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We are thrilled to have had such a great introduction to the world of His Dark Materials this week! Seeing Lyra, Lord Asriel, the Master, the Gyptians, and of course Mrs. Coulter made us so happy! Plus: Pan and Stelmaria and that darn monkey daemon! Of course, this is S01E01 “Lyra’s Jordan”! It aired on November 4, 2019 on HBO, was written by Jack Thorne and directed by Tom Hooper. We have a few choice news items for you this week, beginning with Deadline profiling co-showrunner Bad Wolf’s Jane Tranter! Next up we have solid ratings debut numbers courtesy of Variety, and we close up with Refinery29 revealing that Daemons have their roots in mythology. Then we enter the new world! In the dead of night during the great flood, a man delivers an infant to what appears to be a college. The man is Lord Asriel, and the baby is Lyra Belacqua, his niece. Twelve years later, we see Lyra running along the rooftops of Jordan College in Oxford, England, and she appears to be a happy girl being raised by the scholars. Asriel ventures to the far north to take images of the sky. He returns to Jordan College to meet with the scholars to seek funding to continue his explorations into a substance called Dust. Before the meeting, Lyra sees the Master of Jordan College putting poison into a decanter of Tokaj, and she prevents Asriel from drinking it. Lyra hides while Asriel makes his presentation to the scholars, and she sees images of Dust and a city in the sky which Asriel believes is in another universe. Funding secured, Asriel leaves a tearful Lyra. A woman names Marissa Coulter visits Jordan College, and she takes an interest in Lyra. In London, two men in the Magisterium discuss Asriel’s activities. Meanwhile, children are disappearing, particularly in the river-faring Gyptian community led by John Faa. Mrs. Coulter offers to take Lyra on as an assistant, and Lyra insists her best friend Roger join her. Mrs. Coulter agrees, but Roger is kidnapped immediately after. Lyra leaves with Mrs. Coulter by airship for London. Roger is revealed to be trapped in a cage, screaming! After our episode breakdown, we get some terrific feedback from you guys.  Then for all the book readers we have our Bridge to the Stars segment, which is chock full of spoilers and speculation so spoilerphobes beware! We do love to hear your thoughts about His Dark Materials, so please send them in! You can email text or audio feedback to alethiometerpodcast@gmail.com or call us at 919-907-0542. Follow us on Twitter @alethiometerpod. Please like us on our Facebook page The Alethiometer. Our homepage also has our show and links to info each week at www.thealethiometer.com. And if you do enjoy the show, kindly rate us or better yet rate and review us in your favorite podcast app!

Welcome to Lyra’s world! We are Sara and Chip, hosts of the podcast Watching The Americans,  which explored the world of Soviet spycraft in the 1980s on FX’s “The Americans”. Now we are turning to another place and time, that of our heroine Lyra Belacqua, and the adventures that lie ahead for her in the HBO/BBC series “His Dark Materials”. Every week our annotated podcast will do a deep dive into this strange new world, including scene breakdowns, extensive commentary on dialogue, plot, and characters. We will share news about the show, and point out some of the cool differences in Lyra’s world from ours. Plus we’ll have a segment for book readers that discusses similarities and differences from books to show, and speculation on future events. This week’s introduction tells you a bit about us, our backgrounds and experiences in podcasting, and our love of Philip Pullman’s wonderful books that are the basis of the show. We love to hear your thoughts about His Dark Materials, so please send them in! You can email text or audio feedback to alethiometerpodcast@gmail.com or call us at 919-907-0542. Follow us on Twitter @alethiometerpod. Please like us on our Facebook page The Alethiometer. Our homepage also has our show and links to info each week at www.thealethiometer.com. And if you do enjoy the show, kindly rate us or better yet rate and review us in your favorite podcast app!

