SPOILERS AHEAD
The Debriefing: Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes) is recovering from her gunshot wound that she received from Quinn (Rupert Friend). Senator Lockhart (Tracy Letts) comes to visit Carrie and confronts her in order to find out why Saul went to Caracas, which of course, infuriates Carrie. Brody is under lock and key of Dar (F. Murray Abraham) and Saul (Mandy Patinkin) and must go through heroin detox. They give Brody an outlawed “cure” for heroin detox which sends Brody into a psychotic and delusional state. Virgil (David Marciano) discovers who has been leaking info to Lockhart — Mira’s lover. Saul then implores Carrie to inspire Brody to clean up, want to live and gear up for Saul’s mission…an assassination of a top Iranian official.
America’s Most Wanted (Best Overall Performance): It’s a no-brainer. Damian Lewis was absolutely fantastic tonight. The rigors and the ridiculous amount of physical and mental anguish he put himself through in order to portray Brody in a state of detox is the kind of performance you send to all the awards committees in the world. It’s the type of performance necessary to reintroduce Brody as a full-time character. We’ve seen him go through this before, it’s like a violent rebirth into the world. And tonight, we look at his rebirth as a assassin for the CIA. His scene with Dana at the motel later in the episode is powerful and gutting.
The Sleeper Cell (Best Supporting Performance): Mandy Patinkin knocked another one out of the park. I thought his speech, where he explains his grand plan for Brody, and the actual idealism behind it, how he wants peace (through death), was awesome. The sincerity with which he delivered his speech sent chills up my spine.
A “BOO” Nazir (The Worst Part of the Episode): It’s not a “bad” part of the episode, but watching Brody go through the detox process is extremely difficult to watch. So be warned if you’re squeamish, this episode of Homeland will be difficult at the beginning.
The Key Evidence (Best Part of the Episode): Carrie’s scene, where she sternly and without tears, tells Brody how it is, is the one of the better scenes the two have had. I’m glad the scene did not go the way their scenes usually do — with screaming, tears and bat shit craziness. It was refreshing to see Carrie in charge of a situation with Brody.
The Analysis (Overall Thoughts on the Episode): This was probably the best episode of Homeland in Season 3 and that’s mainly due to the full-fledged return of Damian Lewis. The man can act and when he’s onscreen he brings out the best in everyone around him — from Claire Danes to Mandy Patinkin to even Morgan Saylor. He elevates their game by his sheer presence. Brody’s return also set up the climax and conclusion of the series and it’s going to be one hell of a finish.
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