Episode cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Keri Russell | ... | Elizabeth Jennings | |
Matthew Rhys | ... | Philip Jennings | |
Brandon J. Dirden | ... | Dennis Aderholt | |
Costa Ronin | ... | Oleg Burov | |
Keidrich Sellati | ... | Henry Jennings | |
Holly Taylor | ... | Paige Jennings | |
Margo Martindale | ... | Claudia | |
Noah Emmerich | ... | Stan Beeman | |
Reed Birney | ... | Patrick McCleesh | |
Scott Cohen | ... | Glenn Haskard | |
Lev Gorn | ... | Arkady Zotov | |
Laurie Holden | ... | Renee | |
Miriam Shor | ... | Erica Haskard | |
Anthony Arkin | ... | Stavos | |
Michael Khmurov | ... | General Kovtun |
In the season 6 premiere of The Americans: it's autumn, 1987, and as a major arms control summit looms, Elizabeth is pushed to her limits as never before. Philip, meanwhile, has settled into running the newly expanded travel agency - until an unexpected visitor makes a disquieting request.
I got so sick of being forced to listen to the idiotic "soundtrack" to this episode, which at times blared over the actors' dialogue, other times went on and on and on pointlessly while the actors just broodingly stared into space like they were ruminating on Deep Thoughts by Jack Handey.
I normally very much enjoy this otherwise superb series, even though I hate the whole Paige sideshow and her Polyanna religious fanatic schtick. But this introduction to Season 6 falls flat on its face, making a critical observer wonder whoever hired the idiot music director and who allowed him to create what is nothing more than a pointless and utterly imbecilic mix tape to serve as the audio for this episode. Crowded House and Fleetwood Mac were fantastic groups in the '80's, but their songs inserted here (at full volume, no less) have no relevance to the episode any more than would inserting a scene with pigs flying by. I fear for the rest of the season, if it's turned to crap so severely, that usually means that the series will soon be coming to an abrupt end, as the writers have exhausted their ideas. And usually, as with the end of Sons of Anarchy or Bloodline, by that time, the thing has gotten *so* bad that we're honestly and truly happy to see it go.