What I’m Watching: Homeland

Homeland: Season 1, Episode 7 “The Weekend” (A-)

Talk about a whopper of an episode. It’s hard to tell sometimes whether Carrie is deliberately trying to catch Brody in a lie or whether she’s actually falling for him and unable to control herself. Antagonizing a neo-Nazi in a bar filled with his buddies was royally stupid, and it seemed like Carrie is looking for a fight more often than not. Deciding to bring Brody up to her family cabin is a monumental move, and finding out when she can’t locate the key that she’s about to be out of pills was just another sign that she was spiraling out of control. It’s so interesting that she gave herself away with something as simple as giving Brody the type of tea she knew he liked, and I love how everything played out after that. Absolute honesty from professional liars is one of my favorite television tropes, and so to hear Brody admit to being a Muslim and killing Walker and for Carrie to tell him outright that she thinks he’s a terrorist, not the CIA, was fantastic. That coupled with the subsequent revelation that Walker is still alive turned everything on its head, and it frames Brody in a whole new light, especially because his story is likely true given that it matches up perfectly with all the flashback evidence with which we’ve been presented. Saul’s road trip with Aileen was extremely unconventional and enlightening, and it’s a wonder to see the man work. Having him tell Estes to show Aileen Brody’s picture was a huge step, and for it to be so quickly transformed into something else was thrilling. Dana seems to be going out of her way to cause trouble at home, and her harsh words to Mike stung. I’m on the edge of my seat waiting to find out what’s going to happen next.

What I’m Watching: Enlightened

Enlightened: Season 1, Episode 4 “The Weekend” (B+)

There’s nothing like a good field trip to change the mood and delve deep into the past to discover the roots of the characters on a show. We didn’t know all that much about Amy’s life aside from her work meltdown before this, and therefore it’s extremely useful, and surprising, to learn about what happened between Amy and Levi to cause her breakdown. It was her peaceful meditation that first introduced her memories about her pregnancy, her miscarriage, her dog’s death, her descent into drinking and cheating, and her divorce, all things about which we didn’t know prior to this installment. It explains a whole lot about Levi’s personality and his attitude towards Amy, who recruits him rather unwillingly for an impromptu camping/kayaking trip. It was somewhat strange to see M.C. Gainey in a peaceful, inconsequential role as the “poet of the river,” and he was about as prominently featured as the three couples present for the weekend. Levi’s drug habit does not jive with Amy’s new life philosophy, and that’s likely going to be a large problem in their continued relationship, as he emphasizes that he needs those times when he’s high and doesn’t think about any of the negative stuff. The episode does end on a positive work, with Amy’s inspiring declaration: “My story isn’t the one I would have chosen at the beginning, but I’ll take it. It’s my story.” She’s certain there’s a lot of time left, and I do hope the show gets that time to develop its characters, since they seem like genuinely compelling people.