Homeland Season 1 Analysis
Episode 1 Pilot
CIA field agent Carrie Mathison is on the phone with deputy CIA director David Estes. She wants permission to speak with a prisoner she thinks has important intel. He's about to be executed and Carrie thinks is the perfect time to get information about the man he worked for, Abu Nazir. Estes says no, but she goes in anyway.
Carrie tells the prisoner she will take care of his family if he gives her the information. He whispers something into her ear as she is dragged away by guards.
TEN MONTHS LATER
Carrie returns home to her apartment early one morning. She has clearly been closely tracking this Abu Nazir for some time. She washes herself up, takes a blue pill of some sort and removes a wedding ring.
Carrie is late to Estes' briefing. He tells them about a Delta Force operation that resulted in the rescue of an American POW, Marine Corps Sniper/Scout Sergeant Nicholas Brody, who had been in captivity since 2003 and presumed dead. Brody said his sniper partner Corporal Thomas Wilson was killed in captivity. The room applauds but Carrie leaves with a concerned look on her face.
Carrie meets with Saul Bernson, who seems to be her boss and a mentor within the agency. She says tells him the prisoner she spoke with ten months ago said Abu Nazir had "turned an American POW." She didn't think much of it at the time because she wasn't aware there were any prisoners alive in Iraq or Afghanistan. Saul wonders why Brody wasn't just dropped off at a checkpoint. Carrie thinks Abu Nazir is playing the "long game." She's been in the "penalty box" and doesn't have as much access as she used to. He tells her to find a way to get him more intelligence.
Brody gets cleaned up and tells somebody he wants to speak with his family before his debrief.
EQUILIBRIUM? Cut to a woman having sex with a guy with whom she seems to have an intimate relationship.
DISRUPTION- The phone rings: "Jessica? It's me. Brody." A panicked Jessica stands up and tells the guy she has to leave.
Jessica returns home. She gathers son Chris and daughter Dana (who is clearly having some alienated teen issues) to tell them what has happened.
The family prepares for the reunion. Chris admits to Dana that he has no memory of his father. As soon as they leave the home two men in phone repair uniforms break into the home and begin setting up surveillance in every room. Carrie comes in to meet them -- Virgil and his brother Max - and gives them instructions to put video and audio surveillance devices in every room in Brody's home.
Brody is struggling on the flight to the ceremony, vomiting in the plane bathroom. It seems like Estes may end up getting the job of CIA director because of Brody's rescue.
Brody sees his family for the first time in eight years. It is awkward at first, but they embrace each other. The Vice President arrives and thanks Brody.
With Carrie watching closely on TV, Brody addresses the crowd. He gives a flawless performance.
Max finds one of Carrie's pills that she's been hiding in an aspirin bottle. Virgil isn't sure what it is.
On the way to the car the family is greeted by the man we saw in bed with Jessica earlier. His name is Mike and he's a Marine who is clearly close buddies with Brody.
The family returns home. There are hundreds of fans and members of the press waiting. They pose in front of a yellow ribbon tried around a tree in the yard.
Carrie convinces Saul to get her into Brody's next debrief. He makes her promise not to raise any eyebrows.
Carrie carefully watches the monitors. That night the phone rings but nobody is there. The reunited couple starts to be romantic and Jessica notices the scars all over Brody's torso. She cries. The couple has emotionless sex and Jessica weeps afterwards.
The debrief begins without incident. But when Carrie is allowed to question Brody she seems skeptical when he says Abu Nazir wasn't present during any of his interrogations. She doesn't believe him. We are shown Brody's flashbacks and he did meet with Abu Nazir during his captivity. The questioning gets borderline awkward.
Jessica and the kids are preparing for a welcome back party that night. Brody says he's still at the debrief, but we can see that he's in a car.
Virgil calls Carrie to tell him that Brody just lied to Jessica on the phone.
Estes tells Saul about Carrie making a scene at the debrief. Estes tells him the last time she was like this was when she got into the Iraqi prison and "nearly caused an international incident."
