Surprise! That’s actually the name of Season 6, Episode 6 ofThe Handmaid’s Tale. But sadly, it’s not a good surprise. There’s a huge twist that threatens the Mayday plan and everything June (Elisabeth Moss) and the others have been trying to accomplish. What’s more, it’s one that no one saw coming — or at least hoped wouldn’t be coming.
The implications of the big twist in this episode are massive, and fans can’t wait to see things play out in Episode 7. For now, what happened?
The Handmaid’s Tale
The Jezebel’s Plan Was Foiled, But June Isn’t Giving Up
After being saved by Commander Joseph Lawrence (Bradley Whitford), June and Moira (Samira Wiley) are trying to figure out their next steps.June is still hellbent on taking down Gilead and wants to convince Joseph to help. After burying the hatchet about June’s failure to help Joseph’s wife Eleanor (Julie Dretzin) when shedied by suicide, June appeals to Joseph’s desire for power and control.
June assures Joseph that by this time next week, all those commanders who were speaking ill of him — and whom he finds repulsive — will be dead. Joseph shrugs and replies that it’s either he teams up with June (again) or it’s the wall for him. So, it’s an easy decision. He’s in.
First, however, June needs to return to Jezebel’s to retrieve the key items they left there. But Joseph advises that there’s no way he can do that. June again appeals to Nick (Max Minghella), whom she knows can and will do it. Nick dutifully obliges, even passing Janine (Madeline Brewer) in the hallway and giving her a knowing nod that he’s on her side.
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When he meets with June, Nick declares that she’s the only good thing in his life. Throughflashbacks of their timetogether, fans are reminded of how in love they were, despite the complicated situation. They’re also reminded of how insecure Nick was in his previous life, and arguably still is. He joked with June that she would never have given him a second look in the previous world. The best he could have hoped for was to bag her groceries or be her Uber driver.
Still clearly in love with June, Nick takes her home for the night to keep her safe. But when they arrive, he sees a light on and his father-in-law,Commander Gabriel Wharton(Josh Charles), in the window. He was supposed to have left. Nick sends June to Serena’s (Yvonne Strahovski) home instead, assuring her she’ll be safe there.When he walks into his house, however, Nick is confronted by Gabriel, and everything changes.
Nick’s Shocking Betrayal Throws a Massive Wrench Into the Plans
Gabriel sits Nick down and tells him that he knows he has been at the brothel and suspects he is cheating on his wife, Rose (Carey Cox), who is Gabriel’s daughter. But he doesn’treallythink that. Gabriel knows the betrayal runs much deeper. He tells Nick how he has begun to piece things together. The young man who was shot but survived mysteriously died in the hospital not long after Nick visited him. That can’t be a coincidence.
“These lies are going to land you on the wall,” he tells Nick, “and your son will be left without a father.” This line cuts deep, reminding Nick that whilehe has a biological daughter in Nichole/Holly, and might be in love with June, he has a wife and a son on the way, and they should be his priority and focus.
Meanwhile, at Serena’s house, June lies and says she was there to ask Nick to come to Alaska with her so he can be closer to his daughter. Serena is reluctant to believe this, but she goes with it. The two women have a candid conversation, and when Serena mentions her engagement to Gabriel, June reminds her that everything was rosy like this with Commander Fred Waterford (Joseph Fiennes) at the beginning, too, and urges her to be careful.
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When Nick shows up, he seems frantic. He pours his heart out to June, asking her to run away to Paris with him. She’s taken aback and confused by her emotions, but they kiss, confirming what some fans have felt all along:June should end up with Nick. Just then, however, Gabriel arrives to visit Serena. Nick and June hide in a closet but can overhear the conversation.
Gabriel tells Serena that a plan was in place to take down Gilead, but they are now one step ahead thanks to Nick.Nick told him everything, submitting to his father-in-law, likely out of fear of the repercussions if he didn’t, and he was found out. What’s more, to stop the plan, Gabriel has shut down Jezebel’s altogether. June is gutted, staring at a somber Nick who looks apologetic.
She now understands why he wanted to run away so quickly, why he showed up declaring his love. However, the most pressing issue is that if Jezebel’s is closed, what will happen to the girls who work there?June is terrified and even angrier at Nick because he might have just sentenced all those girls, including Janine, to death.
From the beginning, Nick came across as a good guy. Initially Fred’s driver, he was also a guardian and member of the Eyes, tasked with keeping an eye on things going on in Gilead and reporting anything amiss. As a young, virile man, Serena appealed to Nick to sleep with June so he could impregnate her to give the Waterfords a baby, noticing there was a mutual attraction between them anyway.
The moment that truly opened his eyes to Gilead and how awful it had become was when the previous Waterford’s handmaid hanged herself in her room. He discovered her with Rita (Amanda Brugel) and tried to save her, but it was too late. This made him instantly more receptive to and understanding of June when they first met. He was traumatized by what happened to the woman before her and wanted to protect June.
Nick eventually rose up the ranks and was named a commander, a position he holds in Season 6. Even with a wife and child on the way, Nick still pines for June. When she is purposely hit by aGileadean truck in Canada in Season 5, Nick travels to visit her in the hospital and sits by her bedside, unbeknownst to June.
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Over time, however, especially since June reunited with her husband Luke (O-T Fagbenle), Nick has begun to feel like he has no hope of a real future with her. While he doesn’t enjoy his life, he’s comfortable. He has a wife, a child, a good job, and respect, things he never thought he would be blessed with. Yet he’s still not happy.The fact that June, whom he claims to be the only good thing in his life, only contacts him when she needs something may be weighing heavily on him.
Nick is inherently a good guy. But this situation may remind him of his prior life. When he, his father, and his brother lost their jobs at a steel mill, he was tasked with caring for everyone. Sadly, his older brother Joshua, who struggled with addiction, died not long after Nick joined Sons of Jacob. It’s unclear if his father is still alive or dead. So, while fans might beirritated at Nick’s betrayal, he has also been through a lot. He didn’t have a comfortable life before Gilead took over. None of the people who rely on him now would have given him the time of day before. But because of his position, moral compass, and desire to be liked, he is used by people who are supposed to care for him.
It’s no surprise that Nick reached an “I’ve had enough” moment, even if only after being caught red-handed by his father-in-law and given no other choice. His plea to June to run off with him might have been one last attempt to see if he was truly loved and appreciated. If she said yes, it would all have been worth it. It would show that she truly wanted to be with him and nothing else mattered. The big question is: would June have been happily swept away to the City of Lights with Nick and Nichole/Holly had Nick not betrayed her? Fans, and perhaps Nick, may never know.StreamThe Handmaid’s TaleonHulu.
