Homeland recap: season four, episode 11 Krieg Nicht Lieb

The penultimate episode of the season saw both Quinn and Carrie reverting to type, despite their best efforts to change. But where does it go from here?

“Quinn … we lost”

How strange to hear those defeatist words from Carrie Mathison. And, yet, in a way, how fitting. This season has observed Carrie’s transformation from firebrand to pragmatist, a metamorphosis born out of necessity and no little pain. She’s seen enough in her time in Islamabad – Aayan’s death, the kidnapping of Saul, the slaughter of so many of her embassy staff, her family back in America getting on with living (and, in the case of her father, dying) without her – to recognise that sometimes quiet retreat is the only reasonable option.

Here’s the thing, though. Carrie evolving into a more sensible individual might be good for the CIA (how many times should she have been fired from the organisation by now? Six? Seven?), but it would be less good for Homeland. Carrie’s impetuousness may be maddening, and occasionally unconscionable, but the show would be far less compelling without it.

Which is why, after an episode in which she did everything in her power to dissuade Quinn from carrying out his deadly attack on Haqqani – even putting herself within fatal distance of his pipe bomb – Carrie’s sudden decision to mount an impromptu assassination of her own was oddly reassuring (if idiotic). That description Quinn’s on-off German embassy-worker girlfriend gave about him might equally be applied to Carrie: “He will never get out, but every so often it makes him better to say that he will.” Carrie will continue being Carrie, attempting to bend the world to her will, however much she might argue otherwise.

Quinn too will continue to be Quinn, disenchanted by life as an assassin but unable to shake the itch. It genuinely seemed like he might be done this season, but then Haqqani’s assault on the embassy jolted him right back into his old ways. “There was a Taliban flag waving over my head. I can’t let that stand,” he told Carrie gruffly. There were other things he couldn’t let stand either, notably the two CIA goons Carrie had apprehend him, both of whom ended up crumpled on the floor, one with a gunshot wound to the leg (non-fatal, of course). Carrie’s next attempt at stopping him was more successful - he would never have seriously considered blowing her up with Haqqani. Still, I doubt his vendetta against the Taliban, even if he’s unlikely to be involved with the CIA any time soon. It’ll be interesting to see when and where he pops up next.

Now, saving the best bit for last: a true showstopper of a moment came this week – after Quinn’s well-thought-out assassination plot, and after Carrie’s poorly thought-out one – with the revelation of who was sitting in the back of Haqqani’s SUV. Dar Adal! What the? Has he turned? Or is this part of some larger play? Given the inscrutability of Dar Adal, either is entirely possible. I’ve combed his fleeting appearances this season for hints, but have found nothing. Hopefully we’ll know more by the time the time it ends.

I’m unsure of what to expect from next week’s final episode. Certainly some housekeeping will be necessary – next year’s already-commissioned fifth season needs to be set up – and, unlike Brody’s madcap mission in season three, there’s no immediate cliffhanger to resolve. But let’s remember, this is a show that revels in giving its audience a sudden jolt when it least expects it. Perhaps we might get one last shocking moment? Most importantly of all, can Homeland stick the landing on what has been a much-improved fourth season?

Notes and observations

• The death of Carrie’s father gave Homeland the opportunity to say a final goodbye to actor James Rebhorn, who passed away in March.

• Quinn’s German lover was played by none other than Nina Hoss, whose voice Manic Street Preachers fans will no doubt recognise from her appearance on their recent album Futurology.

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