The Americans [FX - Spoilers]

Richard Dower

Season finale next week, renewed for a 2nd: http://www.spoilertv.com/2013/04/the-americans-episode-113-colonel_25.html

expectationlost

i was wondering while watching the ep why she'd betray her country over a few stolen items, was she playing him all along, until vlad got killed

FloatingVoter

expectationlost wrote: »

i was wondering while watching the ep why she'd betray her country over afew stolen items, was she palying him all along, until vlad got killed

Smuggling western goods back home for profit was a nice little sideline for embassy staff in the Cold War. Depending on the mood of the Grand Old Farts in the Kremlin, it could net you a stay in a gulag. She probably foresaw telling a few tales out of school leading to a brand new life in the US.
What doesn't make sense is coming clean to her boss about it. A traitors death was not necessarily fast and painless.

The Black Oil

1.12

50K for a pint of Guinness, and Granny playing Pacman? Hah! Are the writers on boards? :pac:

Lies. All the pieces on the chess board. A bug found, another replaces it. One certainly couldn't accuse any of the women in this show of having a case of the stupids. Think the sketch/composites are pretty good in the sense that they're 'clean', not overly done for TVland, though unlikely to lead anywhere by themselves. If they do lead anywhere, surely Philip and Elizabeth might work more separately than they already do when thinking about the next season?

Pretty big bullseye on Stan now.

vepyewwo

i was wondering while watching the ep why she'd betray her country over afew stolen items, was she palying him all along, until vlad got killed

Smuggling western goods back home for profit was a nice little sideline for embassy staff in the Cold War. Depending on the mood of the Grand Old Farts in the Kremlin, it could net you a stay in a gulag. She probably foresaw telling a few tales out of school leading to a brand new life in the US.
What doesn't make sense is coming clean to her boss about it. A traitors death was not necessarily fast and painless.

I wonder was her decision to come clean now a combination of realising Stan killed Vlad and also having to stand there and take that oath knowing she was already betraying her country. I'm guessing she decided to take a chance that her boss wouldn't want to have to tell his superiors that he had just promoted the mole to be involved in the running of Directorate S and that he might be willing to accept her suggestion of working as a double (triple?) agent. Quite a risky move from Nina - she had no way of knowing how he would react. Was she really ready to be sent back to Moscow and whatever awaits her there as a traitor?

expectationlost

i thought she was going to make move on her boss too

Butterface

I have to say I'm surprised there aren't more people following this show on boards. It's one of the best on the air at the moment.

I really enjoyed the penultimate episode. I didn't expect Nina's turn to play out so believably, I thought it would feel like a trite turncoat trope.

The actress who plays Martha is fantastic. Lordy, that character is as naive as they come. His proposal was even in code ffs!

Both Nina and Martha are really going to have a great part to play in the finale, in the potential downfall of Stan or Philip.

Very excited about the finale!

KERSPLAT!

I'm also surprised it's not more popular. I don't even know one other person thats watching it! Is it popular in America? Really hope its not cancelled anytime soon

The Black Oil

It's safe enough for now as they've been given a second season. I don't know how popular it is in the US, suppose it's a niche show, doesn't have mass appeal, maybe they're not into the 80s, etc.

Looking forward to the last episode of season 1.

Butterface

It has been renewed for a second season thankfully. It's been popular among critics, but doesn't seem to have reached the masses. It's also broadcast on the FX channel, and their other shows don't tend to reach mass appeal either. It's a pity!

I've told my friends to watch it, and nobody has bothered.. maybe it doesn't sound very appealing, but I watched the first episode without so much as reading a review and I got hooked!

vepyewwo

I'm also surprised there hasn't been more interest in this show - I think it's the best new programme this year. It's been far superior to Homeland's second season for example. Matthew Rhys in particular has been excellent as Philip.

