June struggles with her newfound freedom, reuniting with loved ones and confronting her nemesis, Serena.
Tropes in this episode include:
- Break Them by Talking: June gives this a shot with the climactic confrontation with Serena Joy, putting as much vitriol as she can into a vicious "Reason You Suck" Speech. It certainly seems to rattle Serena and make June feel powerful, but also drives Serena to reunite with Fred and form a single legal front.
- Call-Back:
- Throughout the episode we see flashbacks to June's suffering while in Gilead, mostly at the hands of the Waterfords.
- Also, the Asylum Questions that Mark Tuello asks June harken back to the asylum questions asked to Emily at the start of Season 3.
- Conditioned to Accept Horror:
- June is clearly uncomfortable with all the trappings and luxuries that she is able to enjoy in Canada. This also applies to the sex scene at the end with Luke as it is a Call-Back to her treatment at the hands of the Waterfords.
- Minor example: Rita still says the classic Gilead greeting "Praise Be" when she is reunited with June.
- Heavy Sleeper: June slept for 17 hours during her first night in Canada.
- Ironic Echo: June throws back Serena's "Do you Understand Me?" rant from all the way back in Season 1 in saying that she hopes Serena loses her pregnancy as retribution for the poor treatment that Serena heaped on June.
- My Greatest Failure: After June's moment during the previous episode, we find that this also applied to Luke. Except that he was unable to do anything to get June or Hannah out.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Mark Tuello was trying to find ways to turn Serena against Fred. But after June rips into Serena with her "Reason You Suck" Speech, this may have ended up pushing Serena back into Fred's arms instead.
- Product Placement: Longo's is an actual grocery store chain in Ontario.
- Redemption Rejection: June harshly rebukes Serena's attempts to gain forgiveness with a blistering "Reason You Suck" Speech, saying that Serena destroyed her family and hopes Serena suffers the same fate.
- Questionable Consent: June and Luke's sex near the end. He is reluctant and she holds him down and even covers his mouth to keep him from saying "Wait". It's clearly meant to be disturbing, and a callback to her treatment by Fred.
- "The Reason You Suck" Speech: June unloads one against Serena in hoping that Serena suffers the loss of a child in the same way that June did.June: I brought myself here, so that I could tell you how much I hate you. You don’t deserve to make amends to anyone. The only thing that you deserve is a life full of suffering and shame. You have destroyed my life, my family, my friends, my country, and my child. There is no one less worthy of redemption than you.Serena: I’m sorry. I am begging for your forgiveness, and I’m begging for the Lord’s mercy and for His understanding.June: Do you know why God made you pregnant? So that when He kills that baby inside your womb, you will feel a fraction of the pain that you caused us when you tore our children from our arms. Do you understand me? DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME?
- Revenge: A recurring theme in this episode where June states her motivations throughout the series as a way to fight back against the Gilead oppressors. She tells Mark that the reason for arranging for the flight of children wasn't necessarily out of a motivation to rescue them, but a way to hurt Gilead in a manner similar to how they hurt her and her family. This also extends up to eleven with her confrontation with Serena.
- Shell-Shocked Veteran: June has a mental breakdown at the grocery store as she comes to grips with what she went through in Gilead.
- Shown Their Work:
- The idea of luxury treatment for "VIP refugees" is a real practice used by the US government for valuable intelligence/political assets.
- June's breakdown after viewing two women wearing red clothing at the grocery store is an example of an actual trigger for PTSD sufferers.
- Stranger in a Familiar Land: Throughout the episode, June struggles to acclimate herself to Canada, and ends up having a panic attack at the local grocery store when she sees just how different it is from Gilead but also how some details are similar enough.
- String Theory: Tuello's office has a large board dedicated to breaking down Serena Joy's methods and motivation.
- Tranquil Fury: June has this when he hears that Serena is pregnant.
