'Designated Survivor' Season 2, Episode 8 'Home' Recap: Secret Missions and Legal Issues of the White House Staff [SPOILERS]

It’s an action-packed episode for tonight’s “Designated Survivor.” In “Home,” President Tom Kirkman (Kiefer Sutherland) goes on a secret mission to Afghanistan to meet with two disputing warlords and hopefully put an end to the bloodshed. But as Kirkman takes on the diplomatic route, war is once again seen as the only option, and his life is in jeopardy. Meanwhile, back in the White House, Chief of Staff Emily Rhodes (Italia Ricci) deals with two potentially-damning legal issues facing Political Advisor Lyor Boone (Paulo Constanzo) and Press Secretary Seth Wright (Kal Penn). Luckily, White House Counsel Kendra Danes (Zoe McLellan) is there to save their asses—and jobs.

Off to the war zone

The episode opens with Air Force One going dark on its way to Afghanistan. Back in the White House, Lyor advises Emily to keep a tight lid on the President’s secret mission. Emily has already got it covered, but Lyor insists on the urgency of the matter. After all, the President could die, and Congress might trip (and not to mention how the Press could go into a frenzy).
That night, Seth is driving his brother Mike (guest star Abhi Sinha) to an opera, in celebration of him passing the Medical College Admission Test. On their way, a police officer flags them. Apparently, Seth is riding the median—or so we think.

As soon as Kirkman lands in Bagram Airbase in Kabul, Afghanistan, he’s met with overwhelming applause from the US troops deployed. He thanks them and proceeds to serve them breakfast, along with Specialist Harry Benton (guest star Brian Howe) who just got his second Michelin Star for being a great military chef. Kirkman makes a genuine connection with the troops, and it’s evident how his heart is in it for them. National Security Advisor Aaron Shore (Adan Canto) then calls Kirkman to meet with the team who spearheads the secret mission. FBI Agent Hannah Wells (Maggie Q) welcomes him and introduces to their Station Chief, Kevin Dean (guest star Steven Boyle).
Kevin briefs Kirkman on the situation and tells him about the two warlords who’s been having their dispute with each other. The mission is to get either Mullah Fayad (guest star Nasser Faris) and Mullah Bahri (guest star Mouse Kraish) as a trusted US ally. The only problem is that they don’t know which of two they could trust—as one of them has a plan to attack the US—so Kirkman would have to meet with both of them.

The war begins

Kirkman meets with Mullah Bahri first. Kirkman extends his hand in partnership, but Bahri declines. Instead, he offers Kirkman a deal—boost their technology so he would reduce the extremism. Kirkman considers this and thanks him. Bahri then tells Kirkman to refer to him as Zohan Halik, a nickname that means “the young one.” As Bahri leaves, Hannah prepares to hand over a bunch of documents to Kirkman, but Mike Ritter (LaMonica Garrett), Kirkman’s Secret Service Detail, takes from her so he could be the one to hand it over. There’s a sense of hostility between them, and Hannah doesn’t know where it’s coming from.

Kirkman meets with Mullah Fayad next. Compared to his meeting with Bahri, not much was accomplished. Kirkman offers money and logistical support, but Fayad isn’t contented with it. Fayad also doesn’t like the fact that Kirkman met with Bahri because he thinks that Bahri is an infidel and a liar. It’s hard for him to find common ground with someone who wants to work with Bahri. Fayad leaves, unsure if he can trust Kirkman.
Later, as Kirkman eats breakfast with Harry, an explosion rocks the base, and the troops are on high alert. Mike proceeds to extract Kirkman. It turns out that a suicide bomber targeted the market a few miles away from the base. It was a coordinated attack and a CIA safe house raid. Kevin Dean was in the safe house when the attack happened, and it’s unclear if he got out safely. Mike proceeds to get the President out, but Kirkman wants to stay. If he leaves now, their enemies would think that they are cowards. Aaron, Hannah, and the base’s General evaluate the plan to locate Dean’s distress signal. Hannah insists on heading out to save Dean, but the General refuses. However, Aaron allows her and assigns Mike as her partner.

On the road, Hannah asks Mike what his problem with her is. Apparently, Mike hates the fact that the closer Hannah gets to the President, the closer he gets to needing a lawyer. The past few episodes have centered on the conspiracy against the Kirkmans, which Hannah is also investigating. Mike wants to protect the President by taking a bullet for him, while Hannah intends to stop it from being fired. Little do they know that a terrorist informant has eyes on them. An explosion happens, derailing them. They head for cover as they take fire from an unseen hostile.
Kirkman gets the news, which worries him greatly. It’s still unclear which among the two war leaders orchestrated the attack, and the clock is ticking. However, they also agreed to a second audience with Kirkman, so he has yet to find out the perpetrator.
That night, Mike sweeps the area for their attacker. Hannah draws the fire from him as Mike maneuvers to shoot the terrorist. Finally, she was able to kill the guy. As soon as the coast is clear, they head over to the safe house where Hannah discovers a bloody clue that Dean left to tell them he’s alive and his location. Meanwhile, Kirkman meets with Bahri first. He blames Fayad and pinpoints the chemical used in the bombing as one that’s manufactured by a corporation Fayad owns. Kirkman brings this to Fayad, where he also denies the responsibility for the attack. Kirkman then threatens to hunt him down if it turns out that Fayad is lying. Later, Hannah and Mike survey an empty field where Dean’s car sits. There’s no initial sign of him, but they eventually find him lying on the grass, wounded.
Kirkman gets the word, and he also finds out from Aaron that the attackers were Pakistani. Kirkman then tells Aaron that he finally knows which among the two war leaders he could trust, and calls for Bahri. As soon as they meet, Kirkman then shows Bahri the intel he found. Based on the information, the attackers were referring to a “young one” in the coded chatter they retrieved. And since this is Bahri’s nickname, Kirkman knows that it’s him. Bahri admits to the attack and is taken into custody by the troops.

