Homeland: New show on Showtime

But he's back! He's got one good arm, and that's all he needs. I hope they don't drag out his paranoia too long. Never enjoyed Carrie off her meds, and I'm not looking forward to Quinn's delusions being a big part.

 

Still don't give a crap about Quinn. The political stuff is far more interesting with the parallel nuke program investigation, Dar/Saul dynamic and how Carrie fits in, having the president elect's ear.

Anyone know the significance of Saul noticing the discarded cigarette packet?

 

I'm not sure exactly how it means what it does, but I presume he knows the whole arrest and interogation of the man he talked to was a setup and maybe the guy was in on it and acting the whole time. They wanted him to get the answers he did and come to the conclusion that Iran was cheating on the program. I think that Saul believes finding the cigarette pack in the room they were cleaning up means that the guy had been there already, probably to be coached on what to say in the interrogation.

 

I'm liking this season. A lot.

 

They were keeping their cards very close to the vest but I figured they'd get to it and boy did they. A complex puzzle and subtle foreshadowing resulted in genuine impact. Quinn's recovery and Saul's journey are both interesting and Carrie has some splaining to do.

 

I'm liking that Quinn is subtly getting his mojo back; even in his debilitation the "spy" sense is still there. Except Carrie isn't listening at all.

 

For me the best scene of the ep was between Saul and Majid. As Saul is trying to find the truth about a possible Iranian parallel nuclear program, Majid says "what does it matter? No matter what the truth is, half of each of our countries will still want to go to war".

 

I thought that was the best part too. Saul feeling out Majid and making accusations, though he is himself unsure if the evidence he's been presented with is good, and Majid denying (or treating the accusation as if its so ridiculous not to warrant an explicit denial), but probably wondering himself if Saul has uncovered a parallel program that he himself is out of the loop on. Nobody ever really knows everything about what their own government is doing, not doing, lying about, etc.

 

Well, all kinds of hell broke out in ep5! Is the president elect being sidelined? Who is feeding information to Carrie? Does Quinn have a death wish? Will Carrie go off her meds (j/k)? Whole lotta pieces up in the air...

 

once again, i find myself only interested in what's going on with quinn. even in this sad state, that's the only character that still seems "fresh".

 

If Rupert Friend doesn't at least get an Emmy nod for this heartbreaking portrayal there is no justice (he's only been nominated once). I get that Claire Danes is the focus of the show but Friend is crushing it this year. There is so much going on in this season, even by Homeland standards.

 

Really? I guess I just don't see it. I think his character has been the weakest link for several seasons.

 

Did not start with high hopes. but it is getting better.

 

i think there is lot more to quinn's meltdown than we are being told, i agree with the above poster, rupert friend truly deserves an emmy nomination.

but i have reiterate my feelings about little kids in dramatic TV shows or movies....i can't stand them, they are always very bad actors and they always take away form whatever scene they are in.

 

Great episode this week, it finally came alive.

Spoiler

Though Dar Adal's false flag mission sticks out like a sore thumb...though I could be horribly misled!

 

I don't know that I'd go that far re: Friend, but I do find the Quinn character compelling.

Not a fan of the show's apparent turn leftward, but unintentional similarities to current political affairs is certainly interesting.

 

Good episode. Although it occurred to me that the media frenzy that instigated the situation wouldn't have ended when Quinn was arrested. During the nighttime street scene between Carrie and her babysitters I kept thinking "where are the reporters!?". No way, especially in NYC, that ALL the news people would've left that scene.

 

The reporters and other bystanders were cordoned off by the police from around the house. It seems like standard operating procedure to me. Or do you mean a different scene?

 

The ending scene of the episode, when the kid leaves with the sitter, I didn't see the scene cordoned off, no lights, no crowd. Like I said, didn't seem as authentic as the rest of the incident. Especially in lieu of the fact that the Quinn situation was actually secondary to the original reason the reporters were there in the 1st place. No way there wouldn't be a few intrepid N.Y. reporters still looking for a scoop!

 

Maybe I'm barking up the wrong tree, but it worries me to see the girl taken away by the sitter. I wonder if this is a strategic error and Carrie is going to have difficulty getting her back?

 

It didn't seem plausible to me that the SWAT team would have decided to breach the apartment and go in so quick when the property owner and parent of the "hostage" with a personal relationship to Quinn was there, willing to go in and talk with him, and could probably have ended the situation without armed men having to storm the place and potentially get in a firefight.

 

Yeah, lots of implausibilities there. In addition to what you mention, how likely is that a mobile phone would be left lying in plain sight on the ground (Carrie stumbled right over it). And how likely would it be that the mobile from a former crack agent would be unlocked for anyone to access its contents (as Carrie did)?

 

Didn't she find it under the door that the jackbooted thugs knocked down?

 

Well, sort of. She basically just stumbled across it. She wasn't searching for it. The mobile was plainly visible, half under the door, and the other half in plain sight. Anyone looking down at the ground would have seen it.

 

Would shooting someone (to wound) be justifiable defence for throwing rocks at you through a window? OK, it's an extreme form of defence but if there's an angry mob outside your house and you've been physically attacked by someone throwing a rock then it could be argued in court. And arguing that you shot to wound is a little far-fetched when there's a high possibility of killing at least one person, but Quinn is a crack shooter (sorry for the pun).