‘Tehran’ Recap: ‘Tamar’s Father’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode Seven of ‘Tehran’.
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Truly, there is no greater moment in a spy story, then when our hero or our villain engage in some mind games. Because once we’ve reached the point in the story, where good and evil are willing to manipulate people into doing their bidding; we’ve hit the point of no return. For now these two forces are making a final and determined push toward their goals before they inevitably collide in an epic and stunning manner, and this is precisely the moment that took place in the next episode of Tehran. For both Faraz and Tamar finally reached a point in their respective journeys, where they were ready to go the extra mile and do what must be done, in order to get what they want and need, and that led to some stunning moments for certain.

But as this series is wont to do, it sure didn’t seem like that was going to be the case early on. For ‘Tamar’s Father’ saw Tamar struggle mightily with what happened at the commune. Because she was responsible for the death of a desperate man, one that was just trying to keep his friends and family safe. Plus, she hurt the man she has feelings for by putting him in harm’s way and that left her in a despondent place, one where it seemed as though she was content with hiding until the time came to do her thing. But a visit from the IRGC to the electric company to speak with Farham, is what moved Tamar into a darker direction. Because he was spooked and he called off the repair, and with a little prompting from Kadosh (who was also revealed to be a spy here), Tamar dug deep and did what a spy does best, in order to get the mission back on track.

Which was… tough to watch, since Milad is genuinely a good guy after all, one that just wants to see his country change for the better and be more inclusive. But none the less, he was a pawn here, one that Tamar manipulated masterfully. And eventually, he acquiesced to her wishes and talked Farham back into putting in the service call, which truly made it seem as though Tamar was going to complete her mission at last. But therein lie the twist in this particular tale. For this is where the bad guys tipped their hand in order to achieve their goals. And it turns out that Faraz’s lackey was waiting at the power station all along, since he knew what Farham had done, and was able to lay a trap once the call from Milad came through. One that sadly, he was unable to spring. Because at the last second, Tamar was unwilling to continue on the mission; thanks to Faraz’s power play regarding her father. 

For while she was indulging her dark side and working toward her goals, Faraz and the Mossad were playing a little cat and mouse game of their own, one that was deigned to keep Tamar’s father alive, in order to capture Faraz. But the back and forth here, kept this little game at a stalemate for a better part of the episode, which is what prompted Faraz to send a picture of Mordechai in distress, to his daughter. And while that didn’t get his wife released as he had hoped, this particular act sent this entire mess into overdrive. For now, the Mossad are done with games, and are ready to strike with or without Tamar’s help, and Faraz is on the run after escaping his would-be captors. Because they eventually found his location and thankfully rescued Mordechai whilst on the hunt, and that makes this episode downright brilliant when all is said and done. Because this one felt like pure chaos and that’s a welcome change to the spy drama. For often times this part of the story is a carefully crafted segment, one that manipulates us to a perfect ending.

Instead, we are headed for an imperfect and likely messy ending, and that’s just magnificent. For it means we are going to be surprised and shocked as the final act plays out. But before we get ahead of ourselves, there is still more to celebrate here. Because truly, there were some masterful performances to be found in this tale, the kind that sold every moment and engendered worry in all of us when it seemed as though things were going to go south and that’s just a testament to the overall quality of this series and everything its accomplished storytelling wise and well, now that we’ve come to the end of this one, the time has come to brace for the powerhouse finale. Because this is it, the bombers are on their way and the Mossad and the IRGC are on a seemingly unstoppable collision course, one that could plunge two nations into a bloody and devastating conflict. Until next time.

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