DJariya

Synopsis:

Episode 1 - "Pilot" (Airs January 30, 10:00 pm e/p) - The Americans is a period drama about the complex marriage of two KGB spies posing as Americans in suburban Washington D.C. shortly after Ronald Reagan is elected President. The arranged marriage of Philip and Elizabeth Jennings grows more passionate and genuine by the day, but is constantly tested by the escalation of the Cold War. Tensions heighten upon the arrival of a new neighbor, Stan Beeman, an FBI agent. Written by Joe Weisberg; directed by Gavin O'Connor.



Read more: Listings - AMERICANS, THE on FX | TheFutonCritic.com http://www.thefutoncritic.com/listin...#ixzz2JQNjouNE


Starring:
Matthew Rhys (Brothers and Sisters)
Keri Russell (Felicity, Mission: Impossible 3)
Margo Martindale (Justified)
Noah Emmerich (The Walking Dead)

One of the Executive Producers is Graham Yost, who works on Justified

Trailer:

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/p-qEGs-3lnk" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>


Premieres tomorrow night. Figured I would post this tonight since some of you may not have heard about this show.

Be aware, the Pilot is 97 minutes. You may have DVR conflicts depending on where you live.

dex14

Had me at Felicity....

Maxflier

I don't usually watch shows until they finish their run, but I'm very curious about this show so I will be checking out the pilot.

TGM

gonna give it a shot because it's on FX, but I'm not sure the overall concept really appeals to me.

Geofferson

Really looking forward to this. Love that promo pic above.

Raul3

I will probably watch until tomorrow, unless I'm not that sleepy.

Groucho

The promos for this haven't sold me, but with Yost's involvement I'll give it a shot.

Osiris3657

Reviews have been stellar.

Hitfix says:

... what makes the series so impressive is the way it treats the 1980s as its present, not its past. … Based on the admittedly small sample size of two episodes, “The Americans” feels like it could very comfortably slot in with the upper tier of FX dramas. That’s about as good as it gets.

HuffPost TV says:

… Critics were sent the first two episodes, and I was going to keep watching anyway, partly because Elizabeth and Philip are so good at deceiving everyone, partly because Rhys and Russell do a fine job of showing the cost of those deceptions, and partly because both are surprisingly convincing in their action scenes. But knowing Margo Martindale, formerly of FX's "Justified," will recur this season (she turns up in the third episode) is one more reason to put "The Americans" on the must-watch list. …

The New York Times says:

... a remarkable accomplishment: It’s a subtle, complex portrait of a relationship etched into an engaging espionage thriller …

The Chicago Sun-Times says:

... fresh, compelling …

The San Francisco Chronicle says:

... benefits from convincing performances by the cast, but Weisberg's concept and writing in the first two episodes make the show much more than "just" a spy thriller. …

The Washington Post says:

... takes full advantage of three decades of TV evolution and the modern default setting we all share: It’s complicated. We now prefer our good guys to be the bad guys, and we enjoy sending them on a long, downward spiral. …

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette says:

... When FBI counterintelligence agent Stan Beeman (Noah Emmerich, "The Walking Dead," "Super 8") and his family move in across the street from the Jennings family, "The Americans" threatens to collapse under the weight of this what-are-the-odds? situation, but series creator Joe Weisberg, who worked in the CIA's directorate of operations in the early 1990s before becoming a professional writer, manages to make it all seem plausible. It helps that Beeman is not depicted as a bumbling gumshoe. He's more like Hank Schrader (Dean Norris) on "Breaking Bad" but without the bravado. And the premiere episode hints at a potentially interesting backstory for the character when he worked undercover among white supremacists. …

The Philadelphia Enquirer says:

... a bold and exciting new series …

The Denver Post says:

... doesn't go in for rom-com cuteness or sitcom gags. A tense drama re-creating a paranoid time in our history, it's more interested in wiretapping, hidden cameras and poison … The evolution of the couple's relationship is as engrossing as the strong-arm spy stuff. …

The Boston Globe says:

... Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys are excellent in FX’s first-rate drama “The Americans,”… after the crammed (and super-sized) premiere, Weisberg reveals a sure sense of detail that bodes well for the future of the series. …

News Corp. says:

... "The Americans" unfolds a thoroughly seductive tale … Between the spy and family drama here, the dull moments are likely to be few and far between.

