Episode discussion post: "Comrades"

[jae]

Aired:
26 February 2014 in the U.S. and Canada
2 March 2014 in Israel
15 March 2014 in the UK

This is a discussion post for episode 201 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 if you're reading this later and have already seen subsequent episodes, but please take care to keep comments spoiler-free of anything that comes after season two, episode one.)

Original promo trailers:

"The Americans - Rules" (Watch on YouTube)

"The Americans - Paige & Henry" (Watch on YouTube)

"" (Watch on YouTube)

Episode recaps:

From Vulture
From The AV Club
From Hitfix
From IGN
From Think Progress
From Rolling Stone
From TVLine
From the Huffington Post
From zap2it
From Collider
From spoilertv.com
From Sound on Sight
From showratings.tv
From uinterview.com
From screenrant.com
From Television Without Pity
From The Atlantic
From multimediacritics.com
From tvrage.com
From Unreality TV (UK)

Comments

[katiac]

It was different than I expected. LOVED the whole thing with the other sleeper family. It raised all these great questions like how often do they work with other sleeper couples (didn't seem like they'd seen each other in a long time, but clearly they'd known each other before, perhaps even in training back home?) Is sleeper couples falling in love sort of the norm as they seemed cozy as can be and clearly the Centre hasn't done much? It was also a bit of a surprise to see Elizabeth and the other KGB sleeper woman so friendly... not that she wouldn't necessarily be with other soviets she can feel a sense of connection with, but that they seemed to be talking relationship stuff in the sort of way I wouldn't have imagined her being particularly open to considering that the other woman clearly had a very loving relationship with her partner and she and Philip in that period would've been not at all the same.

And god, the son being left alive is so painful. I wonder if they're going to pick up on that thread, since it now has me super curious where things would go from there.

The breakfast conversation and the horribly timed story from Henry was just too priceless. Loved seeing everyone just want to crawl under the table except Henry who clearly had no idea about the implications.

The one thing I really missed about the episode was not getting resolution to the emotional marriage stuff from last season. I was glad they showed them in a good place together, but it would've been nice to get like one scene with them alone that was a little more intense. The episode was fast-paced, which was good in some ways, but in others it felt like they were trying to fit so much stuff in that nothing could get touched on in too much depth, and that's what I really love about episodes--the depth.

[georgley]

I agree about the marriage stuff. I'm hoping things will slow down a bit over the next few episodes so they can dig a bit deeper into the marriage.

I did love the glimpses of them being happier though. The way they kept smiling at each other and standing super close together... kind of adorable.

[endeni]

Oh, yes, the other sleeper family bits were great! The post-mission relaxing&chatting (sitting on top of cars drinking beer!) was so surreal... While that moment at the park with Elizabeth and the other woman watching but not being able to acknowledged each other was very touching...

[treonb]

I also wonder about the son. And shouldn't Philip have somehow intercepted him? Besides the emotional pain he's going through, he's now going to be interrogated by the police, and the family is going to be looked at with a microscope. Will this land on Stan's desk at some point?

And there's still a question of who done it? The FBI had nothing to gain by this. So is there somebody else in the game?

[katiac]

Okay, reply #2 since head still churning.

I also found the parallels interesting with how in that early scene, Phil kills the innocent kid who was in the wrong place at the wrong time and saw him without his disguise and is clearly shaken about it, then the son of the other sleepers being the innocent left alive to find the carnage, then their fears about the safety of the kids, and Philip's guilt over having used Henry, another innocent, to get the pass off done.

There's something just so interesting and great about watching the guy spies have to bust in on their wives (who both clearly love) having a three-way with a target, then they drive up and the wives are having a beer on the hood of the car, and everyone just stops for a quick chat about the kids like it's no biggie. Just the job. Love those little moments they give us.

[endeni]

/like it's no biggie. Just the job./ - LOL that was a strange "date" for sure...

[treonb]

Good point on the parallels. And in both cases we had three people killed, for no real reason.

And yeah - I actually thought they were going on a date. *sigh*

[alisonx]

Wow what a chockablock episode! I don't know what I was expecting but it was different. It feels different to last season. So much stuff happened I gotta rewatch later tonight.

I was definitely a tad disappointed that I knew exactly what was going to happen when Paige walked towards that door, because I had read the spoilers. That morning breakfast table scene was so freecan awkward and that BACON. Lord we are blessed to have this show.

The car scene handhold was really sweet, I love those gestures through the show :) I also grinned like an idiot when Philip and Elizabeth kissed. Kay, its a bit dorky to kiss in front of your kids but it was so goddamn sweet.

Ummm the episode was quite fast paced and a lot of the FBI headquarters stuff went right over my head, and I was like wait-what the informant died.

When we were first introduced to Emmett and Leanne (??) I was really excited to know more about them and see them interact as a parallel with p/e in future episodes. Despite seeing those trailers, I didn't see that one coming and it was a good plot turn. The stakes really do feel so much higher. The impact of the other family's bodies overlaying each other and their son coming in to find them was really horrific. I saw one recapper thought the Paige facepaint was over emphasised but I liked the touch. The image of that bullethole and blood in the daughter's face stuck in your memory and yeah it was a nice one-two punch.

I like what @katiac said in the last para about the four of em chatting by the car - so chill and casual.

[katiac]

Wow what a chockablock episode! I don't know what I was expecting but it was different. It feels different to last season. So much stuff happened I gotta rewatch later tonight.

Yeah, I wondered if maybe my expectations were just in a different place, but it did have a different feel to it than last season. But, they may have just had to cram a lot of stuff into the first episode to establish a baseline on all the various story threads, and things may slow down just a bit to dig in more. Or at least I hope they do.

I also thought the face paint was great.

The car scene handhold was really sweet, I love those gestures through the show :) I also grinned like an idiot when Philip and Elizabeth kissed. Kay, its a bit dorky to kiss in front of your kids but it was so goddamn sweet.

They're really good at taking the little opportunities to show how much they love each other, not just the big ones.

[alisonx]

Although, I feel like when they're walking through the carnival at the end, Paige and Henry's suspicions should really have been piqued. I would not have accepted it so easily if my parents were so inexplicably frazzled, but P+H (or henry at least) seemed no more than casually curious.

[katiac]

Yeah, it made me immediately wonder if the murders would be on the news later and the kids (or Paige) would get curious about the two. Not that she would suspect her parents had anything to do with it directly, just that she would think it was weird this other family got killed and her parents were being all jumpy.

[georgley]

I loved it. It did feel slightly rushed in places as they tried to tie up loose ends and set up the season but there's still 12 more episodes and I'm very happy.

