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The Americans (1 Viewer)

Uruk-Hai said:
A fitting end to what I thought was an excellent series. They had me off-balance the entire episode, but it all worked.

Paige on the train platform was the biggest "holy crap!" moment for me. And Elizabeth's reaction on seeing her there was probably the most surprised she's been the entire series.

To me, Noah Emmerich has always been this show's heart and secret weapon. If he doesn't get Emmy consideration after last night, it would be a damned shame.

I've had a blast discussing this show with you guys over the years. 
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The whole U2 scene honestly was just incredibly emotional.  When Paige ended up on the platform I shed a tear.  Liz and Phil really can act with out saying anything you feel their emotion. 

 
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schlesinj said:
The whole U2 scene honestly was just incredibly emotional.  When Paige ended up on the platform I shed a tear.  Those Liz and Phil really can act with out saying anything you feel their emotion. 
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The way Elizabeth looked out the window. :cry:  

 
I thought it was a nice touch how Phillip and Elizabeth both told Paige they had to act like everything was normal on the phone with Henry, but no matter how hard they tried, they couldn't keep it completely together

 
schlesinj said:
The whole U2 scene honestly was just incredibly emotional.  When Paige ended up on the platform I shed a tear.  Liz and Phil really can act with out saying anything you feel their emotion. 
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The pace of this show also ran so counter to most media today. It was slow.  Measured. Purposeful. 

Not flashy nor in your face. 

To play that whole song was freeing and gut wrenching at the same time. It went on forever yet never a moment that felt dull.  Really tremendous work. 

 
Koya said:
The pace of this show also ran so counter to most media today. It was slow.  Measured. Purposeful. 

Not flashy nor in your face. 

To play that whole song was freeing and gut wrenching at the same time. It went on forever yet never a moment that felt dull.  Really tremendous work. 
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Loved how it stopped and picked up again when they saw her. 

 
Koya said:
The pace of this show also ran so counter to most media today. It was slow.  Measured. Purposeful. 

Not flashy nor in your face. 

To play that whole song was freeing and gut wrenching at the same time. It went on forever yet never a moment that felt dull.  Really tremendous work. 
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It felt like the longest version of the song I've ever heard, yet totally gripping.

My first post in this thread but I've been reading along.  Loved the series and couldn't wait for the finale to start, yet didn't want to watch knowing it was the end.

 
pantherclub said:
I honest to God thought they were going to end the show when they stopped the car and the camera would pan over their shoulders showing a McDonalds that they were looking at.  Kindof foreshadowing earlier and it would be a reveal that everything they did was in vain and they lost their kids.
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I read that the first McDonald's came to Russia in 1990.

 
Koya said:
Stan going to see Henry was a perfect example. Uplifting as Stan was in many ways more a dad to Henry than Philip, and yet even as you were happy to see him more formally assume that role, it was to break the kids heart about his entire life.
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I'd add that perhaps Stan was more of a father to Henry than his own son, at least in recent years.

 
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schlesinj said:
Sepinwall said that they had to do that scene in one take since it took place on the train.  
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I'll admit he train scene has one really weird nagging issue for me that most of you wouldn't see - it's supposed to be Amtrak across the border (the colors of the train in the exterior shots suggest that), but the scene on the quais and on the train were Long Island Rail Road (tried to ID the exact station but at first look couldn't do it - but I know the Americans have done a good amount of filming back home on Long Island. I'd see signs for locations where I lived, they shot a number of scenes in my hometown/where I lived a couple years ago and used the parking lot at the nearby beach for staging. 

So it was disconcerting to see the trains I have used so many times not be LIRR. Just a kinda random personal observation. 

 
Thought the ending was great.  phenomenal.

The garage scene had me on the edge of my seat. Did anyone else think it could have ended up in a blood bath with Elizabeth taking out Stan? Would not have fit the theme at all, but they spent all season pushing Elizabeth's cold blooded killer side. I'm glad they didn't go that route but it sure added suspense to that scene. 

My only gripe, and it's a very minor one, was this: how did Stan know where Paige's apartment was? 

 
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Just watched it. Perfect ending to a great series. I can't say more than what was already said. I was glad I was in on this one day 1 (despite falling behind a season or so at S5). 

 
One of my all time favorite series. Even though I didn't want them to get away, I thought the finale worked really well. 

 
Great ending to an excellent series. I too thought that Stan was going to die in the garage. I also thought one of them would get busted on the train, mostly thought it would be Paige.

I like how the show rarely left any loose ends, even showing Martha a while back just shopping in a supermarket as well as how they wrapped up Oleg and his family back home.

No complaints about the series finale and that is rare. Well done all around.

