That's an interesting take I hadn't thought of- and probably closer to the real dynamic.

It is. I think there are a lot of possible reactions. I have a sinking suspicion that if my parents had come to me with that story when I was 14, my loyalty to my family would have won out and I'd have blurted out something stupid and reckless like, "Of course I'm on your side! I just wish you'd told me sooner! Is…

Recognizing irony wasn't a strong suit of the Soviet Union in general. My favorite line from this episode was when Elizabeth explained (without so much as a chuckle) that they "fight for the cause of peace around the world"

She's not, though. Philip's fake interest in religion as a tool to manipulate Kimmie might well (like so many of the other things Philip starts out faking) be gradually turning into something real.

This is a show obsessed with observation. The way his conversation with Philip at the travel agency was shot (and the unguarded -and unsettling- expressions that both men allowed to cross their faces on the assumption that they were unseen) makes me very suspicious that Pastor Tim is not exactly what he appears to be.

It might - it depends on how the show handles it, if that's the path they're planning to take. (He might also potentially be working for the CIA, which had a certain knack for using charitable NGOs as cover for their operations in the developing world) So far, we've only caught indirect glimpses of the CIA in action,…

I don't think so. Philip have both gone to considerable lengths to keep the Center from spying on them and/or meddling directly in their family life. When Claudia had the temerity to "test" her and Philip's loyalty, Liz (of all people) flared into violent rebellion and almost sent her handler to the emergency room;…

That would have required Philip and Liz to inform the Center of this development, which they clearly considered doing (that scene of Phil holding the phone until the dial tone runs out, to be replaced by an anxious busy signal) but then decided against.

If it was Liz, I'd have wondered that too. . . although even Liz would have probably finished the sentence with something ominous but vague, like: ". . .terrible things will happen, [beat] worse than you should ever have to imagine."

I don't think Philip was using the knife as a threat, so much as a symbol (or an unconscious reminder, depending on how perceptive Paige is) of the presence of danger. Paige doesn't know what her parents (or Stan, for that matter) are capable of, let alone how they'd actually react if she squealed. . .but she…

Don't forget the "Agent WILLOW" subplot, which is sucking oxygen from all of the above, and probably should have been kept in reserve for next season.

I don't think Elizabeth or Philip would have ever come up with the idea of recruiting Paige to join the KGB on their own. The "second generation illegal" program was the Center's brilliant idea. Absent that, I think they'd have probably chosen to keep lying to Paige forever, since their responsibility as parents (to…

I agree. One of the most interesting facets of this show is the way it explores the fine line between fake relationships and real ones. To quote Kurt Vonnegut (or at least paraphrase him), "In time, we become what we pretend to be. So we must be very, very careful when we're deciding who we're pretending to be."

They kind of did. Elizabeth is trying to recruit her to the KGB and Philip is trying to discourage her. To accomplish their respective goals, they both need to keep their credibility with Paige (or however much of it they can still salvage).

It wouldn't surprise me a bit. I forget which country Pastor Tim is going on a mission to, but I think he might have mentioned Kenya. Kenya's an interesting story in 1983 because there was an unsuccessful coup attempt against Kenya's democratically elected (and US-aligned) president in 1982, after which he turned the…

Trying it earlier would be a double-edged sword. A younger Paige would have been a lot more accepting, but also much worse at keeping secrets. I don't think Paige is going to go to the authorities, but it's very, very possible that she'll simply say "no."

That's kind of the genius of this part of the season, though. . . Rick and his group have faced every kind of false Utopia there is. The CDC's cure-or-euthanasia bunker; the Governor's micro-dictatorship; the prison commune that they tried and failed to build themselves; and the joyously fraudulent cannibal cult of…

That's quite possible. . .although with the exception of fanatics like Claudia, Gabriel, and (probably) Elizabeth, I think all of the characters on the show could be broken if interrogators were to come at them from just the right angle.

Did Philip actually play that tape for her, though? (Also, the undoctored tape wasn't a whole lot better, which makes me think Martha's probably overheard a lot of ugly conversations)

I think the reviewer glossed over that conversation because (s)he doesn't know how to interpret it and doesn't want to risk looking foolish by making a bad guess. (We enjoy certain luxuries down here in the peanut gallery).