Homeland: A look back at Season 2

 

 (This review includes spoilers for the whole season)

Last weekend saw the end of the second season of Showtime's Homeland. After a great season premiere and some unexpectedly early twists, the show again delivered on its promise of great thrills, intense moments, and great performances. 

Following the events of the first season, which left war hero/terrorist Nicholas Brody (Damian Lewis) en route to a political career, and mentally unstable CIA agent Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes) dismissed from the CIA and "committed", the new season manages to spin the wheels again in a believable way, as Carrie's suspicions are proved correct and Brody's cover is blown, forcing him to collaborate with the CIA in their attempt to capture head terrorist Abu Nazir (Navid Negahban). Meanwhile, Brody's family life continues to crumble under his lies and guilt.

After Brody's capture on the fourth episode, I asked myself "what now?", cause it seemed surprisingly early in the season for that. But fortunately, the writers found good paths to take the story through on its way to the finale, just like they did on the first season. And every episode delivers on such different ways, be it with its performances ("Q&A"), its emotional grip ("The Clearing"), or several unexpected twists. The fifth episode ("Q&A"), which featured an intense interrogation of Brody by both Quinn (Rupert Friend) and Carrie was among the best the show has done so far. Simply an acting tour-de-force by everyone involved. 

Some of the unexpected twists involved the CIA being surprised while searching the Tailor's shop in Gettysburgh by a team of terrorists that left everyone, including Quinn and Galvez, for dead; Brody being taken away by Roya to meet Abu Nazir; or the revelations of Quinn's actual involvement in the mission. All of those involved pretty good cliffhangers that left me craving for the next episode.

That said, I won't deny that I felt a certain decline in the execution of some plotpoints during the second half of the season. Most notably, I felt the way the search for Nazir at the abandoned mill was handled was slightly weak. I mean, experienced tactical  search teams didn't notice a false wall? or Carrie and the team leader being separated from the rest when they find Nazir? the awkward return of Galvez? Those are some of the ones that come to mind. Producers Alex Gansa and Howard Gordon did a good job in addressing some of these "issues" in a lengthy press conference (read here). But overall, those issues didn't detract much from my enjoyment of the show.

The finale also did a great job of putting the events of past episodes in perspective. Whereas the capture of Abu Nazir had seem a bit anti-climatic and maybe even borderline silly, the finale revealed what was actually behind all of it, literally with a bang as an explosive planted on Brody's car blows up the whole CIA building in the middle of a memorial to Vice-President Walden. The moment of the explosion was actually a nice surprise that I didn't see coming. It saddens me that they offed Estes (David Harewood) because I always thought he was a pretty good actor, and the character was a solid grey-ish antagonist.

There was actually a little bit of everything in the finale, with great emotional moments between Brody and Dana, some great intense moments between Estes/Saul, Estes/Quinn, and Saul/Carrie. I have to add that the addition of Rupert Friend as Peter Quinn to the cast was a great move. Friend delivered greatly with his cold performance. I loved his character. As for the rest, if there's anything else I could nitpick, the moments that Carrie and Brody spend together as a "happy couple" always feel awkward to me. And maybe that's how it's supposed to be, but I really don't see this relationship as something healthy. I tend to lean towards Saul point of view on the matter and I consider Carrie to be "the smartest and the dumbest f**king person I've ever known".

Either way, the explosion at the CIA only ignited another string of events, as Carrie is forced to help Brody leave the country, while Saul is left in charge of the CIA, after the death of more than 200 people, including Estes and most of the CIA top-brass. This sets up the events of what would be the third season, which will begin someday in 2013. Just like after Season 1, I can't wait.

(All pictures belong to Showtime and its affiliates)

Homeland: Four episodes in, what now?

(This review includes spoilers on the first four episodes of the second season)

A lot has happened since Homeland's season 2 premiere. A lot. In four episodes, this show has done what others do in a whole season, which leads me to the titular question. What now? After a pretty good first episode, the show has sped through the next episodes, with a lot of intense moments and unexpected twists. Saul discovering that Brody is a terrorist, and his eventual capture, came as a shock to me, and I'm sure to most viewers. This is not new to the show. The writers did the same during the first season, when they unexpectedly revealed Brody's nature way earlier than most people expected. And still, they managed to deliver a kick-ass season with a gripping finale. So, perhaps we shouldn't worry about where will they head now.

Until now, the show has been one of the best. The second episode, "Beirut is Back", delivered some extremely intense moments as the CIA tries to kill Abu Nazir, and then when Saul and Carrie go to pick up Fatima Ali in the middle of Hezbollah-controled Beirut. And to finish things off, Saul discovers the video where Brody confesses to be a terrorist. Wow. I mean, I was expecting this on maybe episode 4 or 5.

