Homecoming Mandatory (2018– ) watch online HD

I am not sure what to make of the show so far. It wasn't a strong pilot, but the final few minutes hooked me in. This is what they had been teasing us with in the commercials and this is what will probably be the best parts of the show.

I am curious to see how it all plays out though. I certainly like the shorter run time too.

"Mandatory" is an effective teaser to this "Homecoming" series starring Julia Roberts as Heidi Bergman, a counselor for returning vets. The Homecoming name of the government facility is intended as a "client service" to help the military veterans in the "reintegration process" to society after the trauma of war.

In the scant details about the Homecoming center, it is clear that the facility has an agenda to gather "data" more than provide assistance to the vets. Heidi counsels young Walter Cruz, who has a terrific attitude about developing a career path after serving in the armed forces. But there is an eerie feeling that the program may do him more harm than good. Apparently, the participants are required to remain in residence at the center during their treatment.

Much of the action in this first episode occurs by flashback. In the scenes in the present, Heidi has left the counseling job at Homecoming, which has now apparently closed. She now works as a waitress at Fat Morgan's, a hash house on the water in Florida. She is visited by an official from the DOD, who does not possess a badge or official ID. He questions her about her work at Homecoming with the implication that the facility is being investigated.

Heidi is non-committal in her responses to the stranger. Indeed, she clearly is withholding what she knows about the "mandatory" nature of the postwar counseling center. Was there abuse going on in the facility? Were the vets being used as guinea pigs? Above all, why did she quit her job. Her excuse that her mother was ill rings hollow. She also lied to the DOD agent about the scope of her work. She was asked if she was an administrator, and she replied that she was just a counselor. But in the phone conversation with her supervisor, it was obvious that she was involved in an administrative capacity.

There is a subplot with Heidi's home life in which it appears as it she was in a relationship with one of the returning vets and that she is being overly protective about his desire to reintegrate into society.

The stylish production values include an interesting set design for the Homecoming facility. There was also a clever, though perhaps excessively stylish, approach to the flashbacks. The scenes in the present at Fat Morgan's appear on half screen. By contrast, the scenes in the past occur on full screen.

There was good intrigue and tension apparent in the opening episode. Without a doubt, there were shenanigans occurring at the Homecoming center. It is as yet uncertain when Heidi learned the truth about the facility and what was her reason for leaving her job.

To be continued...

Homecoming

Esmail's brisky sci-fi thriller is more mysterious than smarter it attains to be. It is a breath of fresh air is what it is. From breaking down the barriers on the relationship among characters to the perspective that keeps changing and which helps makers start the clock from zero every time. It is smartly constructed, if the material is familiar, and it is that structure that glosses over the series. Not only the season, but each episode ends on a mellow note that is soothing and works as a healer to all the wiped out objects by the storm in that episode.

The narration; despite of shifting from one timeline to another, couldn't be more simple, its non-linear storytelling is justified and so is the way it is shot. It keeps you busy and tangled in its mysterious bubble with tiny notions and hints that the entire frame is brimmed with; even the quacks and an obsession over little things. The conversations are pragmatic and written with such flamboyancy that it is a character in itself. The way someone argues or talk on a phone or fumbles in an interview or attempts fatally to hide something, on each steps, Esmail has delivered unflinchingly and his awareness is what makes it a near perfect series.

Roberts is in her A game. Her character might not have given much range to flaunt in, but she is giving her all in and there are times where she has to and she does carry all the work in her shoulder especially in the last act, which cannot not melt you down; it is a real tearjerker. Esmail's vision is crystal clear and he isn't distracted on any of the step; it is finely edited.

Season 01

A firm head start with cunning and sharp narration that is so aware of its characters and the world they revolve around it, that even its error and omission method, works brilliantly especially when the makers changes the point of view; a well crafted act.

Mandatory

It may seem like an introductory episode but it is so much more than that, it delivers its full arc within those thirty minutes and with a cunning background score and pragmatic conversations, the mystery box is opened wisely by the creator Esmail.

If you must watch, just go straight to episode 10.