“Clean Skin” (Season 1 | Episode 3)

WARNING – FULL SPOILERS

Well that wasn’t very nice was it? You think you’ve being protected by a bunch of CIA chameleon agents and then you go and get shot buy your chauffeur.

Lynne shaking a seven was a bold move for the show to make at this early stage, but I’m glad the writers chose to make it. In reality, Lynne was a high-class escort, not an undercover agent, so it was only a matter of time before she’d get rumbled. It was a surprise to see it come so sudden but it’s good to see that her situation isn’t going to dominate the storyline – leaving a lot more time for the dynamic between Brody to build instead.

Brody played the war hero character very well this week, inviting Lawrence O’Donnell (as himself) and a camera crew into his home. The walk through the park and the chat on the couch was played to a tee, giving enough emotion and dignified answers to convince everyone watching that he’s been through a lot but getting back to normal. The question is, when the interview is aired will Carrie or Virgil notice him giving off any more subliminal communications? Behind the scenes, Brody’s actions were mixed to say the least. His bedroom behaviour with Jessica was err…ahem…strange to say the least. She must really be hurting inside, trying to cope with Brody’s mental state, covering up her relationship with Mike and getting a lot of hassle from an angry teenage daughter.

This played well for Brody, as Dana was mad at her mum she created a good opportunity to connect with her father. The scene where the two are looking at the padlocks on the fence was quite a tender moment and showed Brody’s sensitive side. When Dana asked her dad about the interview he said he was doing it “to keep the peace” and that he’s “not gonna lie” and “not gonna tell the truth”, which is exactly what he’s been doing when asked a specific question about his imprisonment.

Carrie’s relationship with Saul took a bit of a pounding this week. After he found out that she’d been lying to him he certainly made it obvious that he was annoyed. Ambushing her out in the briefing room was a sly tactic but understandable given the risk she has taken. I can’t help thinking that everything she’s done is going to have repercussions, maybe not just for her but for Virgil, Max and even Saul too.

Lynne’s parents weeping at the side of their dead daughter was all on Carrie and she knew it. Wanting to tell them the truth wasn’t what they deserved; it was what she sought as some kind of redemption for putting their daughter in the situation that caused her death.

The money-laundering necklace was great. It was a very subtle part of the story to begin with and didn’t seem to add anything to the plot other than prove his acceptance into Farin’s life. However, this proved to be the catalyst in her death as her employers flipped on her. Farin’s interview was hard to read, is he genuinely upset at her death because it was carried out without him knowing? Or was he just acting to eliminate himself of any suspicion? Or did he know but have feelings for her anyway? At this stage it’s hard to tell. We’re getting big pieces of the puzzle but there’s still so much to leave to interpretation that it’s hard to make an accurate conclusion.

The final moment with the couple buying the house was intriguing, living next to the airport is obviously a big hint towards a possible attack if they are part of a sleeper cell. This could even be a safe house for Brody to conduct business in later on down the line if he needs somewhere more private than his garage. Either way it doesn’t look like that couple bought it simply to play house in – the plot thickens…

8/10

Scene of the Episode | Lynne Gets Made – The big shock of the episode came with more than 20 minutes to go. Lynne’s death shows us that this series is not afraid to kill off someone who you think is going to be integral to the storyline. It’s also eliminated the only real connection to Nazir that Carrie had, leaving Brody as her only lead.

Reviewed by Rich Jepson, cult TV enthusiast and author of 24: Terrorism Through Television.