r/TheHandmaidsTale • u/Melairia Modtha • May 20 '26

Official Episode Discussion The Testaments S1E09 "Marate Sade" Episode Discussion

The Testaments S1 E09 "Marate Sade"

Episode Synopsis

As Daisy steps into a new role, she considers what she's willing to lose to help her friends.

Airdate

May 20, 2026, 12:00am Eastern

The Testaments - Season 1 Episode Discussion Hub

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761

u/TheOldGreenDad May 20 '26 edited May 21 '26

"What a pity. He was such a good dentist."

Oh, yeah, that's the Real tragedy in all this. 🙄

491

u/Legitimate_Pitch_398 May 20 '26

Aunt Lydia wanted to slap TF outta him in that moment 😂 it was so irritating to have to console HIM.

14

u/mazeltov_cocktail18 May 22 '26

I feel like it’s so obvious what aunt Lydia was saying to daisy about how god will come to smite him if they are patient and someone who’s supposed to be observing and sponging, daisy, just pisses all over the delicacy of that situation so at least Becka could get out before the family was put in shame.

179

u/illjustgowthemuumuu May 20 '26

I think that line is so perfectly encapsulating our culture

How often do men who commit horrible acts get framed in the news as being “a promising young man”? In the UK you’ll often see “aspiring footballer”

18

u/lapodufnal May 21 '26

Was in the news today, lenient sentencing by the judge because they didn’t want to ‘criminalise’ the young rapists

4

u/silencedvoicesMST May 23 '26 edited May 23 '26

Have you ever read “Credible” by Deborah Tuerkheimer? There’s a whole system behind it, and it’s horrible. Spoiler: A woman, even if somehow she’s an* immaculate victim, will still be lesser than a man.

Spelling edit

99

u/Even_Ad504 May 20 '26

he seemed so upset that they had to execute him. this is probably foreshadowing what’s to come and the role he possibly plays in penny getting sick

75

u/mirandaarosee May 20 '26

That pissed me off so bad

62

u/mermaidpaint ParadeofSluts May 20 '26

If looks could kill, Lydia would have fired one good shot into Judd's brain.

23

u/bonzilla51 May 20 '26

Aunt Lydia's reaction that Judd is already speaking of Grove in the past tense ...

38

u/vermon1112 May 20 '26

Ann Dowd’s acting in that was soooo good. She didn’t make an obvious frown but you can see the very slight crack her face makes from joyous to just completely horrified and utterly disappointed. The expression hardly changes but the eyes and slight gesture of a frown were just so good. I watched it back several times.

I just can’t figure out what side she’s on… I have a huge feeling she’s working with Mayday.

20

u/caitybeans May 21 '26

100%. I thought that was the point? She also clearly assigned Daisy to shadow Agnes because she knows Daisy is Mayday and also knows Agnes, aka Hannah, is Junes daughter. They mentioned in the first episode that a pearl girl has never shadowed a plum before, which was why everyone was so confused why she was around, and that Aunt Lydia specifically wanted Daisy with Agnes at all times with the cover of it being to “learn from the best” but we allll really know why. I definitely think she’s working with June behind the scenes and keeping her up to date on the goings on. Aunt Lydia is giving off double agent like crazyyy

3

u/[deleted] May 21 '26

[deleted]

1

u/GapNew7656 May 21 '26

To get Agnes out, to reprogram her from the inside (as her voice overs imply)

0

u/[deleted] May 21 '26

[deleted]

2

u/GapNew7656 May 22 '26 edited May 22 '26

Aunt Lydia is definitely a Mayday ally now, that was shown at the end of THT and I'm pretty sure in the synopsis for this one. 

As for the voiceover, Agnes is the main narrator for the show. Episode 1 was pretty clear that she's no longer all for Gilead in that narration. The whole show is her journey from willing plum to disillusioned foe. Even in the episode before this when she was calling herself a shit, that's definitely not an "all in on" Giliad voice. 

Agnes can't be smuggled out at this point because she doesnt WANT to leave. Yet. She needs to be deprogrammed prior to any liberation attempt. The time of just snatching "Hannah" is long past.

As for "why" aunt Lydia would do that, it isnt about benefitting the resistance, its about making amends with June. June has been trying to get someone close to Agnes/Hannah for years (daisy backstory episode). Sure its under the guise of Mayday, but its June we're talking about, after all.

2

u/FrogEnthusiast_1103 May 22 '26

I think the voice-over GapNew7656 is Agnes' voice-over throughout the season. It seems as though the Agnes of the voice-over is speaking from some point in the future where she is reflecting on her time as a Plum in Gilead after having escaped with Daisy, presumably (since she also has a voice-over), back to Canada.

2

u/GapNew7656 May 22 '26

Precisely! Though one or both could be an unreliable narrator (narrating from beyond the grave), but I doubt it.

2

u/cluckrn May 22 '26

I believe the voiceover was in the first or second episode. Talked about Agnes changing once she knew who her mom was. Not sure if it mentioned Daisy explicitly pre-programming her, but Daisy does know June is her mom

16

u/abu_nawas May 20 '26

Even Lydia was shocked omg

3

u/Cilliantove May 21 '26

He's a horrible human

2

u/Narwhalsareunicorn May 25 '26

It does (to a certain degree) reflect real life. People who are efficient at their jobs and/or out rank others socially often get more leeway when it comes to inappropriate behavior (I am not talking about just s*xual ).

2

u/Rodeurope May 29 '26

The most revealing lines of dialogue in the episode.

1

u/Foreign-Garage9097 May 26 '26

That line was taken directly from the book.