The Americans [FX - Spoilers]

JP Liz V1 · 04-12-2012 6:27pm #1

Starts 30th of January 2013 on FX (US)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8lLDzILu5EA

Looks good and nice to see a show set in the 80s again

_Kaiser_ · 20-01-2013 6:03pm

The Americans is an upcoming American television series which will premiere on January 30, 2013 on the FX network. It is a 1980s Cold War drama.[1]
The premise is that a group of Soviet KGB officers have been trained to impersonate American citizens, so that each one can become a sleeper agent, with a cover which may even include an unwitting spouse and family.

Anyone heard about this? Saw an ad on a footie stream today - Looks interesting, kinda like Homeland in the 80s maybe? (but I love all that 80's Cold War stuff anyway).

Here's a trailer (not sure why it repeats twice but nevermind):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gth9kl2Q4I0

JP Liz V1 · 28-01-2013 10:06pm

ITV has picked it up

Mr E · 28-01-2013 10:14pm

Threads merged.

31-01-2013 4:44pm

Watching the first episode and enjoying it. There's nothing truly original or groundbreaking here but the concept has a hell of a lot of potential and the cast are very good. From the first episode it's clear that the most interesting aspect is the tension between the two leads and how they've adapted to living undercover for so many years. The day to day mundanities of their life are really well handled and its here that the show really shines.

I really hope that the show does something beyond the basic mission of the week thing as this is one of those shows that could so easily turn into a 13 hour film or even worse a watered down and generic Homeland in the 80s.

JP Liz V1 · 31-01-2013 4:54pm

Well I liked the pilot especially the music, interesting that the FBI agent is living near them dont think it is coincidence and is it wrong to root for the spys here

I do think Rhys's character Philip has deep feelings really for his wife, anyways will stick with it

31-01-2013 5:11pm

JP Liz V1 wrote: »

Well I liked the pilot especially the music, interesting that the FBI agent is living near them dont think it is coincidence and is it wrong to root for the spys here I do think Rhys's character Philip has deep feelings really for his wife, anyways will stick with it

I think our pretty clear that he loves her and would do anything for her and his kids. He would happily betray his country if it meant that his family could be safe and secure. The wife on the other hand seems to love him but not quite in the same manner, It's an interesting dynamic and will most likely provide the back bone to the shows overall story arch.

As for the agent moving it next door, its most likely abcoincidence and will be used to amp up the tension over the coming 12 episodes.

DeWitt · 31-01-2013 9:34pm

Loved it. Love Elizabeth & Phillip. Love Rhys & Russell. Solid casting, and Michael Gaston is just the cherry on top. He's always guesting on quality shows.

The Black Oil · 02-02-2013 12:05am

Has potential is the key, I think. It was OK-alright. I found a little difficult to connect with or believe in the main characters. Picked up once they got the new neighbour, what came before that was pretty much dross. Thought it looked a bit cheap and dated. Not 80s dated, more TV reruns dated. Pacing was solid. Still, though, I think it's interesting to see the view from the other side, natively so to speak.

notfromhere · 02-02-2013 1:10pm

is this on fox uk anytime soon

_Kaiser_ · 02-02-2013 8:15pm

Just finished watching the pilot there now. As noted above the interaction and tension between the 2 leads is great and the wife is definitely the stronger of the two.

Love the music as well (no gorillas needed)

Impressive start anyway and will keep watching - I miss the 80s!

The Black Oil · 03-02-2013 11:25am

Watched it again. Funny how they went out of the way to show you certain things - daughter with her typewriter, son with the comic, and the cups of tea... Hope not too much happens in the garage. It's potentially where a lot of sneaky/bad stuff happens, if the husband is there, the wife knows, and vice versa - they could rely on it too much.

thegreengoblin · 03-02-2013 12:53pm

I was very impressed with this and it has so much potential. Rhys and Russell were really good and Noah Emerich as the FBI guy was fantastic. Starting off with an action sequence worked very well here and there was no let-up in tension throughout right until the very last scene. I'm a big 80s fan, and it's great to see a show set in that era which is also completely contemporary too.

Couple of quibbles though! The clips where we saw Elizabeth and Philip back in the 60s were meant to be 20 years earlier but they looked more or less as they do now. Obviously it's harder to make people look a lot younger but maybe going back 15 years might have been more realistic although that wouldn't have given them much time to settle in and have kids, etc, so I think there's just a bit of artistic licence being used here.

Also, when they drove off in the middle of the night to bury the body did they just think it was okay to leave the kids at home? They even had time for a shag! Similarly with the opening scene, are the kids being looked after while mom and dad head out into the night on KGB business involving honey-traps and running around the streets chasing their prey? Does this sort of stuff happen regularly or were both incidents one-offs? What do the kids make of the fact that they have no grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins? Maybe they have that stuff taken care of, we just haven't seen it yet.

But it's very promising, and it was good to have an extended pilot episode because it certainly didn't feel rushed.

The Black Oil · 03-02-2013 2:19pm

I thought the makeup team did a pretty good job - with Philip anyway. The amount of sex (and the rape) was a little silly, cheap.

03-02-2013 2:23pm

The Black Oil wrote: »

I thought the makeup team did a pretty good job - with Philip anyway. The amount of sex (and the rape) was a little silly, cheap.

I had no issue with the rape, it was relatively well handled and nowhere near as exploitive as what you'd find in an average episode of CSI or Criminal Minds.

03-02-2013 2:23pm

The Black Oil wrote: »

I thought the makeup team did a pretty good job - with Philip anyway. The amount of sex (and the rape) was a little silly, cheap.

I had no issue with the rape, it was relatively well handled and nowhere near as exploitive as what you'd find in an average episode of CSI or Criminal Minds.

