I would agree with this article if it was just talking about The Killing. It's actually spot on if it were only about that show and had been written a few months ago. But instead, it's not just about The Killing, and includes other shows like Homeland. Comparing The Killing to Homeland is like comparing apples to home grown terrorists. They are not the same.
The Killing built it's entire series around "who killed Rosie Larsen"? It wasn't just that, but it was also "this is a show that takes one case and it examines it for a full season!" Well, when you do that, you gotta pay it off at the end of the season.
Homeland is different. There was no ad campaign "is Brody a terrorist?" or "will Brody do it?" And the fact is, we got that moment in Homeland. Brody strapped that vest on. There's no mystery left, a la The Killing. We know. We have answers.
Here's what she says the problem is:
Thus are we expected to while away a solid eight hours waiting to find out whether or not Brody is working for the terrorists. And once we discover the truth, what’s next? A whole different, far less compelling show begins, one about an ambivalent Marine turned terrorist who appears poised to sell out his family and his country for one little saucer-eyed boy. The provocative but empty premise of “Homeland” leads us into another jungle maze until we’re too exhausted to suspend our disbelief any longer.I don't think she hates dramas, I think she hates STORIES. Yeah, that's right, lady, that's how stories work. All the shit is made up. Things change. The story changes. Things evolve.
If you don't like it, go watch House. That premise isn't "empty". It's full, you get the exact same story and premise every single episode and you never have to worry about Dr. House not figuring out what the disease is.
I worked on a show once where the big criticism of the pilot by the reviewers was "it's a really good show, but there's no way they're gonna be able to keep it up".
What?! You don't need to worry about the question of how we keep it up, that's my job. If you liked the pilot, that's what we were going for! And since we did something you liked, maybe you should give us the benefit of the doubt that we will be able to do it again.
I don't know what Homeland becomes after this season, but that's not my job. I'm just a viewer, and when I watch the show, I enjoy it. Yeah, that premise can't last for 10 seasons, and I'm fine with that. It shouldn't. But I'm invested in the characters, and I want to see where things go because I like where they've been.
All of that being said, I didn't love the finale of Homeland. I completely disagree with her criticism, but that doesn't mean the show is perfect. And I had issues for other reasons.
The first hour was amazing and great and what I wanted to see. The last half hour was a bit disappointing. In particular, the fate of Carrie. It felt tacked on and weird. That was never discussed before, was it? It was a fine ending, it just could've been set up better and not felt so out of left field.
Also, Brody's ending was a tad too neat. I wish his and Tom Walker's situation was a little more messy heading into next season. I want there to be shit lurking around Brody that can mess his world up.
Regardless, it was a great first season. I enjoyed the heck out of it, and I'm excited to see where things go in season 2. I think the writers have earned the respect to believe they can do 13 more excellent episodes. But that's just me and my wacky notion that stories are cool.
P.S. Fuck procedurals.
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