Also, I LOVE Better Call Saul so far. I think it does the slow burn very well. I also happen to have started my own law practice, and I can relate to certain plot developments. To me, the reality is sufficiently heightened, with a great balance of realism.

I think there's a point at which fiction can be so realistic as to make real life far more interesting. The characters on The Americans are spies who, in Season 3, live a life far less interesting than the lives of most people I know. Stan Beeman might be the most boring (and side note: stupid) FBI agent who ever…

That's really interesting. I was 15 in the mid-90s, and religion was far less important to most of my friends. All that said, if teen baptisms were normal in the mid 80s wouldn't Russian spies want to appear supportive of that to keep up appearances? And aren't these particular Russian spies adept enough at mind games…

I think it could be great, and I have a real hard time separating from shows. This to be is a B-/C+ season. I have to feel like a show is a D before I just cut out.

No, I just have a different opinion. Which is indeed a real thing that happens, often without irony.

I think this is only show that really gets me. I don't always agree on shows, but The Americans bothers me because it COULD be great, and it's not. The characters are either terrible people or dull cutlery. They don't always behave like human begins. I can't buy into this dumb fucking baptism being such a big deal. I…

It's interesting because this article posits that this show is "perfectly the art of the slow burn." Isn't that statement premature if we don't know what the payoff is? If this season lands with a thud, The Americans hasn't perfected anything.

Yeah, there's got to a payoff, right? I VERY RARELY cut and run with a show once I get this far. Like, Caprica and The Killing are ab out the only two examples I can think of.

Maybe.

Well,

Ugh. No the show just sucks. Indeed, it is possible for genuine humans to not like The Americans.

Thank you.

"the comedic genius that is Mail Robot"

This is just a ludicrous statement. Objectively speaking, your opinion makes no sense.

Wow, the ultimate justification for the eight-week suckfest that is The Americans Season 3. I guess when your characters do nothing but complain about the exact same problems every week for two months that now qualifies as an effective "slow burn."

Until The Show Becomes Unprofitable With The Condor.

SHONDA'S PEOPLE: Hey, Shonda, let's do an episode about the police shootings controversy. We'll populate the episode with stereotypes. Stereotypical white cops. Stereotypical angry black people. Stereotypical politicians, community activists. Also, Olivia Pope will be there. She will behave stereotypically as a…

Let's just agree on Sunny. I'm going to put on my spots.

I feel like Erik is trolling me with this grade. The Americans is still playing checkers with chess pieces and stringing us along through nine weeks of filler. I'm sure we'll get three fine episodes at the end of Season 3, but it's amazing how people lap up this fucking weak-sauce Kool-Aid.

The fact that Banshee isn't in the Top 35 is a pretty irresponsible oversight. I trust AVClub to find awesome shows that I wouldn't ordinarily stumble on. And now that I've discovered Banshee, I'm sort of angry that AVC delayed that discovery by several months. WHAT ELSE ARE YOU HIDING FROM ME!?!