Hot Off The Press - Homeland season 4

It's been some time since my last review of Homeland as we witnessed Aayan's shocking departure. From here it was a wild ride as the show cut between a few 'really?' moments and then moments of greatness. While episode 11 did raise an eyebrow as an expected twist came up, season four has certainly made up and gone far beyond that of three. Spoilers ahead!

First a catchup...

Episode seven saw Dennis' spy tactics take Carrie to some dark places when her meds were switched. The result proved to be one of the more personal and intense episodes as Carrie fell apart, mistaking Assar for Brody. Meanwhile tensions were picking up as Saul was still being held hostage.

The story progressed nicely into episode eight and nine as we saw Lockhart loose his nerve, suspecting traitors and double-dealings. During this period, we then learnt more about Haissam Haqqani while he held Saul captive. Both Patinkin and Numan Acar were brilliant to watch, along with other new cast members to the show, including Raza Jaffrey and Nimrat Kaur. And then came Saul's escape as he took matters into his own hands, but it was not to be as he fell back into enemy hands through Carrie's doing to keep him alive.

By this point, the drama levels were heating-up between the two governments resulting in an exchange for Saul's life that concluded episode nine. But despite a successful exchange, moods were hardly happy as Haqqani moved closer to the US base thanks to Dennis' intel resulting in Carrie's convoy being hit by an explosive ambush.

Picking right up in the heat of the action, Carrie and Saul wake to find John dead and soldiers being picked off by snipers. Meanwhile Quinn did his best as he tried to reclaim the base. It was by far the most action packed episode to date, and probably one of the best. Minor character, Alan, also went down in a blaze of gunfire as Haqqani laid waste to Carrie's team in search of Sandy's documents filled with sources.

With Lockhart able to get the documents into a panic room, it wasn't long before Haqqani started to pick off hostages. Just when Lockhart thought he could spare Farah's life by handing over the files, another long-running character was lost. With Quinn coming to the rescue and Carrie and Saul returning safely, they found themselves in a worse situation than when they started. It was great to see a new angle on Carrie as she accepted defeat, knowing that the game was up.

With Dennis arrested, his wife packing her things and Lockhart ready to go home with Saul, Carrie once again found herself caught in a difficult situation. Breaking the news to Quinn and Max, both objected and went about to set things right, kicking off episode eleven. What followed was a tense and thrilling ride with Quinn hellbent on blowing Haqqani up on his front doorstep during a protest. Afraid of the consequences, Carrie stood knowingly close to the entrance but then felt the desire to take out Haqqani himself following Aayan and Farah's deaths just before Assar stops her.

Brilliant up until this point, Assar then points into the car revealing Dar Adal next to Haqqani! It was a great surprise but was this another case of Homeland going too far? The final episode was also the longest but had no need to be as it plodded along without any excitement.

That sounds harsh, but in many ways season four worked well as it was self-contained. Here was a chapter in Carrie's life where her job picked up, and was then blown apart by Dennis' betrayal. The CIA left with their tale between their legs and Haqqani alive and well. In other words it was a bit of a downer, but overall this was a strong return for the series.

Performances, old and new, were great across the board and there were still moments of tension and excitement to be found. That said, there weren't any of those great Breaking Bad/ Game of Thrones 'what will happen next season' questions surrounding what we'll see next year. The closest we have is Adal's confessed connection to Haqqani and how it will affect Carrie's relationship with Saul. Alongside this was Quinn's dangerous mission that he sets on, leaving doubt as to whether he will come home in one piece.

So once again another Homeland season has concluded with questions on what it will do to continue going, and where it will go, up in the air. Regardless, it has been a solid ride up to this point, and while it won't convert newcomers, there is still plenty here for fans to keep going.