Two Funerals and A Bombing. Retrospective: Homeland - "The Choice"

S2, E12 – Season Finale

Air Date: Sunday, December 16, 2012, 10:00 pm ET/PT on Showtime

Rating: ★★★★★

SPOILERS AHEAD—DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN’T SEEN THIS EPISODE YET.

Carrie (Claire Danes) must make a choice—one I wouldn’t want to be faced with. But as a CIA operative who is as dedicated to her job as Carrie, is her choice realistic? She is faced with choosing a life with Brody (Damian Lewis) or her job at the CIA; hence, the title of Homeland’s second season finale. After spending a romantic weekend in the woods (in the same cabin they stayed at during “The Weekend”), it appears certain Carrie will choose Brody. But things don’t always turn out the way we want them to, do they?

Observations:

Brody and Carrie share a kiss moments before the bomb scores a direct hit during Walden’s funeral.

We have spent two seasons with Brody and Carrie letting their individual missions in life interfere with their getting together, to say nothing of Brody’s wife Jessica (Morena Baccarin) and their two kids. So, it’s a bit strange to see them acting like a normal couple without a care in the world, spending the weekend oohing and aahing at each other. Brody and Carrie as a normal couple doesn’t give us the intensity of Brody and Carrie at odds with each other, playing that intricate cat-and-mouse game they’ve played throughout both seasons of Homeland.

You can tell from the look on Quinn’s face that he’s not up to the task at hand.

While Carrie and Brody are busy playing house, Quinn (Rupert Friend) is in place ready to carry out Estes’ (David Harewood) orders to assassinate Brody. His change of heart confuses me because Quinn is a trained soldier who is required to carry out orders, not question them. Of course, had Quinn taken him out, we wouldn’t have Brody’s car housing the bomb that kills Estes, Cynthia Walden (Talia Balsam), Finn (Timothee Chalamet) and all those other innocent people. Writers, shame on you for taking the easy way out with this. The moment Quinn lets Brody live I knew he would be involved in something bad.

Estes eulogizes Vice President Walden

Saul (Mandy Patinkin) is finally let out of the room he’s being held in after Estes, the liar, tells Saul he decided to call off the kill. Estes has become a very unlikeable character in the last half of this season due to Harewood’s tremendous acting skills, which I admire immensely. It takes a very good actor to make me look past the person and see only the character.

Saul oversees Nazir’s burial at sea.

Patinkin, on the other hand, steals “The Choice,” out from under every other actor in the episode. From Saul’s disgust with Carrie’s choice to leave the CIA behind, to the worried message he leaves her after learning she’s unaccounted for; from the sheer joy in his voice and face when his wife Mira (Sarita Choudhury) tells him she’s coming back to the States, to his broad smile when he sees Carrie after quietly reciting the Kaddish over the dead bodies—the man can do no wrong. He has been the one constant throughout Homeland. When episodes were erratic, which many were in season two, Saul was the character who made the show believable no matter how outlandish the storyline. So it is fitting that he is now the acting head of the CIA.

I thought it was brilliant to have Walden’s (Jamey Sheridan) funeral and Abu Nazir’s (Navid Negahban) burial at sea occur simultaneously. Especially when Nazir has the final say about the CIA while floating to the depths of the ocean. Those scenes are like poetry in motion despite the terror of what happens. But the question remains, was Brody a part of this, or was he truly Nazir’s patsy all along?

Additional Thoughts:

Carrie and Brody can't believe their eyes when they see Brody's confession tape splayed all over the media.

Carrie and Brody are numb when they see Brody’s confession tape splayed all over the media.

With both Carrie and Brody wanting to be together, I don’t quite get her initial hesitation. They know everything about each other so it can’t be that. And she’s already told Saul her “eyes are wide open,” so it’s not that either. I knew there was no way they were going to ride off into the sunset together, but it was nice to consider the possibility for a few minutes.

***

I don’t think I was ever as scared of Quinn as I was when he confronts Estes in his bedroom. He is, indeed, a very dark person, something we haven’t seen before. I must say, though, I love how Quinn puts Estes in his place.

***

Why doesn’t the CIA check the security footage and see Carrie and Brody taking off together? Doesn’t anyone think their disappearance from the funeral mere moments before the bomb hits is strange? Totally unrealistic, people.

***

I enjoyed the scene between Brody and Mike Faber (Diego Klattenhoff) where Brody tells Mike it’s ok to keep taking care of his family. However, it’s another thing I think is unrealistic although it does tie up the Jessica/Brody/Mike storyline. I wonder if we’ll see any of the Brody family, or Mike either for that matter, next season. I don’t see the point of keeping them around.

***

Since Quinn doesn’t attend Walden’s funeral, it will also be interesting to see whether he returns for season three. I hope he does.

***

Memorable lines:

Quinn: “Nothing happens to Brody.”

Estes: “Or?”

Quinn: “Or you’ll find me back in this bedroom one night, right back in that chair, ‘cause I’m a guy that kills bad guys.”

Saul to Carrie: “You’re throwing your life away. You’re the smartest and the dumbest fucking person I know.”

As season finales go, “The Choice” does a decent job of wrapping up this season and setting the tone for the next. And while the first half hour is a bit tedious, the last half hour makes up for it. I guess we’ll never know who the mole was but at this point, who cares? Estes is dead and I can’t say I’m sorry about that. He was a real prick. It’s impossible to tell whether Lewis will return in season three, and if he doesn’t, it will be Homeland’s loss. Of course, Carrie is hell bent and determined to clear Brody’s name so he won’t be written out entirely. But I hope his storyline isn’t the foundation for the new season. Hopefully, Saul and Carrie will be chasing the new terrorist who claims responsibility for the bombing. That would surely keep us on the edge of our seats every Sunday.

Stay up-to-date with all things Homeland on its official webpage at http://www.sho.com/site/homeland/home.sho.

Follow Homeland on Twitter @sho_homeland and cast members Damian Lewis (Brody) @Lewis_Damian; Morena Baccarin (Jessica) @MissMorenaB; David Harewood (Estes) @TheHarewood; Navid Negahban (Abu Nazir) @NavidNegahban; Jackson Pace (Chris Brody) @JacksonPace; David Marciano (Virgil) @davidmarciano; and Zuleikha Robinson (Roya Hamad) @ZuleikhaR.

LIKE the show on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/HomelandOnShowtime and don’t forget to check out Homeland’s official webpage at

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Linda

Love TV, movies, and books--mostly mysteries, with a good love story thrown in every now and then. I have four adopted dogs who I adore. I love trying new recipes, and enjoy eating what I make. English language perfectionist. Reading in bed, Italian food, warm weather, the beach, all types of games = favs!