Any reviews I have read about it online have been very positive but the audience seems to be very small so far. This is a breakdown of the ratings for episodes 1-12: http://tvseriesfinale.com/tv-show/the-americans-season-one-ratings-26650/. These numbers seem quite low to me but I'm not sure how they compare to other programmes on that network. Thankfully it has been renewed for season 2 so hopefully it will grow by word of mouth. I wonder will it get shown on any Irish or UK channels?

squonk

I thought episode 12 was the final show. One more to go... great! I really feel sorry for Matcha at this point. She's not the brightest and should have run away very quickly from Philip at this point. I think it's a great show myself. I thought it got a fair bit of traction and recognition but I've been telling people to watch it but I don't think anyone has taken my advice so far. Their loss.

KERSPLAT!

squonk wrote: »

I thought episode 12 was the final show. One more to go... great! I really feel sorry for Matcha at this point. She's not the brightest and should have run away very quickly from Philip at this point. I think it's a great show myself. I thought it got a fair bit of traction and recognition but I've been telling people to watch it but I don't think anyone has taken my advice so far. Their loss.

I'm the same! Telling friends, family and people in college and still no one else watches it yet they watch Geordie f-in shore! Anyway, like you said, their loss

FloatingVoter

In case anybody gets withdrawal symptoms after the last episode airs there's a movie from 1988 with River Phoenix / Sidney Poitier about Soviet sleepers, Little Nikita.

IMDB linky - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0095532/?ref_=sr_1

Mr E

God I haven't seen that in years.

Must check The Americans out. If it's being compared to Rubicon, that's definitely a good thing in my book.

Basq

Watched the first two over the weekend (after my marathon of the excellent 'Banshee'), and quite enjoyed it.

Will watch the rest at weekend.

Richard Dower

Season finale tonight.

Richard Dower

Mr E wrote: »

God I haven't seen that in years.

Must check The Americans out. If it's being compared to Rubicon, that's definitely a good thing in my book.

Aye....Rubicon was superb tv....AMC :mad:

The Black Oil

A few episodes back I saw someone post on the Superhero Hype forums saying that he was disappointed in the show. 'I was expecting spies and high levels of infiltration*, but so far all I've seen is two kids and a marriage'.

*To me, these elements are in the show, in spades.
I kinda see where he was coming from, but obviously I wouldn't agree with his take on it at all. Of course, the characters wouldn't be who they are without some depiction of their marriage. Not to say the marriage is the best part of the show, but it has a role to play.

FloatingVoter

Some people hear "spy" mentioned and they think of James Bond battling super-villains with state of the art gadgetry and a blonde in every dried martini. Theres a place for that but The Americans is probably a little closer to reality.

FloatingVoter

1.13

Excellent episode....already having withdrawal symptoms...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKb9XQ39-zc

NotorietyH

The season finale was already one of the best hours of television I've seen in ages and then they capped it off by ending with that Peter Gabriel song, his albums were some of the first I ever bought.

I've been telling everyone I know to watch it and have got a few absolutely hooked on it. Know a few too who are waiting for it come on Sky so hopefully it'll pick up a bit there.

Best first season of a show in years for me, and I love all the marriage stuff too, without it it'd just turn into 24. That's what makes it so compelling to me, the spy stuff ties in so much into their marriage that I couldn't imagine the show without it. Mirroring the espionage stuff with the lies and distrust in marriage is really clever and the weird nature of a fake marriage between two people who do actually care about it each other on some differing levels creates great nuance in the show.

Really hope more people start watching it. I'm always disappointed when I log onto boards and see not many people talking about it. I think it'll be one that people catch on to around season 3 (hopefully) a bit like Breaking Bad, or even The Wire.

jack presley

I'm always disappointed when I log onto boards and see not many people talking about it.

I'm a big fan of the show but have avoided this thread for the most part because of the spoiler warning. I'm not going to view and post on a thread that's discussing episodes I haven't seen yet. Safe to come on now though as the season's over. Maybe there are others like me?

NotorietyH

jack presley wrote: »

I'm a big fan of the show but have avoided this thread for the most part because of the spoiler warning. I'm not going to view and post on a thread that's discussing episodes I haven't seen yet. Safe to come on now though as the season's over. Maybe there are others like me?

I'd say once it's on Sky too more people will jump on board. I didn't really comment myself either so I'm disappointed in myself too!