Had to laugh at Matthew Rhys with the Texan accent. I wonder if Philip was wearing his cowboy boots? Thought the moment with the busboy getting shot was very well done. It was obvious that Philip didn't want to do it (demonstrated by his reaction in the car) but had no choice (like Elizabeth with the security guard last season).

I wished we'd seen Philip and Elizabeth meet up in the beginning of the episode. It seemed jarring to me that all of a sudden they were in the same car pulling up at the house.

Paige's reaction to Philip and Elizabeth's date/kiss was so sweet. She was just so happy to see them together again.

The sex scene that had been spoiled everywhere was better than I was expecting. I was worried that it was going to seem really over the top and almost gratuitous but it did seem really intimate and true for the characters.

I laughed so hard at the slow-mo shot of Elizabeth eating the bacon. Poor Paige!

Loved the way they dealt with Sanford and the Colonel. I know that some people were worried last season that Philip had said "Elizabeth" within earshot of the Colonel and that he might tell the FBI her name. Loved that he outsmarted Sanford.

The other spy family was really interesting. I was glad that they opened up their world a bit and demonstrated that the Jennings' aren't the only spy couple around. I was very interested to see that the other couple also seemed to be in love. I wonder how it worked for real illegals? Did many of them fall in love?

The aftermath in the hotel room was so awful. I was especially moved seeing the mother's body over her daughters, like she'd tried to shield her.

Philip having to go see Martha was so sad. It was obvious that he wanted to talk about what had happened and she was the person he had to spend the night with... and she didn't even know what he was talking about.

Now, I know we had to wait 9 months (or so) for this episode, but having to wait a week for the next one is still frustrating!!

[katiac]

Philip having to go see Martha was so sad. It was obvious that he wanted to talk about what had happened and she was the person he had to spend the night with... and she didn't even know what he was talking about.

I felt the same way. I suspect that's going to be a recurring theme--Philip having to be somewhere else for work when his heart is really at home.

The other spy family was really interesting. I was glad that they opened up their world a bit and demonstrated that the Jennings' aren't the only spy couple around. I was very interested to see that the other couple also seemed to be in love. I wonder how it worked for real illegals? Did many of them fall in love?

I was also surprised because this is really only the second sleeper couple they showed us and they seemed very much in love--and like it had been stable longer than P/E. That would've been interesting to see what Elizabeth thought of their relationship over the years versus how things were harder for her and Philip.

I wished we'd seen Philip and Elizabeth meet up in the beginning of the episode. It seemed jarring to me that all of a sudden they were in the same car pulling up at the house.

Yeah, that was one thing I really missed. Although, maybe she wasn't staying so far away that he couldn't go visit her occasionally just to check in? Clearly if she was able to talk with the kids once a week, she would've been in contact with him too.

[alisonx]

What if Emmett/Leah were planning on defecting and it was Claudia/KGB that killed them. ((If this was the case Idk why they wouldnt have just gotten p/e to do it like in the pilot))

http://www.avclub.com/tvclub/americans-comrades-201584

av club and vulture are my fave reviews :)

[katiac]

Yeah, I've been wondering about the motivations of the killers from the first rumors we heard about it. But I guess they would have to have reasonable motivation or the show wouldn't have gone there. Like Claudia/KGB is one option, but then would they really risk doing it in a way where word would get back to P/E and risk losing them too if it hit too close to home? It seems different for them to be sent after Timoshev versus a couple they clearly knew from before and were friends with (and had kids.)

[theplatonicnonyeah]

Well, that was intense! So many things happening, but I still think they kept it together really well.

I was just wondering, did the episode cut off rather abruptly at the end? Or was that my stream? The camera panned out from Elizabeth sitting in the bedroom alone and then...was that it?

So many things to talk about it, but I think I'm going to watch it again later today.

[treonb]

Hee, I also felt the episode cut off. So my first initial response at this episode was actually: "Hey!!! What just happened?"

[jae]

Okay, I'm actually really, really terrible at processing my thoughts about an episode when I've only seen it once and haven't had a long time to reflect on it, but I'm going to try to do at least a little of it. I just do not guarantee that my thoughts will be coherent or the same thoughts I will think about the episode in a week, okay? :) (On the bright side, at least this season these discussions are happening in a community instead of in my journal, so I at least feel less pressure to say something smart quickly! I was so never cut out for that rapid-response kind of fannish participation...)

I guess I'll just do bullet-points specifically on the things that are still churning for me:

• I thought it was excellent. I also think it's going to be really hard for some people to take. I really hope the comm doesn't lose wendelah1 to the violence, which felt much more personal in this episode than it's ever been before.

• In response to the people who said that the episode "felt different," it felt that way to me, too. And having thought about this for a whole hour or so of being awake *g*, I think there were two things going on there: 1) The pace was faster. I approve of this given the particular story they wanted to tell in these early episodes, but I do hope they're not afraid to slow things down when that's necessary. 2) The narrative was left unfinished. I mean, this show has never been a procedural, and there have always been lots of plotlines left dangling at the end of every episode, but something has always ended (messily or tidily) at episode's end. That didn't happen here.

• Based on the early buzz I read about the episode, I had expected to feel really bad for Elizabeth, and I did. There was no room for her to be "still recovering" here--she had to be right back in the game immediately, even when her mind was clearly (and that was so well portrayed by Keri Russell here) still processing the trauma of her shooting. But when it comes right down to it, she's no stranger to having a trauma reaction and having to put it aside and get the work done. I did not expect to feel as bad as I did for Philip, though, and I did--in fact, I felt even worse for him. He's not off his game in the same way Elizabeth is, but he's had to hold everything together while she's been gone--the fake work, the real work, the family, the lies, Martha, everything--and he's clearly just tired and worried and frankly a little burned out. Even at the very beginning of the episode, when he was doing the mission as the Texan, he was freaked out at how things had gone and feeling bad about it and having no partner to sit with him about it. Philip has always taken a joy in a job well done in a way that Elizabeth doesn't, but there's no joy in a job well done when he has to go back home to Martha instead of to the family that actually may need his protection for once. I mean, this isn't just a sad sense of "man, would I ever rather be with Elizabeth and the kids right now," this is serious stuff--and he still can't be there. That sort of thing would just eat him up, and he's got no cope left.

• On that note, Martha's "relax, you're home now" thing was just so goddamned sad. Like all the best bits on the show, that line just summed up just how sad things are for everyone in that situation, whether they know it or not.

• The existence of the other family of illegals really threw me for a loop--the way these people are clearly their friends, I mean, and have been for a long time. It felt a little bit like retconning, to be honest, because the show seemed to be portraying Philip and Elizabeth as very much alone with everything they were dealing with in the first season and then all of a sudden there are these people they could have been talking with all along (other than Stan and Sandra, I mean)? I'm definitely going to have to rethink some things that I'd assumed about their lives during the first season, you know? (Of course, unless they've got another family hidden away somewhere that's played the same role for them over the years, then now they really are alone.)

