(This is a spoiler-free blog post.)

I arrived at Homeland late.

I binge-watched season 1 and was riveted. Waited patiently for season 2 to come out on disc, binge-watched and found it… good, but not as good as season 1. Still, it was enough to convince me to shell out the money for Showtime so I could watch season 3 as it unfurled… and saw a completely different show.

The third season of the national security soap drama was utterly implausible, with plot twists that didn’t stand up to any kind of scrutiny, lurching from one unbelievable turn to the next. It mindlessly brought up almost interesting storylines only to completely ignore them. It ended with a CIA “plan” that made no sense whatsoever. And the final act of the Brody saga landed no emotional punches whatsoever.

Will I stick around for season 4? I don’t know. The ship seems pretty much run aground. Maybe if the promos are really good…