With things finally neutralized and the mission successful, Kirkman prepares to leave but meets Harry first. He hands Kirkman a cheesecake, and he then tells Harry to take a leave and go home. Harry finally reveals that there is no home to go to, as his wife died three years ago and his daughter resents him for not being there when she passed. In a show of compassionate leadership, Kirkman tells him to go home and knock on her door. It’s not going to be easy, but at least it’s the first step to patching things up with his daughter.
On the plane, Kirkman asks Aaron for the contact information of the families of the troops who died in the attack. He looks on, pained by another tremendous loss for his country.

The White House faces an internal legal battle

Elsewhere in the episode, Kendra bails Seth out after being detained for the night. Apparently, Seth was taken in for possession of 200 tabs of Modafinil, a “smart drug” that’s supposed to be taken only with a prescription. Seth says that the search illegal, but it doesn’t hide the fact that Seth was carrying drugs.
Seth then goes to Emily to apologize. She’s furious because it could jeopardize both Seth and the President. Emily then decides to bench him. Later, Kendra informs her that she was able to move up Seth’s preliminary hearing and have it done privately. However, that’s not the only piece of news she has. Apparently, another legal issue has come to Kendra’s attention, this time concerning Lyor. It turns out that Lyor is married for six years and counting. However, it was something that he did haphazardly.
Julie Keenan (guest star Sarah Power) is his wife’s name, and they were wed in a 24-hour chapel in Las Vegas—something they did as a “last hurrah.” The situation is a crucial one because Lyor has been misfiling his income tax with the IRS. He owes more than $800,000, and it’s something that can’t just be paid through a penalty fine. Emily asks Lyor if he has a standing agreement with Julie when it comes to finances, to which Lyor says no. Kendra sees this as a way out. They can argue that the marriage is a sham, hence an annulment. Emily also assigns him as the acting Press Secretary for the day.
During a press conference, things get a bit hostile. Lyor snaps at the reporters’ comments and shuts down questions that he thinks are irrelevant. He’s technically doing an okay job, but not as well as Seth would have done. Tiffany Gimble (Bo Martyn), the reporter who interviewed Kirkman the day his mother-in-law underwent FBI questioning, cornered Lyor and asked him where Seth and the President is. Lyor doesn’t give her anything and leaves her hanging with a vague statement.
Lyor brings in Julie and introduces her to Emily and Kendra. Their connection is evident, and both Emily and Kendra see it too. Julie is an advertising executive, and Lyro has nothing but support for her. Kendra then hands them the annulment papers so Julie could read through it and sign it later. Kendra then calls Kirkman to update her on Eric Little’s connection to Patrick Lloyd. Emily also tries to butt in, but Kirkman asks if it could wait, to which Emily agrees reluctantly.
Later, Kendra shows Seth and Emily the dashboard video of his traffic stop. It also shows how Seth tossed a backpack containing the drugs in his backseat. It’s not clear just exactly what he’s doing, but the arresting officer could easily paint this as a hostile act. Seth refuses to testify against it, even if his career is on the line. In a desperate act, Emily meets Mike, Seth’s brother. There she finds out that Seth is actually covering for Mike. The Modafinil was Mike’s and he was using it to up his productivity for the MCAT exam. If this comes out, it could hinder his application to any medical school, and Seth doesn’t want that to happen.
On the day of the preliminary hearing, Kendra grills Seth’s arresting officer on the stand. She expertly maneuvers the argument towards the officer’s error. Kendra pushes the illegal arrest argument, which she manages to win. The case is quashed, and Seth’s career is saved. After the hearing, Seth is ambushed by Tiffany in his office. She asks about Seth’s drug hearing, which shocks him. But since it was dismissed, it’s not a story anymore. Instead, she wants to know where Kirkman is. Since Tiffany has a tight hold on Seth now, he asks her to come back for an exclusive.
Later, Julie meets Emily and asks her if there is a way for them to not push through with the annulment. Although her marriage with Lyor is a bit haphazard and somewhat bogus, she has a connection with Lyor that her previous lovers couldn’t give her. By signing the annulment, Julie fears that she’ll lose that connection. Emily shows her how much Lyor needs to pay for a fine, and it’s implied that Julie will cover it instead of Lyor. Kendra then goes to his office to get the annulment papers and sees him busy playing a video game. She gets the document without disturbing him and leaves.
That night, Seth goes to Emily to apologize for what he did. But now that damage was done (although the case was dismissed), Emily sees this as a conflict of interest. Despite them having a romantic relationship with each other, it’s still Emily’s call as his boss to fire him for his actions. Moreso when the President finds out. With that, it’s unclear whether or not we’ll see Seth in the coming episodes.

‘Designated Survivor: Home’ Overall Verdict

Tonight’s episode is a welcome scene away from Kirkman’s White House drama. He’s been through a lot in the past episodes, and now is the time for him to get out of the office and put his powers to affect somewhere else. It’s good to see him in action, and frankly, “Home’s” narrative expertly places him in a spot where his character will be tested to the limit once again. It’s one thing for us to see Kirkman kicking diplomatic ass in the Oval Office, it’s also one to see him standing alongside the soldiers to defeat a terrorist. This is arguably one of the best episodes of the series so far, and honestly, it could be better if more of these storylines are included in “Designated Survivor’s” entire plot for Season 2.
“Designated Survivor” continues next Wednesday with “Three-Letter Day” at 10/9c on ABC.