• I do think the new twist on the seduction move carried out jointly by the two illegals couples was incredibly clever. It wasn't just a matter of using sex to get information out of a source, it was much more intricate than that and so very well thought through. Even better, though, I think they also thought it was clever and well executed too. It was good to give them all a moment of enjoyment of the work and the synchrony of partnership before everything went to hell. The poor source didn't even seem damaged by it (embarrassment aside), so there was no one to feel bad for, even.

• The one kid coming back to find them and Philip having to watch/hear that happen--my GOD. That was so much more horrifying than so much of the outright violence on this show. My mind is still kind of reeling from that, and I'm finding myself terribly worried about the kid. Because it's not like he's got aunts and uncles who can step in, now, you know? And Philip and Elizabeth can't take that role on. I guess the KGB will just wash their hands of him, too--which is a mixed blessing (I was saying during the episode that the kid will be lucky if he doesn't find out the rest of the story, even though I'm sure he won't see it that way).

• I felt like Stan and Nina and Nina's Rezidentura world got short shrift here--rightfully so, given everything else that was going on, but still. We barely got a glimpse of the new guy Oleg (although I did note that Arkady addressed him with his patronymic despite him not being some high-level person, which is fascinating), for one. I will say about Stan and Nina that it sure looks like it's a full-blown affair now, and that it's not obvious at least from what we've seen that she's playing him. That puts some of my fears at ease, because I'm nervous about the show portraying Stan as the incompetent one.

• This was my favourite tweet of the night: Holly Taylor (Paige) in response to the question "If you had to sum up the premiere episode of The Americans in one word, what would it be? HEE. And this little exchange was also funny/horrible.

I'm actually about to go watch it again while I work out, so maybe I'll have more to say after that? But for now I guess I'll stop here.

-J

[sistermagpie]

• I thought it was excellent. I also think it's going to be really hard for some people to take. I really hope the comm doesn't lose wendelah1 to the violence, which felt much more personal in this episode than it's ever been before.

I suspect they might tone that down now. Like, they needed to establish the violence as real, but hopefully a little goes a long way.

The narrative was left unfinished.

And that was reflected in the characters. Philip and Elizabeth clearly wanted--and needed--to talk at the end of the ep, but Philip had to go right to Martha's. So instead of decompressing and debriefing with each other, we got Philip's strangled attempts to explain his mental state without saying anything, while Elizabeth just sat in an empty room waiting for him to "Come home." There was no rest or relief at the end because they were both completely jacked-up. Elizabeth could at least sit and stew in silence. Philip had to go right into a performance. Which reminds me...

• On that note, Martha's "relax, you're home now" thing was just so goddamned sad. Like all the best bits on the show, that line just summed up just how sad things are for everyone in that situation, whether they know it or not.

One of the recappers seemed to feel that this ep set up Philip falling for Martha because they were bonding while Elizabeth wasn't "hearing" him and I thought that was completely whacked. Philip and Elizabeth actually were hearing each other throughout, especially when they didn't have to say anything, and Philip's unburdening of himself to Martha was obviously a sad shadow of the talk--or silence--he wanted to be sharing with his partner. Sometimes they just like to lie together holding hands and worry together. Martha's comfort was so wrong on so many levels.

all of a sudden there are these people they could have been talking with all along (other than Stan and Sandra, I mean)?

It was interesting the way the show found a way to put in those two parallel situations where again we could see the greater connection they had with the other couple not just because they knew them longer, but because there were fewer lies. They're really setting up how difficult it is to connect without honesty. Not that you always need honesty, but it gets difficult when you're always talking around things--which is why I feel like it might become more natural this season for P&E to even bring up a few things about their past pasts now and then.

But still, despite the redacted parts, it seems like they made a point of establishing that Philip and Stan do talk about things in some ways, like Philip encouraging him about Sandra and Stan saying he was glad P&E were back together. If Stan tries to reconnect he'll probably talk to Philip. And I wouldn't be surprised if Sandra opens up that line of communication with Elizabeth since she obviously went through a separation. I wonder what their cover story is. They told the kids they'd been fighting a lot so they'll probably just stick to that. No need to make up fake (or semi-fake) infidelity or make either party look like the bad guy. The truth wasn't really about that.

I loved this week's honeytrap. Philip and Emmett made a great team of interrogators. Leah kissing Elizabeth's scar was a little weird, but maybe in a good way. It made me wonder if Philip and Elizabeth would ever find themselves in a threesome. Clearly it wouldn't be an issue for them. It might even be kind of helpful for them to see each other work!

[endeni]

Yay for season 2! What a great episode, can't wait for the next one! ;)
Oh, and I really loved how they used the "The French Lieutenant's Woman" movie. The bits of Meryl Streep (♥) and the different interpretation/reactions of Nina and Sandra. Yay for more parallels!

[jae]

Yes! That parallel was awesome. Those two women are so different!

-J

[jae]

Okay, a few more thoughts post-second-viewing!

• Where is the house in the woods where Elizabeth was recuperating, and who the heck is the woman who was with her at the beginning? I guess she's working for the KGB in some respect, but she did seem to be American.

• It's interesting the things that I had assumed based on the trailers and early spoilers that turned out to be wrong: Joel Fields had said "we're going to have a wig malfunction" at one point, and I assumed that it was going to have to do with sex and Martha. This was much scarier (and also ruined the long-term plot a lot less). I also assumed the orders to use Henry in a mission were going to come from their new handler, not from one of the other illegals. Still, I have to give the trailers credits for not actually being misleading, like they often were last season. It's like sistermagpie said a while back: the advertising department of the show is actually trusting the real show to draw people in now, and that's so satisfying.

• The moment that Philip said "it's okay" to the busboy before shooting him was a bit of a wrench--he really wanted the kid to think he was going to be okay right up until his death.

• Philip saying "are you ready?" to Elizabeth as they're getting out of the car to go up to the house, and getting no answer. At least she's honest?

• The "I missed her, too, pal" part was very sweet--they couldn't help but kiss like newlyweds. But it makes me wonder what the kids think about this sudden shift in their parents' relationship--they were actually broken up, and now they're all happy and enjoying each other. Paige at least must be wondering what's up with that.

• I loved seeing Elizabeth's scar in the sex scene with the dweeby U.S. government source! Very nice continuity.

• The initial line when Elizabeth is sitting on the car with the wife of the other illegals couple is "That's a long time to be away," like the writers didn't want to specify exactly how long it had been. Though Joe and Joel said "a couple of months" in one interview, if I remember correctly, and Elizabeth remarks that they've had "a good couple of months" when she comes back to the travel agency (as an aside: it was very odd to see her acting like a buisnesswoman momentarily, there!).

