One of the scariest characters in the history of television, Ann Dowd’s Aunt Lydia became an instant sensation when she arrived in The Handmaid’s Tale. Her powerful performance was the basis for Margaret Atwood, and The Testaments finally gives us a look at her life before the rise of Gilead. When creating the origin for a villain, you can often try to explain away too much of their behavior. However, “Stadium” avoids this pitfall, instead confirming exactly how calculating the most famous Aunt of Gilead became in her rise to power.
Spoiler Alert !!!Spoilers for The Testaments so far and all of The Handmaid’s Tale.
The Testaments Season 1 Episode 6 Recap
Aunt Lydia (Dowd) looks over the girls at her school before she joins the Aunts in their matchmaking duties. Daisy (Lucy Halliday) wonders why the other Greens and Plums are so nervous, and Shunammite (Rowan Blanchard) tells her about “the contenders” process. Each Green will have two to three final suitors made available for in-home visits and additional interactions. Their matches will be based on this process.
In a flashback, Lydia sits in a teacher’s lounge with her co-workers. School is cancelled again, and Lydia’s annoyed that the coffee was not replaced by Vivian. When Vivian (Mabel Li) enters the room, she is scared of the soldiers in the hallway who want to speak to Keith. Watching through the window of the teacher’s lounge, they see Keith executed at point-blank range.
The women are taken by the soldiers to a local tennis stadium, where they are forced to remove all their belongings. Their co-worker, Susan (Shaeane Jiminez), is taken away because she is pregnant but unmarried. Lydia tries to stop it, but Vivian tells her friend there’s nothing she can do. The women are loaded into the seats and are forced to watch a public execution. Afterwards, the women are forced to stay in the stadium for days, with women disappearing in the night.
The Aunts smoke during a break in their discussions. Vidala keeps focus on the work, revealing Commander Maddox is interested in Becka. Lydia does not want to reward Maddox’s behavior when he was the one who got her drunk at the ball. She punishes Vidala for thinking that would be a good match by having her confirm Hulda’s new status as a Green. She does it with Daisy.
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Agnes, Becka, and Shunammite discuss the ball. Since it happened, Becka’s mother will not speak to her, and Shunammite is worried she’ll be paired up with a commander from the colonies. While Becka does not care, Shunammite reminds Becka that her friends risked a lot to help her that night. Jehosheba calls Shunammite a “jealous prune,” an insult that implies Shu will never become a Green.
Hulda is introduced to the other girls as a new Green who is eligible this season. Vidala asks Hulda what the punishment should be for girls who strike other girls. Hulda says these girls should have their hands bound and whipped. Vidala has Shunammite stand up and walk to a desk, where Hulda is forced to hold her hands down while the punishment is administered.
In another flashback, Lydia slowly eats to pass the time and talks with Vivian about their jobs as teachers. The next morning, Lydia discovers Vivian was taken in the night. Lydia is taken by the commanders the following night to Commander Judd (Charlie Carrick), who interrogates Lydia about where she should be placed in the “new order.”
He reveals that Lydia had an abortion when she was young, and there will be retroactive punishment. She tells him that his work is important but then suggests that women should be the ones teaching future generations of women. Otherwise, the men are wasting their time.
When Shu returns to her friends, Agnes asks her about the damage done to her hands. The girl shrugs it off but brings worrying news. Penny has gone into labor too early again, and this is her third pregnancy. The girls pray for Penny. Later, Becka starts ranting about marriage, prompting Agnes to yell at her. Becka follows her, and Agnes admits she’s in love with Garth. Becka tells her it’s a good thing she can at least feel this one time in her life, even if Garth is ineligible.
Lydia discusses Agnes’ future when Vidala raises the specter of June Osborne. Their discussion is interrupted when Commander Judd walks in and takes three of the commanders out of the pool, moving them to the front. He is struggling with Penny’s delivery. Downstairs, Lydia spots Agnes wandering and tells her to get to class. Agnes uses this opportunity to bring up Garth’s changing status and asks if he can be made eligible this season. Lydia says she will think about it.