Tovarishchi! After six amazing, incredible, and ultimately beautifully heartbreaking seasons, The Americans is done. There is so much richness in this show, and we want to take one last look at it all. To do so, we have our roundtable friends Kathleen (aka alternakat), Barb, Roland, & Chris to join the fun! We reflect on the series, compare the pilot to the finale, and discuss everything from favorite characters and scenes to best disguises and wigs of all time! Even though The Americans is over, we would still love to hear your thoughts so please send them to us! You can email text or audio feedback to watchingtheamericans@gmail.com or signal us (we have replaced the operator!) at 919-907-0542. Follow us on Twitter @WatchAmericans. Please check out our Facebook page Watching The Americans. And if you do enjoy the show, kindly rate us or better yet rate and review us in iTunes! As we move on, there may be more content to share like reviews of a series dvd or blu-ray set, special events, or even interviews to share. And when we find our new venture, we will announce on our social media and in our feed so stay subscribed to Watching the Americans!  

The Americans, our collective passion for 6 years, has finally come to an end. And what an ending! No one dies, yet everyone suffers mightily. A fitting conclusion to one of the best television shows in the modern era! Of course we could go on and on about S06E10 “START”, which aired on May 30, 2018. It was written by showrunners Joel Fields and Joe Weisberg and directed by Chris Long. This is Episode 129 and contains our bonus feedback. Please check out Episode 127 to get the news and our episode breakdown and analysis, and Episode 128 for history, tech of yesteryear, and part one of feedback! You guys had so much to say that we had to add this bonus feedback episode! And this is it, all feedback, all the time! And we do love to hear your thoughts about The Americans so please keep sending them to us! You can email text or audio feedback to watchingtheamericans@gmail.com or signal us (we have replaced the operator!) at 919-907-0542. Follow us on Twitter @WatchAmericans. Please like us on our Facebook page Watching The Americans. And if you do enjoy the show, kindly rate us or better yet rate and review us in iTunes or Stitcher!

The Americans, our collective passion for 6 years, has finally come to an end. And what an ending! No one dies, yet everyone suffers mightily. A fitting conclusion to one of the best television shows in the modern era! Of course we could go on and on about S06E10 “START”, which aired on May 30, 2018. It was written by showrunners Joel Fields and Joe Weisberg and directed by Chris Long. This is Episode 128 and contains our history, tech of yesteryear, and part one of feedback. Please check out Episode 127 to get the news and our episode breakdown and analysis, and Episode 129 for bonus feedback! It’s our last time with history and tech for you! The Js don’t disappoint with the music montages beginning with Dire Straits’ ”Brothers in Arms”, and just when we thought that was the fitting last one, here comes the amazing train scene and U2 signing ”With or Without You”! Overcome with emotion, we get off the train with Paige in Rouses Point while Philip and Elizabeth ride the Amtrak to Canada! And our final Wig of the Week? It’s Paige ftw with that short hair! We then have so much feedback we have to split it in two! And we do love to hear your thoughts about The Americans so please keep sending them to us! You can email text or audio feedback to watchingtheamericans@gmail.com or signal us (we have replaced the operator!) at 919-907-0542. Follow us on Twitter @WatchAmericans. Please like us on our Facebook page Watching The Americans. And if you do enjoy the show, kindly rate us or better yet rate and review us in iTunes or Stitcher!