• It had clearly been a long time since Philip and Elizabeth had seen the other couple, though it seems to have been more on the order of six to eight years. They've also clearly been in the U.S. longer than Philip and Elizabeth, because their kids were older. I wonder if they sort of took Philip and Elizabeth under their wings when they were first in the U.S.? That's a nice thought, that they had that.

• The sex scene that Paige walked in on was waaaaay less in-your-face than I thought it was going to be based on the big deal that was made out of it in the pre-premiere buzz. (I'm just as glad, too; I was worried it was going to seem gratuitious.)

• So glad that Nina finally got a patronymic! Now she just needs a last name.

• I enjoyed the way that Elizabeth immediately forgave Philip for using Henry in a mission--that was very much in line with other work-related missteps that she's always been quick to just accept. And Philip being harder on himself than she was on him about that was also very in character. It's interesting, though, that the other illegals couple clearly did use their kids in missions, otherwise it wouldn't have been suggested. I wonder what else they had their unwitting kids do over the years?

• I was wondering how they were going to explain why Stan and Sandra were still together, but I wasn't expecting Leo Buscaglia! :)

• Did anyone else notice that Philip sounded like Philip, not Clark, while he was telling Martha about his hard day at the end? Nice touch.

[sistermagpie]

• The moment that Philip said "it's okay" to the busboy before shooting him was a bit of a wrench--he really wanted the kid to think he was going to be okay right up until his death.

And then he said it to Paige at breakfast. Sometimes Philip's desire to make everyone happy, even as he smothers them with a pillow, is wonderfully terrifying.

But it makes me wonder what the kids think about this sudden shift in their parents' relationship--they were actually broken up, and now they're all happy and enjoying each other. Paige at least must be wondering what's up with that.

In a way, it makes more sense this way, probably. They had a fight, but they worked it out and now they're stronger than ever because they worked through stuff that was probably eating at them for a while. It tracks with probably what a lot of couples would be like--only a little more extreme because they kind of are newlyweds.

The sex scene that Paige walked in on was waaaaay less in-your-face than I thought it was going to be based on the big deal that was made out of it in the pre-premiere buzz. (I'm just as glad, too; I was worried it was going to seem gratuitious.)

I know! It was wonderfully quiet.

• Did anyone else notice that Philip sounded like Philip, not Clark, while he was telling Martha about his hard day at the end? Nice touch.

I noticed this so hard!!!

[sistermagpie]

I'm going to have to watch this again to really get everything out of it. Frankly, at the end of it I felt like Philip in the car after killing the busboy. I'm just stunned! But Matthew Rhys was brilliant in that moment. He really sold that.

I agree with Jae, really, that Philip's particular brand of fragility in this ep was really powerful. Elizabeth's was too, but it was also more straightforward. But there was something terrible about Philip being exhausted and doubtful--and great that Elizabeth saw it and helped him. There was a number of times in this ep where people were asked if something was wrong, and that seemed to hint at the overall idea that things were cracking, that things were too big to completely cover up, so even civilians were seeing it.

Totally agree with whatever review it was that pointed up how the death of the Sleeper family here was so much more painful than whenever they try this stuff on a show full of icy people like House of Cards. Their relationship with the Jennings was wonderful--it didn't seem like a retcon to me because I assume it's very compartmentalized. They see each other on missions and have had some wonderful connections during those times, but otherwise they're cut off. They sort of made me think of friends my parents would see at my dad's college reunions--though of course they could be in contact apart from that too. The only thing that surprised me was Leah seeming to almost know that P&E were having problems, but then, Elizabeth seems to have made it clear to everybody that she has problems with Philip over the years so...They might have discussed the separation when they first got together on this mission.

Note that Philip references Emmett as complaining about video games rotting his kid's mind when earlier Philip had refused to get Intellivision for Henry for the same reason. But now that he knows Emmett's son got into Carnegie Mellon, maybe he'll feel differently. Anyway, I think that was another seed planted for the ongoing subtle culture cold war that's going to go on between parents and kids this season. Anybody who'd mistakenly thought of Philip as simply the "fun" parent should think again. He, like his wife, is an exceptionally accomplished individual who grew up with very little and he might have some high expectations too! (Course it's also possible that as with many partnerships, without Elizabeth Philip tried to be more like her because there's no devil's advocate.)

Nina's reaction to Meryl Streep was a nice nod to how whether or not you believe a performance sometimes is based on what you bring to it yourself. ("That Meryl Streep, such a phoney-baloney!" --Jerry Seinfeld)

Personally, I have no problem with Paige's facepaint. I know some have thought it was too much, as if we didn't get that she was paralleled with the dead girl, but that's the thing about this kind of situation. Little things become huge portents of doom because of the situation, but that doesn't change the basic facts of the situation, which is that Paige and the other girl would both make the same choice about face paint because they're both 14 year old girls! Life is over obvious at times. I though the same thing about the deer scene, just because deer showing up that way at that time seemed so typical.

As much as I would have liked P&E to get some comfort time together, I loved him saying he'd come home as soon as he could and her saying "I know." There's comfort in that--made all the more clear by Martha's sad and empty "You're home now."

Also a nice introduction of the idea of these Sleeper parents feeling like their kids are always removed from them by the lives they lead. And also quick introduction of the Soviet's as "godless" which is going to come up throughout the season.

The scene with Paige walking in on her parents was so different from the standard way this is usually done. The thing that really struck me when I thought about it was that for all the awkwardness going on in the morning after scene, most of it was from Paige. The Jennings were very much *not* the typical US TV-parents who were now just as flustered as she was. And they shouldn't be, because they're sex workers. Like when Paige walked in, the reactions of her parents were not the usual gasping and hiding you'd expect on any other show. Elizabeth just pops her head up and props herself up on Philip's bare backside. Philip just looks over his shoulder--and this after he'd hear "OMG" from his daughter. Then they don't go after her, there's no big freakout scene. They're very practical in their reactions the next day, both to Paige and with each other.

I did also think it was interesting how Paige specifically focused on Elizabeth. Like, the slo-mo bacon show was not followed by Philip slurping a grapefruit. Paige identified more with her mother despite the scene being very equal.

Which btw, hurray for that choice of position there. It's kind of the most symbolic of the way P&E work. Not just the mutual generosity, but the way they're curled up around each other so comfortably. It was just kind of nice!

Stan doesn't come off too well with his women, but I thought he came off very well otherwise. He's still the best cop. I loved the way they tied up (or "tied up") last year's story with Nina's story about what happened to the Illegals that Stan still didn't believe, and his similar disbelief of the colonel's story. He's got weak spots, but he's no fool.

