The Handmaid's Tale Season 2 finale defied logic

The Atlantic

Calling the finale twist "transparently manufactured," Sophie Gilbert says: "The biggest problem throughout the two seasons of The Handmaid’s Tale has been that the show can’t quite find a way to unite its world-building ambitions with the constrained environment of (Margaret) Atwood’s book." She adds: "The TV adaptation, being set during a time of smartphones and pussy hats and instant messaging, can’t quite get to grips with how a repressive state like Gilead might coexist with 21st century America, which leads to logical fallacies like the one prompted by Oprah’s cameo in the 11th episode. The more the show offers scenes outside of June’s perspective, the more questions it raises. What’s happening in New York City? What about the West Coast? Are upwards of 300 million Americans really being governed by a theocracy of a dozen commanders in Boston? Where have all the celebrities gone? Which is perhaps why the series so often returns to its comfort zone—as frustrating as it might be for viewers, and as narratively incoherent."

ALSO:

• The Handmaid's Tale appears to be falling victim to the same problems that plague The Walking Dead
• Season 2 attempted to bend sympathies well beyond any conceivable breaking point
• The Handmaid’s Tale as a whole has become something of a slog, burdened by aimless plotting and a seemingly endless onslaught of trauma
• Maybe it's a good thing that The Handmaid's Tale is choosing the less interesting path forward
• It tried to have its traumatic past match up with our traumatic present, and only made itself messier as a result
• Season 2 strayed from one of the book's significant ideas: that Elisabeth Moss' June is ordinary
• Creator Bruce Miller: "There was incredible amount of push back from me and from everybody else"
• "I think there is a happy ending, and I don't think everything's always going to be terrible," says Miller
• Why does The Handmaid's Tale keep lending its name to awful merchandise?
• Margaret Atwood says in her Masterclass promo she didn't make up all the bad things in The Handmaid's Tale