【】

This recap contains spoilers for Homeland Season 6, episode 6, titled "The Return." Refresh your memory with our recap of episode 605.

Homelandthrew a big curveball at us right at the end of the episode -- which was appropriately titled "The Return," since it brought back Astrid (Nina Hoss), a German intelligence agent who also happens to be Quinn's (Rupert Friend) former lover.

But let's back it up a bit, because Astrid wasn't the only familiar face in "The Return."

The conspiracy

There are several threads happening at once -- one with Carrie (Claire Danes), one with Saul (Mandy Patinkin) and one with President-elect Keane (Elizabeth Marvel) -- that all seem to be pointing to the same thing.

First off, Carrie is investigating the photos Quinn took with his cell phone. She isn't getting much help from her poor, troubled friend, as the NYPD has him on psychiatric lockdown at Bellevue. Fun fact: Bellevue is the oldest public hospital still operating in the United States.

Anyway, Carrie tries to reach out to Quinn, but his PTSD and paranoia can only let him think that Carrie is working in cahoots with the FBI to take him out. He doesn't see that by allowing him to be taken into custody, she was saving him from being gunned down by SWAT. All Quinn can see is that he was doing what she asked -- protecting Frannie.

It's incredibly sad, but that's pretty much par for the course with Quinn this season so far, which is why the episode-ending reveal was extra distressing -- can't this guy catch anykind of break?

But one thing Quinn isright about is Carrie working with the FBI. She's not working against Quinn, but she finds an unlikely ally in Agent Conlin (Dominic Fumusa), because even if he railroaded Sekou (F. Mallory Cree) into being made to look like a terrorist, Conlin is still an intelligence officer and he definitely smells a rat when it comes to the bombing in New York.

They manage to track down the mystery man Quinn photographed at Sekou's delivery company at some kind of private military firm, which is running out of a covert, floors-deep-into-the-earth compound. And what does Conlin have to show for it?

The mystery man takes him out. RIP, Conlin. You were a giant a-hole for five episodes, but you really turned it around here just in time to be shot in the head.

Mashable Top StoriesStay connected with the hottest stories of the day and the latest entertainment news.Sign up for Mashable's Top Stories newsletterBy signing up you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.Thanks for signing up!

It's kind of a bummer -- his death would have been much more affecting if the show had let him and Carrie work together for a few episodes. Then at least he could've been useful and his death might've meant more... but I guess we don't have time for that this season.

So, Carrie finds Conlin's body and is chased by the mystery man. At least now she has proof that there is some kind of non-ISIS conspiracy afoot.

SEE ALSO:Mandy Patinkin won't give you 'Homeland' spoilers, so here's his tuna burger recipe instead

Meanwhile, Saul is discovering that he may not know exactly what Dar (F. Murray Abraham) has been up to lately. He meets with an old friend, Viktor (James Mount), who is basically the Saul Berenson of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service. Through Viktor, he discovers that Tova Rivlin (Hadar Ratzon-Rotem), an Israeli intelligence agent, is off the leash and meeting with Dar in New York.

We saw her briefly in the Season 6 premiere and also in the Season 5 episode "All About Allison." She was the Mossad agent who got Saul released from detainment in Kosovo.

This means Dar has been meeting with both U.S. generals and a Mossad agent, while someone is trying very hard to make it look as though Iran is violating the nuclear deal and someone else (or maybe the same someone) is framing a young Muslim man to look like he committed a terrorist bombing in New York City.

Add to that the fact that President-elect Keane, who wants to turn the heat down on U.S. foreign policy and re-work the the CIA, is being shuttered away in some country house without access to anyone useful (or a television), and it all spells "the call is coming from inside the house."

In this case, "the call" is a massive conspiracy and "the house" is "the United States."

It's quite an interesting plot, considering the current state of U.S. affairs in reality -- Russia meddling in elections; a call for eradication of ISIS by any means necessary. It's starting to feel like a massive U.S. conspiracy to mount a war against Iran isn't just something cooked up in a TV show.

The twist

But after all of these pieces start to come into focus, Quinn is kidnapped out of Bellevue by some unknown assailants. Waiting for him inside the getaway van is none other than Astrid. Is she in on the conspiracy?

Here's why we don't think so: She's always been an ally to Carrie & Co., without seeming uber-suspicious, like Dar. Admit it, Dar has always pinged your "up to no good" radar. But this feels more like Astrid knows about the conspiracy and has kidnapped Quinn in order to thwart whatever plans Dar and his cohorts are up to.

But that remains to be seen, since the episode literally ends just as she appears. Curiouser and curiouser.

Homelandairs Sundays at 9 p.m. on Showtime.

---

Featured Video For You

---

Natalie Dormer reveals what it's like to be killed off on 'Game of Thrones'

---