This Week In TV: Homeland Is The Fall’s Best New Show

We’re now four episodes into Showtime’s cerebral new drama Homeland, and I think it’s safe to say I’ve found my latest obsession. It’s not a huge surprise that the fall’s best new series appears on cable, but I am a bit shocked that it comes via a network not exactly known for powerhouse dramas (though Dexter still has its fans). Showtime has swum against HBO’s wake for a while now. Maybe it has finally found a signature series of its own.

The basic premise, swiped from the Israeli-produced Prisoners of War, is simple yet effective. Damian Lewis plays Sgt. Nicholas Brody, a U.S. marine who is rescued from an Afghani compound after being held prisoner for eight years. His family and country welcome him back as a hero. However, CIA analyst Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes) suspects that Brody may be a sleeper agent for Middle Eastern terrorists, who she proposes converted him during his time in captivity and are now using him as the linchpin of an impending attack. So while Brody deals with his sudden freedom and awkwardly tries to re-insert himself into his old life, Mathison frantically tries to find evidence that the military’s new golden boy is actually America’s biggest threat.

The basic premise, swiped from the Israeli-produced Prisoners of War, is simple yet effective.

Is she right? The viewer’s not sure, as Homeland is in no hurry to reveal the full picture. An attack is definitely imminent, but Brody’s involvement (or lack thereof) remains vague. We do know more about the man than Mathison does, like the fact that Brody secretly converted to Islam while in Afghanistan and is at least partially responsible for the death of a fellow Marine, but this show loves to throw out end-of-episode twists that force you to reconsider everyone’s true intentions. Sound a bit like 24? That’s no coincidence, as Homeland was developed by Howard Gordon, who served as a writer and producer on 24 for most of its run. However, barring a few graphic flashbacks, Homeland doesn’t much traffic in busted skulls and torture. It’s a more cogitative affair, filled with long stretches of Mathison watching Brody via hidden cameras she’s had installed in his home, looking for that one clue that will convince her CIA bosses that the war hero is not what he seems.

Danes and Lewis are fantastic, which won’t come as a surprise to anyone familiar with their past work. It’s thrilling to see both play such vibrant, well-rounded characters. Danes’ Mathison is a workaholic who blames herself for 9/11 and hides a mental disorder that, if discovered, would have her declared unfit for her job. Lewis’s Brody meanwhile quickly bonds with a daughter who has grown into a teenager in his absence but fails to connect intimately with his wife (played by Firefly’s Morena Baccarin) in the bedroom. Within its first three episodes, Homeland featured two of the most uncomfortable sex scenes I’ve ever seen, yet each was crucial in establishing the emotional hardships these characters are enduring.

…Homeland featured two of the most uncomfortable sex scenes I’ve ever seen…

Past Lewis and Danes’ dual star turns, there are also more incidental joys to be found. Mandy Patinkin finally shows up in a series worthy of his talents, playing Mathison’s gruff mentor and the one colleague who thinks she might be onto something. And David Marciano, better known to aficionados of fine television as Det. Billings from The Shield, is a ball to watch as an ex-CIA private detective helping Mathison spy on Brody. Everybody’s getting great material to work with, as Homeland’s plotting has been impeccably tight thus far. 24 would always run off the rails about halfway through the season because it was difficult to fill up that many hours with crazy-ass plot twists without the whole show drowning in a sea of preposterousness. At only 12 episodes, Gordon and his writers can tell a more contained, purposeful story.

That’s the hope, anyway. And so far, so good. There is the matter of where Homeland will go in season two, assuming Brody’s full intentions are revealed and properly dealt with by the end of this year. The one way Showtime could kill my enthusiasm for this show would be by pulling a The Killing and leaving a bunch of unanswered questions hanging at the end of episode 12. But I’m going to trust that Gordon and company intend to guide season one to proper ending which will pay off most of the storylines these early episodes have meticulously set up. Once that happens and we all agree how great of a freshman season Homeland had, then we can worry about season two.