The Handmaid’s Tale returned Wednesday with three all-new episodes of the highly anticipated Season 4. Picking up directly after the events of the Season 3 finale, which found June seriously wounded after helping 86 children and several Marthas escape Gilead, the new batch of episodes found the Handmaids still on the run and evading capture, something that ultimately ended in tragedy in the final moments of Episode 3. Warning: This story contains major spoilers for the first three episodes of The Handmaid’s Tale Season 4 – “Pigs,” “Nightshade,” and “The Crossing.”
After seeking safety on a farm presided over by Commander and Mrs. Keyes, June ultimately found herself back in the captivity of Gilead, enduring endless hours of torture before eventually giving away the location of her fellow Handmaids. Rather than being put to death on the wall, however, June and the other Handmaids find themselves in a van with Aunt Lydia on their way to a Magdalene Colony, which June describes as “a breeding colony.” The Handmaids aren’t easily deterred, though, and as their driver takes a latrine break as they await an oncoming train, they rebel against Aunt Lydia, and as they make their final escape, two are shot dead and two others – Alma and Briana – are fatally hit by a train, leaving just June and Janine alive and on the run.
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As fans reeled from the deaths, others took issues with some notable plot holes they noticed, notably the fact that rather than using the prod on Lydia to increase their chances at escape, June and the other Handmaid’s simply let her go unharmed before making their run for freedom. One person on Reddit noted that “if June didn’t take so long to decide what to do with Aunt Lydia, those two would have been alive.” Another viewer said “the van scene was really my least favorite scene in a very impressive, thrilling series of episodes,” going on to point out a number of plot holes bothering them.
“At least they did restrain the hands, but Lydia is fine to ride in the back with six of the most rebellious Handmaids who have freed 86 kids? Looked like there was room in the front for her. And the driver didn’t lock the door while going off to “use the restroom”?” the redditor wrote. “That escape attempt should have showed off their skills as awesome rebels, instead, they only managed to escape because Gilead got stupid again….: In this episode, the Handmaids are all wanted for the crime of the century, but they are barely restrained and then they get assigned one incompetent Guardian to drive them who doesn’t even lock the door.”
Several people seemed to agree, with one person writing that they initially suspected the driver was part of Mayday “and this was a planned escape.” Other users went on to point out other plot holes, including the fact that the Handmaid’s did not check to see if they keys were left in the van, with one person writing, “Zap Lydia and gun it girls! no one would have died. He probably left the keys to the handcuffs up in the front seat too.”
Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, showrunner Bruce Miller noted that it’s “hard to get out” of Gilead and “this is what hard looks like. Hard is hard; it’s terrible. I wanted to make it realistic in terms of, what would the cost be to June?” While there are now only three left of the original group of Handmaids, Miller also teased that “nobody is gone in Handmaid’s” and the characters could possibly still appear in flashbacks.
You can watch the first three episodes of Season 4 on Hulu with a subscription by clicking here. New episodes of The Handmaid’s Tale drop on Wednesdays. Stay tuned to PopCulture for the latest updates!
