Peter Quinn: An Assassin Wrapped in an Enigma

[CozyKat]

There are more than enough Quinn fans here to warrant a hangout spot, right?

 

I liked this comment from a USA Today story:

 

Executive producer Alex Gansa says Friend, 33, who came to the attention of director Michael Cuesta when he auditioned for the lead role of Sherlock on CBS' Elementary, "had this offbeat, edgy quality, combined with a reticence that made you watch closely."

 

 

 

This really sums up his appeal for me (i could honestly do without the vestigial facial hair, but it's not a deal-killer). He always seems to be holding so much in, with the occasional explosion. I'm never sure what it all is, or how much of it actually has to do with Carrie, but I like to speculate.  

 

I read somewhere else recently that he was originally in for just one episode. I can't imagine the show without him now -- even last season's show.

[shapeshifter]

Executive producer Alex Gansa says Friend, 33, who came to the attention of director Michael Cuesta when he auditioned for the lead role of Sherlock on CBS' Elementary, "had this offbeat, edgy quality, combined with a reticence that made you watch closely."

That's interesting; it seems to imply that the character of Quinn was influenced quite a bit by the persona of Rupert Friend.

Was it on the TWoP boards that there was a thread titled: "Peter Quinn: The Spy Who Stabbed Me"? I'm a little sorry this one doesn't have the same title, but since the old thread title refered to the character's appearance before Previously TV was born, it's probably not appropriate anyway. Plus, I love your avatar, CozyKat, so I will trust your taste in naming this thread. :) And, at this point in the show, it really is perfect.

Edited December 21, 2014 by shapeshifter

[CozyKat]

Thanks and thanks, shapeshifter! I loved that TwoP thread title; if only it weren't so Season 2 and Brody-referential. I'm certainly open to other titles. I was stressing out about this one and kinda wanted to work "stare extraordinaire" in there somehow ...

[koalathebear]

Not sure if it's permitted but I've set up an LJ comm for fans of Peter Quinn and Carrie Mathison - as a pairing or as separate characters.  I've loved reading a bunch of the posts here about Quinn.

[Constantinople]

I read somewhere else recently that he was originally in for just one episode. I can't imagine the show without him now -- even last season's show.

 

I can't imagine the show without him either.

 

Recently I watched some Season 1 episodes again.  Quinn-free Homeland was really weird.

[fastiller]

I asked this in the latest ep thread:in the recap, Quinn is referred to as "Rupert Quinn" - is this an error or is there some Previously.tv-related reason for it?

[Rilla-my-Rilla]

I asked this in the latest ep thread:in the recap, Quinn is referred to as "Rupert Quinn" - is this an error or is there some Previously.tv-related reason for it?

I'm going to guess it was just one of those brain goofs because the character Peter Quinn is played the actor Rupert Friend.

[theschnauzers]

Here's a little something Showtime released on Monday in homage to Peter Quinn:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHyboMUdzhc

[suomi]

Don't blame Carrie for what happened in the "Homeland" Season 6 finale.

Our beloved Quinn had been driving toward this ending for a long, long time.

http://www.indiewire.com/2017/04/homeland-rupert-friend-quinn-dead-finale-spoilers-1201803783/

[Mabel]

On 24.01.2015 at 4:24 PM, koalathebear said:

Not sure if it's permitted but I've set up an LJ comm for fans of Peter Quinn and Carrie Mathison - as a pairing or as separate characters.  I've loved reading a bunch of the posts here about Quinn.

really like your LJ! thanks for the effort. but for some reason the pics in some posts are gone. are there some regional restrictions on viewing them?

[koalathebear]

8 hours ago, Mabel said:

really like your LJ! thanks for the effort. but for some reason the pics in some posts are gone. are there some regional restrictions on viewing them?

thanks so much.  You're too kind.  No regional restrictions - photobucket (where the photos are hosted) is having some pretty significant meltdowns. They're aware of the issue but it's not fixed yet and in the meanwhile it means I have a bunch of dead links :(

[Mabel]

2 hours ago, koalathebear said:

thanks so much.  You're too kind.  No regional restrictions - photobucket (where the photos are hosted) is having some pretty significant meltdowns. They're aware of the issue but it's not fixed yet and in the meanwhile it means I have a bunch of dead links :(

Hope they fix the issue soon.

Read your fanfic on 6.12 - that's precisely what the writers should have done with the episode to give Quinn  (and us) closure! Thank you! 

[lullaby]

On 21/12/2014 at 1:38 AM, shapeshifter said:

Was it on the TWoP boards that there was a thread titled: "Peter Quinn: The Spy Who Stabbed Me"? 

