'The Handmaid's Tale' finale: Season 6 will be a different show

Toto, we are no longer in Gilead.

"The Handmaid's Tale" remained focused on its central dystopia until Season 4, when June (Elisabeth Moss) fled to Canada, and even then she couldn't escape Gilead. June has returned several times, including in Season 5 to save her daughter Hannah (Jordana Blake) from a life of submissiveness to men.

But the world changed with the Season 5 finale, “Safe,” which premiered on November 9. Gilead is crumbling from within, mostly at the hands of its architect, Joseph Lawrence (Bradley Whitford). The Waterfords, two of his most prolific and vocal defenders, are no more, with dead Fred (Joseph Fiennes) and his widow Serena (Yvonne Strahovski) questioning his path forward. It's Serena's grueling internal journey and June's willingness to compromise that bring them both to the same time, place, and goal when they meet on a train in the Season 5 finale.

As heartbreaking as it may seem to see the two women and their babies traveling as civilians and equals, it's the logical end to an unrelenting season. Serena has lost pieces of Fred and Gilead throughout the season, her resolve to continue her work weakening as her life reshapes itself around her new baby. Without Fred by her side, she knows Gilead will not support her and must get as far away as possible to raise her son in peace.

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