Leaving the cute son alive was a really wonderful--that is brutal--touch. It was worse than seeing the family murdered. And a great parallel to Paige. First Paige opens the closed door to her parents room and sees something she didn't want to see, something her parents would have protected her from, but something neither sees as that harmful. But then Philip watches the son going back to his room and every instinct tells him to stop him from opening that door, but he can't.

That set up an interesting arc for Philip to parallel what I assume will be Elizabeth's arc. She's always put the Centre first and is coming to realize she has other priorities now. But Philip has been in his own sort of denial in thinking he can really put his family first--or that he ever has. I liked how he really was shoved into using Henry as a prop since it wasn't his idea, but he still did it and regretted it. Just as here he had to choose to protect himself and his family and let the kid be traumatized. No wonder they started the season with Philip at his most brutal, killing a child to protect himself. And trying to be soooo gentle about it. So creepy.

The show did definitely have a different feel. The pacing was part of it, but I think it was also just like starting a new story with different themes. The world in general was a much scarier place.

Wonder if that lady at the cabin will show up again.

[endeni]

/because they're sex workers/ - OMG, you're right, they are! And they're hardly going to be scandalized... *nods*
/Nina's reaction to Meryl Streep was a nice nod to how whether or not you believe a performance sometimes is based on what you bring to it yourself./ - Oh yes, really loved this concept! It also ties nicely with our concept of being fannish: the way we see/what we see in a fandom isn't necessary going to be what you're was "supposed to", Dead of the Author and all.
And OMG I didn't realize the daughter/son opening the door parallels. Parallels!porn FTW... ♥

[apolla_savre]

I'll be posting a more detailed review/recap on my Tumblr and journal later, but some quick thoughts:

1. Sergeevna!!
2. Who else isn't going to look at bacon the same way again for a while? Poor Paige.
3. The deer thing. Something symbolic for the rest of the season, I figure.
4. The Afghans...I cannot believe one of them gave Philip a knife. That just seems really wrong. I mean, in Russian culture, you don't give knives or scissors as a present without the other person paying a penny or something in return, otherwise it's an omen of ending the relationship. I feel like there's something I read about Afghan culture and knives as well? But I could be wrong. It just freaked me out.
5. Philip running his hands through his hair in the car reminded me of 1x01 when Elizabeth left her first target. Interesting. It seemed to be saying that the hardest part of Elizabeth's job was having to use her body (which made sense given what we learn later) and Philip's hardest part is the killing, especially for those who are innocent/don't deserve it.
6. I didn't trust Emmett. When he had Philip use Henry to get the package, I just went, "HOLD IT. No. I don't trust you. What are you doing?" You do what you have to do, but this wasn't Philip's assignment. There's something fishy about Emmett and the source, especially since it just seemed like tracking logs and a sketch of technology (oh ho ho, Oleg! Your specialty awaits!) were received (or did I miss/forget something?)

I'll be back with more comments later.

EDIT

Oh, I just learned from wkrpcincinatti Tumblr user that the WKRP episode featured in 2x01 was the Season 4 episode "Pills" that aired January 20, 1982! So we have a date!

[jae]

Oh, awesome! Thanks for the date--you are brilliant.

-J

[treonb]

Wow, what an episode! I loved it :-)

First - it felt like the ending was cut off. A hallway shot of Elizabeth sitting on the bed and then boom. Maybe it was just a split-second thing, but did I miss anything?

Otherwise:
1. The episode felt much tenser and less humoristic. Lots more killing, which I'm not sure how I feel about. It felt right with how the episode developed and the fact they were throwing us off the deep end, but I hope they tone it down in the upcoming eps.

2. The deer - Elizabeth running into a deer family, caught in the headlights. Fits in with what happened to the sleeper family, but I wonder if it portends more for the rest of the season.

3. Paige going into the bedroom - after the post-breakfast discussion, did Philip and Elizabeth do that on purpose somehow?

4. I was hoping the sleeper family will return :-( It was nice to see Philip & Elizabeth being able to really talk with somebody else.

5. Nina! She was playing Stan so nicely. I liked how Sandra and Nina reacted differently to the movie. And stupid Stan! This was THE movie to get your wife into a romantic mood, but he was off thinking about Nina (?)

6. I wonder how Oleg will develop. Loved the headphones part, though they should give him a break - he's probably going through culture shock at the moment :-)

7. Letting the kids run around in the fair - was that acceptable in the 80s?

8. Whee - I recognized WKRP. Which is a show I might have watched a couple of times.

[dafna]

7. Kids that age? Absolutely. I didn't even have the most permissive parents but something like that they'd give us a few bucks and tell us to meet them at a fixed point in 3 hours or whatever.

[wendelah1]

I just watched the episode this morning. Looking over the comments here, I'll have to watch it again to respond because I missed some fairly important stuff. These are just some quick notes I took while watching.

1. Elizabeth's reaction to the near miss with the deer with her fawn(s). Mirrored at the end, yes?
2. I didn't see the scar in the sex scene and I did look for it. I'm glad to hear they put it in. I'll look again, I guess.
3. I'm completely confused about how much time has passed. Was it a couple of months, as Gadd says or longer? The 5th game of the Stanley Cup finals locates the end of last season at May 22, the day after the game, right? And this looks like Fall to me, not summer. September at least, if not October? I'll have to watch again. The French Lieutenant's Woman was released on September 18th, 1981.
4. Nina told Stan that the woman died and the man was exfiltrated. He says he trusts his source but he's still suspicious? So he doesn't really trust his source...
5. Really bad choice for a movie to watch with your mistress, Stan. I guess you didn't read the book, then, or the reviews? Weirdly, he finally seems to get it while watching the film with his wife. I didn't get that they were watching a pirated copy until I saw that it was the same film in the movie theater.
6. The new Science and Tech guy is a bad mattress. Loved that. He's also an entitled asshole and a user. Watch out Nina.
7. Philip's scene at the end, where he's talking to "his wife" about "his job." Good use of Method acting. Contrasted with Elizabeth, sitting in front of the window of her suburban home, staring out into space, clearly traumatized, or maybe I should say, re-traumatized. Trying to be a look-out. What's the phrase? If they wanted you dead, you'd be dead.
8. I need to look up Leo Buscaglia. I remember nothing about this guy.
9. The people I can't get out of my head. The busboy killed at the beginning, an innocent bystander sacrificed for a mission gone bad. Presumably, leaving a grieving family and community behind. I hope there is some blowback to this escapade. The boy walking into the hotel room and seeing his entire family, his entire world wiped out. We know there will be fallout from that. I wonder what will happen to him. He's an adult, had been heading off to college, apparently? I don't think the KGB can just cut him loose. They'll have to do something about him, for him. I don't know what. They'll have to send someone to go through their house. He'll be lucky if he doesn't find out the truth, but in real life, this is the kind of murder than would hit the papers and not leave the front page for months. But I guess that's not the show we're watching. A professional hit, but by whom? Our side, their side, someone else?
10. Oh yeah, so the Colonel reported being approached to the FBI. Covered his ass, then killed the guy who turned on him. There should still be blowback from that, too.
11. Paige walking in on her parents having sex was the best case scenario for the Jennings family.

