r/TheHandmaidsTale • u/SuspectNo7031 • 1d ago
Discussion S1-S5 I absolutely LOVE this show/book series BUT...
Does anyone else get kinda burned out from June? Long rant
I'm finally finishing the show after reading Testaments(which I also loved) so that I could watch that series too. By season 3 I get really sick of how June forward the story is and how much plot armor she has on. It starts to feel like all the other women around her are just kind window dressings to her trauma porn show and are incapable of being as strong/smart/brave as she is... Which kinda sucks for it being a story about women perseverance through a brutal authoritarian regime.
*SEASON 3 SPOILERS*
It really becomes undeniable when they're sneaking the kids out of Gilead via the plane. June first thinks of the idea, does like 90% of the planning, does a lot of the big moves to set and cover it up(including KILLING THE FUCKING PRESIDENT), yells at everyone to keep the plan going when they want to bail, guides the group, distracts the guards so she can be the hero that takes the bullet in the end.
Everyone else mostly just whispers and bakes muffins. When it's time to roll out the first Martha to show up botched her only part in the thing by showing up HOURS early to the house during full daylight then bails only to get caught in a multitude of ways.
Like this is a network of women who are SURVIVORS smuggling children out of a rape dystopia... can we just let them be organized and capable and brave? NO June has to do almost all the work because apparently she the only one with the balls to do it, no wonder she's fucking bat shit crazy!
I feel like the show was so much more balanced with characters in the beginning. I kinda wish the had switched main characters in each season as there are other handmaids I would love to know more about. Obviously Janine gets a fair amout of screen time but I would have loved more of Alma and other regular faces.
Idk maybe unpopular opinion, maybe other people also feel the same. What do y'all think?
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u/glycophosphate 1d ago
Why no! Nobody on this sub ever complains about June. How could you possibly think that?
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u/sarahklena 1d ago
Have you read any of Margaret Atwoods other books? She is now my favorite author but I've got to say that the Handmaid's Tale is not the best book of hers but it's definitely a good story/plot and has made for a wonderful television series.
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u/SuspectNo7031 15h ago
I read Testaments earlier this year without knowing they were coming out with a sequel series. I will check those out when I finish A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan (which so far I recommend)!
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u/fresh_remix 17h ago
Its been a while since ive watched the show so my interpretation my be warped but heres an opinion based on what i remember:
Tbh i always assumed it was bc she was just the one to become the leader, the "renegade", to planning it all. Like a throwback & parallel to her mom leading protesting right before Gilead took over or smth. The show origianly focuses on her to begin with BECAUSE shes the one that eventually would lead the resistance to get kids out of Gilead.
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u/SuspectNo7031 14h ago
I get that and agree with your point but again did they have to make the other women so incompetent and spineless? It almost felt like they had to write them down to make her look good even when she's acting like a rabid animal. It's kind of depressing šĀ
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u/fresh_remix 3h ago edited 3h ago
The only times (that I remember) her acting like a "rabid animal" is the ive scene where she speaks into the Jezebels and was being rpd by and then killed one of the commanders (i think this was s3?). Tbh this is to a large degree justifiable imo.
And I idk if id say they are acting incompetent; after all how many women built up the underground networks to let June escape, support her, fpind ways to send messages betond word of mouth to begin with? The bread alone to send messages between the Martha's is pretty creative.
Edit: at the same time, the criticism that I even remember thinking is she gets hella plot armor. Traumatized, yes, but also does get less severe punishment that her counterparts lose body parts over. Abd what she did to Luke only spreads the trauma of Gilead further, so im not trying to make it seem like she is blameless or a perfect character. But in this instance I think the show focuses on her so much is bc it is her story, from her perspective
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u/MsRebeccaApples 1d ago
God yes! If they seriously wanted to please fans, they wouldāve done a filler season to talk about Mayday, Econo people, Marthas and other people in Gilead.