The Americans, our collective passion for 6 years, has finally come to an end. And what an ending! No one dies, yet everyone suffers mightily. A fitting conclusion to one of the best television shows in the modern era! Of course we could go on and on about S06E10 “START”, which aired on May 30, 2018. It was written by showrunners Joel Fields and Joe Weisberg and directed by Chris Long. This is Episode 127 and contains the news and our episode breakdown and analysis. To hear our history, tech of yesteryear, and feedback segments stay tuned for Episodes 128 and 129. We have so many news items we could share, yet three really stood out. First up is Variety with a compelling oral history of the show. Next is The New Yorker’s recap of the finale that found it elegant, potent, and unforgettable. Finally Vulture breaks down the blistering vulnerability of finale’s garage scene. Then we pick right up from the end of last week. Philip and Elizabeth meet and go to get Paige. Meanwhile, Stan continues following his suspicions about them and ends up confronting the three of them in a garage near Paige’s place. After one of the most tense and wrenching scenes of the series, Stan lets them go. As they leave, Philip tells Stan that Renee may be a fellow Soviet spy. Dennis breaks Father Andrei. Philip and Elizabeth decide to leave Henry in the United States and ask Stan to take care of him. After an awkward farewell call to Henry, the Jennings trio don new disguises to flee to Canada on their way back to the USSR. Just before crossing the border, US Border Patrol agents fail to stop them. Seemingly past the danger, Elizabeth then Philip both see that Paige has left the train and them. With nowhere to go, Paige returns to Claudia’s empty apartment for a shot of vodka. Stan visits Henry and reveals the truth of his family. Philip and Elizabeth fly to Europe and then drive to the Soviet border. Arkady meets them and drives them to Moscow, where they get out and look at the Moscow River at night. Philip tells Elizabeth “feels strange” and she replies in Russian “we’ll get used to it.” Remember that we do love to hear your thoughts about The Americans so please keep sending them in! You can email text or audio feedback to watchingtheamericans@gmail.com or signal us (we have replaced the operator!) at 919-907-0542. Follow us on Twitter @WatchAmericans. Please like us on our Facebook page Watching The Americans. And if you do enjoy the show, kindly rate us or better yet rate and review us in iTunes!

It was a gathering, a party (not communist exactly!), and a little bit of our The Americans community together at the end. The bitter and the sweet mingled as we ground our teeth, yelled out, and shed a few tears as the best show on TV came to its brilliant conclusion. Join us as the folks who could come to Raleigh introduce themselves, tell us their hopes for the show, and react immediately after the conclusion. Then we get back together the next morning and reflect on the episode after we could sleep on it. We love to hear your thoughts about The Americans so please send them to us! You can email text or audio feedback to watchingtheamericans@gmail.com or signal us (we have replaced the operator!) at 919-907-0542. Follow us on Twitter @WatchAmericans. Please like us on our Facebook page Watching The Americans. And if you do enjoy the show, kindly rate us or better yet rate and review us in iTunes!

What can we say about the awesomeness that is our friend Kelly AuCoin? He got us started as our very first interviewee and then connected us with other with people working on The Americans! So who better to be the last of our series? Kelly shares his thoughts about Pastor Tim’s appearance this week, his place overall in The Americans, and his thoughts about the series as a whole. He also answers your questions and comments, and he talks a bit about the great arc for Dollar Bill on Season 3 of Showtime’s “Billions”! We love to hear your thoughts about The Americans so please send them to us! You can email text or audio feedback to watchingtheamericans@gmail.com or signal us (we have replaced the operator!) at 919-907-0542. Follow us on Twitter @WatchAmericans. Please like us on our Facebook page Watching The Americans. And if you do enjoy the show, kindly rate us or better yet rate and review us in iTunes!

Could we be any more tense than we were this week? Could we have yelled at the TV any more? Could Philip be The Flash in an alternate universe? Well, The Americans universe is imploding, more characters are dying, and we are freaked out and exhausted by the end of S06E09 “Jennings, Elizabeth”! The penultimate episode of the best show on television aired May 23, 2018, was written by showrunners Joel Fields and Joe Weisberg and directed by Chris Long. This is Episode 124 and contains our history, tech of yesteryear, and feedback segments. Please check out Episode 123 to get the news and our episode breakdown and analysis. As we wind down the show, we only have a couple of history and tech items for you.We taste some delicious Ukha with our good friend Claudia. Then we look over Stan’s shoulder as he works the FBI Automated Case Support system and finds another Philip Jennings! Can you believe it’s yet another tie for Wig of the Week? It’s Elizabeth’s big poofy do and Tatiana’s blonde locks (too bad they didn’t stay put for long!) Then you guys get to share all your terrific thoughts with us! And we do love to hear your thoughts about The Americans so please keep sending them to us! You can email text or audio feedback to watchingtheamericans@gmail.com or signal us (we have replaced the operator!) at 919-907-0542. Follow us on Twitter @WatchAmericans. Please like us on our Facebook page Watching The Americans. And if you do enjoy the show, kindly rate us or better yet rate and review us in iTunes or Stitcher!

