'The Handmaid's Tale' Season 5 Premiere Review: Dystopian drama starts with riveting and emotional chapter
With the ending of Season 4 of ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’, we got an idea of how intense things are going to get in the fifth edition of the Hulu series, but damn, we didn’t even have the slightest idea that the show will begin with such dramatic two episodes. Viewers were really happy when they saw the gruesome death of Commander Fred Waterford (Joseph Fiennes) and we all know how much he deserved it. So, the premiere of Season 5 sees June Osborne (Elisabeth Moss) being really happy with what she did with Fred and didn’t even wash his blood off her hands.
With his blood on her hands, she goes out and had breakfast with all the other Handmaids who helped her in killing Fred. However, June gets a shock of a lifetime when she got to know that Emily (Alexis Bledel) has returned to Gilead in order to find Aunt Lydia. Sylvia stops June from doing anything stupid and wants her to stop looking for Emily because she knows that she is never returning now. The first half of the first episode is actually all about June enjoying her freedom and being grateful that her abuser is dead. The slow-motion sequences and even the close-up shots of June make sense here because it was important to capture how she felt after Waterford’s death.
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On the other hand, Serena is currently reeling with sadness as she has received the news of her husband’s death and when she gets to know that his husband’s left ring finger has been sent to her, she immediately recognizes that it is June who has done it. Over the course of two episodes, Serena tries taking June by surprise when she tells her husband’s friends in Gilead that she wants Waterford’s funeral to be shown across the globe so that everyone knows what Gilead is. Now, we know how clever and dangerous Serena is and now that she is vulnerable to threats, she has become more dangerous.
The first two episodes do a great job of making viewers realize that they need to choose a side. As soon as the second episode ends, the series wants you to a make decision if you are either with June or you are with the people who are against her. If you are one of those who just want June to forget anything and live her life, then you are also part of the problem. June has gone through so much in her life and it’s not easy to forget such heinous things that have been done to her.
Elisabeth Moss as June is riveting as always. Her emotions and expressions are on-point and she gives another masterclass in acting. There’s a reason why she is considered to be one of the best actors working in the industry right now and keeps on getting better with each passing project. On the other hand, Yvonne Strahovski continues to impress us with her acting skills. She has come a long way in her career and ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ helped her get the role that she deserved. Now, she is making everyone realize how amazing she is. These two powerhouse performers keep everyone glued to their screens.
All in all, the premiere of ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ establishes the plot perfectly. It’s going to be an all-out war between June and Serena. The concluding moments of Episode 2 will leave you speechless because it features the death of some important characters and Serena doing something that makes June really angry. We can’t wait for the next episode to arrive because June won’t sit back and will give a befitting reply in the same manner.
We hope to see more riveting stuff next week.
'The Handmaid's Tale' Season 5 returns to Hulu with a new episode every Wednesday.