Praise be, under his eye another season has arrived.
The Handmaid's Tale is returning for a third season following on from the series' increasingly unpredictable second season.
The award-winning drama series based on the seminal novel by Margaret Atwood follows on from a life-changing decision made by Offred/June (Elisabeth Moss) in the season finale, that also saw major changes for Serena Joy Waterford and Emily.
So as we arrive at the next batch of episodes, it's clear that resistance is in the air, not just in the safety of Canada but also from within in the dystopian society of Gilead itself.
But what exactly will June do now that she chose to return for her daughter Hannah?
And when can fans in the UK expect the episodes on Channel 4?
The Handmaid's Tale season 3 UK release date
The Handmaid's Tale is released in the UK on Channel 4 on Sunday, June 9, 2019, at 9pm GMT.
The Handmaid's Tale season 3 arrives on June 5, 2019 on Hulu in the US.
The Handmaid's Tale season 3 trailer
The first teaser was released for the SuperBowl, which offered a terrifying propaganda piece from the Republic of Gilead.
A new full trailer has now been released too, with a more in depth look at the season - including a new June/Serena alliance?!
You can find it at the top of the article!
What happened at the end of Season Two?
Following the brutal execution of Nick's wife Eden, who had been having an adulterous affair, June finds an illegal annotated bible belonging to Eden and shows Serena who considers her child's future in Gilead. Serena approaches the Council with other wives and reads from the bible to make her point that girls should be taught to read the Bible. This is received badly by the Council, who punish her insolence by chopping one of her fingers off.
Emily prepared for her first ceremony with her new master, Commander Lawrence, who dismissed her. Aunt Lydia later visited, prompting a furious violent outburst from Emily as she stabbed her in the back and kicked her down the stairs, where Lawrence's Martha finds Lydia, before locking Emily in a room.
With the help of the Marthas (including Rita), June was able to escape with her baby, but not before being caught by Serena Joy who decided to let her escape with the baby, saying a tearful goodbye to them both.
Eventually June reached a safe location outside with an escape van where she was reunited with Emily, who had been taken there by a regretful Lawrence who is seeking redemption for his role in the creation of Gilead.
June gave her baby to Emily to escape with to Canada, but chose to remain behind in Gilead to find her daughter Hannah, as she refused to leave her behind. Before they parted, June asked Emily to call the baby Nichole, the name that Serena had given her. June walked back into the world of Gilead under her red hood.
Who will be back?
Elisabeth Moss as June Osbourne/Offred
June will of course be back, having chosen to stay in Gilead for Hannah, but where will she go next?
Joseph Fiennes as Commander Fred Waterford
Having chosen to punish his wife for speaking up, the Waterfords will be more divided in the next season, and Fred will be furious when he finds out 'his' baby is gone.
Yvonne Strahovski as Serena Joy Waterford
The complex villain became a somewhat ally to June in Season 2, and was complicit in her escape with Nichole. Where will Serena go next? Could she find a whole new form of resistance in Gilead?
Alexis Bledel as Emily
Having escaped Gilead with June's baby, will Emily make it to the safety of Canada?
Madeline Brewer as Janine
Aunt Lydia's sweet but broken favourite is still in Gilead's grasp for next season.
Ann Dowd as Aunt Lydia
Despite being left in critical condition in the finale thanks to Emily, it has been confirmed that Lydia will be back next season with a stronger resolve.
O.T. Fagbenle as Luke Bankole
June's husband is eager to put a stop to Gilead, and maybe Canada could help him with that.
Max Minghella as Nick Blaine
His wife has been executed and he has helped June get their child out of Gilead, is Nick's position in Season 3 safe?
Amanda Brugel as Rita
June's ally in the Waterford household helped her to escape with an alliance of Marthas, but can she keep this under wraps next season?
Samira Wiley as Moira
June's best friend lost everything to Gilead and now wants to put an end to them for good.
Bradley Whitford as Commander Joseph Lawrence
One of the architects of the rise of Gilead, the now regretful commander sought a form of redemption by helping Emily to escape. He will be back next season as a main cast member .