Could we be any more tense than we were this week? Could we have yelled at the TV any more? Could Philip be The Flash in an alternate universe? Well, The Americans universe is imploding, more characters are dying, and we are freaked out and exhausted by the end of S06E09 “Jennings, Elizabeth”! The penultimate episode of the best show on television aired May 23, 2018, was written by showrunners Joel Fields and Joe Weisberg and directed by Chris Long. This is Episode 123 and contains the news and our episode breakdown and analysis. To hear our history, tech of yesteryear, and feedback segments stay tuned for Episode 124. Two news items await us! First up The Washington Post asks and answers what does a show about Soviet spies living in America tell us about parenting? Everything. Then we have one poignant farewell retrospective in Vanity Fair: an ode to The Americans’ most unlikely hero, the beloved FBI mailbot! We then begin the episode with the aftermath of “The Summit”, as Elizabeth begins shadowing Nesterenko, while Philip leaves a dead drop for Oleg. Oleg picks it up, but he is in turn picked up by the FBI and interrogated by Stan. Oleg asks Stan to help save Gorbachev, and Stan seems unmoved. Meanwhile, Stan’s spidey-sense leads him to tell Dennis about his suspicions and to dig deep to find out if his hunch about the Jennings being illegals is correct. He even contacts Pastor Tim, who reveals nothing. Elizabeth eventually saves Nesterenko from assassination…by Tatiana! She confronts Claudia and reveals that she is team Gorby, devastating the old operative. Then Paige confronts Elizabeth about her encounter with a drunken Jackson who ranted about the recent honeypot. She leaves the house, bitter and enraged by her mother’s lies. Philip meets with Father Andrei, who is reveals his rival Father Victor is meeting with the FBI. Philip runs from the watching FBI and in a coded message tells Elizabeth to flee!

The end is nigh and the deck is clearing! So this week we have some major unexpected revelations from the start! Shocking twists! A mercy killing! A not killing! Has Philip finally gotten through to the human being in Elizabeth? Are they done for? And Claudia is evil. Again! So much to digest in a super-sized episode! It’s The Americans Season 6 Episode 8 “The Summit”, which aired May 16, 2018. It was written by Joshua Brand and directed by series veteran Sylvain White. This is Episode 122 and contains our history, tech of yesteryear, and feedback segments. Please check out Episode 121 to get the news and our episode breakdown and analysis. There was so much so fast in the history lane! We brush up on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act  before heading over to meet a contact at Main State. It’s a good thing we used our favorite Vidal Sassoon products to look good and fool people! Then we head to the cinema for a trifecta: The Big Heat, I Was a Male War Bride, and then we have to use subtitles for The Garage! Fortunately we convinced Elizabeth we are good guys so she doesn’t have to off us with her poison tip assassination device (maybe a Bulgarian Umbrella?)! Then another tie Wig of the Week exists between Philip’s hat and long blonde hair and Elizabeth’s blonde assassin pageboy! We then have your enthusiastic responses to this week’s show! And we do love to hear your thoughts about The Americans so please keep sending them to us! You can email text or audio feedback to watchingtheamericans@gmail.com or signal us (we have replaced the operator!) at 919-907-0542. Follow us on Twitter @WatchAmericans. Please like us on our Facebook page Watching The Americans. And if you do enjoy the show, kindly rate us or better yet rate and review us in iTunes or Stitcher!

