I'm glad the stories are moving along but man, this episode was herky jerky. You could tell they were cramming in as much as they could by slamming the scenes together.

Yeah Elizabeth going from one scene to the next in different places and totally different disguises was just a rush job. used to get maybe 1 or 2 per episode. now she's jumping from one to the next (blonde, nurse, other, repeat). i get that it is part of how frantic it all is right now with the plot but....

Honestly Stan watching out the window I mean Elizabeth cannot have been home more than 5 minutes in the last week - she came home once last night and turned right around again and left. All Stan really would have to do is catch them in a lie of she is working late and go by the office and see that nobody is ever there after hours. She isn't always on a trip they only use that when she is actually gone. So check the office Stan.... or you know.... follow her.

It's too much risk right now and too many loose ends - I suppose thats the point and why they get caught.

But it's almost unbelievable they have not already. Stan knows but besides just watching from his window he could bring it all crashing down if he did any actual surveillance or following up on things (airline tickets, follow the car, watch the office, etc.).

Wasn't a lot of the dying artist's storyline moving towards Elizabeth actually having an awakening of sorts and looking to examine herself in a new way? While at this point I'm hoping for Elizabeth to have a bad ending just to ensure the others are better off, she has been headed towards a path of potential change in her humanity because the way the artist challenged her. The artist's death in addition Philip's admission & challenging her humanity was enough to at least get her to reconsider or slip in a few ways.

Here are my predictions for the suit (in order of likelihood):

1) Phillip is channeling his inner Clint Eastwood in Gran Torino and knows he's about to die.
2) He is going to meet with Henry's classmate's dad about booking travel for him and wants to look the part of a big-time travel agent
3) He's going to meet with a bank about taking out a huge loan to keep the business afloat, although I'm not sure that would cause the agony on his face unless he knows he can't repay it and will be saddling others with a bunch of debt if he dies or gets arrested.

And I agree with what others have said about there being way too many loose ends for a show with only 2 episodes left. Either they're planning a 5-hour finale, or both Phillip and Elizabeth are going to die, underscoring the chaos of the spy game they agreed to play and the havoc it wreaks on those around them.

2. makes the most sense as to why he called Henry out of the blue possibly as well.

He was sitting in the office looking forlorn and desperate. called henry. then went and got the suit.

Although I still don't understand why he doesn't run a con or rob someone in disguise. He has all the tools to pull off crimes - we've seen that. I actually thought for a second that was what the suit was for - some high dollar con.

Sasappis said:

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aTmAg said:

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Sasappis said:

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They are trying to redeem Elizabeth a little bit which pretty much flies in the face of everything else she has done this season. No way she does not kill that kid based on everything else she has done up until today.

A little annoying but I guess it is to be expected.


The bit with Phillip and the suit was pretty weird and an open ended question for next week.

Stan has it figured out but I am not sure if they actually get fully busted at this point.

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The change in Elizabeth has everything to do with what Philllip told her regarding the subversion of Gorbachev. She suddenly found out that she might be fighting for the wrong side. At that point, her gaining information about the summit is one thing (after all she herself wanted to know the truth), but killing an innocent over it is another. That is nothing like killing for the "good guys" (in her view).

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Except that she is a true believer and would be squarely in the camp opposing Gorbachev. She said it herself that she does not want the Soviet union to change and be like America.

Her entire existence is about protecting the Soviet union and Gorbachev fundamentally changed that in the late 80s. That is my point, they have spent the entire series and this season particularly showing who she is but that supposedly changed in a few hours.

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She didn't want Americans to push Americanism on the Soviets. It's different if decisions are made by the Soviets themselves. And the fact that the truth was concealed from her obviously pissed her off as well.

Sasappis said:

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2 is obviously the logical answer but it just seems like a weird thing to waste precious time on at this point.

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It may provide a way for him to be out of the area if and when Elizabeth gets taken down. He can grab Henry and go into hiding?

Or he has no warning when it happens and he gets taken down by surprise by his best friend...

I look at it this way and it doesn't bother me -> it has been clear over the course of the season that the artist was getting through to her. It was slow and something that had not impacted her actions until last night, but the introspection the artist was pushing was clearly building. So put her death with Phillip's speech then learning that the negotiation could be great for USSR, you get a break-through that seems sudden but in reality they'd laid the groundwork for it to happen.

DannyDuberstein said:

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I look at it this way and it doesn't bother me -> it has been clear over the course of the season that the artist was getting through to her. It was slow and something that had not impacted her actions until last night, but the introspection the artist was pushing was clearly building. So put her death with Phillip's speech then learning that the negotiation could be great for USSR, you get a break-through that seems sudden but in reality they'd laid the groundwork for it to happen.

