Handmaid's Tale Season 3

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m so confused by the Lincoln memorial scene. How did June and Serena have a major smack down and June have a poignant emotional break, all while a thousand handmaids in their Dress Reds are kneeling in Olympic ceremony choreographed rows facing them?

One thing I did like in this episode: I think the multicultural kids of commander Stabler helped emphasize that those kids aren’t theirs. They are basically stolen children. Serena asking “are they all yours?” kind of reinforced that, but also reminded us how blind she is to biological motherhood so that she can justify the messed up handmaids dynamic.

Nice adoption slam. The dynamic is rape and child stealing but being a mom has nothing to do with biology.

NP. While it didn’t sound like a slam to me, it amazes me how insensitive so many are with the biological or bust nonsense. Adoption is blatant proof those “biology is so important” theories are as legitimate the as antivax argument

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m so confused by the Lincoln memorial scene. How did June and Serena have a major smack down and June have a poignant emotional break, all while a thousand handmaids in their Dress Reds are kneeling in Olympic ceremony choreographed rows facing them?

One thing I did like in this episode: I think the multicultural kids of commander Stabler helped emphasize that those kids aren’t theirs. They are basically stolen children. Serena asking “are they all yours?” kind of reinforced that, but also reminded us how blind she is to biological motherhood so that she can justify the messed up handmaids dynamic.

I think the smackdown happened while the handmaids were being brought in and positioned for the video.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m so confused by the Lincoln memorial scene. How did June and Serena have a major smack down and June have a poignant emotional break, all while a thousand handmaids in their Dress Reds are kneeling in Olympic ceremony choreographed rows facing them?

One thing I did like in this episode: I think the multicultural kids of commander Stabler helped emphasize that those kids aren’t theirs. They are basically stolen children. Serena asking “are they all yours?” kind of reinforced that, but also reminded us how blind she is to biological motherhood so that she can justify the messed up handmaids dynamic.

Nice adoption slam. The dynamic is rape and child stealing but being a mom has nothing to do with biology.

DP. Oh, come on. It's a show where children are literally stolen from their parents in the name of God and women are raped by men to produce children that are then taken from them and given to their torturers. For the culture to work the concept of parenthood has to have been completely removed from biology. That was PP's point.

Also, please don't tell me you are legitimizing Serena's claim to the baby because she "feels" like her mother. She held June down while her husband raped her, and when that didn't work she had her "mate" with the chauffeur. She doesn't deserve to be anyone's parent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m so confused by the Lincoln memorial scene. How did June and Serena have a major smack down and June have a poignant emotional break, all while a thousand handmaids in their Dress Reds are kneeling in Olympic ceremony choreographed rows facing them?

One thing I did like in this episode: I think the multicultural kids of commander Stabler helped emphasize that those kids aren’t theirs. They are basically stolen children. Serena asking “are they all yours?” kind of reinforced that, but also reminded us how blind she is to biological motherhood so that she can justify the messed up handmaids dynamic.

Nice adoption slam. The dynamic is rape and child stealing but being a mom has nothing to do with biology.

DP. Oh, come on. It's a show where children are literally stolen from their parents in the name of God and women are raped by men to produce children that are then taken from them and given to their torturers. For the culture to work the concept of parenthood has to have been completely removed from biology. That was PP's point.

Also, please don't tell me you are legitimizing Serena's claim to the baby because she "feels" like her mother. She held June down while her husband raped her, and when that didn't work she had her "mate" with the chauffeur. She doesn't deserve to be anyone's parent.

I’m the first PP quoted here. You know, I debated including a disclaimer that my “biological motherhood” comment was in NO WAY meant to demean adoption or non-biological parenting. But then I (mistakenly) thought, nah, the DCUM audience is smart enough to know what I meant. That I was clearly referring to the fictional plot line of children being conceived out of enslavement and rape and then the biological mother being forced to have her child taken from her in an “ownership” sense, but be raised by her non-biological rapist “parents” right in front of the handmaid. Sorry if reference to biology and parenting was triggering. It is clearly an integral part of the series.

[Anonymous]

I thought the point of the multicultural children was to underscore that white ladies may love Elizabeth Moss and hate Mike Pence but we ain't intersectional yet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m so confused by the Lincoln memorial scene. How did June and Serena have a major smack down and June have a poignant emotional break, all while a thousand handmaids in their Dress Reds are kneeling in Olympic ceremony choreographed rows facing them?

One thing I did like in this episode: I think the multicultural kids of commander Stabler helped emphasize that those kids aren’t theirs. They are basically stolen children. Serena asking “are they all yours?” kind of reinforced that, but also reminded us how blind she is to biological motherhood so that she can justify the messed up handmaids dynamic.

Nice adoption slam. The dynamic is rape and child stealing but being a mom has nothing to do with biology.

