After a divisive series finale, The Handmaid’s Tale viewers are pointing fingers at its sequel series, The Testaments.
The dystopian drama came to a close on Tuesday night (May 26th), and was slated by fans who felt that it did not wrap up June Osborne’s (Elisabeth Moss) story as they expected. The instalment saw June reflecting on her life under Gilead and even reuniting with some familiar faces, before setting down to tell her story.
One major plotline that audiences had anticipated from the last ever episode was June’s reunion with her daughter Hannah, which ultimately did not happen.
Although showrunner Bruce Miller has revealed that he knew the story’s ending since the pilot, fans believe that the upcoming spin-off show may have negatively impacted the finale.
Viewers speculate that since The Testaments series will be set directly after the events of The Handmaid’s Tale, despite the Margaret Atwood novel starting 15 years in the future, the showrunners wrote the series finale as a prologue, instead of a closing episode.
The Handmaid’s Tale sequel series was initially set 15 years after June’s story (Image: Channel 4)
Sharing their frustration about the drama’s ending, a TikTok user posted a video stating: “So unfortunately The Testaments did ruin The Handmaid’s Tale finale for me.”
The social media user, known as Michaela or mc_from_nc, went on to explain that they were initially thrilled by the recent update on The Testaments’ timeline. Originally, the forthcoming drama was reportedly going to be set over a decade after June’s story, following new women under Gilead.
However, Moss recently confirmed that the story picks up directly after the events of The Handmaid’s Tale. In a similar vein, Miller told Variety that the spin-off will take place only three or four years after the original series.
The fan continued, expressing that this update may be to blame for the unsatisfactory finale: “But I think the writers used it [the sequel series] as a way to get really lazy when it came to closing out these characters’ story arcs.”
Fans speculate that showrunners treated the finale as a prologue to The Testaments (Image: HULU)
“Because of the timeline shift, I don’t think that they felt pressured to properly wrap them up. Instead, they used the episode as an opportunity to kind of tease the new series,” they added.
Michaela elaborated, claiming that the episode felt like a teaser for The Testaments
“The whole episode was filled with really lukewarm reunions and farewells and ‘see you laters.’ I think that’s because the writers just didn’t feel pressured to close this out in the way you would, if you knew you would never see the characters again,” the video concludes.
Now boasting over 4,000 comments, the video prompted others to share similar opinions. “Agreedddddd. Rather than giving fans the closure of a true finale, they want to sell a new show,” penned one viewer.
Some viewers still enjoyed the closing episode (Image: Hulu)
A second echoed the sentiment, writing: “My thoughts exactly. No respect for the fans who have supported for years. Just wanted to set up for a new show.”
Meanwhile, a third viewer claimed the finale has dissuaded them from watching the sequel, stating: “I have no desire to watch The Testaments now.”
Despite the largely negative reception, some fans were satisfied with the ending. “Am I the only one who liked the episode? I mean sure, there’s stuff I would’ve changed but it wasn’t THAT bad,” defended one viewer.
A second chimed in with praise, gushing: “I loved it!”
Hulu has yet to confirm a release date for The Testaments, but production for the series began in April.
