Top 20 Most Intense Handmaid's Tale Moments

“Chicago”

Even when June successfully manages to escape her captors, it’s merely the beginning of a marathon. June and Janine reach a milestone in Chicago, but their newfound freedom can be stripped away instantly. Just as they’re about to continue their pilgrimage to Canada, Gilead bombs the city. The two flee from the explosions in the distance, only to run right into a blast. As a disoriented June emerges from the rubble with Janine nowhere to be found, we anticipate the worst. Calling out her friend’s name, June doesn’t find Janine, but rather, Moira, who has come to help. As gratifying as this reunion is, the episode still leaves us on an uncertain note with Janie MIA. As June feared, Janine is again bound for Gilead.

“Postpartum”

While the handmaids suffer the most, few if any are safe in Gilead. When Nick’s bride Eden is caught having an affair with Guardian Isaac, they’re given two options: repent for their infidelity or pay the ultimate price. Unwilling to live under these conditions, the star-crossed lovers are taken atop a high dive with weights attached. Eden naively tries appealing to her executioners with a Bible verse, but Gilead believes in a more vengeful god. They condemn the couple to the waters below as others in attendance powerlessly watch. This includes Eden’s mother. Even Serena is shocked by this display, marking one of the first times we see a more human side of the woman who has caused June so much pain.

“Together”

Masterfully played by young Mckenna Grace, Esther Keyes uses her status as a wife to help the handmaids. Esther is eventually caught, though, becoming a handmaid herself. Looking for a way out, Esther shares some poisonous chocolates with Janine. They survive, but when Esther comes to, it’s revealed that she’s with child. Like most other babies in Gilead, Esther’s was conceived in the worst way possible. However, Esther wasn’t impregnated during “the Ceremony.” When Aunt Lydia apologizes for what Commander Putnam did, Esther calls her out on this double standard. With or without a “Ceremony,” Esther is no different than the other handmaids who were forced upon. Esther justifiably breaks down in anger, hammering in what a hypocrite Aunt Lydia is.

“Late”

One of the earliest episodes flashes back to a turning point when everything started going to hell. In a snap, women lose their right to make money and own property. June and Moira find that they’ve also lost their right to protest. The latter doesn’t only apply to women. Male or female, anyone who stands against Gilead is a target. As an angry mob stands against armed forces, shots are fired in one direction while an explosion goes off in another. Seeking shelter, the friends watch as others are gunned down. Just when the coast appears to be clear, shattered glass rains upon them. There’s no longer any use in protesting. All June and Moira can do is run as far as they can.

“Dear Offref”

Despite making it to Canada and putting Fred Waterford out of commission, June still finds herself fighting. She isn’t holding back anymore, however. When a protester punches Moira, June whips out a gun. While she only fires into the air, June is prepared (and even eager) to shoot anyone who tries throwing another punch in her direction. Luke escorts June off the scene, but they cross paths with Serena and her bodyguard. June is tempted to kill Sernera right then and there - consequences be damned. The only thing holding her back is Serena’s pregnancy. Although June is full of vengeance and not in the most rational mental state, she can’t bring harm to a child - no matter who the mother is.

“Liars”

When June gets Nichole to safety, it initiates a chain of events that results in a disastrous one for Fred Waterford. After a series of pleas and negotiations for Nichole’s return, Fred and Serena meet with Mark Tuello, the U.S. official who’d earlier approached Serena in Canada. Desperation easily clouds their judgment, as Tuello deceives them into following him across the border into Canada. Once there, he reads a laundry list of the Commander’s war crimes and places him under arrest, to the absolute satisfaction of everyone watching.

“June”

Although “The Handmaid’s Tale” is an adaptation of the Margaret Atwood novel, the series exhausts the book’s narrative by the end of the first season. For its follow-up, the show’s writers take things into their own hands and drive us down a path of total brutality with this opening scene. Aunt Lydia devises a wrathful plan to teach the handmaids a lesson after they disobeyed her in the season one finale. The handmaids are rounded up, threatened with barking dogs and forced onto gallows, while Kate Bush’s “This Woman’s Work” plays hauntingly in the background. It’s a spine-chilling scene that’s not made easier by the reminder that Gilead would never get rid of all its handmaids.