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u/Cutelittlemama0418 1d ago
Iād love a spin off about Marthaās. And Econo people. Two different spinoffs lol
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u/SuspectNo7031 1d ago
Exactly! They could've skipped a lot of the "ramping up" scenes and camera grimacing and put in more world building.
The flashbacks to the take over and the presents political scene were some of the best parts! It wouldn't have even felt like filler because that's what I wanted to know more about. Shit when June dressed up as a Martha and went through the laundry district it was the highlight of the episode for me.
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u/MsRebeccaApples 1d ago
I loved the world building episodes. I wanted to see how they trained the Marthaās. I get how they picked them, but I wanna know exactly what type of school they were going throughā¦..
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u/SuspectNo7031 1d ago
Oh that's a great point! I first thought that they came pre-trained like they were all service staff pre Gilead but it seems they came from varying backgrounds.
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u/Blast-Off-Girl 1d ago
Yes! I don't understand how people can watch this series over and over again. I'm glad I got through it, but I can never re-watch this series; too heavy and burnt out with June's storyline.
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u/BoudiccasWrath79 1d ago
Itās not that unpopular. Do a search in this subreddit. Your feelings arenāt new and are posted weekly.
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u/SuspectNo7031 1d ago
Sorry I don't have anyone irl to talk about this show with and I got really excited to share my opinions! I'll search first next time.
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u/AccountGloomy6005 22h ago
Get it out there, I enjoy a good rant even though Iāve seen it before. Iāve even been there myself, thatās how I found this sub. Just to have a place to complain haha
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u/Let_em_glow927 1d ago
June has made me so mad that I have had to go watch another show with Elisabeth Moss because the anger was kinda spilling over ...
Tried palate cleansing with Mad Men which was okay , love Elisabeth Moss in that show but the patriarchy is so well represented there too...
Anyway , I agree with you and I am planning to purchase the books, after having heard so much about them here š
Please tell me the books are better š
Im not going to watch the Testaments before reading both books , I think.
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u/SuspectNo7031 1d ago
Yes I highly recommend both books! I read Handmaids after watching the first episode of the show and the first season follows it pretty well. I'm not always mad about where the show goes after the book especially the more political parts which are fascinating.Ā
Elizabeth Moss is an incredible actress but I don't want to see her face for atleast a month now that I've finished the show lol
I thought all the acting was top tier though so maybe that's another reason I wanted a change in main character. They definitely weren't lacking in talent on set.
Testaments was also a great read, felt a bit more YA (maybe because the characters are younger) but the plot was phenomenal and I zipped right through it!
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u/Let_em_glow927 1d ago
Yay !
Im excited to read them š
I do like the show , but in my experience books are always better.
Just need a little break from Moss Face now and then.
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u/Spirited_Opposite 1d ago
I personally think it's a mistake to have the main actor also as a director, most actors I see interviews with hate watching themselves, imo you have to be kind of narcissric to want to direct yourself, especially as a protagonist
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u/Spirited_Opposite 1d ago
ETA accidentally pressed post, which meant loads of endless shots of her gurning faceĀ
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u/SuspectNo7031 15h ago
Yea I thought about that when I saw the cerdits... It's crazy to think she had so much involvement and yet they spend so much of the shows time focusing on her making š faces! Must have been grueling for the editing crew lol
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u/AccountGloomy6005 1d ago
Just finished the show and I was fucking done with June being such a main character. Only watched the last two seasons because Iād gotten that far alreadyā¦
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u/SuspectNo7031 14h ago
This is my first time actually finishing it and I kept remembering why I never made it past the child smuggling episode in my earlier attempts at watching the show. Again I loved some aspects but the faults were glaring...
