I briskly finished the show's first season and was instantly impressed. I watched "24" as a high schooler and heard the comparisons between the two programs. Let me be clear, "Homeland" is no "24". Showtime's censorship privileges made the show more interesting in many facets, most notably, in their ability to effectively demonstrate Brody's sexual tendencies and failures. In addition, the storyline was gripping and featured many of those signature heart pounding moments that made me such a huge fan of Jack Bauer and "24" years before. However, the far more realistic timeline of "Homeland" made these moments (and the scenes that built up to them) far more believable. All-in-all, the show featured highly-impressive acting and a truly riveting storyline making it one of my new favorite's on TV.
After one season, I dubbed myself an avid fan of "Homeland".
The show's second season was able to provide the same formula for success. Brody's character had become even more dynamic as it became nearly impossible to decipher what side of the CIA vs. Abu Nazir conflict he sided with. In addition, I began to become more invested in Brody's daughter, Dana, and, newly introduced character, Peter Quinn. Both characters emerged as a new personal favorites alongside, indubitably the show's best character, Saul Berenson. I thought the young Morgan Saylor played the role of the distraught and confused teenager impeccably as she became more and more central to the story throughout each episode. I thought veteran actor Ruper Friend transitioned brilliantly to television as he took on the role of Peter Quinn, the shady CIA operative/trained assassin. The show slightly lost its gripping storyline, but that is to be assumed of almost any TV drama. Whenever a show has so many peaks, like "Homeland", there is a natural tendency to diminish some of the series' slower, but valuable moments. Fortunately, "Homeland" picked up nicely toward the end of season two and, with the addition of the season's thrilling finale, I was already eager for more.
After two seasons, I continued to consider myself an avid fan of "Homeland".
Three Sundays ago, September, 29th, the second to last day of September, "Breaking Bad" came to a fitting end. On the same day, the third season of "Homeland" kicked off. I didn't watch the first episode of "Homeland" on that Sunday night. I was emotionally drained by "Felina" and the end of "Breaking Bad". Instead, I saved the show for the following Monday night.
I finished episode one, "Tin Man is Down", incredibly disappointed. Maybe it was just the hangover from the end of "Breaking Bad" that made me so critical of the first episode of season three or, maybe, it was simply a bad episode. I mulled the thoughts over and decided that, because I had enjoyed season one and two, I would continue to give "Homeland" a chance.
I think this is the moment where I have to throw in one of my mother's favorite expressions, "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me."
As quickly as the bomb exploded in the finale of season 2, so did my attitude toward "Homeland" and its characters begin to "explode". Dana had suddenly become an unbearable character to follow (a situation that only worsened in the show's 3rd episode). Quinn had hardly shown any character development as his character wrongly shoots a child on a covert operation leaving him...well, quite obviously, sad. In three mere episodes, I suddenly was annoyed with characters I had liked so much a season before. Luckily, Claire Danes and Damien Lewis did not lose their abilities to act, however; nothing would have surprised me considering how quickly and drastically my opinion of "Homeland" shifted.
How did I get to this point? How did I suddenly dislike a show and its characters? I wasn't sure if there was a definitive answer and I thought, "Hey, maybe, I am just overanalyzing things". Carrie and Brody's stories will always be the foundation of "Homeland" and they are truly what made the series a great one. Unfortunately for "Homeland", last Sunday's episode, "Tower of David", even threw this notion for a rocky curve.
With Carrie confined to a psych ward and Brody to a Venezuelan prison, I was so bored by their stories that I felt like I, myself, was in some sort of prison-like confinement. Brody, who finally made his first appearance all season, is held up in a prison where the guards and their leader, El Nino, played by Manny Perez, desperately need acting class more than anything. Not even the introduction of Erik Dellums as Dr. Graham captivated my interest. (And trust me, Dellums is a great actor especially in the role of a doctor. See his character as Dr. Frazier in "The Wire" as evidence). I was dissapointed after the season's third episode. Dissapointed that the show was losing my interest, frustrated that there had been minimal storyline development and confused as to why the costume designer chose to continually dress Brody in Bill Belichick/Joe Maddon's signature cut-off hoodies.
After three episodes of the third season, I was wondering if I was a fan of "Homeland" at all.
Nine episodes remain in season three of "Homeland" and, in the TV world, nine episodes is a long time. The chance for "Homeland" to make things right exists. The chance to revitalize the essential story lines of Carrie and Brody lives in these next nine episodes. There is an opportunity to mend my opinion of characters like Dana, Quinn and, even, Saul. There is also a chance for the show's writers to reintroduce that heart pounding drama into a otherwise dull start. However, the occasion by which "Homeland" can maintain its status as one of TV's best drama series lives and dies in these final episodes. The show's creators, Howard Gordon and Alex Gansa, have their chance, but with a show where time is always against the clock, I guess the question becomes...How much longer am I willing to give them?
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