With Carrie and the surveillance guys in a van nearby, Brody meets with a woman. It turns out to be the wife of his USMC sniper/scout partner Thomas. She was the one who called and hung up because Jessica is upset with her for getting re-married. She asks how Mike died. Brody says he was beaten to death, but tells her he wasn't there when it happened. Based on a flashback it looks like he is lying again. Virgil asks Carrie about the pill they found. It turns out to be an antipsychotic and he is concerned. She says she has a mood disorder she's been dealing with she was 22 and nobody knows about it.
Carrie comes home to find Saul has found her surveillance setup. He tells her to get a lawyer because she's going to need to report her actions. She makes a halfhearted pass at Saul which is not well-received.
Carrie takes one of her pills and seems to be having a rough patch. She changes clothes, puts on her wedding ring and goes out.
At the barbecue Mike talks to Jessica. He mentions that they were close to moving in together and telling her kids about their relationship. He wants to know what happens next and she simply says "He's my husband, Mike."
Outside Brody notices Jessica and Mike together. He asks Chris about Mike helping out his mom while he was gone.
Carrie is at a bar where there's a jazz combo playing, with a guy she's clearly just met. She tells him she wears the wedding ring to weed out men looking for a relationship. Just before they leave together Carrie notices the fingers of the horn and bass players in the band. It reminds her of something Brody was doing.
Carrie excitedly visits Saul and shows him footage that during every public appearance Brody has been tapping his fingers in a pattern almost like a musical phrase. She thinks it's a signal to someone in the viewing audience. Saul is skeptical at first but eventually agrees she might be onto something. If it's a code of some kind, Saul thinks they should get the crypto guys on it. This seems to have bought Carrie some time.
Jessica wakes up to find Brody is gone. We see him out for a jog. While he jogs we look into his memory and see that he was the one who killed Thomas using his fists, and he did it with Abu Nazir looking on.
Brody stops running in front of the Capital building and stares at the dome.
Episode 2- Grace
In a Brody flashback, he's digging a hole in the dessert. Walker's body is brought out and dropped in the hole. Brody is placed on the edge of the hole and begins singing "The Marine Hymn" as a gun it put to his head. The trigger is pulled and Brody wakes up in bed. Carrie wakes up as well, watching as Brody begins to weep in bed.In the morning Jessica makes reference to the fact it "happened again." At 4:00 am Brody woke up and began speaking in Arabic while clutching Jessica's arm. She is badly bruised. Jessica and the kids leave and it appears this is the first day that Brody has been left home alone.
After his family leaves Brody begins to recall his time alone in a cell. He walks outside briefly but comes right back inside as dozens of reporters hurl questions at him. Brody ends up in a corner of his bedroom, clutching the walls.
The crypto-guy tells Saul he's hasn't yet found any patterns with respect to the apparent finger tapping signals. Saul is meeting with Judge Turner (Michael Mckean) he clearly has dirt on. The judge gives him a four-week Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act warrant and isn't happy about it.
Saul brings Carrie the warrant. He makes reference to her lying about him and coming on to him. She shows him that Brody hasn't moved in five hours. Saul doesn't think this is strange, arguing that if Brody was working for other side he's go right to the press and begin playing the hero role.
We see an attractive woman named Lynne Reed (Brianna Brown) interviewing a girl (Melissa Benoist) to be part of a Prince Farid's harem. She makes a call about getting a wax and Farid's No. 2 doesn't seem to trust her, even grabbing the phone to make sure. We see that Reed's call is placed to a CIA operator, who pretends to take the appointment then immediately calls Carrie.
Carrie watches Jessica come home at night. Brody, who has been sitting against the wall all day, gives her a smile and says his day was "great."
Estes and another higher-up are waiting for Mike when he returns to his office. They tell him they'd like him to lean on Brody to reenlist. They are offering Brody a promotion and significant financial compensation. They tell him to emphasise how this could help Brody's family.
The next morning Chris asks Brody what it feels like to kill someone. Brody doesn't answer, but notices a reporter in their backyard taking pictures. Brody goes out to confront the man and when he insists of pressing for an interview, punches him in the throat with Chris watching. Brody walks out the backyards and disappears.
Carrie realises what is happening and sends Max to follow.
Jessica comes downstairs and Chris tells her what happened.
