Episode discussion post: "Rififi"

[jae]

Aired:
2 May 2018 in the U.S. and Canada

This is a discussion post for episode 606 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 six.)

Original promo trailer

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Comments

The cars

[lovingboth]

Has Philip ever brought one of the work cars home? I can't remember it happening - that they're not connected to him is part of the point of them.

Re: The cars

[treonb]

In the Pilot I think they used their own car, and Stan was suspicious about it. There's no reason they should buy that car through a fake account, but maybe that's going to be a link somehow.

Re: The cars

[saraqael]

I don't know if he's ever brought one of the work cars home. For all we know, their regular family cars were bought via a Penny Savers ad (the Craig's List of it's day). Philip may even have purchased his current cool car from Penny Savers. The first episode even closed with Stan searching around their car in their garage. If that type of car popped up on one of these Penny Savers lists, I'll bet Stan would remember it. The more I think about it, the more I want them to be done in by a car purchase. Imagine them getting out of Chicago by the skin of their teeth, only to come home to find Stan standing there with the title for their old car, made out in the name of Clark Westerfeld. (I default to Clark only because that's the only local Illegal cover name that Stan is familiar with.)