'The Handmaid's Tale' Introduces Commander Lawrence's New Bethlehem

After spending more than four seasons in Gilead, The Handmaid's Tale is introducing viewers to an all-new society: New Bethlehem. After first teasing what some have dubbed Gilead 2.0 earlier in Season 5, in Wednesday's newest episode, "Motherland," the Hulu original series officially took viewers into Commander Lawrence's new society. Warning: This post contains spoilers for The Handmaid's Tale Season 5, Episode 8, "Motherland."

Although details of Lawrence's New Bethlehem initiative had largely been unclear after it was first introduced back in "Fairytale," "Motherland" finally provided details on the new branch of Gilead. Formally unveiling the coastal community to his fellow commanders, Lawrence describes New Bethlehem as a "modernized, strategically liberalized island," a lighter version of Gilead where former citizens now living as refugees in Canada will be welcomed back into the fold and offered amnesty and a place to reunite with long-lost family and friends. Although Commander Putnam previously cast doubt that any of the other commanders would be on board with the new Gilead community, it only takes a little convincing from Nick to convince them it's a sound political move that will help bring Gilead into global discussions. There is only one problem: getting former citizens to move back to the society they fled won't be easy.

To solve that matter, Lawrence travels to Canada, where he seeks out June, the most notable former handmaid who gained widespread attention for her continued fight against Gilead. Lawrence wants June to move back to Gilead and live in New Bethlehem, selling the community to her as a "nicer autocracy," a "Singapore of yore," where she will be able to live peacefully with her husband Luke and also reunite with Hannah, though he confirms that he would not be able to stop her future marriage, lamenting that "in the context of Gilead," marriage at such a young age is a common tradition. According to Lawrence, New Bethlehem is his corrective measure to Gilead, the society he was a key aspect in its creation, a way for him to create a better future for Gilead's residents, and perhaps even the beginning steps to putting an end to Gilead once and for all.

While it remains to be seen who exactly will accept an offer to move to New Bethlehem – the offer wasn't extended to Serena, who is imprisoned – it seems likely that June will not be stepping foot back onto Gilead's grounds. Although she pondered over the offer throughout much of the episode, desperate to reunite with Hannah, the consideration was undoubtedly forgotten at the end of the episode when it was revealed an operation is being led by what remains of the U.S. government to rescue Hannah. How that operation plays out remains to be seen. New episodes of The Handmaid's Tale drop Wednesdays on Hulu.