“I’m fine.”–Carrie Mathison
After finishing up its third season last winter, Homeland was a series that was in serious need of a makeover. The show had exhausted all it could from the Carrie/Brody relationship, which ended with Brody being hanged and killed in the season three finale as Carrie watched, unable to help him. Homeland had alienated many viewers with its continued reliance on the romance, not to mention some unbelievable plot twists (even by Homeland standards) that made us question if the show’s writers knew exactly what they were doing.
Now, without Brody and his family (who weren’t the sole reasons behind all of season three’s problems but were certainly causes some of the issues), Homeland has returned for its fourth season as a leaner, more focused show. It’s back to concentrating on 21st century espionage, the constant threat of terrorism, and, of course, our very divisive heroine, Carrie Mathison. And maybe that’s what I should focus this review on: Carrie.
The first episode of last night’s two-part Homeland premiere, “The Drone Queen,” was a solid episode for the series. While not one of the show’s all-time best episodes, “The Drone Queen” worked because Carrie and Quinn were out in the field and Homeland‘s focus was clear: the air strike that Carrie and Corey Stoll’s Sandy unknowingly ordered on the wedding was a very public mistake that they would have to deal with (and it ultimately cost Sandy his life). To put it simply, Carrie was doing what she does best–fighting against terrorists–and even when she wasn’t doing a great job, it was exciting to watch.
While no fan of Homeland is going to have any major complaints about how Carrie behaved in the premiere’s first hour, last night’s second episode, “Trylon And Perisphere,” is where many critics of the show have said that they have had enough of Carrie, and although I don’t necessarily agree with them, I can’t blame them. It all comes down to that bathtub, and Carrie, even if it’s only for just a few seconds, contemplating and then actually starting to drown her own child. It’s an incredibly unsettling scene, and something that’s extremely difficult to watch and then root for Carrie afterwards.
However, even though I obviously don’t approve of Carrie’s actions or think that it was the best decision to be made by the Homeland writing team, I completely disagree with individuals who say that it was out of character for Carrie. At the beginning of Homeland, one thing and one thing only gave Carrie’s life purpose: her job. Fighting terrorism and trying to stop attacks against the United States was the only part of Carrie’s life that she found meaning in. Until she met Brody.
With Brody dead and his and Carrie’s daughter, Frannie being a constant reminder of him (a literal ghost of Brody, down to the red hair that she shares with her father), it’s completely in-character for me why Carrie would take these actions. Keep in mind that this is the woman who tried to kill herself after she was left out of a CIA briefing (and thus thought her career at the CIA was over) back in the third episode of season two , the woman who has broken rules and regulations on a consistent basis if she thought it would help a mission–so I ask, why is this type of erratic behavior not consistent with her character? In the most twisted and darkest places of Carrie’s mind, getting rid of her daughter not only wipes away her lasting reminder of Brody, a never-healing wound that continues to fester, but it also provides her with the freedom to purely focus on her work–her purpose.
And because Carrie’s horrible actions were in line with her character’s history, I’m not going to be one of those people who faults Homeland for a very controversial decision, and I’ll happily stick with the show throughout its fourth season, especially with Carrie’s move to Islamabad and its renewed focus on the conspiracy that ended up costing Sandy his life. The more Homeland‘s focus remains on its strengths, on Carrie and her team doing their jobs, the better it will be, but, overall, I thought this two-part premiere was a promising beginning to what hopefully be a strong season four.
Other thoughts:
– I didn’t touch upon it in my review, but another thing that Homeland did extremely well in this season opener was the introduction of Aayan, a student in Islamabad whose mother and daughter were killed in the attack on the wedding. I found all of his scenes, especially the one where he watches the happy footage of him and his family before the missiles hit on his broken iPhone, very compelling, and the young actor is doing a great job. It will be interesting to see where his story goes moving forward.
– I’m so happy Saul kept his beard (imagine him without it–scary, right?), and I’m also really happy that Saul will be back working with Carrie soon. I seriously have not seen the next episode or anything at all beyond this premiere, but the writers totally made this development clear when Carrie asked for help from Saul’s company, Total Security Solutions. Saul’s coming to Islamabad!
– “There’s not even a diagnosis for what’s wrong with you.” That line from Carrie’s sister perfectly sums up what I think the Homeland writers are trying to illustrate. Carrie’s issues this season don’t just stem from her disorder but from her pain over Brody and from her obsession with her work.
– In the absence of Damien Lewis, it appears that Rupert Friend has stepped into the role of Homeland‘s male lead, and he’s doing a great job so far, especially with the restaurant scene in the second part of the show’s premiere. You can tell how much at ease Quinn is when he’s talking with his apartment complex’s manager. He’s searching for normalcy in life, an escape from all the death and pain he’s caused and endured, and for just a few seconds, he’s able to find it.
– The last shot of the premiere, with Carrie sitting alone on the plane, all the empty seats around her, saying, “I’m fine” was a perfect way to end the second episode. And call me crazy, but I actually felt bad for Carrie right there. I think that’s just how good Claire Danes is in this role.
What did everyone else think about last night’s season premiere of Homeland? Will you still be watching the show?
Photo via Showtime
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