“Baggage”

The third episode of the second season finds June hunkered down in the Boston Globe while she gears up to leave Gilead. She is found by a man named Omar, who reluctantly takes her to his home when he learns that their safehouse is compromised. After Omar and his family fail to return from church on time, June runs from their house and finds her way to the airstrip where she is loaded onto the plane, bound for Canada. Just as we think all might finally turn out well, the plane is intercepted by Gilead’s guards and June is ripped away from the prospect of freedom.

“Night”

In the season one premiere, the handmaids are assembled and made to beat a man to death for raping a pregnant handmaid and killing her baby. June leads the charge, kicking down the unfortunate man without thinking twice. This exact scene is mirrored in the season finale, with Janine kneeling in the man’s place. Charged with the crime of endangering a child, Janine is sentenced to death by stoning, at the hands of her fellow handmaids. June once again steps up to the plate, only this time, she defiantly flouts the orders and the other handmaids follow suit. Although her actions are certainly not without consequences, it’s a captivating way to show just how much June has grown over the season.

“The Word”

The law in Gilead forbids women from reading any written material - not educational books, not grocery lists, not even the Bible. June tells Serena that in Gilead, Nichole will never be able to understand God, as she won’t be allowed to read His word. This thought overwhelms Serena so much that she decides to raise it up before the Council of Leaders. To everyone’s surprise – and outrage, in the case of Fred – Serena brings out a Bible and reads a passage from it. Her punishment? A life without her left pinky finger. The moment not only makes her realize that the world she helped create cares nothing for her, but it is also instrumental in her decision to let Nichole go.

“Vows”

Ever since June made the decision to remain in Gilead at the end of season two, the question of whether she would ever reconnect with her husband has lingered in every viewer’s mind. This episode finally answers such an inquiry. After Moira smuggles June onto the CERA boat, they successfully make it into Canada regardless of a few hiccups along the way. June and Luke reunite for the first time after years of being torn apart in Gilead. She tearfully apologizes for not being able to rescue Hannah, but Luke is just happy to see her again. Together they can fight to save Hannah and take down Gilead.

“Together”

Not long after June resists shooting Serena, the roles are reversed. Captured in No Man's Land, June is taken to Serena. Prepared to execute June on the side of the road, security guard Ezra hands the gun to Serena. Accepting her fate, June prays that future generations - even Serena’s baby - will grow up in a better world. June appears more surprised than anyone when Serena turns the gun on Ezra. Although he’s wearing a vest, it allows enough time for Serena to point the gun back at June, ordering her to drive them away. Making matters even more stressful, Serena goes into labor. As June gets behind the wheel with an armed Serena in the back, we’re not sure who has the advantage.

“No Man’s Land”

Throughout the series, power has shifted between June and Serena. Although she’s technically Serena’s hostage, June knows control is within grasp. June goes back and forth on whether she should help Serena. Serena is equally skeptical about June, who once had harsh words about her unborn child. Despite their differences, June sees Serena share in a moment of maternal bliss. While June and Serena have reluctantly joined forces before, Noah’s birth is arguably the first time they find genuine common ground. June and the audience thus have conflicted emotions when Serena is detained, screaming for help as she’s separated from her newborn child. We rarely feel such sympathy for Serena. For June, seeing Serena on the other side isn’t as satisfying as she imagined.

“Safe”

The penultimate season’s finale wastes no time plunging us into peril as a vehicle stalks June. As June speeds up, so does the truck, ramming into her. Few sound effects hurt more than June’s arm being run over. A Gilead bumper sticker further confirms that this isn’t a random, freak accident. Before the driver can finish the job, Luke comes to June’s rescue. Realizing that Luke killed the driver and is facing arrest, June decides it’s time to move again. Things characteristically don’t go according to plan. While June and Nichole get on a train, Luke is forced to stay. June isn’t the only passenger with a baby, encountering Serena. It’s uneasy yet oddly hopeful as the mothers reunite, questioning what the future holds.

