Reviewed by Rich Jepson.

Carrie had her most annoying turn this week and again it was based on Brody. Running out to try and save the bomber was a stupid move and surely she knows the bigger picture here is more likely to prove Brody’s (possible) innocence. Dar Adal certainly sees it that way, ordering her to be shot was a gutsy call that he didn’t think twice about in his cold decision-making. Kudos to Quinn for clipping her on the shoulder.

In the ambulance we started to get a sense that Carrie’s only a few steps from figuring out Saul’s connection to Brody, “Where the f*** is Saul?” where indeed. She’ll piece it together soon and then we’ll be able to find out just how much Saul knows about Brody’s detainment.

We’ve known for a few weeks that Saul and Fara have been following the money and they’ve known that all roads of green flow into South America. So did Saul already know that Brody was there and was just playing Fara or did he find out at some point recently?

Speaking of Fara, I found the interaction between her and her father really annoying. I get that the show is trying to represent what life is like for them in a post-Langley world and the fear that their family back in Iran may be targeted as a result.

Not wanting to get into the politics too much, I found Fara’s “I’m an American” comment just cringing. It’s as if the series is trying to say, look we have someone of Iranian origin on our side and she hates Iran too. If you want to create a counter argument to some of the events in Homeland, using a character like this isn’t the way to do, it’d be better to see an Iranian, bring up some issues of the US’ involvement in the Middle East. The fact that in the real world these two countries are currently in nuclear talks adds a further sense of realism to this part of the drama, which arguable makes it more important for the show to present some counter arguments to its decisions.

The moment when Saul arrived at the tower was quite satisfying, mainly in the fact that we’re going to see more of one of the main characters. Although, judging by the horrific conditions that he’s been locked away in, I would expect him to be anywhere near the Brody he was before anytime soon. This was a well-shot sequence and the vile conditions Saul found him in came through the TV like a scene from The Walking Dead, furthermore to that point, Brody could’ve passed for a ‘walker’ with the level of detailed make up around his eyes.

As for Mira’s boyfriend, well, there you go. It is what it is – straight out of 24’s playbook and a little extravagant for my liking. How was the boyfriend to know in Mumbai that the bomb would draw Mira back to the states so he could follow? How well connected is he to Javadi or was he to Abu Nazir? And most importantly, how cold was his macchiato?

It’s not going to get easy anytime soon for Saul and he’s got some serious explaining to do to Carrie once she’s patched up from Quinn’s bullet. One last thing as well – Estes! It’s good to see just a glimpse that the cast remembers, and references, the fact that they’ve lost 90% of their work colleagues in the past few months.

Oh and did anyone else notice that Saul’s folder said “Top Secret” on it before he entered the meeting with the Senator & white house official? Probably best not to draw attention to something like that.

8.5/10

Scene of the Episode: Brody’s Bunker – Finally the two stories collide and Brody is back in the fold, Saul’s been lying to Carrie, so how much does he know about Brody’s incarceration?