The third episode, "State of Independence", was equally solid, although seeing Brody handling the extraction of The Tailor required a bit of a stretch in believability. I mean, you have a deep-seated terrorist within the highest ranks of the US government, about to become Vice-President, and you send him to do a routine extraction? C'mon! I'm still waiting for them to reveal that there was something else going on that forced them to have Brody do that. But still, the episode had its share of great moments, as we see Carrie's psychological struggles. The scene where she goes back to her apartment and prepares to go out, only to swallow a dozen pills later, was excellent.

Fourth episode in, Saul shows Brody's confession to Estes, who agrees to have a surveillance team on Brody in order to identify his mission and his superiors. As we get to meet the leader of the surveillance team, Peter Quinn (Rupert Friend), and see all the logistics put in place for the operation, it seems that the show is preparing for it. At this point, I'm thinking "well, they'll probably milk the whole surveillance plotline for a couple of episodes." Which is why I was baffled when, after meeting with Brody at a hotel bar, Carrie went up to his bedroom and blew the whole mission to him, forcing the CIA to detain him. Again, this is something I was expecting to happen maybe on episode 7? 

I must also add that I'm very pleased with how the show is handling the character of Dana. The performance of Morgan Saylor is so subtle. I love her.

But anyway, as I've said, I'm shocked at how fast the show is moving. I have no idea where are they taking the story now, and what will happen to Brody. Or Carrie, for that matter. After all, she blew an operation that was set to capture one of the most wanted terrorists after just one day of work. The way the writers handled the first season gives me faith that they know what they're doing, but I won't deny the fact that I'm worried they've run out of steam too early. We'll have to keep watching to find out.

(All pictures belong to Showtime and its affiliates)

The Smile: Homeland Season 2 premiere

(Although I tried to refrain from spoilers, the review might include some light ones.)

Homeland debuted its sophomore season last night with an episode titled simply "The Smile". The premiere takes place several months after the first season, which left Nicholas Brody (Damian Lewis) still alive, loose, and set for political stardom while Carrie Mathison's (Claire Danes) life was in shambles. Carrie had been unable to prove Brody's connection to terrorist Abu Nazir and, after a severe mental breakdown, was institutionalized and set for electroshock therapy. Brody, on the other hand, was persuaded from his terrorist attack against Vice-president Walden (Jamey Sheridan) by his daughter Dana, albeit unknowingly to her. After that, he persuaded his boss Abu Nazir that he could serve his purpose better with his political position.

Season 2 finds both Carrie and Brody in very different positions, but facing similar decisions. Brody is already serving as Congressman and is about to be selected as Walden's running mate for the next election, when he is approached by an ally of Abu Nazir to retrieve some classified information about potential targets in the US. Meanwhile, Carrie is recovering from her breakdown along her sister and father, while working as an English teacher when she is thrown into the loop again to contact one of her former assets in Lebanon that might have information about a future attack. Both characters are reluctant to accept their missions at first. Carrie still holds a grudge against the agency after the way she was treated upon her dismissal, while Brody doesn't want to be complicit in the death of innocent people. Still, both comply when they are presented with a chance to right some wrongs from the past. Brody has the chance to avenge Issa's death, while Carrie has the chance to redeem herself.

The episode was pretty good. It had some worthy moments. Nazir's request of Brody (to snatch a folder from a safe) seemed too simple for his reach, but perhaps it was a way to test him first. Plus, the scene where he does it is pretty tense. A scene I really liked was the one at Dana's school, mostly because I know that a lot of people have the same closed-minded point of view of Dana's schoolmates. The generalizations, the broad blanket statements, talking without really knowing or understanding anything; that's the kind of things that lead to the problems that our society has right now. I also liked her final scene with Brody, and I can already see where this is leading with her. We'll see.

As for Carrie, I liked how we see the anger eating at her once her past colleagues start contacting her. And from the first time Galvez contacts her at her new job, you see that sort of crazy anger in her eyes that we saw in the last episode of the first season. She seems to accept what the CIA asks of her, reluctantly. When she is about to meet her mentor, Saul (Mandy Patinkin), she is chased by a Lebanese policeman. In trying to lose him, she runs through the streets and alleys, and her smile, the one that lends the episode its title, tells so much. In a way, it's the smile that shows how much she wanted this again, but it's also the kind of psychotic smile that reminds us of the Carrie we last saw in the first season. Regarding the performance, it's stellar work. Claire Danes continues the great work she began in last season. I have to admit, I never thought this girl had it in her.

So, to sum it all up, the episode was a pretty good premiere with some great acting and a nice set-up for the season. All of the cast was in top shape, and I can't wait to see what's next. Grade: A-

(All pictures belong to Showtime and its affiliates)