The Handmaid's Tale

Same here.

They've certainly made a good job of portraying the horrible controlling and violent world they live in, especially contrasted with the "normal" previous world seen in some of the flashbacks.

The interior scenes were rather dark. I guess there's an artistic reason for that - darkness in their buildings and darkness in all their lives. There was one scene where Offred in her dark room was silhouetted against light streaming through the window - meaning there is hope out there? (or probably I'm reading too much into it!).

A good start to what promises to be a gripping series.

I found this visually stunning and horribly believable. I've liked the book for years though not read it for a while, but I do remember that it starts with Offred (whose real name we don't learn in the book), in her previous life, having her credit card rejected in a shop because the chip in it that identifies her as female has been deactivated. The same thing is happening to all women around her as they are suddenly unable to conduct their lives. Not as exciting as a car chase to the border but more insidious.

I gather the series has been recommissioned, which I assume means there is no denouement at the end of the first. I do wish they wouldn't do this with adaptations or indeed series written for television that have a natural ending (Homeland comes to mind). But Margaret Atwood is apparently still on board which is a good sign – she would certainly make her opinions known if she didn't approve.

Yes, including it seems the sudden declining of women's credit cards, which goodhelenstar points out above is how the book starts. The series is feeding us the previous world a bit at a time, which I think is good as it keeps the interest up.

This week we had a birth, with the Wife sitting behind the Handmaid as in the "Ceremony" (and, earlier in the labour, going through the same exercises as the Handmaid) - all pretty gross.

The Commander instructs Offred to come to his study - which is off limits even to his wife without invitation - to play scrabble as it turns out. Is he unwilling to play with his wife, or is it an intellectual activity which wives are not supposed to indulge in?

I read this book when it came out, so a long time ago, but it seems to me that things are going faster than in the novel, and I wonder how much action will be added, especially if it is going to a second series. I also don't remember any FGM, but then it was about 30 years ago, but I didn't think they tolerated lesbians at all, not even fertile ones! Once they knew you were a gender traitor, that was it! You got banished or killed.

Another brutal episode. That seems to be the pattern: the dreadful reality of present-day life for anyone who steps out of line, with flashbacks to Offred's life 'before' and the process of brutalising them all into submission.

The filming is stunning, with the solid blocks of colour representing the different castes of women and the men all in black (I wonder how it was that the Aunts became so dowdy?), along with the choreography of scenes like the Ceremony. The beauty of it adds to the horror of what is really going on.