DP. Oh, come on. It's a show where children are literally stolen from their parents in the name of God and women are raped by men to produce children that are then taken from them and given to their torturers. For the culture to work the concept of parenthood has to have been completely removed from biology. That was PP's point.

Also, please don't tell me you are legitimizing Serena's claim to the baby because she "feels" like her mother. She held June down while her husband raped her, and when that didn't work she had her "mate" with the chauffeur. She doesn't deserve to be anyone's parent.

I’m the first PP quoted here. You know, I debated including a disclaimer that my “biological motherhood” comment was in NO WAY meant to demean adoption or non-biological parenting. But then I (mistakenly) thought, nah, the DCUM audience is smart enough to know what I meant. That I was clearly referring to the fictional plot line of children being conceived out of enslavement and rape and then the biological mother being forced to have her child taken from her in an “ownership” sense, but be raised by her non-biological rapist “parents” right in front of the handmaid. Sorry if reference to biology and parenting was triggering. It is clearly an integral part of the series.

You do realize there are plenty of shady adoptions that happen every day. And, not just about the biological mom, but to the biological dad and others as well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m so confused by the Lincoln memorial scene. How did June and Serena have a major smack down and June have a poignant emotional break, all while a thousand handmaids in their Dress Reds are kneeling in Olympic ceremony choreographed rows facing them?

One thing I did like in this episode: I think the multicultural kids of commander Stabler helped emphasize that those kids aren’t theirs. They are basically stolen children. Serena asking “are they all yours?” kind of reinforced that, but also reminded us how blind she is to biological motherhood so that she can justify the messed up handmaids dynamic.

Nice adoption slam. The dynamic is rape and child stealing but being a mom has nothing to do with biology.

DP. Oh, come on. It's a show where children are literally stolen from their parents in the name of God and women are raped by men to produce children that are then taken from them and given to their torturers. For the culture to work the concept of parenthood has to have been completely removed from biology. That was PP's point.

Also, please don't tell me you are legitimizing Serena's claim to the baby because she "feels" like her mother. She held June down while her husband raped her, and when that didn't work she had her "mate" with the chauffeur. She doesn't deserve to be anyone's parent.

She has no claim to that child. There was no official adoption and neither is an biological parent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is June the only Handmaid who gets to wear a red sweatshirt? It’s like her business casual look.

Ha. I've wondered this as well. It's pretty schlubby and I was really surprised she wore that to the christening and party at the Commander's house.

I seem to recall that it appeared as maternity wear of sorts, so I wondered if maybe it was because she was still post-partum? But I really have lost track of how old Nicole is supposed to be. Surely too old for that to make sense?

I don't know about this episode, it just felt very inconsistent between the total terror of the train station and the metal rings and then how easily June and Nick met in the yard at night and how there was a convenient time for an uninterrupted shouting match in front of the Lincoln statue. The metal rings were more horrifying when I thought just that one girl had them as a punishment. I assumed the rest were in a scold's bridle (which don't get me wrong, is definitely torture and horrifying) or that the red mouth things were enough to reinforce the silence. TBH when I realized they all had them I just thought, this doesn't make sense - there would be so many medical complications. I mean all the handmaids are eating a liquid diet only? You'd have to hospitalize them for any stomach illness or, hello, morning sickness. Just keeping their lips healthy would be a major daily hassle. Plus there would be big and ongoing psychological issues outside of any specific punishment - you'd probably have a bunch more suicide attempts, etc. Not that it is in any way acceptable but Aunt Lydia's red center relied in large part on the idea that there was an option for relief of pain via submission and obedience.

I agree. That’s not how you treat women you need to keep physically healthy for breeding. I remember at the start of season 2 (I think) June was being punished with the other hand maids but as soon as word came that she was pregnant she was physically spared.

Commander Stabler’s kids are a few different ethnicities. I get the sense that he discards his handmaids frequently and doesn’t give a hoot about their physical or emotional well being. It would be interesting to see how they treat pregnant handmaids in the dc “culture.”

Oh I got the impression that some of the older ones were taken, like Hannah. (Gilead isn't that old.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is June the only Handmaid who gets to wear a red sweatshirt? It’s like her business casual look.

Ha. I've wondered this as well. It's pretty schlubby and I was really surprised she wore that to the christening and party at the Commander's house.

I seem to recall that it appeared as maternity wear of sorts, so I wondered if maybe it was because she was still post-partum? But I really have lost track of how old Nicole is supposed to be. Surely too old for that to make sense?