In another flashback, Lydia was provided with new clothes and a meal by Commander Judd. He then tells her that she must prove her devotion to the cause and hands her a gun as women are led past Lydia for another round of executions. She tries to back out, but Judd threatens her. “If you’re not with us, you’re against us. Which is it to be?” Lydia walks out to join the soldiers, where she is asked to execute Vivian. She pulls the trigger, but her gun does not go off. However, it proves to Judd that she is devoted to his cause.
After the Aunts settle Hulda’s matches, Lydia introduces the idea of adding Garth to the pool. While Gabbana (Zarrin Darnell-Martin) and Vidala are taken aback, Lydia reminds them that his actions against Mayday have been impressive. They are interrupted by Aunt Estee, who enters the room with tears in her eyes. Judd sits alone in the mess hall of the school. Lydia comes to comfort him and offers to procure him a Handmaid. He thanks her for the offer and thanks her for his devotion.
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We see another flashback, where Lydia is asked to consult on the clothing options for the women of Gilead. She chooses the brown that would become the color and fabric for the Aunts. She walks through the halls of her school, observing the girls comforting each other for Penny’s loss. They say goodbye to Hulda for the day, who is off to her first Green appointments and to get her teeth brightened by Dr. Grove.
Daisy speaks with Aunt Estee about her progress as a Pearl girl. Daisy is surprised to learn that Estee was not born in Gilead either, and the Aunt refers to herself as the original pearl girl. Lydia confirms that all of the bloodlines are clean for the Greens. There will be no inbreeding with the combinations they’ve assembled. It is time to tell the girls’ families, with Lydia handing off packs to each of the Aunts. When Vidala receives her pack, there is tension between her and Lydia.
After her Aunts leave, Lydia reveals she’s been journaling. As an Aunt, she can write. She cannot document the crimes of the men or the girls. However, she implies she’s documenting her own. Despite this narration, as flips through the pages, we see Commander Judd’s name. Vidala arrives at Agnes’ house to deliver her matches.
Was “Stadium” worth watching?
Yes, in part because we see the origins of multiple women who have come to define The Testaments. By pairing Lydia and Vidala to life before The Testaments, the world becomes a little too small for our liking. At the same time, this choice adds depth to their relationship. While “Stadium” is the setting, it also provides the panopticon approach to security that would allow Gilead to thrive. It’s what gave Lydia her power and, with the wrong move, could take it away.
“Stadium” is held together by another excellent performance by Ann Dowd. The actress has already won an Emmy for playing this role, yet this is perhaps her most even-keeled performance so far. Of course, Dowd is playing a more mellow, betraying version of the character that would become one of Gilead’s most feared figures. It is a little hard to see how the character from The Handmaid’s Tale would come from this version of Lydia, but it’s not impossible given her willingness to pull the trigger on her friend.
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The blunt trauma experienced by Lydia and Vidala is difficult to watch, which also makes it effective. This is where “Stadium” really shines, because even in a tennis arena, the visuals are horrifying. Women are gunned down, forced to pee in the stands, and even betray one another. It’s a horrifying sight and one that relies on women turning against each other to survive.
There are some issues with the shifting relationships. Making Judd an integral figure in the founding of Gilead makes his absence from The Handmaid’s Tale more jarring. Rewinding the clock for the footage of a pre-Gilead world has been iffy as well. At times, it feels perfectly in line with the period setting from before 2016 (when The Handmaid’s Tale started. However, “Stadium” does not push us far enough back where Chase Infiniti or even Lucy Halliday feel like they were born into an era just before The Handmaid’s Tale took place. It’s always been a problem for The Testaments, but it rears its head throughout “Stadium.”
Watch The Testaments on Hulu and Disney+. “The Stadium” released on April 29, 2026.
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