I've found the old thread, just in case anyone is interested in reading what people thought in s2-4:

https://web-beta.archive.org/web/20140330153452/http://forums.televisionwithoutpity.com/topic/3215888-peter-quinn-the-spy-who-stabbed-me/

 

I still can't believe Quinn was shown little to no respect in his departure. His death could have been written in a better way.

[koalathebear]

11 hours ago, Mabel said:

Hope they fix the issue soon.

Read your fanfic on 6.12 - that's precisely what the writers should have done with the episode to give Quinn  (and us) closure! Thank you! 

Thank you.  It's so frustrating because I stupidly did not keep copies of ALL of the images used :(

And thank you for your kind words.  I hated that they killed off Quinn but if they were going to do it, there was a better way they could have done it ...

I've just done a nostalgic round up post of fan fic and fannish works ..(mostly Quinn inspired!) in case you're interested.  He really was the most compelling of the characters ... although I did really love the Boyds and Tasneem Qureshi in season 4 also :)

[Mabel]

13 hours ago, lullaby said:

I've found the old thread, just in case anyone is interested in reading what people thought in s2-4:

https://web-beta.archive.org/web/20140330153452/http://forums.televisionwithoutpity.com/topic/3215888-peter-quinn-the-spy-who-stabbed-me/

 

I still can't believe Quinn was shown little to no respect in his departure. His death could have been written in a better way.

Goes to prove how well-liked the character was from the very beginning. And considering the writers didn't really have any specific plans/story arc mapped out when they got Rupert to join the cast, it is all due to Rupert's terrific performance and dedication to the character. 

He definitely deserves an Emmy. Although perhaps putting him up as a Supporting actor would be a safer bet. I wonder who he will be up against as Lead actor

[venezia54]

I won't bore you with yet ANOTHER rant about how wrong and badly written Quinn's death was. But what irks me is that Ganza claims to have brought RF back for Season 6 to do this great disabled veterans' story. "Wounded warrior story", my ass.  Is that why they heaped more pain and suffering on this poor guy, to tell a story about how mistreated and forgotten vets are? That would have been admirable, but it's not what they did.  Season 5 was bad enough with the gratuitous pile-on of pain because Quinn was still well and a badass. But Season 6 was just sadistic. They took a disabled, mentally ill war hero with PTSD, shot him, nearly drowned him, beat him senseless (by cops/orderlies), humiliated him with sexual rejection (by Carrie), further destroyed him with Astrid's death, and had him survive a SWAT team and an explosion. We had to be privy to the icky Dar story, which was pointless. Then, we get a rushed "hero's" death where he goes out in a blaze of glory, and we're supposed to say "oh, he would have wanted it that way" and he couldn't live the way he was.  Imagine if they had let him live. Imagine he goes back and gets rehab for a few years, and gets better--NOT miraculously healed, but better enough so that we see a new, interesting Quinn. Imagine he's working for veteran advocacy groups with Carrie on Capitol Hill. He hangs out with Franny and Carrie, and has a changed, but good life. Somewhere in there would be a conspiracy storyline where he gets to help Carrie and still be a badass. How interesting it would have been to see him compensate for his disabilities. That would be a true "wounded warrior" story that gives vets hope, and a pretty realistic one. People do come to almost full function after strokes and PTSD can be manageable. And people do come out of depressions with a little love and care. But no, Quinn was yet another sacrifice to shore up the insatiable ego of Carrie, in a repetitive storyline where her actions lead to the destruction of the man she loves.  My problem is I'm not invested in Carrie. I don't care what happens to her anymore. And I have no interest in re-investing in a show that gives me so little reward. 

Edited April 17, 2017 by venezia54

[sunflower]

4 hours ago, venezia54 said:

My problem is I'm not invested in Carrie. I don't care what happens to her anymore. And I have no interest in re-investing in a show that gives me so little reward. 

That's the problem, going forward , who wants to watch this for another two seasons?  I love Quinn, and it was painful, but I could've dealt if they killed him last year and ended on the letter. But, no, let's bring him back to kill him again after 2 years of torture??  I like Carrie, but I don't want to see her fighting the pres on a new mission while maybe having sad moments about Quinn.  Who cares?  Should we follow Dar now??  How is this guy still breathing air?  Saul?  I like him too, but it's not enough.  

[Umbelina]

I'm sad to see Quinn go.  For me, this show is most interesting when it's focused on 3 characters.  Carrie.  Saul.  Quinn. 