JohnK · 03-02-2013 3:57pm

thegreengoblin wrote: »

Also, when they drove off in the middle of the night to bury the body did they just think it was okay to leave the kids at home? They even had time for a shag! Similarly with the opening scene, are the kids being looked after while mom and dad head out into the night on KGB business involving honey-traps and running around the streets chasing their prey? Does this sort of stuff happen regularly or were both incidents one-offs? What do the kids make of the fact that they have no grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins? Maybe they have that stuff taken care of, we just haven't seen it yet.

The daughter was probably watching her brother rather than them needing a babysitter. I think they said the daughter is 13 during that scene in the shop so it wouldn't be stretch for her to be considered old enough for the job - certainly in the context of the 80's when young teens were regularly doing a lot of babysitting. As for the rest, all they'd have to say is the parents were both only children and their own parents are dead.

JP Liz V1 · 03-02-2013 7:35pm

notfromhere wrote: »

is this on fox uk anytime soon

Spy drama The Americans is to become the first US acquisition to play on
ITV’s flagship channel since Pushing Daisies, after the broadcaster bought the
spy drama from Twentieth Century Fox Television

Expect it later in the year on ITV

Jax Teller · 03-02-2013 11:32pm

Love the line by the wife " The moon isn't everything , getting into space is a remarkable achievement "

Headshot · 05-02-2013 12:42pm

Just watched the 1st episode there. Very impressive I thought

I think ill be adding this to the must see shows each week

Richard Dower · 10-02-2013 8:30am

The second episode bombed in the ratings, consensus suggest a lot tuned in to check out the show, hated it and didn't tune in the following week.....

_Kaiser_ · 10-02-2013 11:29pm

Second episode definitely wasn't as strong I thought. Still watchable but it missed the tension of last week.

Has this been picked up for a full season or would I be better off filing it for a few weeks and seeing how it pans out?

Headshot · 10-02-2013 11:45pm

ya the 2nd episode was such a let down

It would put me off watching the rest (it was that bad)

The Black Oil · 11-02-2013 10:22pm

Good second episode. I like the opening credits.

The FBI guy's pretty cool, he'll continue to test them, but I think they need to be careful on that aspect so that it's not repetitive. They're making it seem like both sides are moving closer to their objectives, but it's millimetres, really. Don't think Elizabeth will go soft despite this episode. The decade makes it fun...no overly fancy digital gadgets. Just tapes and a well-placed device.

_Kaiser_ · 11-02-2013 11:56pm

The Black Oil wrote: »

The decade makes it fun...no overly fancy digital gadgets. Just tapes and a well-placed device.

Actually I noticed one slip? He has a set of in-ear bud headphones on when he's listening in the car. I don't think they were around back then?

thegreengoblin · 12-02-2013 2:36pm

Really enjoyed that episode. I think it's settling down quickly, which should give each episode room to breathe.

I hope it picks up the viewers again, it deserves a chance to at least get to the end of the series!

squonk · 12-02-2013 5:28pm

I found the second episode quite good myself. Certainly nothing arose that would make me just give up on the show straight off. Episode 1 was better however. It almost seemed like a different show. One thing I particularly loved was the music and how fleetwood Mac and Phil Collins were all knitted together so nicely with the show's actual score. it was really marvellous. Sadly there was none of this in episode 2 and probably we won't see any more of it either. Maybe it's just me but I thought the In The Air Tonight scene with them both in the car was a very nice nod to a fairly well known scene from Miami Vice all those years ago. It was small things like that that really pushed the show over the bar for me and I'm kind of sorry to see them not continue, though the story is still quite engaging but I need to see a few more episodes to get a good feel for this.

mrkite77 · 12-02-2013 8:28pm

Kaiser2000 wrote: »

Actually I noticed one slip? He has a set of in-ear bud headphones on when he's listening in the car. I don't think they were around back then?

Sure they were. In-ear crystal earpieces have been around since the 60s.

Primarily used with transistor radios.

DeWitt · 15-02-2013 2:27am

Another fantastic episode. That ending was especially haunting. Poor Joyce, and the fact that they didn't actually show it happening to her makes it all the more traumatic. Also loved Derek Luke as Gregory, and the grab scene was exceptional film work. Beautiful.

The Black Oil · 15-02-2013 8:33pm

1.03

Very solid episode. FBI guy is a real details man in going back to figure out how they lost the woman on the surveillance. Certainly had a sixth sense twitch when he figured out it was an operation that disappeared her, just a bit before they chased that guy from the truck yard. Liked the scene where the carousel was intercut with the grab. Not sure where the Gregory bloke fits into things, hello, operation Disguise of the Week. And the blind spot bit, 'cause that's not a cue to go all Jason Bourne with a brief case...Philip and Elizabeth must have a pretty good babysitter if they can spy all day long. Wonder if they're setting up his relationship with the daughter in that she may call him on his BS. Figured that coffee shop woman, sorry, Granny would fit into things somewhere.

'Where she leads us might be far more interesting than anything she might say'. Not any more, tough ending despite knowing it was coming.

thegreengoblin · 17-02-2013 12:58pm

Excellent episode, the best yet. The ending, while not unexpected, was really moving although the actual handover to 'Granny' was even better as you knew what was coming down the line. I also thought the scene where Elizabeth was explaining her affair with Gregory was first class as was the other scene at the end where she tells Philip she does actually love him. And Agent Beeman was class as usual!
This is brilliant television. Tight, smartly-written storylines that have a good emotional kick to them. It will be interesting to find out the ratings for this episode, hopefully the series will pick up again.

The Americans [FX - Spoilers]

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