Butterface

The musical choices on this show have been perfect. Great ending.

There's so much potential for next season with the way things have been left for the characters. I'm glad there was no big reveal, or a big cliffhanger. This show is always about the suspicion which makes it so gripping to watch. That's what disappointed me about Homeland season 1. I like when a story can draw on a bit longer.

Now that the season has wrapped I'm going to make a renewed effort to spread the word to friends to watch it!

The Black Oil

1.13

Strong episode. Again, Elizabeth and Granny share a few tetchy moments (even spies have to fill in paperwork, apparently), and Granny's scene killing the guy was really well done. Low key (stun him first), but still a bit gruesome.

I liked how once the surveillance kicked in you didn't have a bloody clue what was going to happen, though you knew it wouldn't happen was planned. The FBI had teams in the bushes, but couldn't pen in Philip and Elizabeth's car? OK, I'll buy that, I mean, the general feel of the episode was that neither of them were going to end up arrested no matter what dynamic was in play. And, their marriage remains in tact whilst Stan's suffers. Doubtful he can be turned, but he's definitely somewhat vulnerable.

You got to figure Paige's sixth sense was tingling alright. Good final scene.

NotorietyH

Season 2 should be very interesting. The creators have hinted that they're not going to be pulling apart the marriage again and instead focus more on the family as a unit which should lead it in some interesting directions and save it from a lot of eye-rolling if they split up again. They don't seem afraid to mess with the formula a bit which is always a good sign for a series I think. Should keep it fresh.

One site suggested that they think the next series will focus on Elizabeth's commitment to the cause, that it might be shaken as she focuses more on the family, whereas Stan might go through a similar doubt about his cause but tied in with him losing his family could lead him to go off the rails. It's all set up to be a really interesting second season.

What the show does absolutely brilliantly is making even secondary characters really interesting and well developed, with three dimensional personalities. Whereas Homeland outside of the main two characters and I suppose Saul, the secondary characters were a bit two dimensional and stereotypical as a result, which made most of the secondary stories pretty bland. The Americans has done a great job of getting me invested in all the characters. Stan's relationship with his wife is now interesting. Nina is a really interesting character. Martha is even a great character, and probably the biggest victim in the series really.

vepyewwo

Great final episode, the best episode since the pilot I think. Nice build up of tension leading up to the car chase. I loved that they didn't end with a cliffhanger, just set up everything nicely for season 2. Great music choices throughout the whole season too.

What the show does absolutely brilliantly is making even secondary characters really interesting and well developed, with three dimensional personalities. Whereas Homeland outside of the main two characters and I suppose Saul, the secondary characters were a bit two dimensional and stereotypical as a result, which made most of the secondary stories pretty bland. The Americans has dones a great job of getting me invested in all the characters. Stan's relationship with his wife is now interesting. Nina is a really interesting character. Martha is even a great character, and probably the biggest victim in the series really.

I especially love how strong a character Nina has become. When she first appeared I thought she would only last a couple of episodes before being killed off but she is a great spy, playing both sides well so far. I also hope we see Grannie back next year.

FloatingVoter

vepyewwo wrote: »

Great final episode, the best episode since the pilot I think. Nice build up of tension leading up to the car chase. I loved that they didn't end with a cliffhanger, just set up everything nicely for season 2. Great music choices throughout the whole season too.



I especially love how strong a character Nina has become. When she first appeared I thought she would only last a couple of episodes before being killed off but she is a great spy, playing both sides well so far. I also hope we see Grannie back next year.

I can't see Grannie/Claudia going anywhere soon. She survived Stalingrad and Stalin's various purges. A couple of spoiled brats throwing their toys out of the pram won't faze her. Besides she filled out all 27 pages of the form provided. Actually, I wonder if she might threaten to defect next season. She does like Pacman and all-you-can-eat diners after all.

The Black Oil

According this link, RTE are showing it from May 23rd, though perhaps not fully confirmed since it says 'due'?

http://www.rte.ie/ten/2013/0503/blog_tv_onthebox.html

Very photoshopped pic of Rhys.