I finished Lou Berney's first two books Gutshot Straight and Whiplash River. They were both a lot of fun, like if Shane Black wrote novels. I'm rereading the first two books in the Broken Earth trilogy before starting on The Stone Sky.

(If anyone wants to talk books after the kinjapocalypse, the weekly book thread…

Oooh, that will be amazing!

The book was lovely. Looking forward to this.

I agree 100% about showing too much detail of the monster. This episode did a decent job of coming back the Handmaids' personal terror, but I'm no longer afraid of Gilead at all.

FWIW, it didn't seem like a spoiler. I was just thinking how glad I am the show has hit everything but the epilogue, so book readers no longer have to worry about spoilers.

I was surprised that Janine was the subject of the stoning. If fertility is such a crisis, why not shuttle her quietly off somewhere and hope she gets pregnant again? Trade her to Mexico. (I sound heartless, but just in context of the show - I understand this is a horrifying speculation.) That whole scene was…

The look on her face when she was told she could do whatever she wanted…. That's what this show excels at.

Most of the music has taken me right out of the show. It's so on-the-nose that I can't tell if they're being sincere (dial it back a little) or ironic (too big a tone shift from what's on screen). They had me back this episode until the total needle-scratch of "Feeling Good." "American Girl" has been so overused,…

"Looks like 86 is your lucky number" and that head shake. She was perfect.

That would make sense. It would also explain why she brought June that music box - complete with contraband suicide mirror.

Yeah, my read on him is definitely influenced by the book. I'm taking it for granted that he's Mayday, and his silence is protecting his cover.

Totally! I expect things to look just a little more cobbled-together or threadbare. They've had a environmental crisis, a war, trade problems. The militia that was at June's firing were the most believable - like they were all instructed to wear whatever black they had. There's something more frightening about a…

Great point. He seems compassionate, but I don't know enough to say he's good. My read on him is colored by the book, and I don't know what the show wants us to think. It's interesting that he was recruited after throwing punches in the unemployment office. There wasn't enough of a narrative line drawn between…

It's unfortunate that the episode featuring Jezebel's was mixed up with Nick's backstory. The June/Moira reunion felt shoehorned in, and didn't really seem to have enough room to breathe.

All of the stuff with Waterford, though, was tremendous. He carried the load this week on the subtle delivery of immense horror.…

Agreed. I find myself a little distracted by how well-organized all of the trappings of Gilead are. I mean, shortly after a revolution, they have color-coded clothing production on point.

That was interesting. The structure of the episode made me wonder if her suicide was related to a trip to Jezebel's (like the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back), and Serena Joy knows more than she's allowed to let on. Or it's her small scathing criticism of the entirety of what has been done to women. …

Such a novelty! You can have a good conversation, if you're into that kind of kink.

I love Lynda Barry's work. I'm glad she was honored by people she appreciates.

Your idea about showing Luke through the eyes of one of the other women in the resistance is amazing. I get that they're trying to be inclusive, but I agree that we didn't need another generic male-driven rescue story.

I had the volume down low, and didn't quite catch what they said. I'm guessing in the early days there was a lot of chaos, so I'd believe it either way.