‘Homecoming’ Recap: ‘Mandatory’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

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​If there’s one thing I’ve noticed about television marketing in this day and age, it’s that we get a pretty solid idea of what to expect from a new series well before it hits the airwaves. We know its hook, we get a fair idea of what kind of plot to expect and well, this kind of marketing is both good and bad. After all, this does let us know if this is the kind of series that we want to watch or not, but the downside is, there’s no mystery or excitement when it comes to this brand-new show. You know what you’re getting into and that can remove the sense of wonder that comes with discovering a new story to enjoy.
 
But, believe it or not, it is entirely possible to build an air of mystery when it comes to a new series and for proof, look no further than what Amazon has done with its new series, Homecoming. Because while this new show received a healthy marketing campaign, I knew little of what exactly this series was going to entail other than the fact that it starred Julia Roberts and that it revolved around a mysterious facility and well, not knowing much more than that prompted me to give it a look this past weekend and as it turns out, that air of mystery only grew shortly after I settled in to enjoy the pilot episode, ‘Mandatory’.
 
But we will get to said mystery in a moment, shortly after we discuss the grand and fascinating setup that is presented to us in this story. For in this opening chapter, we are introduced to Heidi Bergman (played by Roberts), who is the administrator/lead therapist of a facility known as Homecoming, and this place is designed to help former soldiers reacclimate to civilian life by providing them with therapy and skills training so that when they head home, they can find jobs with ease and enjoy a normal life. But, while that seems simple enough, something horrible is going to happen in this place down the line, since the story also takes us four years into the future, wherein we see that Heidi has left Homecoming and will do anything and everything to forget her time there, especially when the Department of Defense comes calling to investigate a complaint that was filed while she was in charge.
 
If anything, that’s where the mystery begins to build in this tale since let’s be honest, Heidi’s disdain for her time in this facility makes one supremely curious as to what went down to make her want that kind of separation and the mystery only grows from there. Because we learn very little of how exactly this place helps these fractured men, and the odd discussions between Heidi and her boss involving medication and results is suspicious to say the least and well, all of this raises red flags and questions in our mind, and it instantly sucks you in to the overall story, because you have to know more when all is said and done, and a few technical elements help enhance our curiosity as well.
 
The running time of each episode is a fine example of this, since Homecoming’s thirty-minute length is just enough to give you exactly what your brain needs and leave you hungry for more and the way its shot and the music that accompanies those images adds an air of dread, as though something horrible is around the corner, and well…something is and I want to know all the details as to what is going to happen here, which means I’m all in and ready to discover more about this mysterious place. So, it’s high time then I don’t delay this journey any further and play the next episode, in order to satisfy my curiosity, regardless of the consequences because deep down I know, this is not going to end well…

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