Series Review: The Handmaid's Tale (season 6)

I've been really putting off the final season of this acclaimed series. The way the world is today, this just seems like even more of a possibility than it already did. And having read both The Handmaid's Tale and The Testaments, I knew there was more to come. 

I ended up knocking out the entire season on a transatlantic fight (do not recommend that for episode 9) Here's what I liked, disliked, and my final thoughts.

LIKES

* All episodes felt "complete." They didn't drag things out for multiple episodes. Most things they start out to accomplish in the beginning are seen through in the end, and I appreciated how buttoned up that was. Especially since this show does have a bit of a history with meandering. 

* Nick's choices were unambiguously bad. If you've spent any time on the Handmaids Tale subreddit, there's a lot of ~discourse~ around Nick. The official tag for posts about him there is "wet for war criminal" which is kind of hilarious. But Nick is a character that had a lot of excuses made for him. I'm sure if I went back and looked at everything I've written about THT, I'd probably find one too. But Max Minghella and Elisabeth Moss had such amazing chemistry it was easy to find of root for them at times. But this season really made you sit with those excuses. June gets told twice not to "fall in love with a nazi."

* Serena's ending. Without spoiling, it's a fitting place for her. 

* They paid tribute to (most) of the dead handmaids we had spent time with, and that was sweet. Though leaving out Dolores was cold.

* HOLLY. They finally start calling Nicole Holly again. Thank fuck. 

* Bradley Whitford steals the show again. 

*Jonah from Veep getting owned...never gets old. 

DISLIKES

* The finale was messy. I liked what they did in theory, but the way they explain one character's absence was rushed. The manufactured drama around another was puzzling, and so much could've been more impactful had they had a few conversations instead of June just walking around staring at everything.

* Luke all of a sudden becoming a resistance leader was kind of funny considering his two "big" plans arguably failed. I'm glad he got more to do and got to directly fight for Hannah. and I think the way he and June act around each other is one of the most realistic things of the series, but it felt a bit shoehorned.

* No Hannah. I felt like we should've at least spent some time with her considering they are making The Testaments. McKenna Grace's character also doesn't return, which is kind of a bummer. 

Overall, as hard as this series was to watch at times, it was exceptionally well made. Even in the weaker seasons, I never found myself wanting to stop watching it, and if it hadn't been for the current political climate, I would've been watching this week to week with everyone else. I don't know how big this show will go out at its final Emmys/Globes/SAG run this year, but I know it will be there. 

Don't let the bastards grind you down.