Episode discussion post: "START"

[jae]

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

This is a discussion post for episode 610 of The Americans (the season and series finale), 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.)

Original promo trailer

Watch on YouTube

Comments

Re: Question about the garage scene with Stan and the Jennings

[saraqael]

That's what I thought, too. I thought that he was being completely open and honest with Stan. For the first time in all the years they've been friends, Philip could finally be 100% honest. I think he wanted to be honest with Stan because he loved him. Stan was the only friend he'd ever had. But at the same time, I'm sure that he was also trying to disarm Stan with this sudden flood of genuine, heartfelt truth because he knew that it was the last thing that Stan would have expected. If they'd continued to try to bluff their way out of the situation, Stan would have killed them. If they'd made a sudden move, Stan would have killed them. But bare your soul to him? That left Stan defenseless.

I was watching the episode with my sister. When Stan showed up, she said, 'Oh no, they're going to kill Stan!' The whole time that Philip was talking, my sister and I were both convinced that Philip might still just shoot Stan at any moment if he thought that Stan wasn't believing him.

Re: Question about the garage scene with Stan and the Jennings

[sistermagpie]

Philip also has been taught to "make it real." Everything he's saying to Stan here is true, but Philip is no doubt making it completely true to himself in that moment the same way he would "make it real" with any source.

The feelings are real, but he's also focusing on them to the exclusion of any other mitigating feelings. Of course he wouldn't say his life was just shitty--he had things he loved in his life. He loved his kids. Had genuinely happy times with them. Fell in love. But in this moment talking to Stan he's only concentrating on the shittiness of living the lie, which was a genuinely shitty part.

It's not, for instance, like Elizabeth with Paige in the last ep where Elizabeth is defending herself by getting real. Though they're both getting to voice feelings they haven't been able to to this person in the past.