Max follows Brody into a mall. Virgil comes to Carrie's to stand in as watcher of the video feeds.
Carrie meets with Reed. She shows her video from five days earlier when Farid met face-to-face with Abu Nazir. Carrie could not be more excited and Reed is terrified. She wants to end her work for the CIA but Carrie convinces her she'll be safe.
Carrie calls Saul with news of a getting a visual confirmation of Abu Nazir. Saul says "I'll assemble the group."
Mike drops by the Brody household in uniform. Jessica thinks he must have heard about Brody disappearing. Jessica fills him in about everything, including the flashbacks and bruises. Virgil notices the two were probably having an affair.
Saul tells Carrie he can't yet authorise more surveillance of Brody. He reminds her that Estes's career is tied to Brody.
Carrie calls Max, who has lost contact with Brody.
Estes congratulates Carrie on the news and says he wants Reed to stick close to Farid. But he has no intention of providing increased protection for Reed.
Max finds Brody in a hardware store. He's looking at things like lumber, wiring and screws.
Mike stays over for dinner. Chris asks awkward questions about Mike outranking his father. Brody comes home with a bag and heads for the garage. Carrie is furious to learn Virgil couldn't get a camera in the garage. They are able to listen to Brody tell Jessica he was out walking all day. She reminds him how rough things were when he was gone. She's upset that Chris saw him hit the reporter. After dinner Mike tells Brody about coming back to the service. Brody tells him he'd be able to provide for Jessica and the kids. Brody completely blows him off.
Upstairs Brody takes Chris aside and apologies for him having to see him hit the reporter.
Jessica tries to talk to Brody about talking to the media as he watches TV. He ignores her.
As Farid (Amir Arison) is preparing to arrive for his visit Virgil clumsily spills tea on Reed's shirt. She goes to the bathroom to clean up and finds Carrie waiting for her. She has a device for her to install on Farid's Blackberry to copy the memory. Carrie again assures her she'll be protected.
Carrie goes to visit her sister Maggie and two nieces. Maggie is a doctor and she's been providing Carrie her anti-psychotic medications from her sample drawer. Their father lives with Maggie and he has a condition similar to Carrie's.
Brody wakes up in the night and flashes back again to his captivity, walking through a corridor. With Carrie watching live he goes to the garage and starts tinkering with the garage door. He sweeps up the floor and flashes back to coming upon some Muslim men as they prayed. He washes his hands. Brody takes out a mat, lays it on the floor and begins performing the Salah.
Brody tells Jessica that he fixed the door. We see him put on his uniform and walk out the front door. He walks over to the media and begins to hold an impromptu press conference.
Carrie calls Saul and tells him that Brody is doing exactly what he said earlier, "playing the hero card."
Episode 3 -Clear Skin
The TV network is preparing for a huge network interview with Nicholas and his family in two days. Virgil and Carrie watch in horror as the TV crew very nearly move a couch and expose one of their surveillance microphones.
Dana is sharing a joint with her friends and tells them she's not interested in doing the interview. They think she should do something crazy.
Estes briefs a team about Reed getting video of Farid and Abu Nazir having a face-to-face. Carrie mentions Reed has copied Farid's cell' 'phone data and the plan is to start following the money from there.
Carrie isn't thrilled after her briefing that Saul asked a few probing questions about the likelihood of Farid being involved in terrorism. He brushes her off.
Dana missed the interview prep and Jessica yells at her about it. Jessica tells her husband about Dana's recent attitude issues. Nicholas goes to speak with his daughter and during their conversation Jessica is stunned to hear Dana laughing behind her closed bedroom door.
Carrie meets with Reed at a hotel swimming pool to get the chip. Reed expresses doubt about Farid being involved in anything evil.
In the kitchen the following morning Jessica asks Nicholas about his conversation with Dana. He says they were watching a funny video. To Jessica's surprise Dana has some of the breakfast which her father has prepared.
So far the CIA tech guy hasn't found anything suspicious on Farid's phone. He still hasn't gotten to some of the encrypted stuff.
Carrie confronts Saul about him still being pissed at her. He says she destroyed their trust by lying to him and treating him like everybody else.