We may also see the return of Clea DuVall as Emily's wife and Cherry Jones as June's rebellious mother, Holly Maddox.
We will also see two major new characters: Christopher Meloni is joining the cast as Commander Winslow, with Elizabeth Reaser alongside him as his wife, Mrs Winslow.
Who won't be back?
Sydney Sweeney as Eden Blaine
The sweet and ambitious wife of Nick found a passionate adulterous affair, but ended up brutally drowned by Gilead when their romance was exposed - by her own father. Her death prompted some bold rebellion from Serena.
Marisa Tomei as Mrs. O'Conner
The Hollywood star only made a brief appearance before Emily poisoned her adulterous commander's wife.
The Handmaid's Tale season 3 plot
June has stayed in Gilead, but will she go back to the Waterford house or fight against Gilead to get Hannah back in a different way entirely?
Showrunner Bruce Miller told Deadline "It's about June rising up to either save Hannah or change the world. About her wanting to hurt Gilead, to knock Gilead back on the field so that she can weaken this place."
The Waterford house is in disarray after the events of the finale and they will have a big effect - where does Serena go from here having rebelled against her husband and lost a finger for it? Will Rita's rebellion be exposed? Is Nick's position safe? How will Commander Waterford respond to baby Nicole's escape?
The new trailer hints that Offred and Serena Joy will be closer than ever after the events of last season - even sharing a cigarette together.
Aunt Lydia is alive, but will be even harsher after Emily stabbed her.
Finally, Emily and baby Nichole are on their way to Canada, but will they get there successfully? If so, will Emily join Luke and Moira in their desire for Canada to strike against Gilead?
It's all to play for next season.
The Handmaid's Tale season 3 episode guide
1. Night
- In Gilead, with help from Commander Lawrence, June visits her older daughter Hannah before she is recaptured by the Guardians and is returned to the Waterfords, following a tense encounter with Hannah's adoptive mother.
- In order to hide June's involvement in the "kidnapping" of Nichole, Fred solely blames Emily for the kidnapping, but Serena Joy defiantly pins it on herself by telling him and an agent of the Eyes that she was the one who gave away Nichole to an "unrepenting sinner". Serena then burns down the Waterford home and June pulls her away but takes comfort in the fact it's gone.
- After parting with Nick before being punished at the Red Centre, June is then reassigned to Commander Lawrence, who is helped Emily and Nichole's escape to Canada and is now intent on undoing his mistakes in creating Gilead.
- In Canada, a traumatised Emily arrives after a treacherous journey with baby Nichole and is granted asylum. In Little America, baby Nichole is taken into the care of Luke and Moira, as Luke sees a photo of his growing daughter Hannah.
2. Mary and Martha
- June meets her new shopping partner, Ofmatthew, who is a devout believer in Gilead.
- At the Lawrence household, June joins an underground resistance movement consisting of the Marthas Alison, Beth, and Cora. Alison is a former chemistry teacher who wants to create explosive materials to obliterate Gilead. It is also revealed that she made the bomb that blew up the new Rachel and Leah centre in season 2.
- Later, Alison returns with a wounded woman, and they hide her in the Lawrence home. Commander Lawrence reluctantly agrees to hide the wounded woman from the Guardians, but she dies from her wounds. Commander Lawrence's supposedly insane wife, Eleanor, immediately appears to come to her senses as she helps June and her allies cover up their actions for when the Guardians arrive.
- After the Guardians have left, Commander Lawrence asks June to bury the dead woman and fires Cora for lying to him. Eleanor later plants flowers over the dead woman's grave.
- In Canada, Emily lives with Luke, Moira and Erin, who eventually persuade Emily to get in touch with her wife, Sylvia. When Sylvia responds on the phone to her, Emily stops her car in the middle of a busy street and causes a traffic jam.
3. Useful
4. God Bless the Child
The Handmaid's Tale Season 3 will air in 2019.
Are you excited to see where things go next? Let us know in the comments below.
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