Pakistani Officials Upset Over Homeland Season 4

Season 4 of Showtime's Homeland ended last week with its finale, and many fans were pleased with the direction of the fourth season as a whole. Many fans saw it as a creative resurgence for the series, which stumbled in Season 3. But Pakistani officials were not too happy with the way Season 4 unfolded.

The season focused on Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes) and her work in Islamabad. The show filmed in Cape Town, South Africa as stand-in for the actual Pakistani city. Homeland portrayed the area as war-torn and violent and crafted a fictional plot in which Pakistani intelligence and some members of the Pakistani government supported a terrorist named Haqqani to sever relations with the U.S. and drive the Americans out of Pakistan.

But while it was an engaging story, real Pakistani officials were not pleased and expressed their displeasure to the New York Post. "Maligning a country that has been a close partner and ally of the US... is a disservice not only to the security interests of the US but also to the people of the US," Pakistan Embassy spokesman Nadeem Hotiana told the paper.

Another source commented on the portrayal of Islamabad on the show. "Islamabad is a quiet, picturesque city with beautiful mountains and lush greenery," the source told the Post. "In Homeland, it's portrayed as a grimy hellhole and war zone where shootouts and bombs go off with dead bodies scattered around. Nothing is further from the truth."

What do you make of all this? Let us know in the comments section.