There's more but I gotta go.

[treonb]

#4 - was Nina the source? I thought he was talking about Sanford. Or somebody else?

If it's really Nina, that's not good for Nina.

mish-mashed thoughts

[soupytwist]

Oh my god that last scene has just broken me. I don't at all see how anyone's getting Philip/Martha vibes off it - the whole thing was about how much distance there is between them, how Martha doesn't have the foggiest idea what's going on and cannot possibly reach through to the truth of what she's being told. Even when it IS the truth, as much as can be.

MY HEART IS BREAKING FOR ALL OF THEM I CANNOT EVEN. OMG. er, okay, now I will attempt more coherence.

What an episode. That was a massive jump in with both feet! I really liked that actually - it sort of mirrors how Elizabeth was feeling after being injured, there's no time to sit there and think about it, she has to just go straight on.

I really liked the use of sound - the way the screaming of kids at the funfair was both the fair and deliberately ominous/awful with double meaning. Brilliant.

Unlike other people, I didn't really get that the Jennings were like best friends with the other spy couple... close comrades, yes, but presumably they aren't allowed to just call each other up and chat or whatever, so it would be more like people you have a LOT in common with, who you work with and therefore see once a year at the work convention, or whatever. And you're glad to see them, and you maybe bond a lot in that short time, but it's not at all the same thing as day to day interaction and support. And talking about their relationships would kind of be like talking shop, because in a lot of ways their relationships are their job.

I am really amused that everyone who called Paige walking in on them having sex was 100% right. It was weirdly... sweet? though. Paige being really happy that her parents were back together was adorable, and the way they dealt with it after being walked in on worked brilliantly for me. (Philip saying they have to have boundaries and respect, and Elizabeth saying they need to trust each other, was just BRILLIANT. And kind of painful, because even with the MASSIVE IRONY involved, they also do basically believe what they're saying.)

Also, the actual scene Paige walked in on was clearly so different than the sex scene they pull with the schlumpy source guy - like, just the physical positioning alone was equal between P&E, they were literally on the same level, whereas with the source Elizabeth was literally on top.

Stan Beeman is headed for a MAJOR BLOODY FALL, omg. Dude is just... well, apparently he now thinks WOOING Nina is a good idea. Yikes. Um, dude, you do remember how you guys got together, right? And omg, seeing the same movie with Nina and Sandra. Ohhh dear. Although I
was intrigued that apparently Stan and Philip have talked about the Beemans' relationship issues a bit. (Philip saying "give it time", because he did and it worked for him, made me aw.) (And Sandra hugging Stan because it's something to try made me sad.)

In other "Stan is totally doomed" news, Martha! OMG. Not only does she not kill anyone even though there's that mail delivery thing which would definitely drive me homicidal within a minute, I love that the show so clearly points out that her capabilities are being overlooked in just the same way Nina's are. She can HEAR STAN AND GAAD TALKING, and to them, she doesn't count: she's furniture. No wonder she fell for Clark.

And the way nothing was resolved was clearly designed to get everyone salivating for next week as much as possible. In which case, well, IT WORKED. GIVE US THE NEXT EPISODE NOW PLS.

Re: mish-mashed thoughts

[treonb]

That mail delivery thing was really funny. Was that supposed to be top of the line tech?

And you're so right about Martha being underused at work.

[lovingboth]

A lovely summary of S1 in the 'previously...' at the start, and that quality was kept throughout.

Who was the woman in the cabin in the woods?

What TV show were the kids and babysitter watching? I'm pretty sure it's not one that ever got to the UK, but it was clearly meant to be iconic of the time.

Lots of lovely looks, particularly the Philip's one after they've kissed prior to going on the 'date' - how much of that was for the benefit of the kids and how much was a kiss?

Would Philip really be so silly as to only shoot the younger Afghan once before going to leave? At least twice, preferably both knees, please. I think his scene in the car was him being cross with himself for not doing that.

I guessed what would happen on opening the bedroom door. Someone was told / allowed to increase the amount of sex in the series, weren't they?

I also guessed which film it would end up being...

[lovingboth]

Ah, was it WKRP? At least some of that did make it, but I don't remember ever watching much of it.

[georgley]

A couple of little details I noticed on rematch and loved:
- the lady at the cabin/safe house seems to have an American flag hanging on a flag pole. Amusing given she was harbouring a KGB spy.
- when Philip starts his car after shooting the Afghan's there is country music playing. I like the idea he was listening to it to psych himself up.

[treonb]

when Philip starts his car after shooting the Afghan's there is country music playing.

I liked that too. He was getting into the country mood.

[sistermagpie]

Just had to drop this here. The Atlantic had a rave review of the opener, and it included this little observation I hadn't noticed but is FANTASTIC:

With the introduction of another covert KGB couple, it initially appears we’re in for a comparison of spying styles. Duping a Lockheed underling, the square-jawed agent Emmett plays the bad cop to Philip’s good one. (Notice that Phil has a verbal tick: gentle, reassuring repetition, whether it's on the job—“It’s a question; it’s a real question”—or talking to his kids—“It’s ok; it is ok.”) When Emmett says he may need the Jennings to assist in a hit job, Philip nervously objects that he has his children there. “So do we,” Emmett says simply. He’s not worried.

That's just so awesome, that verbal tick.

[jae]

I hadn't noticed that, either (and I'm generally pretty attuned to that sort of thing)! I'm going to start listening for it now. It's especially interesting because it's not just gentle and reassuring, but strengthened over the first instance of the phrase: "real question," "is ok."

-J

On rewatch

[sistermagpie]

Okay, Imma watch the show again more carefully and comment on it now. Let's see if I get anything new out of it!

*I love the pre-dawn shots of that cabin where Elizabeth is, and the deer family seems perfect in it. I know some thought it was too obvious a symbol, but I like the way not only does she almost kill a mother and children, but she has a long reaction time to it. It immediately shows that she's still a little too jumpy to be working.

*I think the lady she's staying with will show up again someday. If nothing else she's there if the show needs her. It looks like Paige might go to her house, if the American flag is the same one in the previews.

*So is Philip meeting with these guys at the same time she's leaving the cabin, which looks pre-dawn? While the kids are home alone?

