The Testaments review: The Handmaid’s Tale sequel is a dark coming-of-age tale

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A star rating of 4 out of 5.

A year after the conclusion of the sixth and final season of The Handmaid’s Tale, the story of Gilead continues with The Testaments, a new series that explores a grim coming-of-age story within that world.

Fifteen years after the story of The Handmaid’s Tale, we meet Agnes, a young girl growing up in the oppressive society of Gilead. As she approaches marriage age, she’s being prepared at Aunt Lydia’s school, where girls – known as ‘plums’ – are trained to become wives. They’re taught skills like cooking, needlework, and religious scripture, all in hopes of proving they are ‘worthy’ and capable of running a household. The girls wear plum, pearl, or green dresses as they’re groomed for their future husbands.

Daisy, played by Lucy Halliday, is Agnes’ new assistant and offers a fresh viewpoint on the controlling regime. Having grown up in Canada, Daisy is an outsider with a mysterious past. Agnes and her friends find it hard to understand why anyone would willingly live under such strict control, and it’s obvious Daisy doesn’t fit in with this world.

From witnessing a harsh punishment at her first school gathering to secretly listening to forbidden music that reminded her of a life before the current rules, Daisy stands out as different. She’s a disruption to the carefully planned system these girls have been taught to follow.

Everyone carries hidden parts of themselves. As young women transition into adulthood – becoming wives and mothers – they all grapple with personal struggles, challenges, and uncertainties.

It was always going to be a challenge for The Testaments to match the huge popularity of The Handmaid’s Tale, both as a book and now as a TV series. However, despite some changes made to the story to potentially allow for another season, The Testaments has been a resounding success.

This ten-episode series is a rare sequel or spin-off that truly stands on its own, feeling both strikingly similar to what came before and refreshingly original.

Infiniti and Halliday’s relationship is delicate and complex, facing significant challenges. Agnes struggles to understand her feelings of confusion, inner conflict, and worry about what the future holds for the new recruits as they begin to mature and wear their official uniforms. Meanwhile, the truth behind Daisy’s move to Gilead starts to come out, revealing the hidden reasons she came.

For the young women raised by Aunt Lydia, forming close bonds and working together is risky, as it can be seen as a vulnerability. Disobeying the rules can lead to severe punishment, even the removal of their ability to speak to each other. Unlike the handmaids who came before them, like June, these girls face a particularly unsettling future, and viewers are more aware of the terrible things that might happen to them as they mature.

As a movie fan, I was really struck by how ‘The Testaments,’ particularly through the eyes of Agnes, Daisy, and Becka (played by Mattea Conforti), presents a much grimmer take on growing up. It’s a real contrast to all those recent films and shows that romanticize childhood. This one doesn’t shy away from showing how girls are often pressured to find their value solely through things like homemaking, being obedient, and having children – it’s a much tougher, more honest look.

I’ve always understood it as, within that community, you absolutely had to conform. Auntie kept a really tight rein on everyone, and if you dared to step out of line, you weren’t just punished for your own mistakes – you were made to feel responsible for everyone’s failings. It’s a heavy burden, as Agnes points out; we were seen as a threat to the goodness of others simply by being ourselves.

The plums are warned that they share some responsibility for others’ mistakes and should actively avoid bringing shame upon themselves or the aunts. They are essentially told to behave passively and demurely, like dolls – a point illustrated by the example of Agnes’ dollhouse.

The show doesn’t shock with gore; instead, its true horror lies in the desperate, almost animalistic, need for what the young girls believe is righteous justice. The series focuses on their internal hunger and desperation, rather than explicit violence.

When allowed to express outrage and demand justice for sexual assault and violent crimes, these young women become intensely passionate and assertive. While their sense of power may be an illusion, it’s deeply unsettling to witness how thoroughly they’ve been taught to believe they possess not only divine favor, but also the authority to condemn others.

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Considering the current political situation, the world of Gilead doesn’t seem as far-fetched as it once did. Like in Gilead, birth rates are declining in the UK, and women are still often blamed for male aggression, taught to avoid ‘provoking’ men instead of addressing the real problem of violence against women. Margaret Atwood’s novel has moved beyond simply warning us about a possible future; it now reflects our own society and highlights the dangers of extreme misogyny and the threat it poses to women’s fundamental rights – to live freely, work, and enjoy life without fear.

The Testaments premieres on Disney+ on Wednesday 8th April 2026.

Don’t miss The Testaments! Add it to your watchlist on the TopMob: What to Watch app. Download the app today for daily TV suggestions, exclusive features, and more.

Authors

David CraigSenior Drama Writer

David Craig writes about television and streaming drama and comedy for TopMob. Before joining them, he worked at Starburst Magazine and hosted The Winter King Podcast on ITVX. He’s a journalism graduate from the University of Sheffield.

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2026-04-07 19:35