At the request of Serena, June contacts her husband Luke by telephone in order to arrange a meeting between the Waterfords and Nichole. Luke agrees to the meeting on the condition that only Serena attend the meeting and not Fred. During their tense meeting at Toronto Pearson International Airport, Serena reassures Luke that June is safe and that both she and June gave up Nichole so that she could get a better life in Canada. Serena also passes Luke a tape containing a recorded message from June revealed Nichole's true name Holly and that Nick is her biological father. Later, June is picked up by Guardians and forced to take part in a televised broadcast in which the Waterfords, who are pretending to be a family in mourning, are forcing the Canadian government to return Nichole, as well as the escaped fugitive that had her, to Gilead.
Tropes:
- Call-Back: Mark Tuello returns, and informs Serena that the offer made to her last season is still on the table, with him referring to it explicitly as "Treason and Coconuts", the same statement that Serena made during the previous visit.
- Chekhov's Gun:
- The Tape that June listens to. It is used to hide a message to Luke.
- Serena, on her return trip from Canada, looks in her handbag and sees a cell phone from the American Agent. The camera lingers on it, she hides the note attached to it, and we never see what she does with it. The Gun gets fired in episode 11, Liar when it's revealed that all of the propaganda videos, all the effort to get Nichole back, and their return trip to Canada was all a ruse set up by Serena and the Loyalist Americans to get Fred arrested for War Crimes.
- Ofmatthew's concern of being pregnant would later be used against her in Episode 8.
- Child by Rape: What Nichole is in the eyes of the world. However Luke learns in that episode, that she isn't and that Waterford isn't her biological father, which might weaken the Waterfords' 'claim' to the child.
- Devil in Plain Sight: Invoked. Luke explicitly requests that Serena change into normal civilian clothing so as to not attract attention in traditional Gilead dress.
- Does This Remind You of Anything?: Expanding on Just Plane Wrong, the fact that the ATC transmissions talk of Gilead using an Airbus A300 is in reference to Iran (of which Gilead was partially based on). Prior to 2016, American Sanctions placed on the Iranian Regime meant that the newest airliner that Iranian airlines could use was the Airbus A300. The Airbus A300 plane is actually pretty old compared to the more modern aircraft in use today.
- Fist of Rage: June clenches her fists in barely suppressed anger when the Waterfords force her to pose in their video about their baby having been kidnapped from Gilead.
- Internal Reveal:
- Luke finds out about Nichole's real name and her true parentage.
- June finds out that Ofmatthew may be pregnant.
- Just Plane Wrong: ATC transmissions identify the plane Serena flies on as an Airbus A300, a widebody jet. But based on the exterior and interior, it is nothing more than a narrowbody regional jet in cargo configuration. See Does This Remind You of Anything? for additional context.
- Kick the Dog: Ofmatthrew hounds June with her prayers for the baby's return and that Luke would be a "good enough" man to return the child. She later apologizes for it.
- Mixtape of Love: Eleanore Lawrence reveals that her husband was fond of making mixes for her when he was young. On actual tapes. She still has them in the basement. These become important.
- Mythology Gag: June making a cassette tape recording for Luke is similar to what Offred does in the novel; record her story on tapes for people to hear.
- No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: The Waterfords exploit June's kindness in allowing Serena to visit Nichole by forcing her to stand in their "plea" for Nichole's return. This also extends to Luke; he had allowed Serena to hold Nichole, which ends up biting him in the face when the Waterfords make their "plea".
- Not So Stoic: Ofmatthew finds out she may be pregnant. Her face shows that she knows this will be the fourth child she will be forced to give up.
- Papa Wolf: Luke may not be Nichole/Holly's real father, but he sure is protective with her when meeting Serena.
- Pet the Dog:
- Luke allows Serena to hold Nichole before Serena's departure.
- June has some pity for Ofmatthew when the latter tells June she is pregnant. In turn, Ofmatthew apologizes for her passive-aggressive outburst and tells her she is truly glad June's child is safe.
- This expands to the Canadian Government. After expelling the Waterfords previously when the letters from Gilead were published, one would think that the Canadian Government would not allow the visit to go ahead. Episode 11 reveals that Mark Tuello wanted this visit to go ahead as he had intended to, and was able to, turn Serena against Gilead.
- Toxic Friend Influence: Just as Serena is ready to make peace with her departure from Nichole, Fred steps in and proposes a plan to make a plea to get Nichole back. This is ultimately subverted as it would appear that Serena went along with this as a means to ultimately betray him in Episode 11.
- Visual Title Drop: How June's call to Luke appears on his phone.