*One day Philip will see Charlie Wilson's war and mutter "nailed it" to the screen. If he lives that long.

*We love America. Ha.

*I just noticed that the Afghani specifically talks about killing "every heathen come to humiliate us on our own land," which is a nice nod to P&E in the US.

* I think it's very much not a coincidence that the show's having these guys hit the "godless" aspect. It works, of course, because it is something they have in common with the US (there are plenty of people in the US who think they really ought to be more like the Taliban in their religious convictions!) but I think it's setting up this as a major cultural difference between P&E and the people around them, including their kids. Which makes me wonder if Henry will share his own thoughts on the matter. It would make sense and be nice if the show hinted that Henry actually could grow up to be an atheist, or at least more naturally side with Mom and Dad on this issue at this point.

*Henry might appreciate his dad going all Han Solo on these guys. "Yes, I'll bet you are..."

*Once again, the show gets a subtle nod in about motivations. If the guy was being rational about his life, he'd stay down and receive Philip's message. But he hates Soviets and probably does call on Alla for strength as he attacks Philip.

*I like how Philip honestly seems to be most focused on protecting that wig in this scene. Btw, this is the first time one of these two has taken off a wig to reveal a head full of...glue, I guess? I cap with glue? Clark's wig came off like a beret.

*I hadn't noticed the first time that the guy specifically refers to Philip as Russian before he dies. But again, it's a nice line about how different cultures so rarely have any idea "who they're dealing with" when it comes to another culture.

*There was someone on TWOP who was really mad at Philip being "cruel" by giving the kid hope he would live. I think he's obviously being the opposite (and also making things easier for himself) by making it so the kid doesn't see what's coming. I think it was really more that Philip was being cruel to that viewer by making her think he'd be the good guy.

*Interesting that the kid takes off his hat when Philip approaches. There's many hats in this ep: that one, Philip's Stetson and later Philip's baseball cap.

*Philip only says "It's okay" once to the busboy. Just noting that for his later use of that sort of thing.

*Good thing Philip at least brought a big ole cowboy hat to wear out. LOL!

*As others have said, love the country music he was playing on the way over to get in character. But I'm still really bowled over by MR's silent performance in the car. He turns off the country music and takes off that hat at the same time, like he wants to get rid of this character.

*Pre-credits the show really has set up, imo, the main different issues for the characters and they're both really strong. Both scenes have P&E behind the wheel of their car, shaking. Both of them are reacting to kids in danger. But I think Elizabeth is more identifying with the mother deer (they lock eyes) trying to protect her kids, and she stops short of hurting them. Where Philip is dealing with having just intentionally killed a kid who looks a lot like the kid who'll be killed later. I haven't checked if either of them is using the family car in their scene.

*It works with their different povs. Elizabeth absolutely sees herself as on the defensive all the time, protecting her country from the US who are out to get them. Philip has crossed the line into seeing himself as the enemy and that's just going to get worse for him.

*On my TV: the story of our Communist heroes will be brought to us by Fiat. Yay.

*You ready? No answer. Go anyway.

*I love how Philip obviously overreacts to Henry jumping on Elizabeth. Again, it's setting up that he's frazzled, just because his "you're getting to big for that now" is so clearly a cover in ways he hasn't been so obvious before. Btw, that's two mentions of the kids being older, with Henry being "too big" and Paige looking "older." A big threat.

*Paige looks back at Dad when she walks in with Mom, like she watched her parents walk into the kitchen in The Colonel. In general they're definitely directing Holly Taylor to have eyes on everyone she can all the time.

*Nice little man-man convo with Philip and Stan. Stan's actually the one hiding stuff in this scene, making Philip the naive neighbor he's supposed to be.

*Nice little capitalist birthday scene. Henry wants the new telescope but he really needs the latest product. Even if he should really be thanking Philip for not getting Intellivision. I did know one person who had it, actually, but it was not the system you wanted.

*Others have noted that Philip seems to like to encourage Henry into areas associated with Soviet competition, which is funny. I don't know if it's because Philip shares those interests or not. They could be things he liked as a kid.

*I think they get a babysitter when they have to go out early. Interesting that they don't just let Paige babysit.

*Of course this date is actually a mission. The KGB doesn't care about Henry's birthday!

*Elizabeth kisses Philip, not the other way around. Awww! Still, the kiss ends with a duplicitous look between them, so not as romantic as it could be.

*Leanne kissing Elizabeth's scar is still weirdly nice to me. These people are just not like normal people. I mean, they have their own culture.

*I wonder if Elizabeth lost the coin toss and that's why she's the one being penetrated here.

*This is one of the best stings ever. Love that fake "take 'em to lock up" line delivered to nobody.

*It's a question, Roy. It's a real question.

*Philip looks kind of like Groucho Marx in this outfit. I love it. I think it's the eyebrows.

*Paige had her eyes on that suitcase the second Elizabeth came home. Of course her mom who folds cover laundry wouldn't leave anything in it. She doesn't know who she's dealing it.

*Henry jumps out and shouts at Paige to scare her like Philip and Elizabeth will later at the carnival, and Jared will scream in the hall.

*Elizabeth's "we're better" about Philip definitely implies Leanne has some idea of their romance, but this could be coming off a conversation they had years ago when Elizabeth just shared how hard it was to be fake married. Emmett kisses his wife when they meet and Philip still doesn't, though.

*I had totally misremembered this scene as Jared playing video games rather than building model airplanes. I like the model airplanes better because MR gets just a tiny bit Welsh on saying "model airplanes."

*Love how the conversation dies at the thoughts of their kids being basically happy, clueless Americans.

*Love that Elizabeth picks up on how it's Philip who's not okay in the car. Like she's not either, but she's dealing and he's kind of not. I just now get the connection between Philip talking about how there's not a lot to worry about for 'these kids' when he just killed someone else's.

*The handhold is awesome. Honestly, how could anyone think Philip isn't "being heard" by his wife so might fall for Martha?!

*It's weird that Paige tries to get Henry into her fears about Mom and Dad here. You'd think he'd have made it clear that he'd rather sleep.

*The more I see it (and people have giffed it so I've seen it a lot) the more I love this scene in the bedroom. It's so different than all the honeytrap scenes that it's so quiet. Also, while the positioning is great in a camera-way, in that it finds a way to show what they're doing while actually looking pretty nice, I love how Philip and Elizabeth are almost creating an ouroboros with each other.

*At breakfast, Philip totally sees that Paige is freaked out by Elizabeth. He gives this little look between them.

*The way he says "Hang on a second" to Paige is totally like something he'd say in one of his disguises, like the one for air force security. he's going for a pose there, being reassuring in that Columbo-ish way he sometimes uses.