I think season 4 was the best season, probably because Brody and family were completely gone, and those three took center stage.  I've be re-watching all of Homeland, and I end up fast forwarding through most of the Brody family scenes, unless Carrie, Saul, or Quinn is in the scenes as well.  While Brody's return to his family was interesting and compelling when Carrie was illegally spying on them, it quickly lost any appeal when she wasn't involved.  That's really not a knock on Damian Lewis, his acting was good, but the family stuff dragged the show down.  Again, not really the acting there, just more of a "WHO CARES?  Get back to Carrie!"

Any scenes with Carrie/Saul and Carrie/Quinn are just golden, and both Quinn and Saul have been equally compelling, with or without Carrie.  So they just took a huge hit by killing one of the most fascinating characters they had on screen.

I feel like they scrambled too much this season, probably because they chose to have a female president, assuming, as most did, that Clinton would have been elected.  When Trump was elected instead, it's almost as if they tried to combine Trump/Clinton as president (however, truth is really stranger than fiction there) so forcing that, or trying to be connected to reality simply screwed up everything.  That can be a problem for a show like this, and really was.

All of that said?  I have hope for the final two seasons, hope tempered by the reality that they just lost a compelling lead.  Can Saul and Carrie alone hold that interest, or can another character bring back that kind of emotional involvement?  Doubtful, but I do have hope. 

[Roseanna]

On ‎17‎.‎4‎.‎2017 at 9:48 PM, venezia54 said:

I won't bore you with yet ANOTHER rant about how wrong and badly written Quinn's death was. But what irks me is that Ganza claims to have brought RF back for Season 6 to do this great disabled veterans' story. "Wounded warrior story", my ass.  Is that why they heaped more pain and suffering on this poor guy, to tell a story about how mistreated and forgotten vets are? That would have been admirable, but it's not what they did.  Season 5 was bad enough with the gratuitous pile-on of pain because Quinn was still well and a badass. But Season 6 was just sadistic. They took a disabled, mentally ill war hero with PTSD, shot him, nearly drowned him, beat him senseless (by cops/orderlies), humiliated him with sexual rejection (by Carrie), further destroyed him with Astrid's death, and had him survive a SWAT team and an explosion. We had to be privy to the icky Dar story, which was pointless. Then, we get a rushed "hero's" death where he goes out in a blaze of glory, and we're supposed to say "oh, he would have wanted it that way" and he couldn't live the way he was.  Imagine if they had let him live. Imagine he goes back and gets rehab for a few years, and gets better--NOT miraculously healed, but better enough so that we see a new, interesting Quinn. Imagine he's working for veteran advocacy groups with Carrie on Capitol Hill. He hangs out with Franny and Carrie, and has a changed, but good life. Somewhere in there would be a conspiracy storyline where he gets to help Carrie and still be a badass. How interesting it would have been to see him compensate for his disabilities. That would be a true "wounded warrior" story that gives vets hope, and a pretty realistic one. People do come to almost full function after strokes and PTSD can be manageable. And people do come out of depressions with a little love and care. But no, Quinn was yet another sacrifice to shore up the insatiable ego of Carrie, in a repetitive storyline where her actions lead to the destruction of the man she loves. 

Quinn was not a war hero. He was an assassin. He had murdered people. He could never give vets hope.

As for real vets, some of them survive, some don't. It's not right to give false picture.    

[lullaby]

9 hours ago, Roseanna said:

Quinn was an assassin. He had murdered people. He could never give vets hope.

But aren't soldiers are assassins who murder people? Quinn was a soldier and the war heroes you mention too. Both were told they had to kill people to protect their country. I really don't see the difference between what Quinn did and vets do other than vets getting public recognition for risking their own lives to protect their country.

[Roseanna]

38 minutes ago, lullaby said:

But aren't soldiers are assassins who murder people? Quinn was a soldier and the war heroes you mention too. Both were told they had to kill people to protect their country. I really don't see the difference between what Quinn did and vets do other than vets getting public recognition for risking their own lives to protect their country.

No, ordinary soldiers are not assassins nor murderers. That is clearly recognized by most countries: if a soldier who wears an uniform is captured, he is accepted as a POV, not put to justice for killing enemy soldiers during the war on the orders of his superiors.

Of course, there are borderline cases like guerillas who operate behind the enemy lines or in an occupated country and therefore can't act according to law.   

Quinn, however, murdered people who recruited for ISIS in S5 in Germany, so it was solely Germany's matter to deal with them.  Quinn had absolutely no right to kill them, even if he acted on Saul's orders - I can't understand, either, how Saul even after that can be consireded as a conscience of CIA by the screenwriters.

Before all, how can one accuse the terrorists if one uses the same methods? And its doubtful that they even help as they deal with results, not causes. As Quinn himself said, there is no long term strategy. 

