What's Up - Your guide to what's happening in Fayetteville, AR this week!
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T10 WHATS UP! February 9 - 15, 2020 the series switched gears to tackle a multitude of real- world topics like botched drone strikes, jihadi attacks on Europe, the election of a fe- male president and other hot- button issues. According to Showtime, the final season continues exploring current political situations and heads back to the Middle East. As Season 8 opens, Carrie is still recovering after months of brutal confinement in a Russian gulag, while Saul is now the national security ad- visor to newly elected Presi- dent Warner (Beau Bridges, "Messiah"). Looking to end the "forever war" in Afghani- stan, the new, ambitious presi- dent sends Saul to the Middle East in order to negotiate with the Taliban. Needing help in the hostile territory, Saul, against every- body's advice, reaches out to Carrie for help one last time. She has extensive experience in the region and still has nu- merous contacts and allies, in- cluding Tasneem Qureshi (Nimrat Kaur, "Wayward Pines"), a member of Paki- stan's Inter-Services Intelli- gence. Though, with a frag- mented memory and her loy- alty in question, it is uncertain how much assistance she will be able to provide. While promoting the final season at the Television Crit- ics Association media tour panel, executive producer and showrunner Alex Gansa ("24") said the series is going back to its roots as opposed to mirror- ing the political situation in Washington, D.C., like the last two seasons. He added that the final season looks to echo the first one and wrap up many loose ends from the fourth season, rewarding long- time fans who never got an- swers to their burning ques- tions. It will focus on the rela- tionship between Carrie and her longtime, on-again, off- again friend, foil and boss, Saul. The relationship be- tween mentor and protege has always been the heart of se- ries, and in the final episodes it will finally come to a head. The subject matter that "Homeland" has dealt with for nearly a decade can never be wrapped up neatly, but the storyline between master and pupil can be properly re- solved. At the same TCA event, Gansa explained that the long delay between seasons was due to the fact that they want to go out proudly and on a high note. Beyond that, filming in multiple countries is no easy feat and takes a bit of time. In addition to the logistical chal- lenges, crafting a graceful end- ing for "Homeland" has proven to be quite difficult. While "Homeland" is still very popular and garners great ratings for Showtime, many television viewers have forgotten just how much of an impact the series had when it premiered. Much like "Game of Thrones" or AMC's "Break- ing Bad," talk of the Claire Danes drama was inescapable and completely dominated the culture. Like the aforemen- tioned, its success led to not only a slew of awards and praise, but also dozens of poorly made copycats popping up in quick session, only to be quickly rejected by the general public in what many enter- tainment pundits have dubbed the "the Homeland effect." Even though "Homeland" has not made many appear- ances on the countless recent "best of the decade" lists, the landmark series is undeniably one of the more important ones of the 2010s, with its rich storytelling and captivating take on our current geopoliti- cal situation. On Sunday, Feb. 9, witness the end of an era as one of the most influential and relevant shows of the 2010s re- turns after a two-year absence for its eighth and final season on Showtime. Nimrat Kaur in "Homeland" continued from page T2 The end is near: 'Homeland' gears up for its final mission TV FEATURE