It’s Good to be Home Again. Advance Review of Season Two Premiere: The Americans

Season 2, Episode 1

Airdate: Wednesday, February 26, 2014, 10 pm ET/PT on FX

Rating: ★★★★★

If fans were worried that the second season of The Americans wouldn’t be as great as the first, worry no more. Season two is masterful at its storytelling; it’s intriguing, captivating, charismatic, and full of the deceit, treachery, sexual escapades, and even more irony than we saw in its freshman season. This is definitely on my must-see TV list this season, and should be on yours.

The Americans is a fascinating tale of two Russians, Elizabeth (Keri Russell) and Philip Jennings (Matthew Rhys), who were sent to the United States as deep undercover Soviet operatives cum travel agents. They married and eventually had two children, son Henry (Keidrich Sellati) and daughter Paige (Holly Taylor), and now live next door to FBI agent, Stan Beeman (Noah Emmerich) and his wife Sandra (Susan Misner). The series represents the machinations of the Cold War at its best.

Last season, The Americans spent time showcasing the difficulties Elizabeth and Philip, and Stan and Sandra, were having in their relationships. Philip obviously loved Elizabeth more than she loved him, and Stan was becoming deeply enamored of his asset inside the Rezidentura, Nina (Annet Mahendru). Stan was “thisclose” to capturing the elusive Soviet spies in “The Colonel,” last season’s finale, but this season, that is no longer the case. This will make the Jennings’ lives less complicated—if that’s what you can call a life burdened with murder, sex, and lies.

When we last saw Elizabeth and Philip, Elizabeth was recovering from a gunshot to her stomach after the botched meeting with the Colonel (Victor Slezak). In the beginning of “Comrades,” Philip brings Elizabeth home from her extended recuperation where she is greeted with excited hugs and kisses from her kids who think their mother has been away taking care of someone. In the world of The Americans, however, nothing is as it seems.

Paige is apparently going to play a significant role this season with all the snooping she’s doing. She’s not sure exactly what is going on but she knows something isn’t quite right with her parents. She needs to be careful because she’s liable to see something she can’t unsee. And I’m not just talking about the bedroom scene in “Comrades.” That brings up the question of what Elizabeth and Philip will do should Paige uncover their true identities. Will the love of child prevail or will their love for Mother Russia rule their actions?

Now that family is the main focus of The Americans this season, as confirmed by Rhys in a conference call last week, I wonder how Elizabeth is going to deal with Philip aka Clark’s pseudo marriage to Martha (Alison Wright), which is going to become more complicated this year. It was one thing when Elizabeth was more invested in her mission than she was in her marriage but it’s another thing altogether now. So I asked Rhys whether jealousy was going to raise its ugly head now that Elizabeth has developed genuine incongruity feelings for Philip, and he confirmed that indeed, jealousy will play a large part of the second season of The Americans. I will be posting the transcript of that conference call as soon as I receive it from FX.

I love the bits of nostalgia in “Comrades,” like WKRP in Cincinnati playing on the TV, the knock-off tapes of Mad Max and The French Lieutenant’s Woman, and Rod Stewart’s “Passion” that a KGB agent is listening to in order to become “familiar with American music.”

Speaking of The French Lieutenant’s Woman, not only does Stan give it to Nina for them to watch together in their love nest, he then goes to see it with Susan. This is one small example of the irony that makes one think about what is really going on in any one particular scene of The Americans. Looks like Stan is letting his heart rather than his brain prevail this season, and that could have dangerous consequences for this symbol of truth, justice, and the American way. Especially now that Arkady (Lev Gorn) has turned Nina and she is playing Stan for all he’s worth.

As usual, the acting is stellar, the cinematography and directing outstanding, and the dialogue is brilliant. I mustn’t forget to mention the hair and makeup department as Philip’s disguises are even better in season two. In “Comrades,” Rhys sports a cowboy diplomat disguise in one scene, which is undeniably brilliant. It never ceases to amaze me how easily Rhys slips from one dialect into another, especially given his natural Welsh accent.

This season, the Jennings will be questioning the lies they have told in the past—to each other, to their Soviet counterparts, to friends, and most of all, their children. It will be interesting to see how they deal with this turnaround from season one, which focused more on the unraveling of their relationship, and carrying out their missions. What will be the most intriguing to see is how Elizabeth and Philip deal with the psychological toll their convoluted lives take on each of them and as a loving couple trying to keep their children safe. Oh, one more tidbit from the conference call—Margo Martindale will be reprising her role as Granny/Claudia!

Come back here or tweet me @SeasideTV after you’ve seen “Comrades,” and let me know what you think about the episode and season two in general. I’d love to discuss this with you!

Tune in to the season two premiere of The Americans Wednesday, February 26, 2014, 10:00 pm ET/PT, only on FX.

LIKE The Americans on Facebook.

Follow the show on Twitter, as well as these cast members: Philip @MatthewRhys, Stan Beeman @NoahEmmerich, and Nina @AnnetMahendru.

Visit the show’s official website to stay current.

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Linda

Love TV, movies, and books--mostly mysteries, with a good love story thrown in every now and then. I have four adopted dogs who I adore. I love trying new recipes, and enjoy eating what I make. English language perfectionist. Reading in bed, Italian food, warm weather, the beach, all types of games = favs!