Most of all, too much "protecting" can lead to the situation that there is nothing to protect.

[Roseanna]

On ‎17‎.‎4‎.‎2017 at 9:48 PM, venezia54 said:

How interesting it would have been to see him compensate for his disabilities. That would be a true "wounded warrior" story that gives vets hope, and a pretty realistic one. People do come to almost full function after strokes and PTSD can be manageable. And people do come out of depressions with a little love and care. 

"With little love and care"? Then they probably had no deep traumas.

Many of Finnish soldiers whose mind had broken during WW2, not only suffered during their whole life, but also caused suffering for their wives and children during decades.

In the documantary film Sodan murtamat (Broken by the War) the adult children tell how their childhood was destroyed by their fathers' war traumas. Unfortunately, the trailer has no English text, unlike the trailer of Sota ja mielenrauha (War and Peace of Mind).

Edited May 1, 2017 by Roseanna
adding a cursive

[Roseanna]

Quote

I think Carrie’s actions at the end of season 5 betrayed something deeply disturbing in her psyche, and when Quinn confronts her with the fact she was willing to risk his life to try and get answers she didn’t know he had, she can’t really process that. She doesn’t really understand how to take risk accountability for her actions. And I think one of the things Quinn absolutely understands is the cause and effect of what he’s done, whether that’s shooting a child by mistake or becoming a ruthless assassin. He takes responsibility and has a moral code. And I’m not sure that Carrie does.

http://ew.com/tv/2017/04/10/homeland-rupert-friend-quinn-dead/

 I think Rupert Friend catched some fundamental truth here. It's because of that Quinn knows that after what he had done, there is no chance for a normal life for him.  The logical decision would be suicide, and the only alternative ("redemption") could be to go to Afghanistan, Irak or Syria, in order to save lives.  Saving the PE and Carrie was logical in the show.

Instead, Carrie's journey continues. She has developed (she took care of Franny in S5), but there is still much to do. There had some positive signs in S6 but also negative signs (she left Franny to Quinn in order to go to Sekou's family and she didn't really understand what harm Quinn's action had caused to her daughter but kept saying that she is strong and therefore fetched her back to home where she had frightful memories).      

[Umbelina]

The woman Quinn murdered was recruiting TEENAGES to become suicide bombers.  He acted on orders, not on his own.

[Roseanna]

On ‎18‎.‎12‎.‎2017 at 6:09 AM, Umbelina said:

The woman Quinn murdered was recruiting TEENAGES to become suicide bombers.  He acted on orders, not on his own.

How does it make better? No state has a right to murder people. In this case also the sovereignty of another state was violated. 

The woman should have been accused and tried in the court. 

[PreBabylonia]

On 28/01/2018 at 10:50 AM, Roseanna said:

How does it make better? No state has a right to murder people. In this case also the sovereignty of another state was violated. 

The woman should have been accused and tried in the court. 

A little bit similar to Dexter here, in my own mind at least. Yes, it's wrong, as so many actions on this show are wrong, but I find myself rooting for the deeply flawed protagonist. The viewpoint of Homeland and 24 is very far right politically I feel, and we routinely see torture and assassinations committed by the "good guys." I think part of the reason I accept it within the show has something to do with the appeal of the actors playing them - Kiefer and Rupert. I think if they were played by cold charmless goons I wouldn't be able to emphasize with them at all. So a talented (and charismatic) actor can create more of a complex, grey character (as opposed to black and white). I attribute this more to the actors than the writers. I think it's interesting that they can create a mixture of emotions in me about how I feel about their actions but in real life, I would agree completely with you.

[PrePreBabylonia]

On 1/29/2018 at 10:41 PM, PreBabylonia said:

A little bit similar to Dexter here, in my own mind at least. Yes, it's wrong, as so many actions on this show are wrong, but I find myself rooting for the deeply flawed protagonist. The viewpoint of Homeland and 24 is very far right politically I feel, and we routinely see torture and assassinations committed by the "good guys." I think part of the reason I accept it within the show has something to do with the appeal of the actors playing them - Kiefer and Rupert. I think if they were played by cold charmless goons I wouldn't be able to emphasize with them at all. So a talented (and charismatic) actor can create more of a complex, grey character (as opposed to black and white). I attribute this more to the actors than the writers. I think it's interesting that they can create a mixture of emotions in me about how I feel about their actions but in real life, I would agree completely with you.

Whoops, I forgot I wrote this over a year ago, and agreed with myself! I guess my opinion hasn't changed. Actually revisited this site to see if there was any news about an air date for the final season. Thought the last one was a bit of a mess, hope the show goes out in a final season of glory.