The Handmaid’s Tale Season 4: Why June & The Other Handmaids Kill [SPOILER]

The Handmaid’s Tale Season 4 Updates: The Handmaid’s Tale Season 4 has had many shocking developments and twists. The finale of season 4 ends with the death of a major character in the hands of June and the other handmaids. Here is why June does it with the help of the other handmaids.

Warning: The following article carries major spoilers for the Season 4 of The Handmaid’s Tale.

The Handmaid’s Tale returned with its fourth season in April 2021 after an absence of two years. The fourth season of the series has given way to a lot of twists and shocking developments. In the finale of season 4, June Osborne, with the help of some other former Handmaids, kills Commander Fred Waterford. June’s decision shows how much she has changed and how much her situation has changed since her escape to Canada.

In Season 4, June finally escaped from Gilead and found her way to Canada. Once she arrived in Canada, she testified against the Waterfords which would have sufficed for her revenge.

When Fred realizes that there is no way for Serena Joy and him to return safely, he turns against Gilead. Mark Trello decided to help Fred with the plan and it forced June’s hand to get her justice. A deal was made with Gilead, to trade Fred back to the Republic in exchange for 22 women they held there. But it wouldn’t suffice for June.

Instead, she arranges for Fred to be taken to No Man’s Land, where she and the other Handmaids chase Fred before brutally killing him by tearing him apart, bit by bit.

The Handmaid’s Tale Season 4 Spoilers

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Killing Fred is June’s way of dealing with her past trauma, of which Fred has been a huge part. It also symbolizes her newfound freedom. Even though she escaped Gilead physically, she is not free of all the trauma she suffered at Gilead.

When it looks like Fred would wriggle his way out of his crimes and escape punishment, June decided that she cannot let that happen, because Fred’s freedom would mean that she would once again find herself trapped in a world with him.

So in a sense killing Fred means liberation for June. It also speaks of the power June has gained after escaping Gilead. No matter how brave Offred was, she would not have been able to kill Fred while she was in Gilead. Now that she is free, June summons Offred’s bravery and takes her revenge.

The manner of killing Fred is brutal. June wants him to feel the fear that she felt when she was captured, therefore, June and the Handmaids chase Fred through No Man’s Land before killing him by tearing him apart bit by bit. The Handmaids help June because they have come to see her as a leader, a hero, a beacon of hope.

They also have personal reasons to kill Fred Waterford. They all suffered trauma at the hands of a man just like Fred Waterford, therefore, their rage and thirst for revenge pushes them to help June in killing Fred Waterford in the season 4 finale of The Handmaid’s Tale.