Episode discussion post: "The Deal"

[jae]

Aired:
26 March 2014 in the U.S. and Canada
30 March 2014 in Israel
12 April 2014 in the UK

This is a discussion post for episode 205 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 two, episode five.)

Original promo trailers

"Next On: The Deal" (Watch on YouTube)

"The Americans: Exclusive Scene from Episode 5" (Watch on YouTube)

Episode recaps

From Grantland
From The New York Times
From Time
From Vulture
From The Washington Post
From Rolling Stone
From The AV Club
From Hitfix
From the Huffington Post
From Collider
From Sound on Sight
From IGN
From Television Without Pity
From TV Ate My Wardrobe
From Geekbinge
From showratings.tv
From screenrant.com
From GAMbIT Magazine
From Crave Online
From spoilertv.com
From tv.com
From Unreality Primetime
From Newsmanone

Comments

Re: Elizabeth and Brad

[sistermagpie]

Yeah, I really took Elizabeth's curiosity as healthy rather than indicating any problem with him or her. Up until now I don't think she's wanted anybody to maker her his, but Philip behaving that way in bed she finds intriguing and she would probably try it because she trusts him enough to role play (and honestly, why not tap into that given how good they both are at it, as long as there are groundrules?

I wonder too, though, if this is another area where Elizabeth seems to be the one with the issue when Philip actually has the same issue, only doesn't make it as clear. The two of them have both had, it seems, one relationship that was just normal and for themselves, and it was when they were younger. Elizabeth had hers longer, but it was still very controlled. Philip, too, has spent most of his adult life having sex that was all about the other person, either because they were a source or because he didn't feel like Elizabeth wanted him enough to put up with too many wrong moves. So both of them at this point might be a little flummoxed at someone asking how they like it for themselves. They've I think started that sort of thing back in the pilot, but now they're considering branching out into other areas of their personalities since that's worked well so far.

Re: Elizabeth and Brad

[katiac]

Up until now I don't think she's wanted anybody to make her his

Agree. That seems to go against everything we've seen of Elizabeth.

I think the fact that trust is now so high between Philip and Elizabeth is a huge part of it. And that's a pretty recent development. They knew they both had feelings from the time of the pilot, but there was a lot of back and forth, and a lot of hurt as lies from the past came to light. They had to deal with all that, then a separation, and although we saw some happy times, they didn't seem to last more than a few weeks at a time during season one. Now they've been through a painful separation, gotten past the lies, and despite everything that happened, they have proven so many times over they're committed to each other through all of it and before anyone else. There's a huge element of trust and security that's just now coming into place that wasn't there fully before, but sort of an untested version.

And so I could see that being true in their sexual relationship too. Philip might finally be at a place where he could safely ask for things in bed and not be afraid Elizabeth would push him away if he asked for something she didn't like. Elizabeth is in a place of truly being intimate with and trusting a sexual partner, so she might finally be in a place where she could consider whether some things she earlier would've dismissed might be nice to bring into the bedroom.