The Weekend

The Weekend
Written by:	Meredith Stiehm
Directed by:	Michael Cuesta
Production number:	1WAH06
Running time:	58 minutes
Original airdate:	November 13, 2011
Viewers (millions):	1.42

“HEY CARRIE? FUCK YOU.” - Nick Brody

The Weekend is the seventh episode of Season 1 of Homeland. It aired on November 13, 2011.

Synopsis[]

Carrie and Brody further complicate their relationship when they head to the countryside for the weekend. Jessica, Brody's wife, and Mike face the fallout of the truth about their relationship. Meanwhile, Saul catches Aileen on the run to Mexico.

Episode guide[]

Aileen attempts to flee to Mexico but is apprehended when she gets off the bus in Nuevo Laredo. Saul is there and takes Aileen into custody. He brings her on a 25-hour car ride back to Virginia, hoping to use that time to convince her to divulge her role in the terrorist plot.

Brody explains to Carrie that he needs to take a little time away from home. After stopping at a bar and having some drinks, Carrie suggests they go to a cabin out in the country that her family owns. They have sex shortly after arriving, and spend a very enjoyable, romantic day at the cabin together. Both seem to be much more comfortable and at ease with each other than with anyone else.

He sent in the easy relationship that Chris and Jessica have, and more importantly, they don't seem to have with him, while he's still struggling heavily with PTSD and unable to connect with them. Claire talks about her translator and the horrible way he died. (Novel Homeland: Saul's Game)

Dana gets drunk with her friends at home and falls through the plate glass door. With Brody gone, Mike is called upon to help. He repairs the door while Jessica takes Dana to the hospital to get stitches. Mike and Jessica later express how much they miss each other, and how much of an upheaval it's been to have Brody back in their lives. Dana, however, would prefer that Mike stayed away, telling him "there's no place for my dad when you're here".

As they drive cross-country, Saul relates to Aileen his own experiences with a strict Jewish upbringing, and his marital difficulties, in an attempt to get Aileen to open up. As Aileen gets more comfortable with Saul, the topic of Raqim Faisel comes up. Aileen's desire to secure a proper Muslim burial for Raqim compels her to cooperate. She tells Saul everything she knows. Saul calls Estes and tells him that Aileen's job was to buy the house near the airport and wait for a visitor. The visitor spent over an hour on the roof. Estes sends Galvez over to the house to inspect the roof. He discovers that there is a direct line of sight to a landing pad for Marine One, the President's helicopter, and it's within an expert sniper's reach.

Carrie and Brody cook dinner. When Mathison and Nicholas become intimate, she is not frightened by the scars on her body and he has love with her, firmly and vigorously, making them both very happy. During the night, Brody has a nightmare. He wakes up screaming "That's it! No!" Carrie hears this and tries to calm him down.

The next morning, while discussing breakfast, Carrie slips up and mentions Brody's favorite brand of tea: Yorkshire Gold. Brody asks how she knows the tea he drinks and accuses her of spying on him. Carrie, knowing she's been caught, elects to turn the tables; she directly accuses Brody of being an agent of al-Qaeda. Brody reacts incredulously and challenges Carrie to ask him anything she wants. Carrie obliges and grills Brody about all his suspicious behavior since his return and the holes in his story. Brody maintains his innocence but makes some revelations. He admits his conversion to Islam and that he often prays in his garage. He says the "Issa" he mentioned in his dream was the name of a guard who treated him well. He did beat Walker to death, given the choice of killing Walker or being killed himself. He had indeed met Abu Nazir but concealed it from everyone because he had a genuine affection for the man. His suspicious finger movements are a reflexive motion coming from clutching prayer beads.

As Brody is leaving, Saul calls Carrie. He reports that Aileen has identified the "visitor" who was on the roof of her house. It was Tom Walker. Not only is he alive, but he's the prisoner of war who was turned. Upon hearing this, Carrie rushes out to Brody to apologize. She desperately tries to explain that despite her suspicions, the time they spent together "was real". Brody leaves, feeling betrayed, while Carrie is reduced to tears. Brody arrives home that night, and peeks in on his wife and kids as they lie in bed. He sits down in the living room and starts crying.

Comments[]

“If you didn’t know everything else that was going on, you might even venture to say that Carrie and Brody are good for each other. And then: that goddamned tea.” –Joe Reid

I just think this is yet another good example of the “nuanced” portrayal of good and bad in Homeland that Damian Lewis talks about in an interview with Hunger Magazine: “There’s a well-pronounced sense of fear in America, a fear of the “other”, and Homeland has largely been a success because it feeds into that. It has also challenged the audience to explore the idea that terrorism, or acts of violence, can be orchestrated by governments, and that it’s not as clear-cut anymore. There’s no clear hero in this show. It has refused to make judgments, and I think it has been brilliantly nuanced and ambiguous.” -

Quotes[]

“I’m all alone… I’m… meditating.” - Carrie for Maggie

"I had to lie a few times to save my life. I think I got good at it.” — BRODY, Nicholas

“You’re a Muslim?” - Mathison, Carrie // “You live in despair for eight years; you can turn to religion, too. And, the King James Bible was not available.” – Nicholas Brody

Brody and Carrie and walking in the woods and he asks her “what happened over there?” / “What didn’t happen?” Then he asks her what sent her to the support group.

“I want to just live here. For a second.” - Nicholas from Carrie

Brody: “You’re telling me the fucking CIA thinks I’m working for Al Qaeda?

Carrie: No, I think you’re working for Al Qaeda.”

“Not if you’re playing the long game” - Carrie

Cast[]

Main Cast[]

Guest Cast[]

Co-Starring[]

Joe Ward as Russ The Aryan
Bridget Gethins as Clerk
Taylor Kowalski as Xander
Chelsea Cardwell as Maddie
James Allen McCune as Jeff
Viktor Hernandez as Federale