The Handmaid’s Tale season 2 episode 9 review: Smart Power

In an episode that seems like it could be the most timely of all The Handmaid’s Tale season 2, “Smart Power” takes us to different locales.

“It does no good to want the impossible,” June concludes at the end of her opening monologue for this week’s episode of The Handmaid’s Tale, which references everything from AirBNB to “a sharp machete.” But, of course, what seems like the impossible happens: Fred and Serena are going to Canada, leaving Isaac behind to “watch over” June and Rita.

Of course, Serena doesn’t necessarily want to go, concerned about both the baby and her garden. She flinches at Fred’s touch and tears up. While others here at Culturess have pointed out that there’s something off with Serena’s arc, it’s still fascinating that we get to be in her head more than ever before. We see her cruelty just as much as we see her vulnerability — because she says that June will leave as soon as the baby’s born before leaving for Canada.

This news gets Janine slammed in the face with the butt of a gun for being too loud in her reaction. June can’t even ask her if she’s okay or help. What she can do, though, is ask Rita to effectively be the child’s godparent. Same with Aunt Lydia, although June takes different tacks with the two of them — both seemingly effective.

Fred and Serena arriving in Canada is, of course, newsworthy, and Moira recognizes him. Samira Wiley doesn’t need lines here to show Moira’s horror. The facial expression does all the talking.

Serena, meanwhile, gets to see Canada — both good and bad, as there are homeless people on the streets, but also people kissing. She and Fred are greeted by deputy ministers, one a woman, and one a married gay man. Meanwhile, Serena’s schedule is given to her without text, and she has “cultural activities.” A little girl stares at her, and her mother refuses to take the elevator with Serena. It’s all quite pointed, but doesn’t belabor the point too much.

This changes when Serena visits the hotel bar. She gets a glass of Riesling and a moment with a very handsome man who tries to smoke in the bar. He’s “a representative of the American government,” and he offers her freedom from Gilead. He also leaves her the pack of cigarettes. The whole conversation is some sharp back-and-forth.

But perhaps the strongest moment is the protest, where Luke holds up a photo of himself, Hannah, and June, then has a conversation with Fred himself. Of course, Serena witnesses it all happen.

Nick actually finds Luke in a bar, though, and he says the following: “I know June. She’s my friend.” Then again, he also drops the news that June’s pregnant, which makes Luke cry, and he passes along the letters. In a parallel to June asking Rita, Luke then asks for Nick to “look after her” and return some messages. Both of these moments have a lot of tension in them, with deep emotions at their core.

“We believe the women” is enough to stop the Canadian diplomatic trip, because Luke uploads the letters. Moira goes to the protest and makes sure Fred sees her.

Of all the episodes of this season of The Handmaid’s Tale, this one feels the most like a direct response to some of the big moments of our time: diplomatic summits gone awry, huge protests, believing women’s stories, and “fake news” as a phrase. The show doesn’t say the last one explicitly. It doesn’t need to.

But things go awry at the very last second, when Nick says three little words to June: “I love you.” It’s lost in the hopeful notes of June processing that Moira’s safe in Canada as well as her deciding that she can indeed go for the impossible, but it could really end up derailing the entire season.

Next: The season finale of Legion left us with a bad taste

Don’t let the side thoughts grind you down:

• Eden makes cookies for Nick, again playing the role of the dutiful wife.
• “There’s a lot of misinformation out there,” Fred says, smugly mentioning the media too.
• “I was godmother to my sister’s child. He died when he was four days old.” Now there’s perhaps some of the most fascinating information we have ever gotten about Lydia.
• Serena throws the matchbook from Hawaii in the fire.