Serena Joy – I try to keep in mind that not only is she forced to watch her husband have relations with another woman on the regular, our Offred isn’t the first other woman/handmaid/Offred that SJ has had to watch this happen with. I don’t know how long Gilead has been around, but presumably she was married to the Commander prior to it – and if this is the third woman he cannot impregnate, it is likely he who is the problem and she has guessed it. Perhaps that is why SJ became so joyous at the sliver of possibility that Offred was pregnant. It was quite the turnaround of behavior, and it seemed like even more than baby-fever and religious-ferver. She truly was treating treating Offred as a miracle, as if her husband had one sperm live and make the journey alone. Additionally, if Offred was pregnant, SJ would have to endure the Ceremony no longer.

The Commander – As you pointed out, he is an architect of the regime, and a true antagonist our story. As I mentioned in an earlier comment, power corrupts. He invites his Handmaid for forbidden personal time, game playing, dictionary usage, latin translation and alcohol. He gifted her a magazine that he should have burned, and he allowed himself to be manipulated by an underling to let her leave her room. He is indulging himself in emotional corruption, and I don’t believe it is because he felt bad that pre-Offred offed herself. He wants the Ceremony to have some intimacy by connecting with Offred as a person. Additionally, we saw him rebuff his wife. I imagine SJ has changed. Hardened. Who wouldn’t under the circumstances? She is not the woman he originally fell in love with. So he is excusing his indulgences. But he has an inscrutable face, unchallengeable power (for certain in the home and much power outside of it), and I fear for Offred as she tests the limits of his indulgence.

The Driver – A young man without power but who seems to have some autonomy and some knowledge of both the regime and the resistance. He seems attracted to Offred and worried about her, but I am reminded that there is an Eye in the house. If the Commander can be swayed by emotion, so could a driver who is an Eye. Just a possibility.

Martha/The Cook – We know the least about her. She also may be the Eye, but I think it is less likely in that she seems to leave the house the least and that would not afford her the opportunity to pass along information to the regime. She also had a significant turn of personality when she thought Offred might be pregnant. Would it be because the household in general would be happier and that would make things less difficult for her? What else would she get out of it?

The Eye – I believe the Eye would spy on all levels of caste and power. So it would not be the Commander or his wife. It must be someone who could pass as resistance, and thereby gain information from resistance. It must be someone who gains the ear of power so any cracks therein could be revealed. So, perhaps it is the Driver. Perhaps his kindness to Offred is merely a manipulation. He was aware already that Ofglen was “dangerous.”

Offred – If I haven’t said it before, Elisabeth Moss is MAGNIFICENT as Offred. The subtle expressions that tell of deep pools of emotion and life beneath. Offred’s inner monologue…no….inner prayer, as she is about to face the Black Truck interrogator and Aunt, praying to God(?) that she will be devout and compliant if she can just get through this. But deep down, devout and compliant will never be who she is. Not one minute later, she was withholding from the interrogator and sassing the Aunt. Withholding was survival, but sassing was cavalierly standing up for herself. It was resistance. It was an assertion that no matter how compliant they make her body, they will not take her heart and mind.

Moira – I hope she escaped and was not killed. The rumor of her demise was not definitive. I sometimes make the choice to look at imdb and see how many episodes an actor is in, and that can tell you things about their character’s fate, though that is not as helpful when flashbacks occur. As Offred’s husband and child have been lost to her since her ordeal began, Moira is Offred’s touchstone to reality. She was present in both before and after, and she is the living embodiment of hope – that she got on the train and made it out.

Serena Joy (or Pam, which is probably her real name(?) – per the book anyway) was an accomplished and touring singer before the rise of the republic. Post revolution, the book tells us she was a motivational speaker, and only did that (ie work outside the home) because she cared about the republic and was doing it as a sacrifice. Outside of that, she was a very accomplished knitter. heheh, and spent much of her free time knitting.

But yes, totally on target. She is in a really really bad way. (And it is only going to get worse for her before it gets better(?)) My only point is, we hate her because she is a tyrant. And yet, it isn’t too surprising she’s a tyrant. I’ve read some interviews with Yvonne Strahovski and she was fairly bowled over by the part. She really worried about taking the part home with her. Etc. What I was most interested in, was why I didn’t hate the Commander as much. I mean, besides the fact that he’s nice. Which, should be irrelevant. But it is an interesting question.