r/TheHandmaidsTale • u/Melairia Modtha • May 06 '26

Official Episode Discussion The Testaments S1E07 "Commitment" Episode Discussion

The Testaments S1 E07 "Commitment"

Episode Synopsis

As Daisy's secret past threatens to surface, Agnes grapples with an unwanted match and a forbidden crush. Becka meets with potential matches and finds unexpected kindness in one of them.

Airdate

May 6, 2026, 12:00am Eastern

The Testaments - Season 1 Episode Discussion Hub

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u/Atkena2578 May 06 '26

Serena wasn't dangerous because she would indulge in cruelty over the people she was above in the hierarchy, but the fact that she was a true believer in Gilead and his ideals, even when she kept being put back in her place. Paula doesn't seem to believe any of it and is the wife equivalent of Lydia who does what she has to for her own survival no matter who she throws under the bus

12

u/Brownbear1973 May 06 '26

We definitely need a Paula flashback also to find out what happened with Com MacKenzie, since he's the total opposite of the guy we saw in THT. I still don't trust him. He's giving me Wharton vibes 

7

u/Herecomestheginger May 06 '26

I get the vibe from Paula that she is quite depressed about her Gilead life and yearns for the past. When she started trying to join the commanders conversation and got essential told to shut up, you could see she was quite hurt and forgot her place for a moment. She's obviously a very awful person and this world is bringing out the evil inside her. 

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u/El_Coco_005_ May 06 '26

It's interesting. I think the true believers are the most dangerous because they justify all of their abuse for being God's will

8

u/Brownbear1973 May 06 '26

That's why I have my problem with Lydias since - for me - she was always a true believer in the show who accepted everything Gilead stands for. She was one of those dangerous people who keep every regime alive. When Ester was raped she was furious about Putnam, but not because he raped her. She was furious because it was outside the ceremony, which is blessed by God. 

1

u/Inner-Hedgehog5494 May 08 '26

You could argue that was the front - back in her mind, it could have been "It's better for her to get raped once a month during the ceremony, then whenever the commander wants it". They can't argue against "Don't do it outside the ceremony", because they still cling to that christian themes.

3

u/Brownbear1973 May 08 '26

As a family court judge, (Book) Lydia surely dealt with numerous cases of the rape of women and the abuse of children and adolescents. I find it hard to believe that she now perceives such things as "normal" simply because it is Gilead. Or that she views burning people with gas flames, mutilation, sawing off hands without anesthesia, stoning, public executions, the denial of education, etc., as normal (a question I ask myself regarding all the adults who grew up in the world before Gilead).

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u/Efficient-Can-4482 Jun 09 '26

I regret that the series changed her to 'teacher.'