++WARNING: This will contain spoilers from the prior seasons and hints, but no major giveaways from season 4. If you have not seen the prior seasons, skip past the first paragraph. +++
The 4th season of Homeland included 12 episodes that aired during the fall and winter of 2014. This season, the main cast includes Claire Danes, Rupert Friend, Nazanin Boniadi, Laila Robins, Tracy Letts, and Mandy Patinkin.
The season starts off months after the events of season 3. Carrie is still dealing with the death of Brody and being a mother. Most of this season's story is set in Pakistan and plays off the very real-world scenario of they do not trust us, and we do not trust them, and it mainly involves a Taliban leader's grab for power. After the Pakistan CIA station chief is killed, Carrie ends up stepping in for him and begins making dubious decisions. Quinn really steps up to the number two character this season. Saul's role is somewhat reduced, especially since he works in the private sector. While he is still involved in major parts of the story (especially toward the middle to end of the season), he is on the sidelines a lot. Carrie calls many of the shots this season despite being unwell, and Quinn sometimes helps her and sometimes on his own. There is a very good storyline within the season of Quinn trying to get out of the CIA but finding himself drawn back. Because of Brody's death in season 3, we do not see any of his family this season. Although they did find a way to get a nice Damien Lewis cameo in one of the episodes.
The Blu-Ray set is a three-disc set that includes the episodes and a handful of extras. The A/V quality is very good, and the shows look and sound great in the HD format. The discs have a season-play mode that allows you to stop in the middle of an episode and pick up where you left off. The extras include deleted scenes for some episodes, a few script-to-screen features that detail specific scenes during the season and how they were done, and character profiles. It's good for what is there, but not extensive. Ultimately, the season is good. It is not as good as the first season, but better than the third season. The show definitely had to pivot with the end of the Brody storyline, but that had really played itself out by the end of season three. Even though it could not recapture the feel of season one, it is still worth the time to watch.
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