilead cage to have a face-to-face meeting without bars between them. Wharton assures June that Serena was stunned by her betrayal. What follows is a back-and-forth about whose sins are an affront to God. June is fearless, which rattles Wharton. Of course, everything June said to Serena about the kind of man Wharton is was accurate, and this was before she had even met the man.
'This is the beginning of the end,' says June. When Wharton continues to preach about God, June turns the tables and reminds him of the blood on his hands after what he did to the women at Jezebel's. June then brings up that Serena's version of God is one of love and quotes from the Bible: 'He that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God.' This strategy helped persuade Aunt Lydia (Ann Dowd) to do the right thing last week, but Wharton is unmoved.
Gilead leaders love nothing more than putting on an elaborate public execution, with Wharton reveling in the role of emcee. Ava isn't dead yet, but her cover as Aunt Phoebe is blown, which means she is part of the hanging theatrics. The platform is a gallows equipped for multiple executions; Ava stands in place with a noose around her neck. June stands center stage with her rope attached to a crane so her soon-to-be dead body can be seen far and wide. Surprisingly, Aunt Lydia faces the same punishment but has been deemed responsible for the rogue handmaids by Wharton. The rest of the handmaids are the final piece of the execution tableau. But Lydia is full of fury, telling the crowd that her 'precious girls have been prisoners of wicked Godless men.' Finally, Aunt Lydia is part of the resistance.
Wharton offers June a chance to say some last words before the mass hanging begins. While June starts with a prayer, Luke (O-T Fagbenele), Rita (Amanda Brugel), and other Mayday operatives have weapons ready to strike before it is too late. June's tone switches to rage, calling for everyone to rise up before yelling the famous Handmaid's Tale refrain: 'Don't let the bastards grind you down.' The crane pulls June up at this point, dangling her from high above. Grenades are thrown, shots are fired, and the handmaids free themselves. Rita shoots the crane operator, lowering June before it is too late. Ava is a certified badass, and it is later confirmed that the undercover aunt is actually a CIA agent. Suddenly, it all makes sense!
American bombers fly above, and in the chaos, Wharton escapes. At Lawrence's, Mark Tuello (Sam Jaeger) arrives for both Serena and Lawrence, but only Serena is there.
One person I thought would come to June's aid was Nick (Max Minghella). However, he is at the hospital with Rose (Carey Cox). The baby is okay, though the sedative in the cake is what led to this scare. Rose wants Nick to show his allegiance to her and Gilead, and it is disappointing that he doesn't put up much of a protest.
Serena has been taken into protective custody but has told Tuello that she doesn't have any information that will help the American cause. June thinks she can get through to her, and what follows is a classic June-Serena tête-à-tête. Serena is glad to see June is alive, with June quipping about ruining her wedding. June has zero regrets about the dead commanders and keeps pressing Serena for information about the ones who escaped. Eventually, June calls Serena out for her empty promises about 'reform'—that word is meaningless with those men in charge.
When that doesn't work, June focuses on what Serena values most: motherhood. Using love didn't work as a strategy on Wharton, but Serena responds to this plea. Serena tells June that Wharton and the other higher-ups will fly to Washington, DC later that day.
Earlier in the episode, Serena is the one who won't let it go when Lawrence appears to be going about business as usual. She tells Lawrence that June is the reason she is alive (and the same goes for her son Noah), and it hits the spot. Without a hint of sarcasm, Lawrence asks Serena to say a prayer for June, which is a first.
Lawrence tried to appeal to the remaining commanders to choose reason and restraint, but they wanted a new reign of terror. Given how much Lawrence has assisted, getting him to do another big favor for Team Mayday might be an easy ask. 'I'm an economist, I'm not James Bond,' he demurs when they ask him to put a bomb on the plane with an altitude trigger. They can't shoot the plane down because the airspace is restricted. Tuello says it is now or never; if the commanders get away, they can regroup. Lawrence won't be alone as June volunteers to be his getaway driver. Lawrence refuses this offer as she is finally safe, but June knows they will never be safe with those men still in the world.
When they arrive at the plane, June tells Lawrence that courage looks brave on him. First, security at this private airfield is terrible because how is this plane left unguarded? Second, June's face should be plastered everywhere as public enemy number one. I can maybe give the Guardians a pass for earlier, but not after the whole public execution thing.
Of course, the other commanders are early, and this throws the entire operation because Lawrence can't pop the case on board and then leave after they've seen him. June hides behind their car, and Lawrence looks ready to accept his fate as he walks up the stairs. He takes one final look at June, touching his heart to show he will see this through, and I get as teary as June does watching this sacrifice. Whitford has been reliably great throughout his time on the series, and he peels back the vulnerability of this character in this final moment.
There is one latecomer who arrives before wheels up. June gasps when she sees Nick get out of the car—as did I. For a brief moment, I thought Nick would see her and not climb onboard the death flight. Moss cranks up the tension in her devastated look toward the man she might still love and in how she shoots this scene. (My notes at this point were just the word 'no' repeatedly.) This season has been hard for Team Nick, and I must admit that this conclusion is not the hero's end I was hoping for. Instead, Nick remarks to Lawrence about being on the winning side before asking how June is. Nick also mentions that June had told him to give all of this up, and Lawrence points out that he should've listened to her. Yep, he really should have.
The plane takes off and explodes when it hits a certain altitude. Lawrence goes out as a hero, Nick goes out as a man who could only go with the rebellion so far. June has tears in her eyes, and so do I. The Handmaid's Tale is going out with a bang.