A few weeks ago, at a similar time to having watched the sixth episode of the season, I encountered the title for next week's hour: The Day After. A quick Google search revealed the significance of the name - ABC's straight-to-television movie that first aired on November 20th, 1983. But the first six episodes of The Americans' fourth season had taken place within a matter of days in mid-March, so how could we get that far down the line in the space of three episodes?
A time jump was going to be the only way, yet it's a possibility I didn't even consider because the show has never really used one before. Yes, we have seen the show progress a couple of weeks between episodes, and a few months between seasons, but it's never been especially telegraphed; the only reason we have any grasp of each episode's placement in time is through the real-life historical events shown on screen. This hour was set in the days leading up to, and on, April 8th, 1983, illustrated by David Copperfield's fifth TV special making an appearance towards the end.
So for The Americans to make this time jump is a bold move. But it's a successful one, and ultimately, one that it absolutely needed to make. I've maintained in my reviews of virtually every episode in season four thus far that things are as intense and stressful as they have ever been. Watching the show is emotionally and, to some extent, physically taxing, and to watch it, you have to be in the right frame of mind - FX sent next week's hour to critics late last week, and while I wanted little else but to watch it as soon as possible, I opted not to because I was so exhausted. This isn't a show that can be watched as a relief from the stresses of life, but a show that adds to them.
And within the world of the show, the pressure cooker has never been turned up so much, the stakes never higher. As this episode establishes, Philip and Elizabeth need a break or else they'll crack. When you put your characters through such gruelling events for so long, it's to be expected that there's only so much they can take before it all becomes too much, certainly if you're trying to depict them in a realistic way. These two crossed that line weeks ago, and it's only now that Gabriel has realised it.
The Magic of David Copperfield V picks up just hours after we left off in Travel Agents, with Philip and Gabriel escorting Martha to the airfield where she will be taken to Russia to live out the rest of her days. Series star Matthew Rhys made his directorial debut for the show (he previously directed four episodes of Brothers & Sisters) and immediately set about it in a sublime, yet simple, way by using no dialogue whatsoever in the opening minutes. Because, quite frankly, what do any of those characters say in that situation? Martha has been forced into being resigned over her fate, unable to voice her discontent for fear of extermination. Philip is executing the best worst option for his second spouse, but it's one that means he'll never get to see her again and still completely destroys her life. Gabriel is hated by Martha, and Philip isn't especially keen on him right now given his reluctance to agree to all of this. So for the trio to make their journey in total silence makes total sense, and, when combined with the quiet sounds of nature in the early hours of the morning, makes for a wholly effective scene.
The couple did share one final moment, however, and it was a highly emotional scene. For Martha, Clark has been her true love, saving her from the darkness of being alone over all those years, and now she's being permanently separated from him to return to making her way through life all alone. For Philip, she has been the woman with whom he can share any of his personal issues that he didn't feel comfortable sharing with Elizabeth. Has he grown to love her? Perhaps, perhaps not. But there is certainly some form of affection that has manifested itself.
Which led us to the crux of the hour, which revolved around the Jenningses marriage and the problems they were going through. The show briefly touched upon this last week, hinting at the idea that the Martha situation could drive a wedge between the pair, and they followed through with that here. Elizabeth described Martha as simple, and Philip quite rightly became very defensive.
It didn't stop there, because after visiting est, Elizabeth attempts to suggest that she understands why her husband likes it, before describing the entire thing as "very American" for manipulating those who visit it the first time. Probably not the best time to make fun of the thing that Philip uses as a way of trying to clear his conscience, particularly after he lost the only other real outlet for his feelings. But it went deeper than est and Martha, as Elizabeth aired her true feelings over Gregory's fate after seeing her husband so dejected.
Things really boiled over in this hour, and after the Jennings couple were interrupted in their heated argument, Gabriel attempted to act as an intermediary; instead, Philip got more frustrated and stormed out as Elizabeth continued to take little stabs at her husband. But it didn't stop there, because all of the tension between those two spilled over as Elizabeth completely lost it with Paige, who had skipped a week of Bible study. Everything in her rant made sense - Paige alone made this mess, and she needs to clear it up. Taking a break from doing so because she "wasn't in the mood" isn't good enough. A lot of spycraft being taught there too - and it was yet another example of one of our characters letting the truth come out, regardless of how painful it was to hear or say. Keri Russell was once again superb here.
Was that the end of it? Not a chance, because Lisa was in a bad spot after Maurice left her and she returned to the bottle. Worse still, she was adamant that the only way to escape all this was to go to the police and rat on the operation they were involved in. That was never going to end well, and it didn't, as Elizabeth killed her mark with a bottle. On a better day, she may not have gone to such extreme measures. Maybe. But that was the final straw for a woman at the end of her tether on a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. "Lisa's done too," she tells Philip and Gabriel.
So they were offered a vacation, or as near to one as they'll ever get, and with that came a jump seven months into the future where things were vastly different and yet somehow the same. Philip, Elizabeth and Henry played hockey in the front yard. Pastor Tim and a now-pregnant Alice were still alive and immensely close to Paige, who, much to her chagrin, was continuing to report back to her parents on them. Gaad suffered the consequences of running a sinking ship and Stan adjusted to a new boss, having progressed the Oleg operation.
"Whatever comes up: Feelings, sympathy, friendship, whatever. You can't lose sight of who these people are," a newly-retired Gaad tells Stan. Fitting words to describe every single character on the show: Despite Phillip and Elizabeth enjoying their much-needed break, they know their job and that Reagan is this terrible man who needs to be stopped; Paige loves her parents, but knows they're Russian spies and quite probably bad people, asking her to betray a man and wife whom she cares for; Stan may have established a bond with Oleg, but he's still a KGB officer helping the Soviet Union to try and topple the United States, and his likely impending discovery of his neighbours' true identities will put those words to the test.
A clever move from The Americans here as we skip half a year's worth of in-show time, but with the chess board having changed only slightly. A long break for the Jenningses puts them in a far better position to tackle whatever is to come next and spares us a whole lot of nothingness. Instead, we're going to be thrown straight back into the chaos, and I anticipate it'll be as stressful as ever.
These first eight episodes have been incredible, and if they are anything to go by, we may have witnessed one of the best seasons of television in recent years come the season finale on June 8th.
Notes:
- As I mentioned above, Gaad’s now out of a job after all of the happenings within his department in the past season or so. It’s a shame that this will probably be the last we see of Richard Thomas, since his delivery of virtually every line he is given is perfect. He was given another humdinger tonight: In response to Stan’s unnecessarily long-winded story about a dignitary who collected stamps, Gaad says: "Well, I don't collect stamps." In fact, that whole conversation was a lot of fun, and another great example of how The Americans has implemented just a touch more humour into the season.
- Also, I heard Mail Robot beeping during that scene. No sighting, unfortunately.
- Claudia was back to have another excellent one-off scene with Gabriel, but does Margo Martindale have a clause in her contract that says she’s now only allowed to work with Frank Langella? Still, her "Your officers aren't listening to you. Boo hoo” line was enough to make her appearance well worth having, and for me to want her to be back much more regularly.
- Oleg and Tatiana had a touching moment after she tells him that her brother was deployed. These two have a likeable dynamic, and I wish the show had more time to give to it.
- With Martha gone, can the show set aside some Valium for us to have? We need it.
What did you all think of this episode? How do you feel about the time jump? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below, and be sure to vote in the poll below as well!
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