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They did lay the groundwork but there was still something missing for the viewer to completely believe the transformation.

Phillip had the great scene with Elizabeth at the beginning of the episode that tied it all together emotionally, "it's on us... all of it," and he's always been her conscience, but we don't see the wheels spinning for her enough to completely buy the transformation that takes place for her by the end of the episode. This show is usually more careful and artful about these things, and I think they missed the mark on a pretty pivotal bit of character development.

On another conscience- related note, I have to question whoever it was that asked why Phillip didn't kill Stavros. He's wracked with guilt for firing him, and you think he's going to kill him to tie up a loose end?

Sasappis said:

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The woman kills like cancer but now she has a conscious? I find leaving the kid alive much worse than the negotiator. I get the party loyalty pitch but operationally that kid is a huge problem. Much more so than some of the other kills she had made this season.

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I had the exact same problem with last night's episode. Remember how hard she came down on Paige for using her self-defense training in the bar, as if someone was going to see her fighting back and immediately think, "Aha! She's totally a Russian spy?"

Meanwhile, I'm supposed to believe that hanging out with a dying artist and a single rah-rah speech by Phillip are enough to prevent her from offing a kid who's seen her naked, has a key to the hotel room she stayed in the night before, and who caught her red-handed bugging the US State Department because she told him not to tell anyone? Zero percent chance that kid would have made it out of the car alive in any other episode this series.

Sasappis said:

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I get what you are saying and it is not surprising they are trying to humanize her at the end, but they have taken her character so far as a committed ideologue that it just seems cheep that at the very end they are trying to make her sympathetic.

The woman kills like cancer but now she has a conscious? I find leaving the kid alive much worse than the negotiator. I get the party loyalty pitch but operationally that kid is a huge problem. Much more so than some of the other kills she had made this season.

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She was looking in her rear view mirror and elsewhere as he was trying to get out of the car. It could have been that she didn't think she could do it without drawing attention.

DTP02 said:

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DannyDuberstein said:

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I look at it this way and it doesn't bother me -> it has been clear over the course of the season that the artist was getting through to her. It was slow and something that had not impacted her actions until last night, but the introspection the artist was pushing was clearly building. So put her death with Phillip's speech then learning that the negotiation could be great for USSR, you get a break-through that seems sudden but in reality they'd laid the groundwork for it to happen.

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They did lay the groundwork but there was still something missing for the viewer to completely believe the transformation.

Phillip had the great scene with Elizabeth at the beginning of the episode that tied it all together emotionally, "it's on us... all of it," and he's always been her conscience, but we don't see the wheels spinning for her enough to completely buy the transformation that takes place for her by the end of the episode. This show is usually more careful and artful about these things, and I think they missed the mark on a pretty pivotal bit of character development.

On another conscience- related note, I have to question whoever it was that asked why Phillip didn't kill Stavros. He's wracked with guilt for firing him, and you think he's going to kill him to tie up a loose end?

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I didn't ask why he didn't kill Stavros - I said I was almost surprised he didn't though. He certainly had no intention of that when he went to the door. But if you did not notice his demeanor change as soon as Stavros said something about never telling the cops about whatever was going on the back room because he was loyal, well watch it again.

He wouldn't want to do that, and likely won't because that is a little too close and any investigation would look at him (former employer just fired him). But it IS a loose end. In fact think about why we were shown that? For Philip's guilt alone??? I doubt it. I would not be surprised if we see him questioned at the very least.

The previews showed pastor Tim getting a call, Oleg being interrogated, etc. I'd interview former employees too.

Elizabeth's loyalty is to the party and the country; I think learning that there's a coup afoot and she is helping the military usurp Gorbachev didn't sit well with her view of her mission. At least that's how I interpreted it. She doesn't like Gorbachev "americanizing" USSR but she doesn't want to be lied to.

The "it's on us" speech was tough stuff.

Yeah for Elizabeth there were three things:
The artist (they made it clear she had broken through by her almost not burning the painting)
Phillip making the points to her about how she had become an automaton.
The center lying to her. It's not that she questions orders, her BS sensor went off when they wanted to kill what was clearly not only a decent man, but also clearly a rep of the government she had sworn allegiance to. She now realizes she isn't working for the people she thought she was, and that Phillip was largely right (not that she will ever tell him that).

They appear to be setting up a finale where their world comes completely crashing down around them just as they are being humanized, so that their fall is more sympathetic. But man this week was dark to try and get there - oh And that scene where elizabeth kills the artist with her paintbrush (symbolism alert!) was so well done.

How did Stavros know anything illegal was going on in their office? Is he just assuming?

