My legs don’t work,” she barks at Lydia, and I’m cackling.Īunt Lydia not only doesn’t blink at the back talk when Janine reads her the riot act for her attitude toward Esther, she actually shuts up and listens. But this time, for whatever reason, Janine has abandoned her usual meek demeanor for real talk. Having awoken from her poison-induced coma, Janine is being hand-held through physical therapy by Aunt Lydia amid a stream of unrelenting Bible verses and trite aphorisms. Hands down, my favorite part of this episode was watching Janine, a perfect character who could easily draw me in for ten more seasons if she were leading this show, lay this dichotomy out to Aunt Lydia in just so many words. Luke can temporarily defang Serena through the use of city ordinances, but the only way to stop Gilead for good may be, as June says, to put them all in the “fucking ground.” But they are very, very slowly learning that the Gilead system is a cage of their own making whose only escape is through brutality or death. It’s a system they helped build and have devoted their lives to uphold, after all. Serena and Aunt Lydia believe in the system their system. But that’s in Canada (which, in this universe, is a nation of prison abolitionists who also hold minor construction codes sacrosanct).
#Highfive tv code
Luke’s bureaucracy offensive wins in this round, managing to shut down Gilead’s pseudo-embassy, a so-called “cultural center” that is also Serena’s only home, via building code violations. But Luke, having spent the past several years protected by asylum in Canada, wants to wield the system itself as a weapon. Gilead has taught June that when the system fails you, as it always will, the only way forward is through violence. The patriarchy part, yes, but also the relative power and limitations of political institutions versus political violence. The A-plot in particular - which puts Luke’s faith in local government against June’s bloodlust to fight the creeping influx of cultural Gilead in Toronto - tidily mirrors the greater themes of the show. Finally, I feel like I understand where each character is coming from and where they’re headed next, except for Commander Lawrence, who remains a mystery I’m praying this show decides to resolve one day. While still jumping between June & Co., Serena, and Janine and Aunt Lydia, this episode seemed far more focused than the previous three. Because I’m feeling generous and because I enjoyed this character-driven episode, I’m even going to award Serena a kudo for having the force of will and/or willful blindness to make the best of her new gig in Toronto after the mortifying experience of being rejected and kicked out of Gilead. June restrained herself from shooting Serena in the face Luke proved the power of local bureaucracy Janine gave Aunt Lydia the business straight up, and Aunt Lydia actually listened and maybe even learned a little bit. I finished “Dear Offred” with the urge to give everyone on this show - except Commander Lawrence - a hug and a high five.
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