Homeland Verdict: it is worth the hype

Few programmes arrive across the pond with as much fanfare as Homeland. Unanimously praised by critics, the television drama has two Golden Globes and the endorsement of Barack Obama amongst its many accolades. Based on the Israeli show Prisoners of War, Homeland follows disgraced CIA officer Carrie Mathison. After a vague tip off from a disgruntled asset, she becomes convinced that recently returned prisoner of war Nicholas Brody has been ‘turned’. Now that we’re a few episodes into Channel 4’s newest acquisition we can ask: is Homeland worth it?

The short answer is yes. On the strength of its two leads alone, Homeland deserves every ounce of praise it has gotten so far.

Claire Danes plays the neurotic Carrie, who is utterly ruthless in her pursuit of Brody, setting up illegal surveillance in his home so she can watch his activities from her front room. There is an underlying discomfort in her surveillance of the family, especially when her conception of giving Brody and his wife privacy on their first night alone together is to watch with the sound on mute. This is made all the more problematic when we remember that she doesn’t have the benefits of Brody’s flashbacks to justify her conviction. Carrie is also surprisingly manipulative: we watch her lie and cajole people into helping her, including her sister, who she persuades to give her anti-psychotics so she can keep her bipolar disorder a secret. Despite this, Carrie comes across as a likable heroine. She genuinely wants to help and her priority is saving as many lives as she can. Her determination and assertiveness is particularly refreshing when she comes across as sympathetic and heroic rather than the typically aggressive career-driven woman.

Damien Lewis plays Nicholas Brody, who returns to America after eight years in captivity, and almost immediately you can add him to the list of morally ambiguous characters that have come to dominate America’s best dramas. The pilot may end with the viewer certain that Carrie is on to something, swayed if not by her epiphany then by Brody’s behaviour. His frequent lies, insincere joviality with his loved ones and that deeply unsettling smile which he flashes towards the White House, are just some of the things that suggest his conversion. Yet we also see him wracked by symptoms of post-traumatic stress and struggling to cope with his new position as a public figure.

Whilst the draw of the show is the mystery surrounding Brody, much of the show is devoted to the CIA’s search for a leading figure in Al Qaeda, Abu Nazir. After seven years in hiding, Nazir has mysteriously surfaced, giving the CIA their first real lead into Al Qaeda’s future plans. The drama also features some interesting political commentary such as Brody proceeding to resent the war having been left behind. Homeland also questions the utilitarian actions of the government and intelligence services whilst depicting America’s hunger for a hero, in particular one who has undergone unthinkable torture.

The political side of Homeland is undoubtedly what makes the program such a success. Less compelling is the drama surrounding Brody’s home life, which feels a little uninspired. Brody returns to a wife who has been sleeping with his best friend in his absence, and while he figures this out within thirty minutes of the first episode, that doesn’t mean it won’t potentially drag out for a season or two. He must also readjust to children who are suddenly quite a lot older than he remembers.

His little girl has become a rebellious teenager who smokes weed and constantly fights with her mother whilst his son barely remembers him. If the youngest Brody isn’t glued to the television, he is asking awkward questions with an absurd naivety or witnessing his father’s meltdowns. The saving grace is really performance: the young actor and actress behind the Brody siblings are actually talented and manage to make annoying characteristics likable, if not a little endearing.

Like any good psychological thriller, Homeland excels in keeping the viewers second-guessing themselves. There have already been plenty of twists and turns: each feeling too ambiguous to be taken seriously, yet entirely too coincidental to be dismissed. An episode may end leaving a viewer feeling one way, only to have their perceptions shattered by the next episode. With such solid performances all round and a story which promises to deliver, Homeland is well on its way to becoming the best thing on television we may see all year.