June hasn’t had the safety to catch her breath until now, and it symbolizes a change in path for the show, as now the emotional battle can take the front.
The Handmaid’s Tale “The Crossing” was written by Bruce Miller and was directed by none other than Elisabeth Moss (June) – doing double duty again! This was a truly horrific episode both for the torture that June undergoes and for the high body count of all those we lose in this episode. Moss throws in some wonderful homages to horror films and also incorporates a number of images that resonate with previous episodes. As the episode opens, all we hear is June’s breathing. Then we get a close up of her face – and all we can see are her eyes as she’s in the gag we’ve seen before on Handmaids before – perfect for filming during Covid! She’s in the back of a truck, chained by her neck and feet in place. We get the usual aerial shot and see that she’s being taken to a large facility, well out in the country. The truck stops, and Nick (Max Minghella) gets in.