TV Review: FX’s The Americans 3×6, “Born Again”

While I was not expecting a baptism sequence as epic as something like the virtuoso scene from The Godfather, I have to admit the opening of this week’s episode of The Americans, “Born Again”, was a bit more subdued than I may have been pumping myself up for.  Of course, it is completely fitting of a show like The Americans, but maybe it comes down to how genuinely excited I am to see new episodes of what I continually think to be one of the best shows not enough people are watching.  The fact is, “Born Again” is another strong episode dealing with the characters and the complexities of living double lives, especially in the presence of young minds being shaped in all sorts of ways.

As stated, this episode begins with Paige’s baptism.  We see the event take place and curiously observe Philip and Elizabeth sitting several rows back, as opposed to upfront to witness the event.  There are obvious ways to read into this, but I love how subtle this show decides to have the scene playout.  You get the idea pretty simply, but as opposed to juxtaposing a scene like this with something heavy, it is presented in a straightforward manner, while still putting pressure on the Jennings.  What follows is an episode where Philip and Elizabeth consider what their next move is in regards to their daughter, as well as keeping focus on their current assignments, with the lingering thought of Paige in the background throughout.

It is indirect, but clear for Philip, as far as how uncomfortable this whole situation has made him, given his work with Kimberly, the 15-year-old girl who has the hots for older men.  This week’s adventures at Kimmy’s house finds ‘James’ dealing with Kimmy’s bath time desires, while he has a KGB agent sneak into the house and plant a bug.  The Americans can be summed up in a nutshell, based on a scene like this, as it finds one of our lead characters dealing with the complexities of being a husband, father, and spy all at the same time.  Things are not made any easier for Philip, as this episode continues, but it never really seems to be, when it comes to throwing his morality and conscience into the deep end.

Elizabeth tackles things a bit more head on.  At first she finds herself caught in the act, as Paige catches her mom smoking, letting her know in the process that she and Henry have known for a while.  It leads to a discussion about the use of prayer.  By the end of this episode, fresh off a talk with Gabriel, Liz decides to pick Paige up from School and discuss Gregory (played by Derek Luke, back in season 1).  The two head to another part of the city, where Liz would interact with her old civil rights friend (and lover/spy).  This gets us to a conversation about being all you can be.  It is such an interesting type of conversation (beyond my ironic statement of bringing up the phrase “be all you can be”, but applied to Russian spies), as we watch Liz tiptoe around telling her daughter what is really going on, with the close of this episode having us right on the edge of seeing the full truth completely come out.  Elizabeth knows it must be time to act with her daughter, regardless of Philip at this point, once again making me wonder when this will all take a big turn.

Elsewhere, we find that Stan has embraced the concept of bachelorhood up to a point.  He brings over Tori (from EST) to dinner with the Jennings and she seems like a good fit.  Stan is of course still in mourning of his marriage, however, which leads to some awkwardness, once he begins to get frisky with Tori…well, she’s actually the one getting frisky.  Some nice advice is given, but Stan knows how complicated things are for him, which is further emphasized outside of his family life, upon hearing news concerning one of his old partners.  Regardless of the details, what is amazing is how much I seem invested in Stan as a character, given how much of a sad sack he is.  Yes, I keep commending Noah Emmerich, but it deserves to be said, as I enjoy what he brings to this show, even if it does not do much to break the seriousness of the series as a whole.

Moving back to Philip, some key information is revealed this week, as Gabriel informs Philip of a son he may be the father of.  Misha, who is a good soldier according to Gabriel, was born from a woman Philip had a relationship with years earlier.  We had the chance to see her briefly, but regardless, this information puts all new pressures on Philip, which he was not quite ready to share with Elizabeth.  Instead, he uses it to help him take care of his relationship with Kimmy.  Given how far Philip has gotten, as far as bugging Kimmy’s dad goes, I am curious how much more time he needs to spend and how deep he may have to go, but allowing himself to use his personal life drama to inform his tactics for handling Kimmy (i.e. prayer), I am continually quite pleased to see what the weight on Philips shoulders means for Matthew Rhys performance on this show.

As we are getting into the second half of the season next week, I am excited to start seeing some bigger payoffs to the careful setup of the season so far.  We still need more from Oleg, Nina, and Martha, but the developments we have had seem like they could lead us into some interesting territory.  Philip and Elizabeth have been given plenty to argue over, but surely the development of Paige and their conflict surrounding her has more dramatic results on the way as well.  Whatever may happen, even when the show cools down its tension, I am continually invested in everything going on, so let’s see how this all plays out.

Other Things Behind The Red Curtain:

• Nina actually had stuff to work with this week, as she dealt with her assignment from within prison.  She succeeded in getting the information and sat coldly as her cellmate was dragged away, screaming her name.  Tough life indeed.
• Henry Thoughts This Week: He believes EST is weird.
• I love how Philip has to improve a gift for Kimmy and takes the KGB agents earrings.
• Could Gabriel be lying to Philip about him having fathered a child unknowingly? Food for thought.
• Noah Emmerich makes his directorial debut with next week’s episode. Good for him!