I don't know about this episode, it just felt very inconsistent between the total terror of the train station and the metal rings and then how easily June and Nick met in the yard at night and how there was a convenient time for an uninterrupted shouting match in front of the Lincoln statue. The metal rings were more horrifying when I thought just that one girl had them as a punishment. I assumed the rest were in a scold's bridle (which don't get me wrong, is definitely torture and horrifying) or that the red mouth things were enough to reinforce the silence. TBH when I realized they all had them I just thought, this doesn't make sense - there would be so many medical complications. I mean all the handmaids are eating a liquid diet only? You'd have to hospitalize them for any stomach illness or, hello, morning sickness. Just keeping their lips healthy would be a major daily hassle. Plus there would be big and ongoing psychological issues outside of any specific punishment - you'd probably have a bunch more suicide attempts, etc. Not that it is in any way acceptable but Aunt Lydia's red center relied in large part on the idea that there was an option for relief of pain via submission and obedience.

I agree. That’s not how you treat women you need to keep physically healthy for breeding. I remember at the start of season 2 (I think) June was being punished with the other hand maids but as soon as word came that she was pregnant she was physically spared.

Commander Stabler’s kids are a few different ethnicities. I get the sense that he discards his handmaids frequently and doesn’t give a hoot about their physical or emotional well being. It would be interesting to see how they treat pregnant handmaids in the dc “culture.”

Oh I got the impression that some of the older ones were taken, like Hannah. (Gilead isn't that old.)

Same. The older three looked too old to be the children of Handmaids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is June the only Handmaid who gets to wear a red sweatshirt? It’s like her business casual look.

Ha. I've wondered this as well. It's pretty schlubby and I was really surprised she wore that to the christening and party at the Commander's house.

I seem to recall that it appeared as maternity wear of sorts, so I wondered if maybe it was because she was still post-partum? But I really have lost track of how old Nicole is supposed to be. Surely too old for that to make sense?

I don't know about this episode, it just felt very inconsistent between the total terror of the train station and the metal rings and then how easily June and Nick met in the yard at night and how there was a convenient time for an uninterrupted shouting match in front of the Lincoln statue. The metal rings were more horrifying when I thought just that one girl had them as a punishment. I assumed the rest were in a scold's bridle (which don't get me wrong, is definitely torture and horrifying) or that the red mouth things were enough to reinforce the silence. TBH when I realized they all had them I just thought, this doesn't make sense - there would be so many medical complications. I mean all the handmaids are eating a liquid diet only? You'd have to hospitalize them for any stomach illness or, hello, morning sickness. Just keeping their lips healthy would be a major daily hassle. Plus there would be big and ongoing psychological issues outside of any specific punishment - you'd probably have a bunch more suicide attempts, etc. Not that it is in any way acceptable but Aunt Lydia's red center relied in large part on the idea that there was an option for relief of pain via submission and obedience.

I agree. That’s not how you treat women you need to keep physically healthy for breeding. I remember at the start of season 2 (I think) June was being punished with the other hand maids but as soon as word came that she was pregnant she was physically spared.

Commander Stabler’s kids are a few different ethnicities. I get the sense that he discards his handmaids frequently and doesn’t give a hoot about their physical or emotional well being. It would be interesting to see how they treat pregnant handmaids in the dc “culture.”

Oh I got the impression that some of the older ones were taken, like Hannah. (Gilead isn't that old.)

Same. The older three looked too old to be the children of Handmaids.

Maybe. It would be great to get a good look at the Gilead map, along with a timeline of when different areas came under Gilead’s power. DC is part of the original zone, so it’s older than other parts of Gilead, but it would be nice to know timeframes.

Given Commander Stabler’s apparent proclivities, he may prefer to “adopt” children rather than deal with handmaids anyway.

[Anonymous]

I love that we’re calling him Commander Stabler.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m so confused by the Lincoln memorial scene. How did June and Serena have a major smack down and June have a poignant emotional break, all while a thousand handmaids in their Dress Reds are kneeling in Olympic ceremony choreographed rows facing them?

One thing I did like in this episode: I think the multicultural kids of commander Stabler helped emphasize that those kids aren’t theirs. They are basically stolen children. Serena asking “are they all yours?” kind of reinforced that, but also reminded us how blind she is to biological motherhood so that she can justify the messed up handmaids dynamic.

Nice adoption slam. The dynamic is rape and child stealing but being a mom has nothing to do with biology.

DP. Oh, come on. It's a show where children are literally stolen from their parents in the name of God and women are raped by men to produce children that are then taken from them and given to their torturers. For the culture to work the concept of parenthood has to have been completely removed from biology. That was PP's point.

Also, please don't tell me you are legitimizing Serena's claim to the baby because she "feels" like her mother. She held June down while her husband raped her, and when that didn't work she had her "mate" with the chauffeur. She doesn't deserve to be anyone's parent.

