“The Handmaid’s Tale” Sets Hollywood Ablaze with its Season Two Premiere
The opportunity to to attend the Hollywood premiere of the second season of “The Handmaid’s Tale” left me with little doubt that the critically revered Hulu sensation will fight ferociously to avoid a sophomore slump.
Note: The following article contains a recap of the first season of The Handmaid’s Tale and some information about the second season premiere, which premieres Wednesday, April 25th. A concerted effort was made to avoid substantive spoilers of the premiere, but if you wish to view the episode with no foreknowledge whatsoever, do not read the section reviewing it until you have had the chance to watch it.
An Introduction to The Handmaid’s Tale
After a few false starts, streaming service Hulu roared into the original series game in April 2017 with The Handmaid’s Tale, an adaptation of Margaret Atwood’s 1985 feminist dystopian novel. The series was one of the season’s most buzzed-about debuts of the 2016–2017 season, yielded near unanimous critical acclaim, and eventually swept the 2017 Emmys, winning Outstanding Drama Series (the first streaming series to do so), three acting awards (for Elisabeth Moss, Ann Dowd, and Alexis Bledel) and trophies for its writing and directing.
The show started production in April 2016 just as the source material was gaining renewed attention in the midst of the Clinton/Trump election showdown that many would argue had misogyny at its core. It premiered one year later in April 2017, as feminist rage against the Trump administration was galvanizing. Given its subject matter, the show would certainly have garnered attention from critics, journalists, and viewers even if it had been only middling. The fact that it was the best new drama series in years — on streaming, broadcast, or cable — contributed to it becoming a sensation.
Mad Men and Top of the Lake star Elisabeth Moss had already established herself as a darling of the peak TV era even before taking on the lead role in the series, but she finally garnered the respect and attention she deserved with the lead role of June Osborne. Through her characters eyes we see the horrors of Gilead, a totalitarian Christian regime established after a gruesome civil war divided the United States. As one of the few fertile women left, she is enslaved as a handmaid and forced to submit to rape on a routine basis with the goal of providing a high ranking Commander and his infertile wife with a child. Elisabeth Moss’s peerless performance, which invites viewers deep into the horror and refuses to let them go, is truly masterful. In the home, she forms a working relationship with her Commander (a charismatic Joseph Fiennes), a friendship with his chauffer Nick (a stoic Max Minghella), and garners the rage of the Commander’s wife (a chilling Yvonne Strahovski). Outside the home, she develops a kinship with her partner Emily/Ofglen (Gilmore Girls’ Alexis Bledel in a stunning, change-of-pace performance) and is overseen by Aunt Lydia (an utterly terrifying Ann Dowd), who keeps the handmaid’s in line and guides them toward fulfilling their duties.
The scenes in Gilead are hauntingly staged with the gray-hued cinematography, rich production design, and haunting score that you would expect from a show depicting such a horrifying dystopian future. Through terrifying flashbacks, we learn of June’s prior life with her husband Luke (a charming O.T. Fagbenle), daughter Hannah, and best friend Moira (a razor sharp Samira Wiley), all of whom she is separated from when the new regime takes over. These scenes provide a jarring contrast to those in Gilead and provide much-needed context for the political realities and personal relationships that dominate the action. After an incomprehensibly strong series of six episodes, the first season loses a bit of steam as it changes pace for a couple of episodes. The seventh episode chronicles Luke’s escape to Canada and the eighth reunites June and Moira in an underground whorehouse in Gilead. Although the change of pace, setting, and focus are highly welcome, the episodes just cannot compare to the utterly fascinating episodes that preceded and followed them. Luckily it regroups for a striking final two episodes that set up a very intriguing second season.
The decision to make The Handmaid’s Tale an ongoing dramatic series (as opposed to a limited series) was an intriguing — and somewhat controversial — one. The climax of the first season coincides with the end of Atwood’s novel, leaving the writers with the task of deciding where to go next. On the one hand, this could be a thankless task. Will anything the writers conjure up be able to satisfy fans of the novel? On the other hand, it also liberates the writers and allows them to freely explore a wider array of territory. Regardless of how the second season and any future ones that may happen beyond that fare, the first season of The Handmaid’s Tale will remain a landmark in the peak TV era. Creator Bruce Miller’s fully realized vision is a brilliantly written, directed, and acted saga that is profoundly complex and topical without ever sacrificing viewer engagement.
The Handmaid’s Tale Big Night at the Chinese Theater
Precious few details have been made available about the forthcoming second season of The Handmaid’s Tale. I could only find out four things for sure. First, the whole original cast would be back (including Alexis Bledel being promoted from guest star to series regular). Second, it would premiere on April 25th on Hulu, with a total of 13 episodes premiering on consecutive Wednesdays. Third, we would get a glimpse of the Colonies, the toxic wastelands on the outskirts of Gilead where those deemed anathema to those in power. Fourth, we would get guest appearances from two brilliant and underutilized actresses, Oscar-winner Marisa Tomei and Tony-winner Cherry Jones. Hulu’s decision to withhold such information succeeded in its goal of stoking fan intrigue and I naturally jumped at the opportunity to see an advanced screening of the premiere.
