Homeland Season 2 takes us down the rabbit hole of espionage, gray morality, personal sacrifice that characterize the show. The geopolitical backdrop is tense and the season starts with the increased tension in the Middle East, with Iran threatening retaliation. Carrie Mathison, who now has to live her life outside the CIA, is pulled back into the world of the clandestine when she is assigned to monitor the movements of Abu Nazir. The Brody played by Damian Lewis is even more entangled in the storyline, because his motifs and allegiance are dubious. His covert negotiations with Nazir and his further discovery of his old crimes, including killing Walker and putting on a suicide vest makes the suspense and moral dilemma even more intense, as the viewers have to decide whether he is a companion or a betrayed individual.
The season manages to juggle the high-stakes counterterrorism efforts and very intimate tales. The unstable mental condition of Carrie, which is only worsened by her bipolar condition, is a raw emotional touch to the story. Her fixation on finding Nazir and saving Brody develops with her trouble of trust, right and wrong as well as her vulnerability. The political intrigue featured in the show such as the flirtation of a political career by Brody and the back door attempts at assassinating him highlights the perilous and more or less shady aspect of power. The dramatic and at times violent action scenes, which culminate in Nazir’s death and the fatal bombing, are the same as the dramatic character scenes which make the series an emotionally-charged view of loyalty and betrayal.
The most involving part is the unsparing depiction of the human cost of the spy games as shown in Homeland. The characters themselves are highly impaired but interesting and their moral predicaments are thought provoking and heart touching. All three elements of suspense, character growth, and social commentary are perfectly balanced in the series leaving the viewer thrilled and emotionally exhausted. With Brody’s fortunes in the balance and the season ending with a devastating bombing, Homeland leaves us with a chilling question, how much can we afford as a nation to lose in the name of security and at what cost? It is a challenging, disturbing, and, finally, it is a season that remains with you even after the credits have finished.
