15 March 2013
COLD WAR: FX’s new ongoing Cold War drama is already a hit.
By Desmond Ho, Staff Writer
There’s no shortage of quality television on FX. From dramas like American Horror Story and Justified to comedies like It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and Louie, the network has certainly earned itself an audience with its high-quality stable of shows. Now it can add another to that list with The Americans, a Cold War action-drama centering on a group of Soviet KGB spies living life as Americans so they can become sleeper agents.
The show focuses on Elizabeth and Phillip Jennings (Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys, respectively), who are undercover Soviet agents living during the Reagan administration. Their true identities are kept secret from everyone, including their children Paige (Holly Taylor) and Henry (Keidrich Sellati). They get new neighbors in FBI Agent Stan Beeman (Noah Emmerich) and his family. There is a quite a bit of rising tension, starting with the end of first episode, when Reagan authorizes the FBI to use any means necessary to neutralize Soviet agents. Phillip begins to have second thoughts about living as a KGB agent, and begins to take a liking to America. Meanwhile, Elizabeth finally starts to take a liking to Phillip, after years of their marriage simply being part of the job.
The show excels at creating drama. All of the characters have shades of gray to their actions, and the two leads are both anti-heroes. Elizabeth and Phillip are both sympathetic, interesting characters, but they kill when they have to and aren’t shy to blackmail. There’s a fair bit of action, as well; Philip and Elizabeth are both trained operatives, so naturally they know martial arts and apply them when necessary. Meanwhile, their neighbor Agent Beeman, the primary antagonist, is too committed to his job to really be a great family man. He’s not a bad person. The characters are compelling enough to continue watching, despite the initially flat plot. That being said, it’ll be interesting to see the series’ slow build hit its payoff.
The Americans has a great premise and interesting characters, which go a long way toward making a show last. It’s currently about halfway through its first season, and was recently renewed for a second one. The Americans is well worth getting into.
Courtesy of collider.com