Optics

"If a client experiences adverse effects to the treatment, domestic reassignment may be a better path to success."

 is the third episode of the first season and the 3rd overall episode of Homecoming.

Short Summary
Shrier and Walter attempt to leave the facility. Heidi realizes there is a gap in her memory. Thomas makes a discovery.

Full Summary
Carassco contemplates whether to close to escalate the anonymous compliant. He decides to go down to the archives to do some digging in the physical files. When he gets to file #452 he discovers he needs to search through dozen of boxes.

Back at the Homecoming facility Walter and Shrier try to convince the receptionist that they can leave the premises. When it seems that they are not allowed to leave, Shrier steals keys and make a run for a van. After driving for some time, Shrier is still not convinced that they are not necessarily in Florida. They pull over and find some shops, when a man comes toward them, Shrier tackles him only to realize they he is a security guard at a retirement community.

The next day Walter explains to Heidi that it all turned out just fine. They have a conversation about how relationships, even when you like the person a lot, can get very boring. Walter gives an example about a road trip to Yosemite. And that's what it's like in the military, with people shooting at you. This is the first time we see Walter "un-straighten" Heidi's pen, and ask her about her personal life, and that she's never taken a road trip with a boyfriend.

Heidi returns home where she ends up breaking up with Anthony. She takes a call from Colin at his daughter's birthday party where she begrudgingly agrees to discharging Shrier after the van adventure. She manages to convince Colin to have Walter continue in the program.

Back in the future timeline, Heidi meeds Anthony for a drink and to talk about their relationship and more specifically her job, trying to reconstruct everything she can't remember. After looking through many boxes, Carassco finds what he's looking for, the Homecoming files. In that paperwork, he finds that Heidi was terminated and hospitalized on the same day as Walter was discharged for Misconduct/Violence: May 15, 2018.

Main Cast

 * Julia Roberts as Heidi Bergman
 * Stephan James as Walter Cruz
 * Bobby Cannavale as Colin Belfast
 * Shea Whigham as Thomas Carrasco
 * Alex Karpovsky as Craig

Notes and Trivia

 * This episode includes a camera shot following Thomas Carassco walking down a staircase to the physical archives. This shot was made possible by a set specifically build with removable ceilings.