We see some of the solo portion of Nicholas' interview. He's asked about the beatings and torture. When he's asked why he was beaten, we see Nicholas flash back to being given food by Abu Nazir after a round of torture. Nicholas obviously doesn't mention this.
Dana crudely tells Jessica that she knows her mother has a sexual relationship with Mike which she instinctively denies, then tells her that she thought Nicholas was dead all this time. Dana says that it seems everybody knows the secret except Nicholas. Jessica pleads with her daughter to promise not to say anything to her father.
Virgil shows Carrie footage of Jessica quietly telling Mike that Dana knows about them being together.
During a night out at the club for Farid's harem, one of the new girls being auditioned asks Reed about her necklace.
Carrie watches Nicholas act distant with Jessica before bed he's curled up on the bedroom floor with just a pillow.
Farid's top aid tells Reed that Farid wants her to "entertain" a business man that night. Reed seems surprised by the request, and he tells her only that Farid can be "excruciatingly indirect." Reed says she has to freshen up before leaving.
Carrie witnesses a particularly disturbing sexual encounter between Nicholas and Jessica. Nicholas tells his wife to remove her night shirt, then pleasures himself in front of her before lying back down to fall asleep. Jessica seems mortified and Carrie is clearly embarrassed at watching this.
Reed calls Carrie from the bathroom. She's worried about the fact that normally the girls aren't even allowed to speak with men other than the prince. Reed asks if the people Carrie has protecting her (there are none) will be able to follow her. Carrie says yes as long as her cell phone is turned on. She has Virgil go with her to provide some help for Reed. They track Reed's cellular signal from the car.
Reed goes to a hired car in the alley which is to take her to her encounter. The driver, friendly and conversational as he holds open the vehicle's door for her, then shoots her with a suppressed pistol and takes the gift necklace off her neck before leaving her body in the alley behind the club.
Carrie and Virgil are seconds behind. A distraught Carrie sees Reed's body but Virgil insists that they have to leave.
The next morning Jessica wakes up and sees Nicholas and Dana are both gone. They are on a walk and it seems like Dana is leaning towards telling her father about Mike. Nicholas shows her a padlock on a chain link fence with his and Jessica's initials on it that he and Jessica put it there when they were dating. He tells Dana that what has happened to their family isn't easy for anybody. He says that both he and Jessica are struggling and Dana should cut her some slack. Dana doesn't say anything about Mike.
Estes tells Carrie that Reed was DOA and the missing necklace was a crown jewel of some sort. The thought is that the Saudis made her as an informant and decided to use the necklace as a way to fake a robbery. Carrie watches the police interrogation of Farid. He seems genuinely upset that Reed is dead and demands the police find out what happened. She's furious to learn Farid and his entourage are on their way flying back to the Gulf.
We watch the family portion of the interview. The moderator asks about the homecoming. Nicholas pauses for a long time and Dana cuts in to save the day, softly talking about how great things have been.
Carrie finds Reed's parents sitting with their daughter's body. They aren't allowed to be told their daughter was more than just a high-profile escort.
Carrie tells Saul she's frustrated they can't tell Reed's parents their daughter deserved better. She's tired of being cut out, is upset her informant was killed and begins to cry. Saul comforts her. Carrie doesn't think Farid could have known Reed was going to be killed. They wonder if perhaps somebody in the entourage was actually the person Abu Nazir was meeting with. Saul says that the best way to move wealth is through jewellery. We cut to Farid's second-in-command selling the necklace for $400,000.
We then see a real estate agent congratulating a young couple on purchasing their first home with cash. The man is of Middle Eastern descent and the home is near an airport, which the "wife" says is perfect for them.
Episode 4 - Semper 1
Brody, every bit the hero and playing the good soldier card, speaks easily and inspirationally to a group of troops about to embark for the Gulf War, advising them: "Friendly fire isn't. Never lie. Never leave a man behind. And if you pick it, it will not heal." They laugh.
A political operative of the vice president, Elizabeth Gaines, asks Estes about Brody's psychological state, seemingly looking into the possibility for him running for office. It's implied that this will help Estes' chances to be named CIA director.
