#tht 3x12

[rhcenyra]

THE HANDMAID’S TALE ⇢ 3x12 | SACRIFICE 

[a-hologramgalaxy]

[tashibum]

Trying to figure out if Serena is in a hotel or holding cell. Bloody nice holding cell if so. Hotel doors wouldn’t have windows in them. Also i hella ship them 🙈

[comeallyelost]

The Handmaid’s Tale 3x12 Thoughts

This episode honestly left such a bad taste in my mouth that part of me doesn’t even feel like reviewing it.

It’s like the little hope I had left for enjoying the remainder of the season all went to shit.

1. June/Eleanor/Commander Lawrence

Up until now, my biggest issue with the “get the kids out” storyline was its believability. That June singlehandedly orchestrated all of this out of some misplaced grief for Hannah and regret for what she did to Natalie. Like it had never occurred to anyone else in the complex network of the resistance to try to get kids out? A resistance, mind you, which we have yet to understand and was painted as super complicated in S2 when Nick organized June’s first escape and he had barely any info throughout the entire thing.

But now. NOW. June is so dead set on her mission that she let Eleanor OD and commit suicide?! It barely makes any sense at all. Because Lawrence’s WHOLE reason for helping June was for the sole purpose of getting Eleanor out and getting her proper treatment. At the expense of his freedom. Because despite his ambiguous alliances, his love for his wife went above all of that.

I hate this version of June. And the backbone for her “development” is so frail and stupid. I mentioned it in an earlier episode review that I got the same Mad Queen Dany vibes from Game of Thrones. 

I really felt for Lawrence this ep. If this season did one thing well, it was his character. I’m guessing based on the last scene that he knows June let this happen. My question is why is he still going through with the escape if his wife is gone? He seems to have no one else and all that will be waiting for him outside of Gilead is prison. I know he can help with intel to the Americans, but does he even want to? Maybe he feels like he owes it to Eleanor? Idk.

And Eleanor. They did her character such an injustice. She really was sweet and kind and lovely. And also, I think with her illness, she embodied a lot Gilead’s failures. Proof that this society takes a toll on people. Proof that mental illness is no  joke. That it requires proper treatment. And that people cannot survive in a society like this. Like Lawrence mentioned, Gilead failed to account for mental illness. She deserved better.

2. On Serena:

Yo so this bish for real sold out her husband for some time with the baby? I’m still not certain how that is supposed to work. Is she going to have like permanent visits with her or something? 

Serena is a WAR CRIMINAL. She helped build Gilead too. Just because she turned one in doesn’t automatically giver her a free pass. That logic does not work. I can see Commander Lawrence’s logic--he brings in 52 kids and some intel so maybe he gets a pardon or a limited sentence. Maybe Nick does the same--proves he’s part of the resistance and gives endless intel if he turns himself in. But Serena is doing none of that. She’s turning Fred in. But Fred’s not gonna talk, he’s just on trial. And Serena has no plans on talking either. She just wants the baby. 

If the show highlighted how this is white feminism/white privilege at its finest, then maybe I’d believe it and get on board with whatever the story brings. But it’s not acknowledging it whatsoever.

This episode also felt like one of those instances where June and Serena are both treated as the leads of the series. Especially because of the episode title, “Sacrifice”. June sacrifices Eleanor, Serena sacrifices Fred. Both do it for their own selfish “causes”. As if Serena has had it so hard. Her desperation to be with the baby is getting to be a bit much, I think. 

I’m getting mad vibes from Tuello. I’m honestly intrigued, but who tf knows if anything is gonna come of that storyline given the awful job they’ve done with exploring plot lines.

Moira is da best. A+ 

3. On the trajectory of June’s character:

So Fred at one point tells Luke that June is no longer the person she was before Gilead and, yes, I think we can all agree since we have seen her change and grow(?) in her fight to survive. But did they really need to take it so far that she is now like...drunk on some pseudo power she thinks she has because she convinced a few people to shuffle some kids around and she killed a Commander? 

Honestly, this is the same version of June we saw when she was driving Natalie to madness. Her energy is just being harnessed elsewhere. Which, if that IS the case, then she hasn’t changed for the better at all. She hasn’t changed period.

Why are writers trying to make our favorite heroines/protagonists into shitty people? We watch because we’re rooting for them. You can make them interesting without rewiring their moral compass, their intentions, their inner being. UGH. I’m just so annoyed.

I miss the June that was sassy and witty. The June that never relinquished her power to others despite her social standing. She was fierce and intelligent and learned how to navigate situations. OF COURSE I’m expecting her to change and adapt over time. We’ve seen her struggle with her coping mechanisms constantly. But ultimately we want to see her triumph. We don’t want her to go mad with power or become a villain. I’m tired of this Breaking Bad approach to main characters. A lot of TV shows are suffering from it and tbh it’s shit. And it’s an easy out for the “complex character” argument.

4. Predictions for the finale/ Thoughts on this season:

I can already tell there are going to be so many unanswered questions and I just...give up. I’ve held on this season because of how much I adored the first two. But there’s been way too much left unexplored and for no good reason because there have been countless filler episodes.

We’ve seen NOTHING of Emily’s readjustment in Canada. Nothing of Luke and Moira raising the baby. Or Luke coping after June’s tape for that matter. 

The political situation in Gilead remains super ambiguous despite all those mentions of Chicago at the beginning of the season and all the extradition issues with the baby.

