Spoiler Free Advance Review: The Americans - Pilot

Air Date: Wednesday, January 30, 2013, 10 pm ET/PT on FX

Rating: ★★★★★

Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys attend the FX Premiere of "The Americans" at the DGA Theater on January 26, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Brad Barket/PictureGroup/FX)

Keri Russell (Elizabeth Jennings) and Matthew Rhys (Philip Jennings) attend the FX Premiere of “The Americans” at the DGA Theater on January 26, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Brad Barket/PictureGroup/FX)

FX’s new show, The Americans, revolves around the lives of Elizabeth (Keri Russell) and Philip Jennings (Matthew Rhys). The Jennings are KGB spies posing as Americans (in an arranged marriage) in suburban Washington, D.C. shortly after Reagan was elected President. They have two children—13-year-old Paige (Holly Taylor) and 10-year-old Henry (Keidrich Sellati)—who know nothing about their parents’ real lives. As far as the kids know, they run a travel agency. Philip and Elizabeth are expert at slipping in and out of various personas, and the lies they tell their children roll off their tongues like water off a duck’s back.

According to FX, the Jennings’ relationship “grows more passionate and genuine by the day, but is constantly tested by the escalation of the Cold War and the intimate, dangerous, and darkly funny relationships they must maintain with a network of spies and informants under their control.” I couldn’t have described this better, as that is exactly what we get in the series premiere. Flashbacks to their time in Russia, including how and when they first meet, are employed to help set the background. How naïve Philip and Elizabeth were then, as we see when they first come to America as a married couple and are treated to their first encounter with a window air conditioning unit.

NEW YORK – JANUARY 26: Holly Taylor (Paige Jennings) attends the FX Premiere of “The Americans” at the DGA Theater on January 26, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Brad Barket/PictureGroup/ FX)

As the “Pilot” opens, we see Elizabeth in a blonde wig, seducing a man who we later find out is the person responsible for bringing ex-KGB Colonel Timishev (David Vadim) to the United States. Timishev wants to defect to the U.S., and in exchange for $3,000,000 is to provide information to the FBI about the various elite KGB Directorate S illegals—Russian spies posing as Americans. Russell is beautiful and quite the seductress. This role is as about as far as you can get from her days in the title role of J.J. Abrams’ hit TV series Felicity, for which she so received a well-deserved Golden Globe Award® for Best Performance by an Actress in a Drama Series.

Rhys changes his appearance as easily as I brush my teeth in the morning, and is very effective in his various roles. At one point, he plays Clark, an FBI Internal Affairs Division agent who helps oversee the FBI’s Counterintelligence Unit. He quite handily finds out everything the FBI knows about Timishev’s kidnapping, which he and Elizabeth had pulled off the previous evening, by interviewing a low-level employee in her home. Given what Timishev is trading for his freedom, it’s not hard to understand why Philip and Elizabeth have orders to keep that information from falling into the hands of the FBI.

NEW YORK – JANUARY 26: Keidrich Sellati (Henry Jennings) attends the FX Premiere of “The Americans” at the DGA Theater on January 26, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Brad Barket/PictureGroup/ FX)

Philip is doing an excellent job of adapting to his role as an American and a family man. While he wants to be a good husband and have a loving relationship with Elizabeth, she initially seems to have trouble with the sexual side of things. I suspect her wariness to have a sexual relationship with Philip, and to trust him completely, is due to the brutal rape she endured during a training session in Russia at the hands of the very man she and Philip kidnapped, and who is now spending his time locked up in the Jennings’ trunk.

The Americans does a good job with era-specific music and clothing, especially during Philip’s visit to the mall with Paige. Philip dancing a little two-step to Juice Newton’s “Queen of Hearts” while trying on some cowboy boots is funny, yet endearing, and helps bring levity to an otherwise serious drama. I found it strange, however, when he doesn’t immediately clock the lecherous-looking guy (Kevin McCormick), who obviously wants to recruit Paige into the seedy side of life. Every father I know would have done a lot more than just stand there and say, “Errol, she’s just 13,” especially after Errol responds, “13? I don’t know, daddy. She sure looks ready to me.”

Speaking of the music, I would be remiss if I didn’t comment on The Americans’ very effective use of songs to emphasize certain scenes. For instance, Phil Collins’ version of “In the Air” sets the mood during a critical turning point for Philip and Elizabeth, and Quarterflash’s “Harden My Heart” speaks volumes during Elizabeth’s seduction scene.

NEW YORK – JANUARY 26: Noah Emmerich (Agent Stan Beeman) attends the FX Premiere of “The Americans” at the DGA Theater on January 26, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Brad Barket/PictureGroup/ FX)

Elizabeth and Philip are faced with an unusual problem when they meet their new next-door neighbors, the Beemans. Turns out Stan (Noah Emmerich), the man of the household, is the newest member of the FBI tasked with catching Russian spies. It should be interesting to see how this relationship develops, given Stan and Philip are at opposite ends of the spy scale. While initially it appears they may become friends, wariness sets in as the episode progresses, and rightfully so. The other interesting part of the families’ relationship belongs to Paige and the Beemans’ son, Matthew (Daniel Flaherty). The look that passes between the youngsters is indicative of more than just a passing interest.

Philip wants to defect to America but Elizabeth is horrified at the thought. How this plays out will be an integral portion of The Americans. It’s easy to see how much their life in America is affecting Philip just from the scene at Henry’s school where everyone is standing, singing Francis Scott Key’s “Star Spangled Banner.”

For me, Rhys steals this episode. Whether he’s acting like a spy, a father, a husband, or a fake FBI agent, he conveys the nuances and situations of his various personas perfectly—be it with a smile, a scowl, or the way he throws a punch or a kick. Russell, on the other hand, is more believable as a spy than a mother or wife. Her fight scenes are well executed and the passion with which she says Elizabeth’s lines is so believable, it’s easy to picture her being a real-life KGB agent. “…I am a KGB officer. Don’t you understand that? After all these years, I would go to jail, I would die, I would lose everything before I would betray my country.” She even has the Russian accent down pat.

The only part of the “Pilot” that doesn’t ring true is the scene in the Jennings’ garage. There is so much noise, it’s impossible for the kids not to have heard what was going on. I know I may be nitpicking here, but if The Americans wants me to buy into this scenario, they have to get even the minutiae correct. That is not to say I don’t plan to watch the show because I most definitely do!

Towards the end of the episode, Elizabeth goes to a KGB safe house in Bethesda, MD to meet with General Zhukor (actor uncredited). What he tells her—“The orders are going to change now. The risks are going to be greater.”—makes me all that much more anxious to see how this story plays out. I am already invested in all the major players, and I think you will be too.

The Americans is compelling, intriguing, captivating, and exciting, with a bit of humor thrown in. If that’s not a recipe for success, I don’t know what is. The storylines are believable, the dialogue spot on, and the acting, for the most part, is impeccable. You would be wise to add this to your must-watch TV list.

Tune in to the series premiere of The Americans, Wednesday, January 30, 2013 at 10 pm ET/PT, only on FX.

LIKE The Americans on Facebook, and follow them on Twitter. Don’t forget to check in on Get Glue for exclusive premiere stickers, and visit the show’s official website for fun things to do, to download wallpaper, and watch exclusive videos and more.

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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!