Chasing the dopamine

More thoughts on the Grove family

Judd is definitely showing himself to be a clear antagonist to Aunt Lydia. He made sure she felt powerless and hit her where it hurt when he mentioned Becca potentially becoming a Handmaid.

Wow! What a ride! There were so many points in the episode which I found myself thinking, "Damn. They really underestimated teenaged young women." So Daisy's letter at the end really was just a nice cap on the episode.

There is so much to unpack. It seems I was wrong. Becca will survive another season. Her mother took her place. And the whole event seems to be the pivot point to the plum's deconstructing the world as they know it.

I absolutely love the way the actress plays. Agnes/Hannah. It's a quieter bravery than June. Honestly, Luke is not getting enough credit I think. Luke had that quiet patient resilience that I'm seeing shine through Anges/Hannah. Also, "thinks she's funny but actually isn't." Just screams Luke.

We also got some interesting world building moments. The Aunts have sedatives on tap at the ready for these girls to go through with their marriages and it seems to last long enough into the wedding night. In some ways, I feel this might be an act of Mercy in the world of Gilead, but it also just creates this horrible pit in my stomach for these young women who have gone through these horrible rituals.

Becca's mom taking her daughter's place reminded me that this is very much Gilead. The same Gilead we saw in The Handmaid's Tale. In many ways this season felt easier to consume because we weren't confronting body horror more episodes than not, but the finale did an excellent job of setting the stage for next season.

The conclusion promised us more rebellion and ultimately more blood. There was so much foreshadowing and so many throwbacks. Paula dropping the bit of lore that Commander Mackenzie refused to allow Gilead to kill Agnes to punish June was telling. I think Paula needs to remember that. She seems to forget how much love there can be between a "father" and his "daughter" (abductor and abductee).

We know Daisy was expecting to experience assault when she visited Dr. Grove. Her surprise is palpable when he concludes the visit without even so much as grazing his fingers over her body. I applaud the show demonstrating so clearly how intentionally abusers select their victims.

Daisy has not grown up in Gilead. She has had sex education and that protects her from abuse. This example is tied to actual research in the importance of educating young children on the names of their body parts and ensuring that they understand nobody should be touching them outside of very specific circumstances such as changing a diaper. The importance of sex education is further validated when Daisy under no uncertain terms claims, he forced her to touch his penis. She is intentionally using anatomical language to avoid any attempts to invalidate her claims.

In one sentence, Daisy is able to stop Aunt Vidalia from rewriting the events as she did with Hulda.

I still believe Becca will die and that will play a pivotal role in Agnes deconstructing the society she has been brainwashed in. But before that occurs, I believe Becca is being initiated as an Aunt. Other commentators have also shared this belief on various platforms.

I have read the book but the show is definitely taking some liberties so I'm not sure how much I want to rely on book canon to inform my predictions with the show. However, as others have pointed out, Aunts have a duty to deliver Justice which in Gilead is violent. Becca demonstrating her ability to deliver violent Justice to her father indicates that she does not allow blood loyalty to get in the way of Justice.

Of course, we, the viewer, know Agnes would be the exception for Becca every time. There could be an interesting tension to be played with if Becca were to discover Agnes has committed something in which an aunt would have to punish her.

Becca will be caught as gender traitor. Plot wise it's the best way to expose Agnes to the lie she believes about her world. That the Eyes protect her (them all) from people who want to hurt or kill them.

Agnes knows Becca. That's her best friend. With Becca's murder at the hand of Gilead and the eyes, Agnes will be forced to question the world she's been told to believe against the very real young woman she knew. The lies she's been fed about gender traitors will be in direct opposition of someone she loved and knew.

Episode 4 starts with Daisy horrified at the people hanging and Agne was practically blind to them. How will she feel when she doesn't just recognize the body, but knows it. Knows it better than she's known anyone. Becca is her best friend despite not being allowed to have best friends. The relationship is already her first act of rebellion.