Variety says:

... While the first two episodes (including an extended premiere) contain enough promise to merit continued surveillance, what emerges is more notable for its '80s soundtrack and duck-and-cover-drill paranoia than its cat-and-mouse games or Cold War rekindling. …

The Hollywood Reporter says:

... I enjoyed the first two episodes of FX's spy series The Americans as much as I did the entirety of season two of Homeland. (Remember, the beginning of Homeland's season two was perfectly pulse-pounding before a deep creative spiral began.) There is something about Americans -- which also explores spies and terrorism on U.S. soil -- that invests me with the same type of hope I had at the beginning of Showtime's gem. …

Osiris3657

Duplicate post

Timber

Yeah, I know nothing about it, have never seen a preview but I saw a write up in the Washington Post this morning and had to read no further than Keri Russell and I set up a Season Pass.

dex14

Exactly... I've seen that there have been tons of commercials. I really havent paid attention to ones with actual footage. I could care less. The idea sounds cool, it's on FX, and its Keri Russel. I don't need to know/see more to check it out.

macnorton

I had heard about the pilot awhile back and it sounded right up my alley. Good cast with a great premise, what is there not to like?

Now with the stellar reviews, I am really excited to watch tonight. A nice compliment to the other great dramas FX has and has had.

danfindlay

I'm conflicted, it looks really good but it also looks like it wants you to root for filthy pinkos.

dolphinboy

So funny seeing so many comments like this, as I didn't realize how many people would think like me. It was a long time ago that I caught the commercial spot for this and I don't even recall where. While I also admit the concept looked promising, it was starring Keri Russell and I was going to watch no matter what.

I googled the premiere date and have been impatiently waiting for it to begin.

The positive reviews are a huge bonus.

spainlinx0

I definitely liked what I saw so far. It's a very promising start.

Rex Fenestrarum

Liked the pilot... but, as someone who grew up in that era... the costumer should be fired. None of the clothes looked even remotely like "late 70s, early 80s" to me. In fact, if you took out the 80s songs on the soundtrack, the cars, and a few obvious touches (like the rotary dial payphone), this could just as easily be from the 90s or 00s. I mean, just Google image search "Reagan assassination attempt" and look at their clothes!

stingermck

Great opening episode. In for the entire series. +5 for good use of In the Air Tonight.

Jimmy James

Seeing Kerri Russell drop to waist level at the start was enough for me. I'm in.

sauce07

Good so far. I especially liked the opening sequence done to that extended version of Fleetwood Mac's Tusk.

Anybody else think of Miami Vice the second In The Air Tonight started?

Dave99

Good start, I'm in for the season.

DJariya

Solid 1st episode.

Liked the flashbacks to help set up the relationship between Elizabeth and Phillip. Although Russell and Rhys didn't look any younger during the 1960's flashbacks.

I like the fact that Elizabeth is loyal to Russia, yet Phillip wants to adapt and become more American which she despises.

Should be interesting with Stan as their neighbor and being an FBI agent. That last scene with him sneaking into their garage with Phillip hiding was intense.

at the General saying the American people elected a Mad Man.

Kudos to the music use. Tusk and then In the air tonight were great in their scenes.

anomynous

So Philip works for the FBI?

DJariya

No, they run a small travel agency as their front.

anomynous

Alright, I was about to say that was a little far fetched.

Dr. DVD

I DVR'd most of this and haven't seen all of it yet, but that really annoyed me somewhat of what I saw. Russell is 36, and while the shadows helped , she looked like the oldest 15 year old in the world in that first flashback. Though I am presuming from their living situation that she is in her early 40s in 1981. It will be interesting to see Russell play someone who exhibits more heel like qualities than her typical fare.

I also didn't think anything aside from the music distinguished the time period that well. However, playing up the 80s aspect too much might result in the show coming across less like an espionage drama and more like a "hey, the 80s were stupid" parody.