It was by chance that I saw the opportunity to join the waitlist at 1Iota’s website (www.1iota.com), which I periodically check for the chance to score free tickets to Hollywood events. A few days before the premiere, I got off the waitlist and was granted VIP tickets. Details about the event were scarce, but we were told we had to dress in “upscale business attire” (which we did) and that we would have the chance to see the celebrity arrivals on the red carpet (which we did not). Nevertheless, we were granted early access to the historic Chinese theater on Hollywood Boulevard, where we were given free popcorn and soda, saw original costumes from the series displayed around the lobby, and led to fantastic third row seats. The seats were at an awkward angle for the screening, but they were the best seats in the house for the introduction of the ensemble. The entire ensemble was presented one by one along with creator Bruce Miller and executive producer Warren Littlefield. Miller and Littlefield welcomed the crowd and then haded over the mic to star and executive producer Moss, who gushed over her co-stars, warmly thanked the audience, and led the theater in a rendition of “Happy Birthday” for Miller’s son, who was celebrating his 19th birthday in the theater that evening.
After she was done with the singalong, Moss quipped, “That’s the last bit of joy you’ll get this evening.” She wasn’t kidding (see the review below).
After the screening of the premiere, the audience was held for a few minutes so that the cast and crew could exit. But the event’s surprises were not over. When the audience exited out of the Chinese Theater onto the iconic concrete slabs with Hollywood royalty’s hand and footprints embedded in them, there were a number of glass cases featuring real handmaid costumes that were encased in flames. It was a jarring sight that fit perfectly with the premiere episode’s climactic scene. All in all, the night was a tonally perfect and elegant celebration of the cultural phenomenon’s return.
A (Mostly) Spoiler-Free Review of the Season Two Premiere
“Whether this is my end or a new beginning, I have no way of knowing. I have given myself over into the hands of strangers. I have no choice. It can’t be helped. And so I step up, into the darkness within… or else the light.” These chilling words were spoken in a voiceover by our protagonist (whose name is June in the free world, but Offred in Gilead) in the final scene of the first season. They resonate deeply in the opening scene of the second season premiere (entitled “June”), which picks up exactly where the season one finale left off — with June in the back of a truck heading to an unknown destination. The destination is quickly made known and will not be detailed here, but let’s just say any scant trace of hope that she is off to a happy ending is quickly eradicated.
The episode substantially delves into the handmaids’ collective decision to not follow Aunt Lydia’s instructions to stone Janine/Ofwarren at the end of the first season. (In a state of profound desperation toward, Janine committed one of Gilead’s most profound sins — endangering the life of a child.) The handmaids’ punishment occurs in stages and is utterly horrifying, even by this show’s standards. But fitting with the show’s staunch dedication to never descending into “torture porn” (despite the comments of some off-the-mark critics), deep themes are evoked and important plot advances occur amidst the horror. Here, Offred is confronted with the painful reality that while she encouraged the other handmaids in their defiance she is ultimately protected from most of the punishment they will receive by virtue of her pregnancy. The tête-à-tête between Offred and Aunt Lydia in which this fact is discussed is the dramatic high point of the episode. In fact, Moss and Dowd’s scenes in the premiere make a very strong case for the pair scoring repeat wins in the Lead Actress and Supporting Actress categories at this fall’s Emmy ceremony.
Without the narrative of the book to rely on, the writers had to decide not only where to move the story but also how quickly to do so. With regard to the former, only time will tell if the turn of events of the premiere lead to truly satisfying terrain. With regard to the latter, however, the episode is an unqualified success. The pacing of the episode is among its strongest aspects. It is engaging throughout and avoids the tendency of so many drama series to stuff their season premieres with tedious exposition. The script creates sustained suspense by withholding the appearance of several key supporting players for subsequent episodes, but this move feels more like an essential narrative decision than a contrivance to keep the viewers engaged for the premiere’s follow-up episodes.
Nearly every aspect of the production that made the first season such a marvel is on display in the premiere. The haunting cinematography (there is a scene in the weed-ridden remnants of Fenway Park that is one of the show’s most striking), the use of music (which is always fitting, but never traditional), and the clever placement of flashbacks to the characters’ former lives (here depicting a key moment in Gilead’s formation). Unlike most shows, where flashbacks often feel more like a contrivance, these scenes are essential to The Handmaid’s Tale in terms of character development and for the fleshing out of the sociopolitical context that the characters are living in. In fact, although many bemoaned the decision for the narrative of the series to proceed beyond Atwood’s prose, it is precisely the desire to learn more about Gilead — how it came to be, how it functions, and how it will (hopefully) implode — that makes me particularly excited they decided to expand the universe Atwood created.
There are many unknowns about the remaining twelve episodes of The Handmaid’s Tale’s second season. But if the premiere is an adequate representation of what is to come, there is no sophomore slump in sight. The season premiere is every bit as haunting, profound, and brilliantly crafted as the show’s first season.
Grade: A
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