‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ just booked its ticket to the 2020 Emmys with ‘Liars’

We’ve been sent good weather, because Hulu’s “The Handmaid’s Tale” got away with murder and one of its most gratifying outings to date. After 33 episodes of occasional glimmers of hope but predominant gloom and doom, the third season’s 11th hour, “Liars, which dropped July 31, finally gave viewers a taste of what resistance looks like in Gilead, and it couldn’t be more satisfying. The 2020 Emmy Awards may still be far away, but if Season 3’s first 10 previous episodes haven’t already, then this one ought to catapult “Handmaid’s” into next year’s drama series lineup.

In this installment, June (Elisabeth Moss) starts putting her plan of smuggling 52 children out of Gilead in place by enlisting a group of Marthas, who are initially hesitant but ultimately determined to help June. There’s just one problem: After attempting to escape the country with his wife, Commander Lawrence (Bradley Whitford) reveals that neither he nor any trucks that would transport the children would be able to make it past the checkpoints. So June reaches out to a contact at the Jezebels brothel to ask for a cargo plane, but to her dismay encounters Commander Winslow (Christopher Meloni). When he tries to rape her, June fights back and kills him, leaving the Marthas to clean up the scene and cremate his body.

SEE ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’s’ Emmy risk pays off with 11 nominations for its 3 orphaned episodes

Meanwhile, Fred (Joseph Fiennes) and Serena (Yvonne Strahovski) hit the road to meet Mark Tuello (Sam Jaeger), a representative of the U.S. Government-in-Exile, in their attempt to precipitate Nichole’s return. But unbeknownst to Fred, Tuello lures the couple across the Canadian border and has them arrested for committing a series of crimes, including war crimes and international human rights violations.

“Handmaid’s” is a dark, depressing and immensely horrifying show in nature, which is appropriate given its subject matter. However, it flourishes in well-rounded episodes like “Liars,” in which everyday torture is balanced with long-awaited payoffs, like the Waterfords finally being held accountable for their heinous actions. And after facing one setback after the other, it’s pleasing to finally see June rise to the occasion and actually succeed, even if it entails murder. Besides, how glorious was it to see the Marthas clean up the crime scene in true “How to Get Away with Murder” fashion to Kate Bush’s “Cloudbusting” playing in the background? A lot can happen in the two remaining episodes, but these are the types of shockers that could stick in mind until voters mark off their ballots almost a year from now.

The show is coming off 11 Emmy nominations this year, bringing its overall total to 44, for the final three orphaned episodes of the second season that didn’t make eligibility last year. That is an incredible feat, bearing in mind that it was only allowed to compete in categories that recognize individual achievement, which excludes the drama series and main acting races. It’s all the more surprising considering it only netted three statuettes last year compared to eight for Season 1, giving reason to believe it may have lost some steam. Instead, it returned as the second most nominated drama series of the year for three episodes that aired more than a year ago.

SEE Emmys 2020: Ann Dowd soars on ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ as Aunt Lydia’s backstory is explored

And if timing wasn’t a problem this year, then it might not be next year either. After all, heavy-hitters like HBO’s “Big Little Lies” and Netflix’s “Stranger Things” have already concluded their 2020-eligible runs, FX’s “Pose” will conclude its second season the end of August, and HBO’s “Succession” second season starts on Aug. 11. Being an early-breaker isn’t necessarily a disadvantage because voters have time to properly consume the content, and the show itself can get an extra boost from precursor awards, like the Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Awards. Just look at “Pose’s” first season that ran from June to July last year and was still able to bag six nods, or “Ozark’s” second one that dropped on Aug. 31 and managed to snag nine.

“Handmaid’s” also has the added benefit of being timely, given that current-day U.S. feels like it’s inching more towards Gilead with each passing day. The Handmaids costume has now become a means of protest; whenever there’s a group of people wandering the streets with white bonnets on their heads and dressed in red cloaks as they protest against the infringement of women’s rights, it’s not only a reminder of the blurring lines between fiction and reality, but also of the show’s wide-ranging influence.

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