The Handmaid’s Tale season 5 has reached its midpoint, surprisingly without too many fatal outcomes, though it still remains unclear about Janine and Esther’s fate. But with June’s intent to overthrow and combat the oppressive government, these events are likely a calm before the storm since previous seasons proved that violence is the only answer when facing a place like Gilead.
It shouldn’t come as a surprise for longtime fans that the majority of characters who have killed others in The Handmaid’s Tale are not the noble short-sighted Wives, pretentious Commanders, or even Aunts like Lydia, but the Handmaids themselves. Of course, their acts make sense since they’re the only ones (except for maybe Guardians of Gilead) willing to get their hands dirty in the fight against the oppressive regime and regain their freedom.
Fred Waterford: 1 kill
Fred Waterford was the first Commander that The Handmaid’s Tale introduced to the audience, providing a lot of insight into the order of things in a typical dystopian Gilead household. On top of that, he possessed a lot of power and played a significant role in building Gilead traditions and customs.
Despite the rules in Gilead, Fred also broke them by going to the Jezebel’s, which revealed his unfaithfulness towards Serena. Despite his infidelity, Fred loved and cared for Serena, which he proved by getting vengeance against the sniper who shot Serena in “First Blood” by killing the sniper’s wife. Though Fred was one of the most villainous characters in The Handmaid’s Tale, he only had one recorded kill before Gilead came into existence, which was to avenge Serena.
Esther Keyes: 1 kill
One of the most tragic victims of Gilead’s regime is a teenager, now ex-Wife Esther Keyes (Mckenna Grace). Introduced in The Handmaid’s Tale’s season 4, she showed her hospitality to June and the other Handmaids while they were in hiding and expected them to change the order of things for the better.
Esther carries out a Salvaging (a form of execution in Gilead) on her violent abuser and guard, Johnny Pogue. With June’s encouragement, Esther killed the guard and felt satisfied that she finally got justice for what happened to her. Life as a Handmaid pushed her to become rebellious against the government and, at one point, committed the worst decision in The Handmaid’s Tale by poisoning herself and Janine with chocolate candy — though their fates are still unclear.
Natalie/Ofmatthew: 1 kill
Ofmatthew (Ashleigh LaThrop) joined season 3 as an obedient follower of Gilead regulations and June’s new walking partner. She was mostly emotionless and often didn’t care about the other Handmaids, although she did express remorse over the fact that her fourth child would be taken away from her.
Knowing full well the consequences of her actions, Natalie felt compelled to rat out a Martha, who was helping June with information about Hannah, which resulted in Martha’s hanging. The episode “Unfit” showed Natalie losing control over her emotions at Bread and Loaves after suffering public humiliation, led by June. She almost beat Janine to death, killed one of the Guardians that tried to stop her, and then died from a gunshot wound.
Emily Malek: 3 kills
The original Ofglen, played by Alexis Bledel, is the character with one of the most tragic fates in the show. Even before the new regime, she dealt with homophobia at a university that wanted to suspend her from work for being a lesbian. Gilead scarred her emotionally by showing her the hanging of her lover and mutilating her genitalia. Hence, Emily essentially fell victim to many terrifying laws in The Handmaid’s Tale.
On her path of resistance, Emily has been passed on from one Commander to another and received death threats from Aunt Lydia. Nevertheless, she always associated herself with the Mayday movement, which meant getting her hands dirty. Emily ran over a Guardian outside the supermarket, poisoned an ex-Wife while serving in colonies for enabling the repeated raping of other Handmaids, and finished off a Commander that was having a heart attack in the middle of the Ceremony. Unfortunately, in season 5, it’s revealed that Emily couldn’t find peace in Canada and went back to seek revenge on Aunt Lydia, whom she once stuck with a knife in the back.
June Osborn: 9 kills
Truth be told, June Osborn (Elizabeth Moss) was never going to be an example of mercy, nor should she be. Gilead shattered her family, stripped away her pride, treated her like property, and pushed her toward violence every “blessed day.” On her journey to escape from Gilead, she killed Commander Winslow with a pen, shot a guardian in the season 3 finale, poisoned six Commanders at Jezebel’s, and brutally disfigured Fred Waterford (Joseph Fiennes) in a satisfying ending to season 4.
While there may have been a lot more collateral damage along June’s journey (specifically, the other Marthas and Handmaids), the character can’t possibly be the only one who should be held accountable. Though she almost died several times but didn’t, season 5 proves that escaping Gilead has not freed June’s mind from a burning desire to destroy everyone responsible for creating this hateful regime.
Lillie Fuller/Ofglen: 57 kills
Near the final moments in The Handmaid’s Tale‘s first episode, Lillie (Tattiawna Jones) is introduced as Offred’s walking partner, who conveniently fills Emily’s spot as Ofglen. As a Handmaid, she simply wants to obey the rules of Gilead and stay away from any trouble, but when the time comes, she speaks out against stoning Janine, which costs her a tongue.
Still water runs deep, and Lillie Fuller is a prime example of that. Season 2’s “First Blood” closes with a poetic and unforgettable scene of Lillie gliding past Handmaids at the opening of the New Rachel and Leah Center. Having foreseen the opportunity to destroy her enemies, Ofglen strapped a detonator to herself and, like a true rebellion, killed herself along with 26 Commanders. Sadly, 31 Handmaids were victims from this attack because they weren’t able to flee the premises on time.
