The Americans on FX

So why doesn't "the job" work as an excuse for Stan? The job is what put him in this position with Nina. If he was working in another part of the FBI he'd just be a guy struggling to reestablish himself with his family after a long, horrible undercover stint. That hardly makes him a two-faced scumbag.

Gaad's got a little bit of the smug, dickish boss thing going, but he's fiercely loyal to his agents and is basically taking the fall for Stan. Nina's already betrayed her country and her lover. If she was average looking she'd be dead or a prisoner in Siberia already. Elizabeth strung along both her "husband" and lover for years until one of them wound up dead. Claudia is ruthless, even with the Russian agents she's handling.

 

Grandma had her own agents tortured last year.
Both Grandma and Stan have engaged in a revenge killing, but at least Grandma was reasonably sure she was murdering someone who was culpable.

As for Stan's affair, I guess it's a little different than Phillip and Elizabeth's use of sex, but Gad set up the apartment specifically because he wanted Stan and Nina to engage in an affair.

 

If we exclude "want to bone" and "want to be him while he bones all these women," then the only character I actually like is Gaad.

I still want a GIF of him yelling "Get In The Cars!"

 

I'm a big fan of Oleg. I liked that episode a lot.

 

I am too now. Oleg and Gaad. Everyone else can suck it figuratively or literally.

Fuck Stan and his "I'm tall and played football so society naturally looks to me for leadership even though I've been a fuckup for awhile now" aura. I'm enjoying his downfall quite a bit.

 

I chuckled at the tease for next week's episode ...

Stan to Oleg: "We're not in anything together."

Ummmm ...

 

Elizabeth's gonna shoot the hell out of that Sandinista. Shoot her dead.

 

I'm waiting for the episode when The Hunt for Red October comes out and it turns out the book was a total Psy-Op by the CIA.

 

Officially renewed for a third season.

https://twitter.com/TheAmericansFX/status/456501703802503169

 

Called it! (well, close enough)

God, this season is setting up so nicely. If they can pay it off half as well as they paid off last season, this is going to be an all-timer in television history.

The escalation of sympathy for random victims has been my favorite part. There was something shocking about the busboy in the season premiere, but that happens on a spy show. Then we got the scene in the computer lab last, where you knew what was coming, but the visual of janitor-Phillip coming up behind the kid was still awesome.

Then last night with the guy in the woods? Fantastic.

I can't wait to see the endgame for all this.

 

Matthew Rhys gets more phenomenal with every episode.

 

Yep. The scene at the end with the pastor was incredible. When he walked in with the gloves on, I got a lump in my throat.