I think this is a really intense series to watch. It's extremely explicit, but I think it needs to be, especially when it comes to subjects like these. Even though it's fiction, the way the series portrays people in positions of power makes the story feel disturbingly believable. That's one of the reasons I think it's such an incredible adaptation. I haven't read the book, and I'm sure that if I did, it would be very difficult for me to get through because of everything that happens. But I'm not rating the series based on how I personally felt while watching it. I'm rating it based on how everything was explained, how each part of the story was handled, and, most importantly, how well the pain and violence were portrayed. And I genuinely think they succeeded. It was really difficult to keep watching. There were moments when I couldn't continue with another episode and had to take a break because of how heavy it was. There were scenes that were incredibly difficult to watch, and there were also moments when I thought, "Okay, but are we really doing this again?" because sometimes it felt like there was just so much drama. But that's exactly why I don't want to rate this based only on my personal taste. I want to look at what the series was trying to tell and whether those choices were necessary for the story. And honestly, I think they were. I also didn't have the experience of waiting years for each new season to come out. By the time I watched it, all the seasons that had already been released were available, which actually gave me the chance to take breaks and process what I had just watched. And I definitely needed those breaks. There are so many scenes that I know I'll never forget. One of them is the airplane scene, when all the frightened children arrive and the little girl asks if she can dress however she wants there. That scene is going to stay with me. There are so many other moments that were incredibly difficult, but I think they were necessary to show the reality of what the characters were going through. And honestly, this series taught me a lot. From the very beginning, it made me realize how little I actually understood about feminism. I had a very distorted idea of what feminism meant because I had never personally experienced that kind of violence, or at least I had never recognized certain things as violence. I used to think, "Oh, no, I'm not a feminist. I'm anti-feminist," even though I never actually took the time to understand what feminism meant. Obviously, this series cannot be used as a complete definition of feminism, but it did make me think about the subject in a completely different way. Through its characters and the situations they experience, the series made me understand why feminism exists in the first place: because people's rights can be violated, and because those rights sometimes need to be defended. I think each character contributed something important to that realization for me. They made me look at feminism differently and understand why it matters. So now I simply can't call myself anti-feminist anymore, and I can't keep being ignorant about issues that the series made me realize I had never really thought about. Another thing I took from the series is that you don't have to personally experience violence to recognize that other people are suffering. The story shows how people can be affected by oppression in very different ways, and how not everyone has the same ability to fight back. That made me think about how helping someone doesn't always mean doing something dramatic. Sometimes it can mean supporting someone, giving them what they need, or simply refusing to ignore what they're going through. The series made me realize that when we have the ability to help someone, even in a small way, that matters. I also really loved the message at the end about never giving up. That really stayed with me because, throughout the entire series, the main character goes through so many difficult, painful, frustrating, and seemingly hopeless moments, but she keeps going. There were definitely parts of the series that felt very heavy, complicated, and even slow at times. But I think those moments were necessary because the characters are complicated too. Sometimes they make mistakes, sometimes they take a long time to understand things, and sometimes they make choices I wouldn't make myself. I can't judge the series simply because the characters don't always behave the way I would. I absolutely loved every actor and actress who appeared in this series. All of those scenes involving pain and violence were portrayed so convincingly, and I think that's a huge part of why the series had such an impact on me. So, for all of those reasons, I'm giving it the rating I'm giving it. It's an incredible series, and I would absolutely watch it again. I really hope we never get anywhere close to becoming Gilead, or even supporting something like it.