Speaking of Chicago, don’t even get me started on Nick’s absence and all of THAT wasted potential. We could have learned SO much about the resistance and about what was going on at the front. The writers found a way to keep the Waterfords relevant even when they were not directly connected to June anymore. They could have just as easily have done it for Nick’s character too. Wtf. He was IMPORTANT. He’s not merely a love interest here. He fell victim to Gilead too and that storyline would have been awesome to explore. And also WTF HAPPENED TO THE SWISS?!

And where are the other handmaids? Alma and Janine were supposed to help too! 

Looking back at the trajectory of this season, there really was a HUGE disconnect after the DC episode (3x06). The first half of the season set us up for a lot of things and almost none of them were explored/ expanded on.

You know what it kind of reminds me of? Like when you set up a really good argument for a paper you’re writing, but then it’s barely held together by the end because you procrastinated too much and have to submit it. 

[xvalenettie]

[skyshipper]

Commander Blaine Mood Board

[jckthelad]

serena in 3x12

GOD serena in this episode was INFURIATING. every time i pictured her ending up in Canada with tuello it was bc she saw the light of what Gilead is and ending up fleeing to Canada. But to see her in Canada, having no insight into how awful Gilead is (the place she played a large hand in creating), having no insight into how EVIL her crimes are, and seeing her get what she wants in a visit with Nichole, whew I struggled with that.

But to see Moira introduce herself as JUNE’S friend, and be so cold to serena, as is deserved, was satisfying. I get legitimately nauseous every time I hear Serena refer to Nichole as her daughter. It just reinforces that Serena is not changing. She IS Gilead. She wants the benefits without having to face the horrors. She has committed war crimes just as Fred has and I just need her to face the music and get what she deserves.

[banesboy]

alec pushing magnus up against the pillar in the training scene

[staring-at-nothingness]

I think I have mention this before,but I'm just gonna mention together. Ava Sharpe make Sara Lance forgets herself.Sara become a nervous mess around her and wasn't Sara suppose to know even if a smallest sound present....BUT.....during their kiss,she didn't even realise someone is in the ship man........ And she is so happy that I actually wanna cry.Sara Lance deserve to be happy.....

[serenagaywaterford]

Multiple people of the same show can be nominated for the same category (look at the Succession cast), it's fully possible to want other people (including Yvonne) to also be nominated without bringing down Samira...

They can, but they WEREN’T. Step off, anon. If you can point me to some reason someone with a total of 15 minutes of screentime (most of which is in the finale and 3x12 so, not even that important the season overall), and not one pivotal, exceptional scene gets a nomination over a SHIT TONNE of far more qualified and deserving women, I’ll stop. 

But you can’t.

Cos, the simple fact is, Samira did not deserve it for S3. Period. I wouldn’t have cared if the entire category was THT cast, Samira still should not have been there. Sorry not sorry. She was basically a guest character but gets “Supporting actress” cred while actual supporting cast don’t? Nah.

I’m not saying she’s not a great actor overall. I’m not hating on her as an actress or person, so chill. But sometimes people do not deserve nominations for this particular thing. These are meant to be awards for stand out performances. Like things that make everyone go “WOAH!!!” Name me one moment like that for Wiley in S3. Other seasons? Yes. This one? No. Nothing out of the ordinary. She was good, very good even at times. But not amazing. Not better than 99.9999% of all other supporting actress roles/performances for the last year. That’s all.

[lavender-ages]

Tht season 3x12

Why did June let Eleanor die?

Was it out of mercy, so that she could stop hurting in Gilead and be free?

Or was it because June thought Eleanor would have been dangerous and a burden while taking the 52 kids out of Gilead?

I don't know really...I hope it's the first one but seeing how June is going mad and how obsessed she is with the plan (which per se isn't a bad thing) I fear she didn't help Eleanor to prevent possible impediments in her big escape plan.

Please share your thoughts, I'd like to understand

[cauldronoflove]

tht being said 3x12's

- mulder calls w a problem

- scully gives an easily explained answer

- "you want me to come up there?"

- "no, no thats fine"

- calls back 10 minutes later

is one of my favorites fjgkdjf

every time im forced to watch a bug related xfiles ep 10 yrs is taken off my life

[hollyethecurious]

ELEANOR!!!

[jckthelad]

“i’ve changed her.”

god can fred just ROT already. seeing him in prison is so fucking satisfying. seeing Luke just deck him was CATHARTIC. but here’s the thing. i really, REALLY want one last june x fred moment where she just DESTROYS him. because she’s good at that. i want her to force him to face what he’s done. i need to see them together one last time.

[skyshipper]

Hey so I lost interest in THT a few episodes ago because I felt like the plot was going nowhere. But I’m hearing good things about the finale. Should I catch up?

Ummmmm, my answer is gonna be no. I gave up at 3x06 and tuned in for 3x12 and 3x13 just to see if things had changed. I ended up just as frustrated as I was at the beginning of this year. Here’s the thing.....sure, June gets a win in the end but how they got there matters. There is all sorts of plot contrivance, offensive tropes, sidelined characters and bad storytelling that went into making the finale happen. This season was flat out terrible. If I were you I’d wait to see how things go next season (to see if the writers have made any significant changes to how they approach this story) before wasting your time. It left me really unsatisfied and disappointed just like the rest of the season.

[banesboy]

hMMM strange tht the teaser is from 3x12 tbh idk how 2 interpret tha t but ight