While rehabilitating at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Carrie is interviewed by counterintelligence agent Jim Turrow. Turrow informs Carrie that she failed a polygraph test, and calls into question whether Carrie betrayed her loyalty during the months in captivity that she has no memory of. Saul, now National Security Advisor, is leading the U.S. effort to end the war in Afghanistan. Negotiations fall apart when Afghanistan's Vice President, Abdul Qadir G'ulom, announces he will refuse to honor the proposed terms. Saul recruits Carrie to join him in Kabul to help salvage the peace talks, despite warnings from Carrie's caretakers at the hospital that she's not ready. Max joins a platoon of soldiers in Korangal Valley with the aim of repairing a listening device near the Pakistan border which intercepts Taliban communications. Their unit comes under fire, but Max is able to service the device, and confirms it is operational back at the base. Now in Afghanistan, Carrie visits the home of one of her former assets, but learns he was branded a traitor by the Taliban and publicly executed. Growing more concerned about what information she may have revealed while in captivity, she asks the station chief whether Russia shares information with the Taliban. He confirms that they do. Carrie is further disturbed the next day when, while waiting to meet with G'ulom, she sees her Russian captor Yevgeny Gromov coming out of G'ulom's office.
The episode received an approval rating of 100% on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes based on five reviews. The A.V. Club's Scott Von Doviak gave the episode a "B+" grade, and praised the direction: "Homeland ratchets up to its tense, suspenseful best under series veteran Leslie Linka Glatter’s direction as the story cuts between Carrie’s attempt to secretly meet with an old asset and Max accompanied by troops into Taliban territory to carry out his mission". Emma Fraser of Collider said of the episode "Setting the stage before the final curtain, Homeland and Claire Danes have reminded audiences why we were so enraptured when it first debuted nearly 10 years ago".
Ratings
The original broadcast was watched by 600,000 viewers.
