The last time we saw Homeland protagonist Carrie Matheson, she was on the verge of losing her mind after having been imprisoned in a Russian prison, of sorts. At the end of the 7th season, Carrie Matheson had just been released back into the hands of the NSA’s head honcho, Saul Berenson after spending months being mentally broken down by Russian intelligence. This basically sets the stage for the 8th seasons of the long-running Showtime series. As it was with previous seasons, you can expect the usual intrigue and the occasional twist that’ll throw everything into absolute chaos.
The season begins with Carrie’s isolation and evaluation by US intelligence as fears of her being turned into a sleeper Russian agent after months of mental torture. Recovery seems slow but there is some progress. Carrie is looking to get back to work but her supervisors and handlers seem to think she isn’t all there, mentally. Which is kind of understandable, considering her situation but there’s trouble brewing in Afghanistan and Saul needs Carrie to help him broker a peace deal between the Taliban and the US government. Standing in his way is the excellent Nimrat Kaur, back as the Pakistani intelligence officer who not only held her own against Carrie as a spy but showed us exactly how devious and dangerous she could be.
It’s no different now as she’s back to cause major headaches for the US intelligence, hampering peace talks between former enemies.
Another player in this game is the general who currently leads Afghanistan and wishes to see the Taliban destroyed. He still has to answer to his US handlers but his true motives are plain to see. He wants the Taliban gone so that he can maintain his power as leader of the country. We also get a glimpse into the workings of the White House with the new President of the United States looking to end the war on terror in Afghanistan and establishing peace in the region, after decades of unrest.
The first 5 episodes of the show are out right now and there are 7 more episodes to go, but from what we can see, it’s only going to get more intense as the situation goes from bad to worse. Fans of the show will relish the tension and suspense Homeland has all but perfected, but new viewers have literally 7 seasons of content to catch up on, so it really isn’t recommended to jump in with cold feet. With the 7th season having played out more like a sign of the times, the 8th season looks to the near future of our reality as the US could be looking at pulling out of Afghanistan completely.
This season does start out a little slow, but without revealing any spoilers, I can say that the tension ratchets up real quick buy the 4th episode and things are not going to be the same for the characters on the show. Look, if you’ve stuck on for 7 seasons, there is no point in convincing you guys to watch the show. You’re already discussing plot threads on message boards, but for new viewers, you should definitely try giving this show a shot. Yes, it’s 8 seasons long, and a lot of plot to get through but there is a reason the show has lasted this long. It really is that good.
Homeland Season 8 premiered on the February 15 and currently airs on Star World on Fridays at 10:00 PM