"Deception Indicated" is the eighth season premiere of the American television drama series ''

Homeland A homeland is a place where a national or ethnic identity has formed. The definition can also mean simply one's country of birth. When used as a proper noun, the Homeland, as well as its equivalents in other languages, often has ethnic natio ...

'', and the 85th episode overall. It premiered on

Showtime Showtime or Show Time may refer to: Film * ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film * ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur Television Networks and channels * Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...

on February 9, 2020.

Plot

While rehabilitating at

Landstuhl Regional Medical Center The Landstuhl Regional Medical Center (LRMC), also known as Landstuhl Hospital, is a U.S. Army post in Landstuhl, Germany, near Ramstein Air Base. It is an amalgamation of Marceau Kaserne () and Wilson Barracks (''Kirchberg-Kaserne''), which we ...

, Carrie (

Claire Danes Claire Catherine Danes (born April 12, 1979) is an American actress. Prolific in film and television since her teens, she is the recipient of three Primetime Emmy Awards and four Golden Globe Awards. In 2012, ''Time (magazine), Time'' named he ...

) is interviewed by counterintelligence agent Jim Turrow ( David Hunt). Turrow informs Carrie that she failed a polygraph test, and calls into question whether Carrie betrayed her loyalty during the months in captivity that she has no memory of. Saul (

Mandy Patinkin Mandel "Mandy" Bruce Patinkin (; born November 30, 1952) is an American actor and singer, known for his work in musical theatre, television, and film. As a critically acclaimed Broadway (theatre), Broadway performer he has collaborated with Step ...

), having been retained as National Security Advisor by new president Warner, is leading the U.S. effort to end the war in Afghanistan. Negotiations fall apart when Afghanistan's Vice President, Abdul Qadir G'ulom (

Mohammad Bakri Mohammad Bakri (born 1953; , ) is a Palestinian actor and film director. Personal life Bakri was born in the village of Bi'ina in Israel. He went to elementary school in his hometown and received his secondary education in the nearby city of A ...

), announces he will refuse to honor the proposed terms. Saul recruits Carrie to join him in Kabul to help salvage the peace talks, despite warnings from Carrie's caretakers at the hospital that she's not ready. Max (

Maury Sterling Charles Maury Wallace Sterling (born September 1, 1971) is an American actor. He is known for playing Max Piotrowski in '' Homeland'', Rafferty in the comedy film '' Beverly Hills Chihuahua'', and Lester Tremor in the action film '' Smokin' Ace ...

) joins a platoon of soldiers in

Korangal Valley Korangal Valley (alternatively spelled Korengal, Kurangal, Korangal; ), also nicknamed "The Valley of Death" is a valley in the Dara-I-Pech District of Kunar Province, eastern Afghanistan. Agriculture and forestry The valley is formed by a ...

with the aim of repairing a listening device near the Pakistan border which intercepts Taliban communications. Their unit comes under fire, but Max is able to service the device, and confirms it is operational back at the base. In Afghanistan, Carrie reunites with former colleague Mike Dunne (Cliff Chamberlain), now the station chief in Kabul, who assigns young agent Jenna Bragg (

Andrea Deck Andrea Deck (born February 5, 1994) is an American film, television and theater actress. She trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. She is best known for her voice role as Amanda Ripley, daughter of Ellen Ripley, in '' Alien: ...

) to shadow Carrie. Carrie visits the home of one of her former assets, but learns he was branded a traitor by the Taliban and publicly executed. Growing more concerned about what information she may have revealed while in captivity, she asks Mike whether Russia shares information with the Taliban; he confirms that they do. Carrie is further disturbed the next day when, while waiting to meet with G'ulom, she sees her Russian captor Yevgeny Gromov (

Costa Ronin Konstantin "Costa" Ronin (; born 3 February 1979) is a Russian actor and cinematographer, best known for appearances in '' Red Dog'', as Gregorovich on the SBS drama '' East West 101'', as Oleg Igorevich Burov in the FX drama ''The Americans' ...

) coming out of G'ulom's office.

Production

The episode was directed by executive producer

Lesli Linka Glatter Lesli Linka Glatter (born July 26, 1953) is an American film and television director. She is best known for her work on the AMC (TV channel), AMC drama series ''Mad Men'' and the Showtime (TV network), Showtime series ''Homeland (TV series), Hom ...

and co-written by showrunner

Alex Gansa Alex Gansa is a screenwriter and producer. He co-developed the Showtime series '' Homeland'' with Howard Gordon and Gideon Raff. He was also one of the series' executive producers and showrunners. Gansa produced and wrote a number of scripts f ...

and executive producer

Debora Cahn Debora Cahn is an American writer and producer of television and film. She was a writer and executive producer on the Showtime (TV network), Showtime series ''Homeland (TV series), Homeland'' for its final two seasons (2018–2020), and executive ...

Reception

Reviews

The episode received an approval rating of 100% on the review aggregator

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

based on five reviews.

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was created in ...

's Scott Von Doviak gave the episode a "B+" grade, and praised the direction: "''Homeland'' ratchets up to its tense, suspenseful best under series veteran Leslie Linka Glatter’s direction as the story cuts between Carrie’s attempt to secretly meet with an old asset and Max accompanied by troops into Taliban territory to carry out his mission". Emma Fraser of

Collider A collider is a type of particle accelerator that brings two opposing particle beams together such that the particles collide. Compared to other particle accelerators in which the moving particles collide with a stationary matter target, collid ...

said of the episode "Setting the stage before the final curtain, ''Homeland'' and Claire Danes have reminded audiences why we were so enraptured when it first debuted nearly 10 years ago".

Ratings

The original broadcast was watched by 600,000 viewers.

References

External links

"Deception Indicated"
at

* {{Homeland 2020 American television episodes Homeland season 8 episodes Television episodes directed by Lesli Linka Glatter