The Handmaid's Tale: Bear Witness (3x10)

Okay, that was kind of a good episode.

Cons:

I can't totally forgive this show for the sins of its past, just because of a stand-alone solid installment. June's newfound determination to smuggle kids out of Gilead is great or whatever, but there's this sort of "savior" vibe to June this season that I'm not really digging. There's this awesome moment that I really did enjoy, where June discovers that there are tons of people on board with getting kids out of Gilead, and she's going to have the support she needs. What bothers me about this is the larger implication, that they all needed June to come along and kick their asses into gear. It doesn't really track with the world building of the show as a whole, because we know there's a whole resistance network in place, that June is only tangentially connected to. So why do all of these brave rebels need June to come along and kick-start this new endeavor? Maybe I'm nitpicking, I don't know.

Speaking of world building, I was reading another review that pointed out how inconsistent this show is about power structures. I hadn't quite noticed it, but when I think about it, it's sort of confusing to me that Fred can yo-yo back and forth from persona non grata to extremely influential in the space of a few episodes. Same with Commander Lawrence. I thought he was allowed to be eccentric because he was an untouchable founder of Gilead, but I guess not? It just seems like the balances of power are not shifting organically, but rather shifting to serve the plot in any given moment.

Pros:

But as I said, this was a good episode, and I do need to give credit where credit is due.

The centerpiece of this episode is that the Lawrences are forced to go through the Ceremony, something that they've been able to avoid this whole time. They have witnesses in the home, and a doctor who will examine June right afterwards, for proof that it really happened. So... this episode contains the buildup to a rape that is non-consensual on both sides. Three sides, if you count Mrs. Lawrence, who is forced to participate as well. I'm really glad that they chose not to show the Ceremony. We all had to see it back in Season One, and the memory of that is enough to impart the horror here. I actually really respect the way that this show speaks about sexual violence without feeling the need to show it onscreen. You can do a story about rape without being gratuitous for shock value. The knowledge of what's happening off-screen is more than enough to demonstrate how awful the whole thing is.

Commander and Mrs. Lawrence have been interesting characters all season, but they haven't really had that much to do in the story. I really, really liked what we saw of them here. In many ways, Joseph reminds me of Serena, in that both of them are facing horrific consequences for a system that they helped to create. It puts the audience in this uncomfortable situation of feeling empathy for monsters who have hurt so many people. Commander Lawrence is pretty clearly responsible for so many Handmaids being raped, so many people being put into so many difficult and dangerous and monstrous situations. But how can you not feel for him as he cradles his wife, whispering words of devotion as he's about to be forced to have sex with another woman right in front of her? It's devastating. It truly is. And it doesn't erase the evil of what he's done, either. These two truths can exist at once, and I feel like this episode did a good job of showing that.

I admire, in a sick sort of way, how this show keeps finding new ways to impart the horror of Gilead. June has been through the Ceremony before. She knows the drill. And so now she's in the position of having to encourage and coax Joseph through the Ceremony. She has to guide this man through the steps of raping her. It's sickening. There are so many little moments that help to mount the tension of what's going on here. One of my favorites is early on, when June is kneeling to begin her prayer. She tells the Marthas where to stand, because they too, like the rest of the household, are not familiar or practiced with what to do. Later, June patiently explains to the increasingly desperate Lawrences that the Ceremony has to take place - that even if they themselves were willing to take the punishment for disobedience, the Marthas and June herself would also be punished for not reporting the Lawrences. In this moment, Joseph and Eleanor are forced to do something truly awful, to protect not only themselves, but the women they keep as slaves in their home. Talk about twisted.

We haven't checked in with Fred and Serena's relationship in a while, and we see here that Fred has predictably gone a bit power hungry, and Serena, who has been biding her time because she wants Fred's help in getting Nichole back, is starting to lose patience. I love that Serena has introduced the idea of working outside the system to get Nichole back, because it represents such a fundamental rift in the viewpoints of this married couple. Serena is focused on Nichole, and nothing else. Fred, while probably totally willing and eager to have a child as a status symbol, is focused much more on how Nichole can work for him politically. Whether that means keeping her in Canada or bringing her to Gilead, he's willing to do whatever it takes to advance his own interests. Serena's not stupid - she probably knows that. And now she's introducing an idea definitely not in Fred's best interests. It's a test - if Fred refuses her here, there will be no getting around the fact that he's putting himself above Nichole. We didn't get to see the conclusion of this conversation, but I'm very excited to see where it's going.

I mentioned a slight amount of irritation with the idea that June is the spark that lights the flame of rebellion here, because it feels unrealistic. But that said, the Jaws reference at the end of this episode, as June looks at all the baskets of muffins, was really something to behold. We've been here so many times before, on the brink of an explosion, and every time, we've been pulled back from the brink. I'm hoping that this time, things really take off. I want to see June get that truck, and get Eleanor Lawrence out of Gilead. I want to see her get Hannah, get a bunch of other kids, and actually escape. There's so much story that can still be told. I want to break free of the cycle!

8.5/10