“Holly”

With a car at her disposal and the authorities struggling to find her, June seemingly has escape served on a silver platter. Of course, it’s never that easy. The garage door is frozen shut and even if June could get it open, her baby decides to come at the most inconvenient time. Seeking refuge by the fire as the sun sets, June tries giving birth on her own, but it becomes clear her baby won’t survive without help. Wandering into the snow, June fires several shots into the air. She knows the best case scenario is that somebody will hear, getting her and her newborn daughter to safety. Even then, that safety will be short-lived as June and Holly remain at Gilead’s mercy.

“The Crossing”

Prior to this episode, there have been multiple escape attempts by June that were either impeded or abandoned so, naturally, our hopes weren’t too high for this one. When June and the other handmaids from the farmhouse are recaptured, they are bundled into a van with Aunt Lydia, bound for a breeding colony. At a railroad crossing, the driver steps out to answer nature’s call and June sees an escape window. She grabs the cattle prod from Aunt Lydia and the other handmaids make a run for it. While June and Janine successfully make it past the crossing, the other handmaids aren’t as lucky - with two of them getting swept away by the passing train and the others being gunned down.

“The Wilderness”

In the aftermath of his arrest by the Canadian government, Fred Waterford decides to cut a deal for his release in exchange for information about the inner workings of Gilead. This deal enrages June, who somehow manages to secure a prisoner exchange instead - Commander Waterford for twenty-two Gilead women. Fred is arrested before he can board a plane to Geneva to sign the deal, and finds himself in No Man’s Land staring down a malevolent June. At the beckoning of her whistle, June is joined by Emily and a host of other women who had suffered greatly because of people like Fred. The women chase the high-and-mighty Commander through the wilderness like a terrified animal, stripping him of his dignity, and eventually, his life.

“The Last Ceremony”

Granted, every instance of the ceremony in Gilead can be classified as sexual assault, but this one was particularly cruel. June begins to have contractions and is rushed home to initiate the birthing ritual. However, it turns out to be a false alarm, disappointing everyone present, especially the Waterfords. After the series does its best to humanize Serena in the preceding episodes, she takes several steps back into depravity by convincing Fred to induce June’s labor in, we quote, “the most natural way.” It’s an extremely graphic scene that is obviously more of a punishment than a procedure intended to induce the child’s birth.

“Late”

The first season of the show is filled with many shocking moments that introduce us to the cruel dystopian world of Gilead. One such moment comes at the end of the third episode, not even with our protagonist, but with the handmaid formerly known as Ofglen. When her romantic relationship with a Martha is discovered, Ofglen is arrested by the guards, swapping her handmaiden robe for a prison jumpsuit and a sturdy muzzle. Both women are tried and found guilty of “gender treachery,” resulting in the Martha being executed right before Ofglen’s eyes. After she wakes up in a blinding white patient room, we find out her real name is Emily and that she’s experienced the unthinkable.

“The Word”

After everything she’s done to her, we couldn’t help but cheer when Emily attacked Aunt Lydia. What seems like the end of the line for Emily marks a fresh start as Commander Lawrence arranges her escape. June isn’t far behind with Holly, who Serena has renamed Nichole. Although she catches June trying to flee, Serena tearfully turns a blind eye, knowing deep down the baby will be better off away from Gilead. All of the pieces are in place except June’s eldest daughter Hannah is still under Gilead’s thumb. In what might be the most difficult choice of her life, June hands her baby to Emily, remaining in Gilead to save Hannah. Before departing, June tells Emily to call the baby Nichole, recognizing Serena’s sacrifice.

Which “Handmaid’s Tale” moment took your breath away? Let us know in the comments.