The ‘Homeland’ Season Finale Was Bananas And Eerily Relevant

‘Homeland,’ which has been suffering a kind of sophomore slump lately after being lauded as legit the best thing ever during the first season, went out with an INSANE bang last night to cap off the second season. Like in recent disappointing ‘Homeland’ fashion, the first 40 minutes were boring as hell. I can’t even remember anything that happened during them except that Saul was let free from CIA purgatory and Carrie and Brody continued to be idiots.

And then! And then!

Oh man. Okay so Carrie and Brody are making out in an office while the memorial for Vice President Walden is happening and Brody notices someone moved his car closer to the building where the memorial is taking place. (They’re celebrating that Carrie is going to give up her career in the CIA so they can maybe try to date which is the dumbest…I can’t even.)

Just as he points this out to Carrie, there’s a HUGE explosion. Brody’s car was a bomb. Because their relationship is so healthy, Carrie immediately pulls a gun on Brody and accuses him of still being a terrorist. Brody convinces her it wasn’t him and that he’s being set up. Even though Abu Nazir is dead, Brody is still on the wanted list for the rest of Al Qaeda whom he betrayed. Carrie immediately goes into flight mode and takes off with Brody to get him a new fake identity and into Canada/off to freedom outside the US.

Already bananas, right?

The CIA storms the Brody home where Jessica and Mike and the kids are fuh-reaking out about the bombing which killed 200 people — including David Estes (RIP), Cynthia Walden and one-time Dana love interest and vehicular manslaughterer Finn Walden. Carrie and Brody are presumed dead.

And then! And then!

The suicide bomber video Brody made when he was going to detonate the vest underground is released making it look like he was responsible for this most recent attack. At this point, I was literally screaming at my computer. (I don’t have Showtime so I livestream it.) The Brody family FLIPS OUT because it now appears that Nick was a terrorist all along and that he murdered 200 people, including his daughter’s not-boyfriend and the director of the CIA. Also, it seems like he is dead. Also EVERYONE KNOWS HE WAS A SECRET TERRORIST.

Carrie, who was planning on skipping town with Brody, now drops him off at the edge of the woods and decides to go back and try to clear his name.

The final scene is a beautiful shot of Saul reciting the Jewish prayer for the dead (The Mourner’s Kaddish) among the 200 body bags. I know this episode was filmed far in advance but I got chills watching this scene. Hearing the beautiful Mourner’s Kaddish after an act of terrorism and so much needless death hit extra close to home because the randomness of violence and the vulnerability of human life is on everyone’s minds lately. That things like this can really happen — and do — is so heartbreaking and frightening and the ‘Homeland’ writers captured that pain beautifully.

Then, Saul’s prayer is interrupted because Carrie shows up — decidedly not dead. HOLY CRAP. What’s going to happen next season? Here’s what I think:

1. Saul takes over the CIA

Right? He has to. And Carrie becomes his #2. And since his wife is coming back, maybe this will cause even more tension because she already hates that he’s married to his job.

2. Dana’s “My dad is a Muslim” comment comes back to haunt her

People at her school and maybe the media start accusing the Brody family of harboring a known terrorist and of knowing he was planning something evil and not stopping him. They come under suspicion of being terrorists themselves.

3. Jessica and Mike get married

Or at least get back together permanently.

4. Carrie’s mom returns

She talked about her in the finale, and with Brody gone, Carrie is going to need a new storyline or some kind of emotional foil.

5. Quinn suffers guilt for not knocking off Brody when he had the chance

He’s gonna think the bombing was all his fault.

6. Carrie becomes even crazier and more unreliable as she strives to clear Brody’s name

Oh man. I can’t wait to see the crying faces that come out of season three. They’re gonna be so ugly!