Episode discussion post: "The Great Patriotic War"

[jae]

Aired:
25 April 2018 in the U.S. and Canada

This is a discussion post for episode 605 of The Americans, intended for viewers who are watching the show on the U.S./Canadian schedule. (Feel free to dive in to the discussion even if you're coming in late--and you should also feel free to start a new thread if it seems too daunting to read through what's already been posted first. If you're reading this at a point where you've already seen subsequent episodes, though, please take care to keep comments spoiler-free of anything that comes after season six, episode five.)

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Comments

Paige and WW2

[quantumreality]

Paige getting the Soviet perspective on WW2 is interesting.

Claudia's not wrong about the hagiographic way the American school system plays up the USA's role in WW2 to the point of almost excluding even the Western Allies like the UK and France. That said, the Soviets also depended crucially on Lend-Lease aid flowing in through Siberia, and later Soviet leaders implicitly acknowledged this to themselves even if they didn't do so publicly.

The total death count, civilian and military, is over 20 million Soviets. That, in stark numbers, details the horrific personal cost of the Soviet citizenry in World War Two in hurling back the Nazi menace on the eastern front.

The shot of Paige just breathing as the sheer size of that number hits her was very well done, by the way.

That kind of thing leaves marks on a country - any country - and it certainly did for the USSR. It's not surprising both Elizabeth and Claudia have the Great Patriotic War as their common touchstone.

Incidentally, from what little I know of Slavic languages, the book Claudia shows Paige is either Czechoslovak, or Polish.

Watching this part, it almost feels like Paige is getting hammered with a huge dose of reality about the prices paid by some people in the world compared to her own relatively stable life.

Re: Paige and WW2

[lovingboth]

In the UK, France as an ally gets ignored and America was late.

It would have been nice to see Elizabeth's reaction to the D-Day 40th anniversary ceremonies that Reagan and Thatcher were so keen on with its almost total ignoring of the far bigger Operation Bagration happening at the same time on the eastern front.

Re: Paige and WW2

[sistermagpie]

Watching this part, it almost feels like Paige is getting hammered with a huge dose of reality about the prices paid by some people in the world compared to her own relatively stable life.

I thought the opposite. Paige still seemed completely settled in her own pov of the world. Even when she was giving sadface at Claudia's tales of her family being killed I mostly thought that Paige herself carelessly puts her own in danger with her sloppiness and even her choice to spy.

Re: Paige and WW2

[quantumreality]

Yeah, I hadn't watched the whole episode at that point.

Looking back it's easy to see that while Paige was clearly affected in the moment, it didn't caution her to be more circumspect in her own life, knowing that some people who went through a lot are now working to help her get her start in life.

Say what you will about Claudia or Elizabeth, but the one thing they do have in abundance, when not overwhelmed, is a clarity and toughness of mind - and they know when to talk as little as possible.

Paige could've learned much more than she did in the three years she has signed up to work for a foreign power.

Re: Paige and WW2

[treonb]

The Russian perspective conveniently forgets they partnered with Hitler. The minute Hitler reneged on their agreement, it was erased from memory, and people who had been loyal Soviets one day found themselves traitors the next.