The TV Chick

I will admit it was a slow sort of love, Homeland. It took me three episodes to fall deeply in love with you, but now, I’m so far in, I never want to get out. There was no pun intended there. Let’s first talk about the acting. From the moment Claire Danes appeared on screen at the beginning of season one, I said to many of my friends and colleagues that you may as well just hand her the Emmy. But what I was not expecting was the absolutely unreal performance of Damian Lewis. I’ve interviewed a ton of people for this site, but never has The TV Chick’s mom been excited about an interview subject until Damian Lewis, or Sohms as she and my late stepfather called him. He plays an evil, evil character, yet somehow, we feel deeply for him and root for his success. At the start of season two, Sergeant Brody (Lewis) has found himself in a congressional seat and plans to uproot the government from the inside out, yet we still have the utmost sympathy for him. That is a feat that is not easily accomplished, yet Homeland takes us to an intricate and complex world that is never simple or black and white. The line between right and wrong and good and evil are blurred in the best possible of ways. The show is brilliant and original and surprising and shocking, and this is not the norm for television these days. Season two is just as fantastic.

I have seen the first two episodes of the new season, which pick up with Carrie in a new teaching job, doing much better than she was after electro shock therapy. Side note: I wasn’t the only one SCREAMING at my screen when she was obviously going to forget everything she put together about Brody and Abu Nazir and Isa, right? Okay cool. Anyway, Saul and David Estes have to ask for Carrie’s help on a mission in Beirut. There is a former spy who she recruited who won’t talk to anyone but Carrie and claims to know where Nazir is. The first two episodes focus on the mission, and how Carrie is able to deal with her memory loss, her condition and being back in an unhealthy environment. This environment however, is one that she still craves with all of her being. Brody is sitting pretty in Congress but his loyalty is going to be tested, in a big way. The end of the second episode had me screaming at my television (yet again) and it will be very, very interesting to see how the season goes from there.

I am not sure I could define many television shows as perfect, but Homeland comes very close. Every second of this show something huge is at stake and the stakes are just as high come season two. I can’t even wait for more. If you haven’t watched, you need to reassess your dedication to television. Because yes, it really is that good.

Tune in tonight at 10 PM to Showtime for the big season premiere of Homeland.