The first episode of Homeland is a by-the-book study on how to create a compelling pilot. Screenwriters can study it while the rest of the masses are simply in awe of the twists and inherent thrills created by the writers through the mystery they set up. The rest of the series follows the course of a heroine’s journey in a suspenseful turned introspective storyline worth binging.

Audiences were ready for a political thriller by the time it premiered in October 2011, a decade after the U.S.’s war on terror escalated with 9/11 and the same year Osama bin Laden was killed by U.S. forces. Homeland reflects the country’s operations since that day, opening conversation and controversy over terrorism, bigotry, and the intermingled personal and professional lives of those keeping America “safe.”

Homeland was Showtime’s most-watched premiere in nearly ten years, pulling in 2.8 million viewers. Among those that became avid fans: President Obama and the Clintons. The series also grabbed the attention of voting Hollywood as Homeland swept its first Primetime Emmys® and went on to rack up a total of 182 various nominations and 61 wins over its series run.

The hero’s journey

A far cry from My So-Called Life and Romeo + Juliet, Claire Danes is CIA agent Carrie Mathison who is front and center of Homeland. Throughout the trajectory of the show, she journeys from slightly crazed case officer back to the average case officer, with several detours in-between. She’s our strong female lead, the one often lacking in this kind of arena, and Danes plays it well.

But is the character of Carrie Mathison a good role model? For her patriotism and devotion to her work, Absolutely. As a human being? That kind of depends on the instance and relationship, which is what makes her such a good character. She isn’t all one thing; she’s relatable in her fallacies as well as her triumphs. Yes, Carrie can be self-absorbed in her tunnel-vision view of her world. She makes irrational decisions and seemingly betrays everyone close to her on one level or another, from making a move on her handler and mentor Saul (Mandy Patinkin, The Princess Bride) in the pilot to being a crappy mentor to her protégés down the line. To her, it’s all a means to an end. It’s also what makes her riveting because you just never quite know what Carrie’s going to do next…

Homeland brought mental illness to mainstream attention through Carrie’s bipolar disorder, and the show was simultaneously applauded for its realistic depiction as well as criticized for romancing its “superpower” side-effect that happens when she goes off her medication and is seemingly imbued with heightened intuition.

Keeping the magic alive

Creators Alex Gansa and Howard Gordon based the spy thriller on Gideon Raff’s Israeli spy series, Prisoners of War. Fox bought Prisoners before it transitioned from page to screen, and Gansa and Gordon—both fresh off the TV series 24—proceeded to make the property their own along with powerhouse writers Chip Johannessen (Dexter), Henry Bromell (Brotherhood), Alex Cary (Lie to Me), and Meredith Stiehm (ER), among others. Raff stayed on the project as co-executive producer.

The tumultuous relationship between Carrie’s goals and her obsession with Marine Sgt. Nicholas Brody (Damian Lewis, Billions) creates the thread of the first three seasons. After that, like a “soft reboot,” the season objective changed right along with its locale and new driving force for Carrie. From self-imposed exile in Berlin to aiding Muslims in the U.S. to Russia, each season explored a different kind of threat, veering away from what some critics deemed the show’s “Islamaphobic stereotypes.” The show’s reinvention every 12 episodes is perhaps partially what kept the show going for eight seasons.

Another factor might be its writers’ dedication to research. In what affectionately come to be known as “Spy Camp”, the showrunners would convene in Washington, D.C.’s City Tavern Club for one week each year to meet with incredible resources including former CIA, ex-military, ambassadors and journalists. The team and key cast members were even connected to Edward Snowden at one point.

In Retrospect

Authenticity is a necessary caveat of good television these days. And Homeland had it back then. Sure, the American military abstained from participating in a show about a turned soldier, but there were plenty of others willing to step in and consult. The show with the near-perfect pilot (that Ben Affleck had been attached to direct at one point and Lesli Linka Glatter [The Walking Dead] directed the bulk of) came to a close in April 2020.

It won two Golden Globe® Awards for Best Television Series - Drama, and one Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series for a reason. It also gave both Danes and Lewis their own Emmys for Outstanding Leads, while supporting cast Patinkin, Rupert Friend, Morena Baccarin, and F. Murray Abraham were all nominated.

Homeland is a masterclass in all facets of filmmaking. The series isn’t just a simply thrilling binge of espionage with some serious adult content, but also a mirror to American politics of the past decade.