'Homeland' Season 8 Review: The new installment is here and promises to be the same grippingly fresh thriller
This review is based on the first four episodes provided by Showtime and is spoiler-free
'Homeland' had a riveting debut in 2011 and a large part of the critical acclaim came in at a time when the television industry was going through a major metamorphosis.
To have a flawed, complex anti-hero was a relatively unknown concept and the audience craved and waited with bated breath to see the show that had elements of betrayal, deception and corruption in a rather politically dense scenario.
The political thriller was a zeitgeist and while the season opener was a phenomenon, 'Homeland' didn't quite replicate the immense success it garnered in the pilot season consistently.
'Homeland' fans would still remember the tragic ending of Nick Brody (Damian Lewis) and his relationship with the main lead, Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes). The subsequent seasons had themes that relied heavily on spy-saga as a theme but had a few hurrahs in between with some intriguing episodes.
Season 7 set the tone for what could be rightfully termed as a fitting finale that just goes to show that 'Homeland' was a lot of fine wine. It upped its ante each season and despite the inconsistency, still managed to hold on to a large and loyal fanbase.
Season 8 is set to hit the ground up and running next week and it begins with a gritty tone. Carrie (Danes) finds herself in an altogether familiar environment where she endures a torturous stint in a Russian gulag.
The post-trauma is evident after the intense ordeal and in the middle of rebuilding herself, she's pushed into action by her longtime mentor and now the President's National Security Advisor, Saul (Mandy Patkin).
Her mission or task rather is to ensure the Taliban and Afghan head honchos end their ongoing loggerhead scrimmage.
Season 4's pivotal characters — Haqqani and Tasneem, the Taliban leader and a Pakistani operative — return as part of these negotiations while there is a parallel election storyline in the US with President Warner (Beau Bridges) facing some stiff competition in the form of Sam Tramell's opposing party.
All the hallmarks that made 'Homeland' the success has still remained. The slick action, the pacy storyline and the audacious writing are prominent as the episodes fluctuate between flashbacks and the present.
The aftermath of the Brody incident has left the CIA punching well above their weight and that is a significant change that is seen in the latest installment. It is the characters that make the crucial difference irrespective of the size of their roles and presence on screen.
Danes have been the architect of 'Homeland's success and she shoulders Season 8 with the same intensity as she did over the last seven.
Her character, eternally at war within herself and lately been battered by the multiple counts of torture, manages to seize each opportunity her way, despite the mind that frantically screams of her unpreparedness to get back on the field.
Complementing her richly and is Patkin who can look right through Carrie's insecurities. And yet, she tries clawing forward, despite the many odds and curveballs that she faces not just from her government, but with the parties, she's working on.
Perhaps it's a conscious call by the writers who decide to take their time in setting things up and playing with the pace. While there is enough crescendo built in the four episodes that were given out for review, it won't come as a surprise if there's a more compelling storyline that will give Carrie a final hurrah.
'Homeland' has always been an edge-of-the-seat thriller and Season 8 won't take that away. It's basics that it stuck to has made it the behemoth it was and season 8 promises tying up everything it started with. If anything, it's time for Carrie Mathison to be the patriot she always aspired to be.
'Homeland' Season 8 premieres on February 9 at 9 pm ET/PT on Showtime.