Episode discussion post: "Baggage"

[jae]

Aired:
4 February 2015 in the U.S. and Canada

This is a discussion post for episode 302 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 three, episode two.)

Original promo trailer

"The Americans 3x02 Promo "Baggage" / This Season on The Americans" (Watch on YouTube)

Episode recaps

From Hitfix
From The AV Club
From The Atlantic
From the LA Times
From Slant Magazine
From IGN
From TV.com
From Sound on Sight
From Geeks of Doom
From TVEquals
From examiner.com
From TV Ate My Wardrobe
From the International Business Times
From Uproxx
From MovieNewsGuide
From MStarz
From Starpulse
From Romance at Random
From SpoilerTV

Comments

Russian chocolate

[jae]

I never knew the Soviet Union, but I lived for a little while in a different Warsaw Pact country (just before everything went nuts there), and in that country at least Russian chocolate was definitely regarded as inferior to Western chocolate. Maybe that was because "Western chocolate" was usually West German chocolate rather than American chocolate?

-J

Re: Russian chocolate

[lovingboth]

Ha, yes. American chocolate is 'brown stuff'.

Re: Russian chocolate

[alley_skywalker]

I actually talked to my mom about it, and she was surprised that anyone would consider Halloween-type candy (including Milky Ways) to be better than some of the mainstream chocolate candy that was available in the Soviet Union. She said it was always one of those things which things, like other American products, which was interesting because it was so alien, but in no way amazing quality-woe.

Re: Russian chocolate

[cadma]

Zinaida came across as kind of eccentric to me so I read it as saying more about her personality as someone who might get really into a specific type of kids' chocolate than about the USSR. I don't know a lot about daily life there but should it be a default assumption that everyone was completely deprived -- wouldn't there be quite a difference between a young single mother in a provincial city in the forties and a high-up civil servant in Moscow in the eighties? I know Zinaida wouldn't've had as much as her US equivalents but without that interview quote above I would've assumed she'd've had small luxuries like chocolate.

Re: Russian chocolate

[sistermagpie]

Someone elsewhere who lived in the USSR (not sure where) said that they did indeed get chocolate but remembered it as something that wasn't readily available. She had a few times a year--so nothing like having a vending machine in the lobby, but she probably had it plenty of times.

The person also said they had a relative that would send them Russian chocolate made in the US because it had the same good recipe but with richer ingredients.

So basically I really agree that I think this is supposed to be a very specific character point about this woman and not a sweeping statement about US vs. USSR. Even in the US you'd probably get the same difference of opinions on Halloween candy vs. Russian chocolate--one person would consider Milky Ways their favorite indulgence, somebody else wouldn't think anyone would prefer it over the other.

The great thing about this show, after all, is that there are multiple Russian characters who have different interests. Nobody else has shown much interest in that kind of junk food. But Philip likes country music, Oleg is into new wave and gospel, Arkady likes the cigarettes etc. But Elizabeth still slips horseradish into food when she can, Philip appreciates caviar that Stan doesn't, Philip and Elizabeth and Gabriel probably eat Russian dishes for a treat.