Diksha Sundriyal
The penultimate episode of Hulu’s ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ Season 6 pits Gilead against the rebellion as Mayday finally makes a move against the authoritarian government. Despite the win at the end of the previous episode, where all Handmaids kill their Commanders, there are some severe ups and downs that June and her friends have to go through. At the end of the day, they have to finish what they started by targeting the Commanders, as some of them slip through their grasp. However, seeing it through means making some sacrifices. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Joseph Lawrence Accepts the Task to Help Kill the Remaining Commanders
While most of the Commanders consumed the wedding cake, which had sedatives in it, and were easily killed by their Handmaids, a few were saved by sheer luck. Commander Wharton happened to be one of them, and with him still alive and kicking, Mayday and the American government couldn’t move forward with their plans of reclaiming the country. It was imperative for them to kill Wharton, but with him and the others in hiding, they could do nothing about it. This is when June approaches Serena, who, though initially hesitant, reveals that Wharton and the remaining Commanders are flying to DC from Bedford to gather military support, which would mean an end to the rebellion.
The only way to get rid of Wharton and the other Commanders now is to blow up the plane. The problem is that they cannot shoot it down because Gilead has already proved how capable it is of dodging their attack through its advanced defence system. This means that the only way to blow up the plane is from the inside, which means someone will have to plant the bomb. Now, due to the intense security around the Commanders and the plane, especially following the events of the last 24 hours, there is no chance that someone from Mayday can infiltrate the system and get the job done. It would be too risky with minimal chances of success. The only way they can get the plane on the bomb is if someone on the inside does it, and the only person they have with those specifications is Joseph Lawrence.
Lawrence had previously shaken hands with Mayday after discovering that the other Commanders were planning to do away with New Bethlehem and would put him to the Wall. This collaboration was simply his need for survival, which is why, even though he is hesitant about taking up such a task, he knows that there is no other option. The plan is for June to drive him to the hangar before the other Commanders show up. Because Lawrence himself is a Commander, he will not be suspected of anything, which means he can glide his way to the plane. All he has to do is go inside, place the bomb inside the plane, and get out. The plan was great, and it would have worked if not for a sudden change in the plan of the Commanders.
Killing Wharton Comes With Incurring Collateral Damage
The plan’s success rested on the fact that the other Commanders would reach the hangar after Lawrence had already left. But they show up, right as he is about to walk into the plane, and Wharton decides to tag him along to show a united front in DC. Realising that there is no way out for him now, Lawrence accepts his fate, knowing that if he backs out now, Gilead will not only crush the rebellion, but things will also get much, much worse, and that would beat the whole purpose of what he and Serena had been trying to do with New Bethlehem.
This is the only chance to kill Wharton, and he must take it. So, he walks into the plane with the bomb, knowing that he too will die when it blows up. Another unexpected thing that happens at the last minute is Nick’s arrival. Perhaps, June expected him to stay near his wife, who is too heavily pregnant to be left alone. However, Rose convinces Nick to go with her father to serve his purpose in Gilead, which is why he shows up to board the plane at the last minute. Once everyone is boarded and the plane flies, the fates of all the passengers are sealed. Even if June wanted to, there was no way she could have warned Nick without compromising the mission.
Minutes into the flight, the bomb goes off, and June watches fire rain down in the distance. Considering that Lawrence was carrying the bomb right next to him, all the Commanders, including Wharton and Nick, would be too close to him to escape the impact of the explosive, confirming that there is no way anyone aboard the plane could have survived. This means that Mayday has finally accomplished what it set out to do, though they have lost a significant ally in the form of Lawrence, and June has lost the father of her daughter and the man she loved in a place she hated with all her heart.
Read More: Is Commander Bell Dead? Did Timothy Simons Leave The Handmaid’s Tale?
