HuluThe Handmaid’s Tale Season 6 Episode 2, ‘Exile’, sees Nick make a shocking decision, while June and Serena both make major moves in their respective new worlds. Warning: spoilers ahead!
In Season 6 Episode 1, Serena and June continued their train journey which was, at the time, destination unknown. But when the passengers found out they were traveling with the Serena Joy, aka Mrs. Waterford, they turned on her.
June managed to push her to safety… kind of. Now, Serena is alone in the middle of nowhere, and she’s got baby Noah with her too. The irony is she’s making the kind of terrifying journey so many Handmaids have had to in the past.
Elsewhere in the Hulu series, Rose’s father, High Commander Wharton, is keeping a close eye on Nick, Tuello’s looking to join forces with Mayday, and Luke’s still detained in Canada. As for June, she finally made it to Alaska, where she saw a familiar face: her mom, Holly.
Where is Serena?
HuluSerena lands on her feet, having stumbled upon a women-and-children only, faith-based commune – and she’s still in Canada. She and Noah are welcome to stay as long as they need. When the head, Abigail, asks her her name, she lies and says, “Rachel.”
Over in Alaska, June and Holly catch up, which is understandably a little overwhelming. June asks what happened to her, to which she explains that Gilead enforcers dragged her out and tried her in court.
Although they sent her to the colonies, she managed to survive thanks to her skills as a doctor. “They made me take care of the aunts and the guardians,” she says. “They kept us prisoners and killed my friends. But I hung on with the hope that I might see you some day.”
Eventually, what’s left of the US army liberated Holly’s colony. Since getting to Alaska, she’s done everything she can to try and find out about June. It’s not been easy, given the fact that Gilead has shut off the state’s access to the internet and other necessities. Everyone there only gets one five-minute phone call a week.
Even though Holly could’ve applied to stay in Hawaii or elsewhere, she wanted to stay put in Alaska in the hopes of seeing June… and Hannah.
HuluJune fills her in on what happened with Hannah: she was kidnapped, given to a Commander and his wife, and she’s healthy. “I have really tried to get her out,” she says. “Last time I saw her, mom, she didn’t remember me.”
June gets upset, and Holly’s there to comfort her. “Oh you are tough, and it’s not over.”
Later, they call Moira, who’s with Luke and Rita. They are overjoyed about the fact that Holly’s alive and with June. It’s a good reminder of the fact that even in a situation as desperate as theirs, they find pockets of joy and hold onto them.
After saying hello, Luke fills June in on his situation: he’s not sure if they’re going to dismiss his case in Canada and he’s waiting on a hearing.
What he doesn’t say is that moments earlier, Luke and Moira agreed to help Tuello and Mayday out with their plot to join forces and fight Gilead. June promises to call Luke next week, unaware of their plans.
Tuello and Nick have a tense exchange
HuluThe Handmaid’s Tale Season 6 Episode 2 cuts to the Gilead border, where Tuello is covertly meeting up with Nick. He tells Nick that June and Nichole are safe in Alaska, before handing him an encrypted phone and details on the schedules of Gilead patrols in No Man’s Land.
Nick questions why the US military needs this information, unless Mayday is up to something. Tuello plays dumb, saying, “What’s Mayday?” But Nick just smiles.
“You know you ran through paramilitary, those people you get from Mayday are not trained,” he says, to which Tuello replies, “I believe in freedom, and I want our country back.”
Nick says they don’t stand a chance, asking how many bodies it’s going to take before enough’s enough. But Tuello retorts, “When there’s no one left to fight.”
Text across the screen tells us that two months have passed, and June and Serena are getting on at their respective havens. Serena works in the garden, during which she reminisces about her life leading up to Gilead’s uprising.
In the flashback, she spends time with her father, who appears to be in the early stages of Parkinson’s disease. Serena excitedly tells him about her book tour, saying people are “hungry for change.”
He’s supportive of her and says they’re living in “dark times,” indicating he’s where Serena gets her views from. As they walk away, she tells him about the new man she’s seeing: Fred Waterford.
HuluIn the present day, the scene cuts to New Bethlehem, where High Commander Wharton and Nick are having a chat. Wharton makes it clear that Nick must stop messing around, stay focused on Rose, and be a strong role model for his son (whose birth is just around the corner).
“Make good choices, son,” he tells Nick. “That’s all you have to do. You have so much potential.”
When Wharton leaves, Nick picks up the USB stick Tuello gave him and throws it in the fire. He’s made his decision. He’s staying faithful to Gilead.
Old with the old, in with the New Bethlehem
HuluOver in Alaska, June tries calling Luke. She leaves a message, and we find out she hasn’t had a response from him for weeks.
Things in Canada aren’t quite as concerning for Serena, although she does get a talking to from Abigail, who reveals that she knows she is – she even read her book.
Abigail asks Serena what she thinks about the things she’s done, and whether she really did them solely to serve God.
Finally, Serena admits, “I was wrong,” to which Abigail replies, “So set it right. You know he’s watching.”
This makes Serena think of her father again, although this memory is a little further down the line. Just before the takeover of Gilead, June’s father is wheelchair bound and unable to speak.
Serena tells him that the world is going to become like the “Garden of Eden, just like you always wanted.”
Her trip down memory lane is interrupted when Commander Lawrence and his new wife Naomi (the former Mrs. Putnam) show up at the commune. Lawrence tells Serena that he needs her to come back and lead New Bethlehem.
She’s not interested, even if it is more liberal. “I feel God here,” she says. When his approach doesn’t work, Lawrence kicks it up a notch, telling Serena, “The Eyes know where you are. It’s only a matter of time before the Wheelers do too.”
If the Wheelers catch up to Serena, they’ll take Noah from her – and no doubt she’d end up in prison or on the wall.
The Handmaid’s Tale Season 6 Episode 2 ends with June and Serena on new paths
HuluThe scene cuts to Alaska, where June speaks on the phone to Tuello. She goes to pack her things, while explaining to Holly what’s going on. Moira and Luke are stuck in No Man’s Land, having volunteered to help with Mayday.
The American Embassy is going to fly June out there. Holly says it’s too dangerous, and June realizes she finally has to tell her mother the truth about Nick.
When Holly begs her not to go, saying it’s a trap, June explains Nick isn’t like that. “They’re all like that,” Holly retorts. “They’re monsters.”
They get into a big fight, culminating in June accusing Holly of abandoning her, a statement she instantly regrets. After cooling down, they sit down for a chat, and June apologizes for saying what she did.
Holly agrees that it’s okay for her to go and help Luke and Moira, but asks June to leave Nichole with her. June agrees, but before she leaves, she tells her mother that Nichole’s real name is Holly, leaving her touched.
Back at the commune, they’re all having dinner when Serena gets up and announces that she’s off to New Bethlehem with Noah. She expresses her gratitude to the group, but says God “has a plan” for her now. “The world is broken and I am being called to heal it,” she says.
Serena needs to be careful – we all know what happens when her ego takes over.
The episode ends with Serena and June heading off to their respective destinations. When June arrives, she finds a whole group of freedom fighters in a warehouse near the border.
The Handmaid’s Tale Season 6 Episodes 1-3 are streaming on Hulu now, with Episode 4 set to drop on April 15. Until then, read about the upcoming spinoff, The Testaments, check out the best TV shows to watch in 2025, and find every upcoming release with our 2025 TV show calendar.
