The Americans Season 4, Episode 9 – “The Day After”
Directed by Daniel Sackheim
Written by Tracey Scott Wilson
Starring: Keri Russell, Matthew Rhys, Lev Gorn, Susan Misner, Costa Ronin, Keidrich Sellati, Holly Taylor, Richard Thomas, Dylan Baker, Alison Wright, Noah Emmerich, and Frank Langella FX
Air date: Wednesday, May 11th, 2016, 10pm
Fleetwood Mac has forged an inescapable bond with The Americans. Before the series premiered, critics were already praising the show’s now infamous use of “Tusk,” for good reason: it took something familiar (Fleetwood Mac needle-drops often find themselves frequently used in popular culture) and put a new spin on it (“Tusk” is, for someone like me, not something I’d ever remembered hearing on the radio and was therefore a new and fresh dimension of a band I was already familiar with). The inclusion of “Tusk” defined the show early on in the same way: we might know the tropes and typical beats of a spy story, but this show was going to bring something bold and new to the genre.
The Americans Season 4, Episode 8 – “The Magic of David Copperfield V: The Statue of Liberty Disappears”
Directed by Matthew Rhys
Written by Stephen Schiff
Starring: Keri Russell, Matthew Rhys, Lev Gorn, Susan Misner, Costa Ronin, Keidrich Sellati, Holly Taylor, Richard Thomas, Dylan Baker, Alison Wright, Noah Emmerich, and Frank Langella FX
Air date: Wednesday, May 4th, 2016, 10pm
It can sometimes be counterproductive to look at the title of an episode and distill the events solely though that title, but it’s apt that the “The Magic of David Copperfield V: The Statue of Liberty Disappears“ centers around the disappearance of people, emotions, and (ultimately) time. I’m starting to sound like a broken record, but the eighth installment of The Americans‘ fascinatingly confident fourth season is a series highlight in a string of episodes that have been consistently some of the best the show has ever produced.
The Americans Season 4, Episode 7 – “Travel Agents”
Directed by Dan Attias
Written by Tanya Barfield
Starring: Keri Russell, Matthew Rhys, Lev Gorn, Susan Misner, Costa Ronin, Keidrich Sellati, Holly Taylor, Richard Thomas, Dylan Baker, Alison Wright, Noah Emmerich, and Frank Langella FX
Air date: Wednesday, April 27th, 2016, 10pm
The Americans isn’t a show that has a dense number of concurrent plots, so it is somewhat of a rarity for those additional narratives to slow in service of a larger story. But when the show focuses on a singular plot, it typically means we’re in for a doozy. “Travel Agents” delivers; heightening and lifting the show’s normal atmosphere of tension and dread to frightening new levels.
The Americans Season 4, Episode 5 – “Clark’s Place”
Directed by Noah Emmerich
Written by Peter Ackerman
Starring: Keri Russell, Matthew Rhys, Lev Gorn, Annet Mahendru, Susan Misner, Costa Ronin, Keidrich Sellati, Holly Taylor, Richard Thomas, Dylan Baker, Alison Wright, Noah Emmerich, and Frank Langella FX
Air date: Wednesday, April 13, 2016, 10pm
The Noah Emmerich-directed “Clark’s Place” quickly moves Martha (Alison Wright) and the Jennings (Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys) from out of frying pan and into the fire.
The Americans Season 4, Episode 4 – “Chloramphenicol”
Directed by Stefan Schwartz
Written by Tracey Scott Wilson
Starring: Keri Russell, Matthew Rhys, Lev Gorn, Annet Mahendru, Susan Misner, Costa Ronin, Keidrich Sellati, Holly Taylor, Richard Thomas, Dylan Baker, Alison Wright, Noah Emmerich, and Frank Langella
FX
Air date: Wednesday, April 6, 2016, 10pm
The Americans hasn’t been hiding the fact that a major character on the show was bound for a meeting with their makers and that it was just simply a matter of time. Those events came to pass last week’s fantastic episode and we’ve got your spoiler-filled review of “Chloramphenicol” here below.
Students of the Unusual™ comic cover used with permission of 3BoysProductions
The Mercuri Bros.™ comic cover used with permission of Prodigal Son Press