Hulla Baller said:

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How did Stavros know anything illegal was going on in their office? Is he just assuming?

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Just suspicion. Between all of the mysterious door-shutting, randomly running off at the drop of a hat, painfully stressed situations, and any number of other red flags, I would imagine a long-time employee would see enough to realize something other than just travel agency business wqs going on. I'm actually glad they brought it it into the story, because it always kind of bugged me that no one there got suspicious.

If I worked there, I would probably suspect they were using the travel agency as a cover to traffic drugs.

I kept thinking that now Elizabeth knows too much. After her meeting in Moscow, and Claudia revealing everything, the Center isn't going to be too happy about her growing a conscious. Is the Center going to come after Elizabeth now?

It seems like the Jennings' best hope to get out of this would be to get confronted by the FBI/Stan, but then team up with the FBI & Oleg to prevent Claudia & The Center from carrying out the Gorbachev plan. It would be a little too neat and tidy for my taste, but it seems like a little lifeline is being thrown to them.

At this point, I want Claudia to get the cyanide pill treatment.

Funny thing...she told Elizabeth that she did know the details of the plan...but I don't remember seeing a locket around her neck.

Bunbury said:

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It seems like the Jennings' best hope to get out of this would be to get confronted by the FBI/Stan, but then team up with the FBI & Oleg to prevent Claudia & The Center from carrying out the Gorbachev plan. It would be a little too neat and tidy for my taste, but it seems like a little lifeline is being thrown to them.

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ugh...please no.

that would be the equivalent of Hank confronting Walt and them deciding to deal meth together and adopt Jessie into the family.

like BB....this has to end badly (for most).

Yelnick McWawa said:

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FancyKetchup14 said:

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Also, blonde Elizabeth Jennings with glasses might be my favorite Elizabeth Jennings.

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Yessir. And I'm not gonna lie, they've turned Paige into quite a hot little college number this season.

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And completely hypocritical of the parents right. Both sleeping with someone roughly her age for business purposes and at the same time telling her not to use sex.

Wait until Paige finds out about that intern and mom. Lol.

Do as I say not as I do.

Interesting tidbit I just learned from a great roundtable review on Vox....

The Russian movie Philip rented is called "The Garage" in English (ha!! nice one) and is about "about the clash between individuals and the larger organizations that try to police their behavior and critical of the Soviet leadership through metaphor".

Wow...just perfect.


https://www.vox.com/platform/amp/culture/2018/5/16/17350210/the-americans-season-6-episode-8-recap-the-summit-final-season

I think the point of Phillip's confrontation with Stavros was just to again highlight phillip's internal conflict. Stavros tells him, "I was raised to be loyal," with an unspoken but seemingly implied, "unlike you," since Phillip fired him and all. So we see Phillip in this position where he is struggling with that exact thing. Who is he actually loyal to? His old country? The Centre? His new country? And if his old country, then which faction? Or is he loyal to Elizabeth? So I think the whole point of that scene was just to again point out how conflicted he is feeling at this point.

AG 2000' said:

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Stans girl is totally going to be KGB and take him out when he puts it all together, right?

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I don't think so. This show doesn't pull stuff like that. They show the full character,
so if she was working for someone, they would have shown it and told some of that story by now.

DannyDuberstein said:

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AG 2000' said:

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Stans girl is totally going to be KGB and take him out when he puts it all together, right?

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I don't think so. This show doesn't pull stuff like that. They show the full character,
so if she was working for someone, they would have shown it and told some of that story by now.

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I am still on the fence with her. I do believe that Stan would have vetted her pretty well with everything that went down in the past. Only two more weeks to find out everything.

AG 2000' said:

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Stans girl is totally going to be KGB and take him out when he puts it all together, right?

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Agreed 100%. Stan's girl gotta be KGB, and agreed on her coming around the corner an popping a cap in Stan right as he confronts them.

If she's not, props to the writers for trolling us and keeping us on edge.

I think Elizabeth and Phillip get away and assume a new identity, Saul Goodman style, and they are forced to flat out abandon Henry.

Paige gets picked up by Aderholt and either becomes a double agent or goes to the clink.

I ain't ruling out Paige getting somehow evacuated by the KGB and taken back to Russia for further training.

If the writers figure out a way to work Martha back into all this mess, it will be pure genius.

I feel like she was shown recently, if not in this season late in the last one. I totally expect for Martha to play some sort of role in the ending.

It was last season and it was her struggling to adapt to Moscow but it ended with her adopting an orphan. It seemed like a pretty final sendoff for her character.

I dont see how she shows back up in a way that is organic to the story. If they were to go with a 6 feet under style ending, then I would love to see how she ends up but it seems unlikely they go that route.