Saul is next in Estes' office. He tells him about Abu Nazir and the necklace and they head over to Carrie's briefing. She is explaining that Reed's necklace was brought to a laundromat that doubles as a Hawala broker brought by Bin Abbud's top aide, Latif Bin Walid. 51 people have come and gone since and they believe one of them may have the money. The plan is to open files on all of visitors. We see that one of the men is our homebuyer of the house near the airport.
Carrie's warrant is about to expire. Saul says he can't help her extend it and tells her to take down the surveillance and cover her tracks.
After his speech Brody invites Mike in for dinner, noting that for the past few weeks he hasn't been hanging out. Brody makes a comment that implies he's aware of what went on while he was gone between Mike and Jessica, though he doesn't explicitly accuse him.
Brody comes home to Chris excitedly watching a buck in the back yard. Brody grumpily mentions the deer will probably trample their new flowers. Brody goes to the garage to pray. He daydreams about hugging Jessica when he left for war. Brody then unlocks a toolbox and starts cleaning his military-issue handgun.
Brody notices that the flowers have indeed been trampled by the deer. The family leaves for church, allowing 90 minutes for Carrie to remove the surveillance. Carries hates it, but Virgil pushes her out the door.
We see the Brody family at church while Carrie, Virgil and Max remove the surveillance equipment. In the garage Carrie finds the basin Brody's been using to wash his hands when he prays. She doesn't seem to connect what it means. Virgil tells her they're almost done and they remove the last camera.
After church Body is introduced to Gaines, who attended the service. She wants to take him to lunch the following week.
Mike tells Jessica about the interaction with Brody. He thinks they should find a way to hang out together as a group. Jessica starts to confide in Mike about Brody but stops herself.
Estes asks another agent, Danny Galvez (Hrach Titizian), about Carrie. He dangles a promotion in exchange for information about her. Carrie comes in and Estes leaves. They discuss the guy we know bought the house near the airport, a professor named Raqim Faisel (Omid Abtahi).
Jessica asks Brody about the meeting with Gaines. Carrie sits, watching from the car. Galvez calls her with information about Faisel taking strange trips to the Middle East.
Jessica comes into Dana's room and asks if she's told Brody about her and Mike. Dana asks if she and Brody are getting a divorce.
While waiting to meet with Faisel, Galvez asks Carrie about Estes. She reluctantly confirms that they had a one-time hook-up. Faisel leaves his school and heads away from his apartment. The woman he is living with gets a call from a man who tells her that she should tell Faisel that the "traffic on the beltway is bad and he should take a different route." She rushes upstairs and hangs an American flag out an upstairs window. Faisel sees this just as he is about to turn into the driveway and calmly drives past the home.
At a bar Carrie and Galvez tell Estes that it looks as if Faisel's background checks out. Estes reaches out to her and they appear to make up on some level.
Jessica does some drinking at the party they're hosting. Mike and a date arrive. Brody is in the garage alone, watching the people inside while he cleans his gun. He notices Jessica place a hand on Mike's shoulder as he moves past her.
We hear gunshots and everybody goes outside. Brody has shot the deer. Chris walks outside and is upset. The partygoers leave and Jessica has it out with he husband, yelling at him for being distant and not being able to have sex with her. She says they need help. She says if he won't do it "I can't do this anymore."
Carrie gets home and starts staring at pictures of Brody.
Faisel and the woman discuss what happened with him being followed. He thinks they should leave, but she tells him they have been instructed to stay in the home. They kiss.
Faisel appears to have been cleared by the official investigation.
Carrie asks Saul if she can put a tail on Brody. He says no.
At home that night Carrie seems to think of something. She leaves.
Brody tells Jessica he's leaving to drop in on a veteran's support group, and from her reaction, we she she approves and takes this as a sign of hope. Carrie is outside the home, watching this.
She follows Brody to the support group. Carrie goes inside and bumps into Brody, telling him "I'm not supposed to be here." She leaves and he follows her outside. She pretends to be worried he recognized her since she's an active intelligence officer. Carrie says she bounces around to various meetings. They start talking and seem to strike up a rapport, connecting on a 'nobody understands what we've been through' level.
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