Handmaid’s Tale Season 6 Episode 8 is the highly anticipated wedding of Serena Joy and Commander Gabriel Wharton. But the most significant event is what the Handmaids, with the help of June and Moira, have planned. Spoilers ahead!
Handmaid’s Tale Season 6 Episode 8
Handmaid’s Tale Season 6 Episode 8 opens with powerful, driving music full of brass instruments and the visuals of the creation of Handmaid’s dresses from the dying of fabric to the sewing of the dresses. There’s also the preparation of many knives concealed inside dresses. Over these scenes, we hear a monologue from June, and it’s pretty powerful too.
They wanted us to look like we’d been dipped in blood. Some fairytale figure in a red cloak.
They used our clothes to divide us. To dehumanize us. But tonight, those clothes will be our weapons. Tonight, we will use these clothes to start a war.
These scenes are taking place at the Red Center, and the Handmaids get dressed for the wedding. June (Elisabeth Moss) and Moira (Samira Wiley) line up with them outside, touching their hands as they pass through them.
They put us in red, the color of blood, to mark us. They forgot that it’s also the color of rage.
The Wedding of Serena Joy and Commander Gabriel Wharton
The ceremony takes place in a grand cathedral. The Handmaids are the first to enter, and they’re seated in the very back. Then the Commanders and their wives enter. Nick (Max Minghella) and his wife, Rose (Carey Cox), enter alone, and he steps up to the dais at the front of the church. It’s interesting to note that, for all their mention of God and faith, there are no more clergy. Nick is the one who performs the ceremony.
Serena’s (Yvonne Strahovski) dress is, admittedly, beautiful, and she looks incredible in it. The dress is a very pale blue and it’s adorned with exquisite but understated details. It has a wide train, and she wears a narrow veil that hangs from her neat bun. She looks so happy. Too bad that happiness couldn’t last.
Serena and Commander Wharton (Josh Charles) take their places on high-backed chairs at the front, facing the congregation. They look like monarchs sitting there, ruling over everyone. There’s a feeling of superiority practically flowing off of Wharton.
June and Moira try to pass the knives out to the Handmaids, but one of them is dropped,d which draws unwanted attention, so they go to plan B, which is to pass them around during the reception.
The Wedding Reception: Cake and Close Calls
At the reception, the posted Handmaids and those from the Red Center are made to greet each other. Through the brief nods and the expressions conveyed by eyes alone, it’s clear they know what’s about to happen. And they’re ready for it. The knives are successfully handed out this time.
There is a moment when Serena goes to talk to the Handmaids when it seems like everything might be discovered. She makes a heartfelt speech about how the Handmaids haven’t received gratitude and that things will change. She talks about her previous Handmaid and how she thinks that person forgives her. June’s face seems to say otherwise.
Serena tells them she wants a portrait with them later, and she wants them to have their veils off so she can see their faces. She wants to see them as individuals. Luckily, Rita (Amanda Brugel) has stepped in and interrupted. When asked to tell the Handmaids how to forgive and move forward, Rita says, “you set a goal, and you work towards it. Keep your eyes on the prize, ladies.”
When the wedding cake comes out, it’s a foul thing. The cake is covered in red fondant. It’s the same color the Handmaids wear. The wedded couple cut the cake, and that’s when we learn from Moira and June that the cake is drugged and it will take effect in a couple of hours.
The second close call comes when Aunt Lydia (Ann Dowd) makes a surprise appearance. The Aunt who’s been aiding the rebellion and Joseph (Bradley Whitford) intercept her. But she already spotted June. She’s not convinced when Joseph says June is in Alaska.
Rebellion
It’s not surprising that things aren’t all joyful when the Whartons return to their home. Serena is shocked to find a Handmaid is kneeling on the floor, waiting for them to arrive. She is instantly upset and angry. She thought Wharton was different from the other men. She stands up to him, and we finally see her again as the strong woman we know she truly is.
He tries to gaslight her, claiming that she is the one who deceived him and that he’s a “good man.” Her reply is, “You can’t be. You’re a Commander.” He finally does allow her to leave with her baby in her arms.
We’re treated to the sight of the posted Handmaids walking down the street as they break off one at a time to go to the Commander’s houses, until June is left alone. She goes to the house of Commander Bell (Timothy Simons), who has claimed Janine (Madeline Brewer). She finds him alone, dozing off in a chair, but he is awakened by the phone ringing. When he sees her, he knows who she is. Just before stabbing him in the eye, June says, “Nice to meet you.”
Aunt Lydia returns to the Red Center, she found the cake that the Handmaids left under their benches at the reception. When she discovers the young women are all still dressed, she’s angry and yells at them. The guard from the Eye stands over their Aunt ally with his gun while the Handmaids cower. Moira stands up to Aunt Lydia, who demands to know where June is. And then June enters.
Aunt Lydia isn’t buying into June’s words as she tries to turn her to their cause, but when Janine comes in, Aunt Lydia cannot continue to deny the truth. The Handmaids are allowed to leave, and Lydia is left crumpled on the floor, sobbing and calling on God to help her. Throughout this scene, the music was solemn but triumphant in a quiet way. It was a victory for the Handmaids and a revelation for Aunt Lydia.
Handmaid’s Tale Season 6 Episode 8 ends as the Handmaids run down the street as we see posted Handmaids approaching sleeping Commanders.
The dress became our uniform. And we became an army.
And so we fled, away from the darkness… within and without… and into the light.
