These Details About Chris Meloni’s Handmaid's Tale Characters Are Blowing Fans' Minds

From Country Living

Christopher Meloni has shaken the already-unstable ground all of us Handmaid’s Tale fans are currently standing on. In his latest TV role, the actor is one of the most powerful Commanders in Gilead. Commander Winslow, far different from the beloved Detective Stabler on Law & Order: SVU, has made Reddit go wild for his complex, twisted character. It’s tough to say what’s making these fans lose their minds the most, so let’s break it down.

For starters, we’re predicting that Commander Winslow and Commander Waterford are going to engage in an illicit affair. Could it be that their relationship is more than what it seems? Reddit seems to think so, but that’s just the beginning of the madness surrounding Meloni’s appearance on screen. Here are all of the main topics being buzzed about right now:

Elizabeth Reaser’s Handmaid’s Tale name

It’s Olivia! Commander Winslow's wife is played by Elizabeth Reaser, who we've learned is named Olivia Winslow on the show. And we’re all hoping it’s an ode to Meloni’s SVU partner-in-fighting-crime Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay, we miss you!).

“You did notice his wife in the episode was named Olivia, though, right? Cute little nod,” shared ofthrees in the Reddit thread for Handmaid’s Tale episode 6.

“Please tell me @Chris_Meloni’s wife in @HandmaidsOnHulu is named Olivia because of his undying love for SVU and his partner @Mariska,” shared @Briannaology on Twitter.

One user even wanted a stronger connection to Law & Order:

“I was half hoping it was a long term undercover SVU operation to investigate Gilead as a sex trafficking ring,” shared MeisjeMayhem.

Commander Winslow’s attraction to Fred Waterford

Though they’re not sure Waterford is sharing the affection, fans are thinking he might become a victim of rape - just like every Handmaid. It’s completely wrong to “wish” for such a horrific thing to happen, but after the show’s villain has enslaved and raped so many innocent Handmaids, this appears to be a sort of vengeance for them. Many are arguing that Waterford will be forced to give Winslow what he wants to secure his position in Gilead.

“My instant thought was that commander is gay and might use his power and influence to try to force Fred to sleep with him,” suggested Foxelette. “I could be WAY off, it's just what popped into my head. How fitting it would be to see Fred as the victim of a rape.”

Several people caught that, including jpallan, who said, “I was like, ‘Oh, you might have to have uncomfortable sexual encounters to survive in this society, Fred Waterford? Guess what, I'm totally comfortable with that.’”

One Reddit user went so far as to guess Serena will catch her husband in the act. Let’s not forget she lost a finger for simply reading ...

“$10 on the table says Serena walks in on Christopher Meloni making the moves on Fred,” wrote daringitlog.

Christopher Meloni’s butt

Yes, we can’t ignore that. While they’re busy coming up with theories about Winslow and Waterford, people also cannot stop talking about Meloni’s butt. His derrière was the talk of the town long before he starred in The Handmaid’s Tale, but there are predictions that we’ll see much more of it in coming episodes.

“Blessed be the assets,” said Protanope, which prompted ronan_the_accuser to reply, “90% sure he has it in his contract that his ass get sizable screen time in whatever show he’s in.”

We’re thinking they might be right, because people can’t stop mentioning that particular shot when the two Commanders were playing an intimate game of pool.

“Winslow was hitting on Fred which started with the full on butt shot right in front of Fred while playing pool,” wrote flyersrights.

Just the fact that Christopher Meloni is on screen.

People are genuinely happy to see him, even if he is an evil Commander in Gilead. And over on Twitter, feelings could be summed up with this meme:

We’re also losing our minds over here, so we’ll just have to wait oh-so-patiently to see how Christopher Meloni’s Handmaid’s Tale character develops this season (and hopefully next?).

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