Few shows have burst into the public zeitgeist like Countrywhich literally captured many of the fears about terrorism and domestic crises brewing in America in the aftermath of 9/11. Although the series is loosely inspired by the Israeli program Prisoners of war, Country so closely mirrored developing events in American history that it became downright strange. Although the information about how the US network of spy agencies and military officials operated together was instructive, Country was at its best when it focused on the domestic lives of its characters. Showing the post-traumatic stress disorder that former Marine Nicholas Brody (Damien Lewis) encountered after being rescued as a prisoner of war, Country was able to develop complex conversations about the fractured family unit.
The first season of Country brilliantly established two characters with competing agendas; while Brody returned to his wife Jessica (Morena Baccarin) intending to readjust to society, bipolar CIA case officer Carrie Mathison (Claire Danois) begins with the hint that the lionized war hero might actually be a sleeper cell agent working for Al-Qaeda. Lewis said he “I appreciated the contradiction that someone could become a hero again in the eyes of the nation, but maybe not be that person,” and compared the first season to “the first chapter of your novel, which leads you to the next chapter.” Despite the importance of the subject, Lewis described Country as “a character piece” that was “about identity on a more intimate, localized level, as it relates to family and relationships with your loved ones.”
‘Homeland’ examined the terror of a broken family unit
Perhaps the most brilliant aspect of CountryThe premise was how Brody and Carrie were seemingly opposites at first glance; While Brody is a beloved member of his community whose disappearance sparked much sadness and terror, Carrie functioned as a ghost within the CIA and struggled to maintain personal family relationships. Brody’s return offers a fascinating look at the role the media plays in politics.for it is in the nation’s interest to present him as an all-American family man in order to prove that the military is capable of withstanding torture and danger from rival nations.
In reality, Brody is so shaped by his captivity that he becomes a shadow of the man he once was.which makes it harder for him to reconnect with his wife. Although Jessica could have easily been a standard character who had no identity outside of her relationship with Brody, Country gave Baccarin the freedom to consider his unappealing choice; Although Jessica does not want to contribute to the feelings of isolation felt by her husband, she recognizes that Brody’s presence has had a negative effect on their children, Dana (Morgane Saylor) and Chris (Jackson Pace).
Lewis said he “was intrigued that the film also wanted to tell a broader story”, as well as Country was able to examine the strange idiosyncrasies between Carrie and Brody. Both Carrie and Brody are seen as liabilities due to their struggles with mental healthdespite the undeniable service they rendered on behalf of their nation. The presentation of Carrie as a character with a mood disorder was revolutionary for television at the time, as the series strove to sympathize with the challenges she faced without stigmatizing her. Likewise, the series incorporated Brody’s emotional susceptibility into his role as a double agent and examined how a character in his position would be susceptible to influence within his fragile state. Although Country became famous for its twists and turns, they were all grounded in character and theme.
Brody changed the direction of the “homeland”
Even though Claire was the definitive protagonist of Country throughout its eight seasons, Brody set a precedent for a different type of main character of a drama series due to the unique challenges he faced. Although he is still under the influence of the terrorists who held him captive, Brody still struggles with the usual problems of many fathers, as he wants to set an example for his children without disrupting the normalcy of their lives. Although his behavior became increasingly erratic as he questioned his own actions, the feud he started with Jessica after realizing she had started a relationship with his friend Mike Faber (Diego Klattenhoff) is the rare case in which a TV love triangle worked.
The series’ season 1 finale, “Marine One,” is considered one of its best episodes because he fused Brody’s personal development with a looming threat that forced Carrie to go rogue to protect her nation; While Brody’s debate over whether or not to detonate a suicide vest would obviously have significant political ramifications, it is even more compelling because it will determine whether or not his children will grow up without a father.
Country isn’t exactly a “one-season wonder,” but it struggled to have the same all-consuming hold on its audience in the aftermath of its first run of episodes. Later seasons of Country were most successful when they applied the same level of analysis to other charactersas Carrie ironically became a Brody-like figure when she became a growing liability to the CIA. Although the storyline involving Brody’s daughter in the second season is generally considered one of the weaker aspects of CountrySeeing him face his fate in the third season both marked an effective conclusion for a legendary television character and shifted the series to a different version of itself by focusing more on international espionage.
Even if Country If the show gained press because of its proximity to world news, the show succeeded because it was not a work of reactionary pulp. The hardest thing for a show with morally questionable characters to do is make them all feel human, and Country‘s ability to present a three-dimensional version of Brody is what made him one of the modern marvels of television.