 
Doctor Detroit said:
I think only the Sopranos was tougher to let go. The perfection in this show, in the stories, the characters, the cinematography was quite amazing. Gonna go back to season 1 now, for me this is a top 5 show ever. 
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Except the last season of this show was awesome. While last season dragged on, the final years of the sopranos became a caricature of itself, imo. 

 
Psychopav said:
Thought the ending was great.  phenomenal.

The garage scene had me on the edge of my seat. Did anyone else think it could have ended up in a blood bath with Elizabeth taking out Stan? Would not have fit the theme at all, but they spent all season pushing Elizabeth's cold blooded killer side. I'm glad they didn't go that route but it sure added suspense to that scene. 

My only gripe, and it's a very minor one, was this: how did Stan know where Paige's apartment was? 
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He's an FBI agent.

 
Poke_4_Life said:
I like to think after the wall came down in '89 Phillip and Elizabeth were able to travel to Europe and visit Paige and Henry. 

Loved the final episode. Great ending to a great series. 
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Even if they couldn't travel to the West because of charges, Henry and Paige should have been able to go to Russia

 
Watched it last night and - like everyone else - was blown away by the train platform scene. When Philip saw Paige through the window, he went dashing down the aisle and I thought maybe he was going to try to jump off. But, no, he was running to Elizabeth's side - disguises be damned - because he knew she would need him in that moment. Just slayed me.

I also loved seeing the price people paid and what meant most to them. For Oleg, his country's freedom meant the most, and it cost him years in prison and his family. For Philip and Elizaebth, what meant most was not getting caught - they were prepared for it to cost them Henry and it cost them Paige, too. For Stan, it was his friendship with Stan that ultimately meant more than his job and it cost him --- well, I think he paid the least price, because it didn't cost him his soul, which killing the Jennings would have.

What do we make of the scene with Paige back in Claudia's apartment, slamming vodka? Is that a hint she's going to continue the work of Claudia and her mother? Or is that she's the same kind of strong, independent woman they both were, and is now going to live life on her terms?

Finally, I keep thinking of Philip running into Martha in some Moscow street and imagining how that would go. Plus he can go find his son now.

 
The_Man said:
What do we make of the scene with Paige back in Claudia's apartment, slamming vodka? Is that a hint she's going to continue the work of Claudia
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I was thinking that and said to my wife "and her head grew 3 sizes that day"

 
The_Man said:
What do we make of the scene with Paige back in Claudia's apartment, slamming vodka? Is that a hint she's going to continue the work of Claudia and her mother? Or is that she's the same kind of strong, independent woman they both were, and is now going to live life on her terms?
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I think she just wanted some good vodka.

But seriously, I don't see how she would want to continue spying, after Stan telling her that her parents are murderers. She'd want nothing to do with that life now.

 
The_Man said:
Watched it last night and - like everyone else - was blown away by the train platform scene. When Philip saw Paige through the window, he went dashing down the aisle and I thought maybe he was going to try to jump off. But, no, he was running to Elizabeth's side - disguises be damned - because he knew she would need him in that moment. Just slayed me.

I also loved seeing the price people paid and what meant most to them. For Oleg, his country's freedom meant the most, and it cost him years in prison and his family. For Philip and Elizaebth, what meant most was not getting caught - they were prepared for it to cost them Henry and it cost them Paige, too. For Stan, it was his friendship with Stan that ultimately meant more than his job and it cost him --- well, I think he paid the least price, because it didn't cost him his soul, which killing the Jennings would have.

What do we make of the scene with Paige back in Claudia's apartment, slamming vodka? Is that a hint she's going to continue the work of Claudia and her mother? Or is that she's the same kind of strong, independent woman they both were, and is now going to live life on her terms?

Finally, I keep thinking of Philip running into Martha in some Moscow street and imagining how that would go. Plus he can go find his son now.
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Paige didn't know anything about Elizabeth going against Claudia and the Center, so I don't think she knew that Claudia was gone. (She probably assumed Claudia wouldn't be there, because of everything that happened, but perhaps wanted to see for sure.) Claudia was a grandmotherly figure to Paige, so I think the point of the scene was that, in the absence of her parents, Paige sought out someone close to her for comfort. Drinking by herself in the empty apartment showed how truly alone she was going to be.  

Also, I don't think Stan paid the least price. I think he paid the highest. He will forever be tortured inside because he's an FBI agent who never knew his best friend was a Russian spy who possibly killed an untold number of people, and he let him go. Like Stan said, his life's a joke. Not only that, but his wife could also be lying to him about who she really is. Stan is the most tragic character in the series, by far. If he had killed the Jennings, that could at least be justified. But letting them go can't be justified, not really. 

 
Did Stan say "I'm going to kill them" (I think to Aderholt in the conference room?) before or after the garage scene? 