I’m the first PP quoted here. You know, I debated including a disclaimer that my “biological motherhood” comment was in NO WAY meant to demean adoption or non-biological parenting. But then I (mistakenly) thought, nah, the DCUM audience is smart enough to know what I meant. That I was clearly referring to the fictional plot line of children being conceived out of enslavement and rape and then the biological mother being forced to have her child taken from her in an “ownership” sense, but be raised by her non-biological rapist “parents” right in front of the handmaid. Sorry if reference to biology and parenting was triggering. It is clearly an integral part of the series.

You do realize there are plenty of shady adoptions that happen every day. And, not just about the biological mom, but to the biological dad and others as well.

Start your own thread if you want to discuss the realities of adoption in real life, and stop pontificating in the entertainment forum in discussion about a tv show.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is June the only Handmaid who gets to wear a red sweatshirt? It’s like her business casual look.

Ha. I've wondered this as well. It's pretty schlubby and I was really surprised she wore that to the christening and party at the Commander's house.

I seem to recall that it appeared as maternity wear of sorts, so I wondered if maybe it was because she was still post-partum? But I really have lost track of how old Nicole is supposed to be. Surely too old for that to make sense?

I don't know about this episode, it just felt very inconsistent between the total terror of the train station and the metal rings and then how easily June and Nick met in the yard at night and how there was a convenient time for an uninterrupted shouting match in front of the Lincoln statue. The metal rings were more horrifying when I thought just that one girl had them as a punishment. I assumed the rest were in a scold's bridle (which don't get me wrong, is definitely torture and horrifying) or that the red mouth things were enough to reinforce the silence. TBH when I realized they all had them I just thought, this doesn't make sense - there would be so many medical complications. I mean all the handmaids are eating a liquid diet only? You'd have to hospitalize them for any stomach illness or, hello, morning sickness. Just keeping their lips healthy would be a major daily hassle. Plus there would be big and ongoing psychological issues outside of any specific punishment - you'd probably have a bunch more suicide attempts, etc. Not that it is in any way acceptable but Aunt Lydia's red center relied in large part on the idea that there was an option for relief of pain via submission and obedience.

I agree. That’s not how you treat women you need to keep physically healthy for breeding. I remember at the start of season 2 (I think) June was being punished with the other hand maids but as soon as word came that she was pregnant she was physically spared.

Commander Stabler’s kids are a few different ethnicities. I get the sense that he discards his handmaids frequently and doesn’t give a hoot about their physical or emotional well being. It would be interesting to see how they treat pregnant handmaids in the dc “culture.”

Oh I got the impression that some of the older ones were taken, like Hannah. (Gilead isn't that old.)

Same. The older three looked too old to be the children of Handmaids.

Agree. Also he likely has multiple handmaidens or finds other ways to acquire children.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is June the only Handmaid who gets to wear a red sweatshirt? It’s like her business casual look.

Ha. I've wondered this as well. It's pretty schlubby and I was really surprised she wore that to the christening and party at the Commander's house.

I seem to recall that it appeared as maternity wear of sorts, so I wondered if maybe it was because she was still post-partum? But I really have lost track of how old Nicole is supposed to be. Surely too old for that to make sense?

I don't know about this episode, it just felt very inconsistent between the total terror of the train station and the metal rings and then how easily June and Nick met in the yard at night and how there was a convenient time for an uninterrupted shouting match in front of the Lincoln statue. The metal rings were more horrifying when I thought just that one girl had them as a punishment. I assumed the rest were in a scold's bridle (which don't get me wrong, is definitely torture and horrifying) or that the red mouth things were enough to reinforce the silence. TBH when I realized they all had them I just thought, this doesn't make sense - there would be so many medical complications. I mean all the handmaids are eating a liquid diet only? You'd have to hospitalize them for any stomach illness or, hello, morning sickness. Just keeping their lips healthy would be a major daily hassle. Plus there would be big and ongoing psychological issues outside of any specific punishment - you'd probably have a bunch more suicide attempts, etc. Not that it is in any way acceptable but Aunt Lydia's red center relied in large part on the idea that there was an option for relief of pain via submission and obedience.

I agree. That’s not how you treat women you need to keep physically healthy for breeding. I remember at the start of season 2 (I think) June was being punished with the other hand maids but as soon as word came that she was pregnant she was physically spared.

Commander Stabler’s kids are a few different ethnicities. I get the sense that he discards his handmaids frequently and doesn’t give a hoot about their physical or emotional well being. It would be interesting to see how they treat pregnant handmaids in the dc “culture.”

Oh I got the impression that some of the older ones were taken, like Hannah. (Gilead isn't that old.)

Same. The older three looked too old to be the children of Handmaids.

Agree. Also he likely has multiple handmaidens or finds other ways to acquire children.

There were two beds in the room so easily could have had two handmaidens.

[Anonymous]

The stapled mouths were or weren't in the book?