In the season 5 finale of The Handmaid’s Tale, June finds herself in even greater danger and limited options for her, Luke, and Nichole. In Gilead, Lawrence solidifies his image while Aunt Lydia works with Janine.
Warning: Spoilers beyond this point.
Unsafe
Tuello stops by to see June, Luke, and Moira and tells them that the gunman from the service was apprehended, and the Americans are looking for any ties to Gilead. June walks Tuello to his car and notices that everyone is moving out. As she walks back, a large truck suspiciously follows her. Then, it hits her, drives over her arm, and intends to finish the job until Luke runs out just in time and deals with the driver. He gets June to a hospital where she writhes in pain and the police want to bring Luke in for questioning.
The Renewed Deal
Nick tells Commander Lawrence about the shooting, but he already knew and has no sympathy for June, despite Nick stressing how June isn’t their target. Later, Nick meets with Tuello in Canada and goes to see June. Outside her room, Tuello tells Nick that Luke is at the station and the driver is in the ICU. When Tuello leaves, Nick goes in to sit with June (who’s sleeping) for a moment, kissing her forehead before he leaves.
Back at the border, it’s revealed it was part of a deal, and Nick agreed to work with Tuello. He needs to know Tuello will keep June safe, but a vague statement does little to help. As Nick leaves, Tuello mentions that when June and Nick met, Nick was still with the Eyes; he and June could’ve run away together. Nick replies that June has other people who care about her, and he’s nothing to her. Tuello disagrees before Nick leaves.
Proposals and Weddings
An Aunt notes that others have noticed Aunt Lydia’s charity to Janine, and that she needs to find a posting. So, Aunt Lydia brings the idea to Mrs. Putnam. Mrs. Putnam refuses, but Aunt Lydia thinks that letting Janine back into her home would paint Mrs. Putnam as a model of forgiveness and grace. Mrs. Putnam eventually agrees to consider. Janine isn’t any easier to convince until Aunt Lydia reminds her about Angela and that Janine can’t stay indefinitely at the Red Center.
Wedding prep is underway at Lawrence’s, and Mrs. Putnam lays out the conditions of Janine being her handmaid again, which Janine agrees to. Once alone, a Martha tells Janine what happened with June. After portraits are done, Mrs. Putnam tries to be friendly towards Janine, until she calls her Ofjoseph. Janine is angry and reminds Mrs. Putnam that they’re not friends, that she’s horrible and hates her. When Mrs. Putnam is called away, Janine heads upstairs, seeming extremely satisfied.
Back at the Red Center, Aunt Lydia is upset with Janine and wants her to make it right. Janine says no. Moments later, the Eyes show up for Janine. When Aunt Lydia threatens to call Lawrence, they reveal he was the one who sent them. They take Janine away, with Aunt Lydia trying and failing to get her back. We see they also took the Martha from earlier.
Meanwhile, Nick also landed himself in trouble after hitting Lawrence, in the middle of the wedding reception, for what happened to June. He is now in jail, where Rose goes to visit him. She is not happy, especially because he pretended to love her. He claims he tried to let June go, but Rose doesn’t really buy it and says she doesn’t want to be with him anymore.
Run and Don’t Look Back
Home from the hospital, June finds Luke arguing with Moira and Rita. The driver died which means Luke killed him and is now wanted by Canadian police. Luke refuses to view this as a Bad Thing, as he was protecting June. June finally gets his attention and says they have to run; they’re no longer safe. Luke disagrees, because they’re not in Gilead, but June reminds him that America wasn’t Gilead either until it was. So, they need to run NOW. Moira and Rita tell them about their flight and get ready to see them off when Tuello shows up to say they can’t go. They’ll get flagged at the airport and lose Nichole. June is at a loss when Tuello tells them that all the refugees are being put on trains going west. He can get them on one.
At the train station, Tuello gives June and Luke new refugee cards, and June asks him to tell Nick she is okay. When she and Luke head in, they note the police but make it all the way to the train. Where there are checkpoints. Luke sends June ahead with Nichole, and she gets through. While she waits for Luke, police begin asking if anyone has seen him. He calls her and tells her to get on the train, because she won’t be safe as long as he’s with her. She absolutely refuses until she realizes that Luke was never planning to go with her. They have an emotional goodbye before June boards the train and Luke surrenders.
June walks through the train to try and find a seat. Nichole gets fussy, so June carries and soothes her. She hears another baby crying and decides to walk that way.
“Hi, Serena.”
The entirety of The Handmaid’s Tale season 5 is streaming now on Hulu. Find our season 5 review here and keep up with the rest of our coverage here.