For some reason that popped in my head and I'm thinking it was actually after, but that doesn't make much sense.

 
phandango said:
Also, I don't think Stan paid the least price. I think he paid the highest. He will forever be tortured inside because he's an FBI agent who never knew his best friend was a Russian spy who possibly killed an untold number of people, and he let him go. Like Stan said, his life's a joke. Not only that, but his wife could also be lying to him about who she really is. Stan is the most tragic character in the series, by far. If he had killed the Jennings, that could at least be justified. But letting them go can't be justified, not really. 
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Interesting - to me, Stan affirmed that a human relationship with someone could be more important than job or national loyalty, and that was the right decision for him. As a human, he'd rather let the Jenningses walk rather than kill them, and those were the only 2 choices he had at that moment. But i can also understand your point of view.

Another thing about Stan - in the last 2 episodes, twice he said he didn't care who Russia's leader was: once to Oleg, once to Phillip and Elizabeth. What do you make of that? Does it reflect short-sightedness about the difference Gorbachev could make? Or was it about his allegiance to the US being so complete, that it was fully irrelevant what was motivating his Russian adversaries? Regardless, that scene in the garage was incredible drama. 

 
Bobcat10 said:
Did Stan say "I'm going to kill them" (I think to Aderholt in the conference room?) before or after the garage scene? 

For some reason that popped in my head and I'm thinking it was actually after, but that doesn't make much sense.
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It was after. They showed it in previews last week to make it look like he would do something when he caught them.

 
jamny said:
It was after. They showed it in previews last week to make it look like he would do something when he caught them.
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Ah yes it was in the preview too, good call.

Still an interesting line.  Just trying to protect himself?

 
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Bobcat10 said:
Did Stan say "I'm going to kill them" (I think to Aderholt in the conference room?) before or after the garage scene? 

For some reason that popped in my head and I'm thinking it was actually after, but that doesn't make much sense.
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He had to act at least a little in front of Dennis. He can't ever let anyone know he had already confronted them.

 
That garage scene was incredible. And the way they did it immediately after the commercials was well done. BOOM...there's Stan.

 
jamny said:
Do you think they ended it the way they did to leave it open for a continuation in the future?
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I hope not.

As much as I loved this show, they ended it correctly IMHO. And I doubt there'd be a general clamor from anyone besides us and some TV critics to go there - the ratings weren't good.

Plus, I want to see what all of those talented folks get up to next.

 
The_Man said:
Interesting - to me, Stan affirmed that a human relationship with someone could be more important than job or national loyalty, and that was the right decision for him. As a human, he'd rather let the Jenningses walk rather than kill them, and those were the only 2 choices he had at that moment. But i can also understand your point of view.

Another thing about Stan - in the last 2 episodes, twice he said he didn't care who Russia's leader was: once to Oleg, once to Phillip and Elizabeth. What do you make of that? Does it reflect short-sightedness about the difference Gorbachev could make? Or was it about his allegiance to the US being so complete, that it was fully irrelevant what was motivating his Russian adversaries? Regardless, that scene in the garage was incredible drama. 
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What he says is irrelevant. He clearly cares and trusts Oleg and his best friend in terms of what he should do. He lets them go because of their conviction that Gorbachev should be protected in the name of peace. 

 
Uruk-Hai said:
I hope not.

As much as I loved this show, they ended it correctly IMHO. And I doubt there'd be a general clamor from anyone besides us and some TV critics to go there - the ratings weren't good.

Plus, I want to see what all of those talented folks get up to next.
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I don't think there's anything planned but just thinking that maybe they left their options open for something in the future. I agree though, the show probably didn't generate enough attention to warrant it.

 
So, I think they'll get Emmy nods in the Big Three categories. Plus, Emmerich better get a supporting nomination. And they'll probably get one for writing.

I don't know the technical categories well enough to speculate.

Don't they have a "guest star" category now? If so, the actress who played Erica should get one.

 
Question for the history buffs.  Are the guys/spies like Oleg still in captivity in the US or did they get released with the fall of the wall?

 
pantherclub said:
Question for the history buffs.  Are the guys/spies like Oleg still in captivity in the US or did they get released with the fall of the wall?
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I'm not a Cold War history expert, so I don't know what really happened.

But I have to think guys like Oleg have big-time value as trading chips. Especially since the Gorby faction wins out and he was working for them. The US could use Oleg to get their own Oleg-y guy out of some gulag.

 
Uruk-Hai said:
I'm not a Cold War history expert, so I don't know what really happened.

But I have to think guys like Oleg have big-time value as trading chips. Especially since the Gorby faction wins out and he was working for them. The US could use Oleg to get their own Oleg-y guy out of some gulag.
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In my very little understanding of that time in spy history but the US had a far less success rate in infiltrating the USSR. 

 
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