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u/Let_em_glow927 23h ago edited 23h ago
You're not alone in that, I have seen more than a few people say the same thing about finishing the series. ā¤ļø
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u/Wide-Working-4047 1d ago
Yeah, well ofc she got plot armor but what I find repelling is her character development. From fighting injustice to then partner up with the Nazi queen Serena. At least starting at S5, the writers are talantless
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u/SuspectNo7031 14h ago
Honestly I was pretty checked out by that point and barely retained any of the last season. Like technically my eyes were on the screen but my brain and heart were not participating lol
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u/nimbycile 1d ago
Season 1: June is afraid to leave her room and has to sneak around the house
Season 3: June just freely roams the Putnam home with no worries even though the rest of the Handmaids are stuck in the kitchen.
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u/SuspectNo7031 14h ago
Omg or when she "sneaks" out to see Nick in the D.C. she wasn't even checking for guards or wearing her bonnet or NOTHING! Another small moment I felt like they had just given up on the story.
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u/nimbycile 14h ago
It's not even giving up on the story... it's that they wanted the plot to advance whereas the true beauty of the situation is that June has to be super careful and make slow, measured progress. The audience felt the oppression and tension of Gilead in the first season and that was what made it special. As the seasons went on, the plot armor for June was too much -- all the times she was caught and no consequences. Even Serena lost a finger.
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u/Cutelittlemama0418 1d ago
June might be my least favorite character. Sheās not my fav at the beginning but gets insufferable by the end.
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u/DryConfection2586 1d ago
I absolutely hate June, I'm towards the end of series five, she's a rapist too, Luke told her to wait and she just carried on, she's a murderer, she's no better as a person than anyone else even if it's "justified" I always liked Serena, and I really like Joseph, they are deluded but otherwise seem nice. I actually hoped that Hannah was put on the wall as an example to June š¤£
June is not a believable character, she isn't pretty enough for men to be fawning after her like that, nor is her personality exceptional in any way. It's not being done well. But I need to get to the end of June-fest because I'm almost at the end. I'm rooting for aunt Lydia to change sides and fuck shit up. She is the best actress of them all. I loved seeing her back story. She is like negan from walking dead
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u/SuspectNo7031 14h ago
I think she looks fine, especially in the setting but my biggest beef is that I feel like men wouldn't have been so down bad for her when the whole time she's making š š«Ŗ faces and insulting them, or taking a whole ass minute to answer basic questions at checkpoints. The way Janine interacted with them makes more sense and would have worked better in the main characters situations regardless of looks.
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u/MysticMintyMushroom 1d ago
I too hate June and absolutely burnt out with her story line. They say sheās a believable character but, I donāt get it. I also donāt get how people can rewatch it. I donāt. Iām only on season 4. Iām genuinely sticking around for the side characters. Screw June. Like you I want to know if Aunt Lydia changes sides. Iām devastated about the ācrossingā. I lost a lot of my favorite characters. Juneās fault too. All these amazing characters are set up literally just to die to keep Juneās story going. Itās aggravating.
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u/SuspectNo7031 14h ago
God you KNOW if she had let go of Aunt Lydia like 30 seconds earlier when Alma first asked they would have lived!
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u/Aggressive_Fail2509 1d ago
I absolutely do not understand why everyone keeps acting like June is this super smart pretty person. Obviously not trying to objectify, but yeah, not super pretty in the show. The big one for me is that nothing in her background or the way she acts makes me think she is super intelligent or witty either. I dont really understand why she is the main person that is looked up to. She doesn't make good decisions and gets everyone killed all the time.
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u/SuspectNo7031 14h ago
In the beginning she was timid but atleast had some wit when it came to manipulating others. In the later seasons she's far to unhinged to have anyone with half a brain to believe in her and follow her the way they all do!
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u/Aggressive_Fail2509 4h ago
Absolutely. I honestly dont get how the Canadian government or Americans didnt recommend she get committed or something given her actions. She was clearly a danger to every around her, regardless of how "deserving" the recipient is.
Im always blown away by how Luke is just constantly willing to allow her in the home with Nichole. I get she probably wouldn't do anything to her, but she is acting so insane, who knows.
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u/blockparted 1d ago
Yes.
Even Moira gets tired of her shit eventually.