*Still, again, they basically treat this the same way they'd treat Paige taking the car out without asking or something. They're not enjoying having to bring it up, but they're also not avoiding it or really stumbling over it like in the standard TV show where this happens. It's only Paige who's avoiding everyone's eyes.

*It's okay. It is okay. Not like the way it was okay with that bus boy I murdered.

*I think Philip's "It's okay" is practically the only place where they even really address the sexual aspect of it, with Philip's assurance kind of covering a lot of different things. That they're not mad at Paige, and that she really didn't see anything that bad.

*Followed by the more sinister laundry reference. Again, Paige is actually the one with something to hide in this particular scene.

*Once Paige is gone they go right into analyzing Paige's motives etc. It's great. In most shows we'd need at least one scene where the parents deal with their kid seeing them naked, and seeing them doing THAT. Here at most we get a tiny grimace from Elizabeth in the bedroom, and an even tinier one from Philip in the kitchen, neither of which is about their own discomfort.

*I like that Stan is, as someone else called it, officially "Javert-ized" about these illegals.

*Martha dealing with the mail robot is awesome.

*Stan has good reason to be disgusted at this guy talking about "betrayal" after he was the one selling the Colonel to the KGB. Scumbag traitor indeed.

*We discussed this on TWOP but I definitely get the impression that Philip's co-worker is gay and his roommmate is his boyfriend. I thought it was a nice little touch.

*Also nice touch on giving Stan a fake refund. Businesswoman Elizabeth agrees. Also, they had a good two months. Hee!

*This must be the only time in history that Meryl Streep has been accused of being too much what a man thinks a woman is. FLW is kind of meta that way on purpose, Nina!

*Paige looks honestly scared in the fun house. She really is jumpy! Henry yells but then smiles. She's even a little more jumpy when her parents shout at them and then Henry does.

*Jared is really adorable. And he does look like the bus boy.

*Wouldn't most of what the Soviets have on technology be stolen?

*I love Nina and Arkady having a conversation that could easily be held between two girls in eighth grade, with Arkady being the less cool girl. Of course she shouldn't tell him she loves him, Arkady. What are you thinking?

*Oleg wears loafers with no socks. LOL! How does one say douche in Russian?

*I just noticed his "Passion" line is directed at Nina. Oleg is smoove.

*Yeah, one shot to the head would probably have been enough. The Colonel makes a point of showing his hand shaking but it obviously wasn't shaking when he shot that guy.

*This is the second head shot highlighted in the ep.

*Anyone else wondering what any fortune teller would have said that would be like she knows Elizabeth? Yeah, I admit it, I give the show a lot of leeway with lines like that. Your whole life is just ironic under these circumstances.

*Philip randomly wearing a hat is probably the weirdest thing to notice for Henry. Like, who does that? Just suddenly picks up a hat out of nowhere for 5 minutes?

*So if all this had worked out wouldn't Philip have met Emmett's family? He told him to come to the room. Unless Emmett expected to be gone by then, but obviously Jared could have come back at any time. It seems like the whole family was just going back to the room.

*Btw, names KGB ops name their kids in the 1960s: Paige, Henry, Amelia, Jared.

*Third, fourth and fifth headshot victims...

*I have no idea if them being seen the hallway will be an issue. Elizabeth might have been seen coming out of that room by the couple when she left. With Philip it seems like he would have been seen coming out of a room around there, but not necessarily that one. And Jared doesn't see him come out of any room.

*The Jared scene is still the worst. That agonizing moment for Philip goes right to that original set up for him pre-credits, just as Elizabeth seeing Paige with the facepaint goes to hers.

*Philip stands there until Jared goes in, and then runs away like he doesn't want to know what happens next. But he can't outrun the screams.

*I also like the screams of the amusement park over Jared's screams. Life is just always ironic for these people!

*Philip, especially, is clearly terrified when he runs up to the kids. If Paige has her antennae up she should definitely be wondering wtf happened.

*I love watching Philip decode with his little book. Somebody said the name for those books but I forget what they were called.

*I love Elizabeth's totally pointless security measures in locking the windows. It's like Scarlet O'Hara locking the Yankees out in Atlanta.

*I love how after the whispered convo on what the things they now have are, and Philip wanting Elizabeth to rest rather than run out to signal, that what Philip really feels is important to get out there is that he shouldn't have used Henry. That's a sticking point to him, I think, in ways it's not to Elizabeth. Not that it's not also serious to her, but I don't know that she yet gets the kind of spiral Philip's heading into.

*So Elizabeth says he ought to go to Martha in case the FBI knew, and then I think she says she'll stay up. I guess telling him that she'll be on watch all night because he needs to see if there's any info about this to be learned. I had missed the first time that she's announcing the intention to be on watch all night. Philip's going to signal on the way over to Martha's.

*Aww. I forgot about Sandra. Folding laundry in the living room like a real American.

*So Sandra and Stan aren't separated, he's just usually out like last season.

*The greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing. But it is possible to take that a little too far. See: The Jennings.

*Sandra's adorable.

*These kinds of movies play different when you're not actually cheating.

*God, this scene with Martha is just so...bleak. The Clark costume almost reads like a prison in this scene, with Philip looking out through the eyeholes.

*Elizabeth's got the bedroom door open tonight so she can watch others. Of course, if Paige wakes up she'll have to cover for Dad.

Re: On rewatch

[jae]

Btw, this is the first time one of these two has taken off a wig to reveal a head full of...glue, I guess?

It is!

On Twitter the writers were all: "this'll show you to demand a wig malfunction! when wigs malfunction, innocent busboys DIE!" ;)

I think it was really more that Philip was being cruel to that viewer by making her think he'd be the good guy.

Yeah, well, if he HAD let the kid go, he would have been being cruel to ME, because I would have been all: "GOD, Philip, the guy SAW YOUR FACE!" and fretted about it for weeks. ;)

But I'm still really bowled over by MR's silent performance in the car. He turns off the country music and takes off that hat at the same time, like he wants to get rid of this character.

I loved, loved, loved that touch, too.

Still, the kiss ends with a duplicitous look between them, so not as romantic as it could be.

I didn't read that look as duplicitous, more like..."we have work to do."

I like that Stan is, as someone else called it, officially "Javert-ized" about these illegals.

Javert-ized! :D Love.

-J

[shapinglight]

You all have watched and discussed this episode weeks ago whereas I've only just got around to watching it today, so I'll confine myself to saying great premier and boy, was Meryl Streep's English accent terrible!

[jae]

Thanks for stopping in after you watched! I'm glad you liked it. :)

And wow, was that really supposed to be an English accent??? That's shocking--Streep is actually famously good at accents.

-J