Keri Russel’s attempts at saying even the basic Russian words was always bad. Mathew Rhys was better at it, maybe because he’s bilingual.

I take your point that the idea that’s it’s a specifically male conspiracy against specifically women completely ignores the fact that men struggle with weight too (and seems to set up a needless battle of the sexes dynamic when this is not really about that).

Hooboy, this comment section turned into a shitshow very quickly.

God you’re a fucking idiot.

What a review! You so beautifully summed up the devastating end to this part of the characters lives. Excellent writing, very, very well done!

Erik, thanks to you and the other writers at AV Club for championing this show from day 1. It made my viewing experience even more enjoyable, especially considering all the tangents to explore on this show.

I keep thinking of this ending, and it’s better and better every time I come back to it. So much honesty, shocks without gimmicks, links to the broad themes of the show and history. And little enigmas like this, “I wish you’d stayed with me at EST. You might know what to do here...” Such a great, weird, specific…

2 lingering questions:

“He wouldn’t be allowed to continue in counter intelligence”

Anyone else catch the historical nod in the title? START, aka the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty signed by the US and USSR in 1991.

Reviewing Elizabeth’s shocked, horrified, mournful facial expressions in the finale w/r/t leaving her children + that DREAM - I’m struck by how often The Americans engaged with the engaged with the theme of difficult mothers — mothers who do not know how or who refuse to be maternal — over the entire series.…

I admit when I first started watching this show, I wasn’t that impressed with Noah Emmerich’s acting (it could’ve been that I just didn’t like his character initially). But his acting, particularly this last season, changed my mind. The scene in the garage and his facial expressions as he’s listening to Phil....…

I couldn’t disagree more. It was absolutely in character for Stan to let them go. He has a long history of letting his personal feelings cloud his judgement, of prioritizing people/relationships over country/duty (Nina, Oleg). He loved Philip and the Jennings. As he said, he would have done anything for them. And he…

I knew Id be emotional, and I was definitely on the edge of my seat the entire time. Really *anything* could have happened. I didn’t expect that scene in the garage to happen - at least not so early in the episode. And if Stan and the Jennings ended up in a room together, I figured *someone* would end up dead. I held…

Ah, the gag reels! Also known as “pretty much the only time we see Elizabeth smile in The Americans.”

That was simply amazing. Wow! One of the best finales I’ve ever seen.

“I wish you stayed with me in EST”-

Maybe I’m a prisoner of the moment, but “I think there’s a chance Renee might be one of us...... I don’t know” is the best series cliffhanger ever.

I was so broken inside for him when I realized that after he left the garage and resumed the useless stakeout, every second, every fucking single second after that, he was committing treason, again and again and again, and for the rest of his life.

I liked how Stan is torn about his wife but cares to tuck her in. He is a human being.