Season Four of The Handmaid's Tale ...

I really liked season 4, can't wait for season 5

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Tonight was a harrowing and grim watch...but brilliant,

The ending was incredibly moving and I think we were left with a glimmer of hope for June and Janine. I hope so, it has been a very hard watch but I will keep on watching, it is such a quality drama.

Gingster

Is anyone watching HMT this evening. I ve watched every series but this one is so violent and gruesome, I don’t think I can watch anymore.

I know what you mean. I am watching, and finding it unremittingly grim (and dark!). There needs to be a glimmer of hope to make it bearable, and this series doesn't have that.

It's never been a naturalistic drama, but previous series have been believable in their own way. Atwood was at pains to say that everything in her book had happened to women somewhere in the world, and whereas I am under no illusions about the cruelty towards women across the world, this series doesn't have the ring of truth about it somehow.

Is anyone watching HMT this evening. I ve watched every series but this one is so violent and gruesome, I don’t think I can watch anymore.

Newquay

Yes I followed the first series but am finding it very difficult to actually make out what they’re saying! And sometimes it’s too dark to see too!

I think that’s true of a lot of tv series these days. I have sub titles on a lot and I have adjusted the brightness on the tv.

I stopped. watching half way through the second series. One of the great things about Margaret Atwood's book was its sense of mystery, and the confusion of the main character, and that was lost. I thought The Testament was a bit predictable. Not up to her usual writing standard.

I am interested to see how this progresses and what is left of the original June; the June before the Republic of Giliad.

I don’t think much of “before June” at all. How could there be?

As above poster, I am enjoying this series and looked forward to it but the sound is terrible, they seem to be whispering/ mumbling the words...thought it was just me !

Yes I followed the first series but am finding it very difficult to actually make out what they’re saying! And sometimes it’s too dark to see too!

I agree greeneyedgirl. I've avidly followed every series and read both books, but am very confused as to what's happening in the latest series 4. I'll stick with it until the end and hope I can make more sense as it goes along.

I enjoyed the earlier series which followed Attwood’s book but this is very different and have been confused since the start. Perhaps someone can help? I get that June escaped with some of the Handmaids and Marthas and is still being hunted in Gilead. However I don’t understand how their present safe house was organised with such an unsympathetic Commander living there. How did the underground network spring up so quickly? Did the farm not already have its own handmaid staff in situ? I do think it portrays well how when people are brutalised they in turn become perpetrators. I don’t understand the introduction of music soundtracks.

PippaZ wrote:

"Some will watch human rights destroyed, multiple state-inflicted rapes, state-imposed criminal interrogation and the daily, standardised degradation of women - when it's all neat and tidy -"

These brutalise people especially when they are taken for granted, when the people are uniformly compliant.

June is a modern hero who has the insight and the courage to combat an evil regime.

I think it is a wonderful series, hard to watch in parts but with a fabulous cast. June is following her survival instincts and her instinct to protect her two daughters so it is not surprising that she has changed beyond recognition, she is a wonderful character and portrayed so well by Elisabeth Moss. DH and I have very different tastes in what we like to watch but he recently watched the previous series on Catch Up and thinks it is very good too.

Good analysis Caleo.

Some will watch human rights destroyed, multiple state-inflicted rapes, state-imposed criminal interrogation and the daily, standardised degradation of women - when it's all neat and tidy but don't want to know or understand what this does to people.

I am interested to see how this progresses and what is left of the original June; the June before the Republic of Giliad.

I liked that June portrayed what it is like to empathise and to sympathise the young raped mistress of the house. I also liked the way June did not forgive or sympathise with the captured and beaten guard.

I wondered if June's lack of forgiveness was partly due to her need to keep her 'troops' by her side. then again the way June walked away from the guard's death at the hands of the angry women showed how the brutal guard was another casualty of the evil regime of Gilead .

I agree merlotgran. They had begun to transition in earlier episodes (the last series). I wonder if we would have liked what the people in the resistance had become in France? They are resisting a terrible regime and will lose if they are not prepared to fight both the mental and physical battle.

I thought it was good and the change in direction was inevitable. The women are now hardened to brutality so will have to be brutal to survive.

A very dreary and depressing lot of programmes for Sunday viewing. Switched off and read a book.

I watched the series which kept to the original book but not the ones after that. But I read Testaments, which was superb. I see no need to watch this new series.

Yes me too, travelsafar - I’ve ‘enjoyed’ all the last series but I’m not sure about this one. I’ll give it another episode and see .

I watched the last episode so i would be remineded of what happened in preparation for the start of the new series. I was totally lost and couldnt understand or remember any of it!!! Regardless i watched last night and kind of understood but all the close ups of June's face with that starey eyed look is putting me off watching anymore to be honest. The women portrayed are all very strange and unnerve me.

I don’t like this last series, it makes me sick and after watching 2 episodes I won’t be continuing with it. I thought the earlier ones were really good and stuck to Margaret Atwood’s original idea but the new one is overblown.

Perhaps it will follow “The Testament”.

I'm not sure I would say "enjoyed" either but a fascinating watch. This series has been delayed because of the difficulties of filming during covid, I believe. At the end of the last one she had handed the baby over and decided not to go herself, if I remember rightly. Did she get shot or was that an earlier episode.

The slow growth of the resistance rang true. How do you destroy a dictatorship, I wonder. While Canada has helped those fleeing the regime countries are obviously still dealing with them. It should be interesting