The end is nigh and the deck is clearing! So this week we have some major unexpected revelations from the start! Shocking twists! A mercy killing! A not killing! Has Philip finally gotten through to the human being in Elizabeth? Are they done for? And Claudia is evil. Again! So much to digest in a super-sized episode! It’s The Americans Season 6 Episode 8 “The Summit”, which aired May 16, 2018. It was written by Joshua Brand and directed by series veteran Sylvain White. This is Episode 121 and contains the news and our episode breakdown and analysis. To hear our history, tech of yesteryear, and feedback segments stay tuned for Episode 122. We have one choice news item for you, from a real-life CIA operative! It’s a piece in the The Washington Post wherein the former chief of disguise at the CIA says that ‘The Americans’ gets a lot right! And she gives a special shoutout to Matthew Rhys for how he handles guy disguises. Then we pick up just after the past episode, and Philip confesses the Oleg operation to a stunned Elizabeth! He implores her to help save Gorby but she seems unmoved. She continues the operation with poor Jackson, who (of course) falls for her wiles. With his help she gets a key recording of Nesterenko. Stan continues closing in by visiting with a member of Gregory’s crew from Season 1. The Erica and Glenn Haskard story comes to its inevitable sad ending with Elizabeth’s help. Philip tries apologizing to Stavos. Jackson escapes certain death at the hands of Elizabeth! Claudia reveals her deep knowledge of everything Elizabeth has been working on, cementing her as a snake once and for all. Elizabeth learns from the tape that Nesterenko is a good man and refuses to follow the Centre’s orders to kill him! Claudia threatens Elizabeth, who then tells Philip that she needs to get a message to Oleg to help save Gorby! Remember that we do love to hear your thoughts about The Americans so please keep sending them in! You can email text or audio feedback to watchingtheamericans@gmail.com or signal us (we have replaced the operator!) at 919-907-0542. Follow us on Twitter @WatchAmericans. Please like us on our Facebook page Watching The Americans. And if you do enjoy the show, kindly rate us or better yet rate and review us in iTunes!

You knew we had to have at least one more gruesome spy thing, didn’t you? Well we sure did this week, along with Stan’s spidey-sense kicking in, Dennis’s frustration, and Elizabeth remaining winless this season! At least Philip was there to prevent an even worse outcome. Plus: Harvest meets the scythe and Marilyn meets the axe! All this and Erica, Henry and Paige too in The Americans Season 6 Episode 7 “Harvest”, which aired May 9, 2018. It was written by newcomer Sarah Nolen and directed by Stefan Schwartz. This is Episode 120 and contains our history, tech of yesteryear, and feedback segments. Please check out Episode 119 to get the news and our episode breakdown and analysis. We go light on history and tech to make way for feedback! We start out by adjusting our diets through food combining while listening to the incredible Patti Smith and the song “Broken Flag” on the album Wave. Such somberness makes us yearn for laughter and we get it at the Police Academy, which we reached easily using the Chicago L. Did anyone else see the emergency fire axe was missing? Then we have another tie for Wig of the Week between Philip’s shaggy cut, Elizabeth’s long dark locks, and the one that fell off poor Marilyn! Then look out for your incredible thoughts in your raucous feedback! And we do love to hear your thoughts about The Americans so please keep sending them to us! You can email text or audio feedback to watchingtheamericans@gmail.com or signal us (we have replaced the operator!) at 919-907-0542. Follow us on Twitter @WatchAmericans. Please like us on our Facebook page Watching The Americans. And if you do enjoy the show, kindly rate us or better yet rate and review us in iTunes or Stitcher!  

You knew we had to have at least one more gruesome spy thing, didn’t you? Well we sure did this week, along with Stan’s spidey-sense kicking in, Dennis’s frustration, and Elizabeth remaining winless this season! At least Philip was there to prevent an even worse outcome. Plus: Harvest meets the scythe and Marilyn meets the axe! All this and Erica, Henry and Paige too in The Americans Season 6 Episode 7 “Harvest”, which aired May 9, 2018. It was written by newcomer Sarah Nolen and directed by Stefan Schwartz. This is Episode 119 and contains the news and our episode breakdown and analysis. To hear our history, tech of yesteryear, and feedback segments stay tuned for Episode 120. A couple of intriguing news items are out there this week. We start of with Vulture going on the set of the game-changing episode, ‘Harvest’ and giving us background on writer Sarah Nolen. We follow that with Mic’s think piece about the final season of ‘The Americans’ being all about the death of ideologies. This episode begins with Philip revealing to Stan…that the business is tanking. Stan gets a bro hug and arousing suspicion. Stan drive Henry to get back to school and the conversation sets his spidey-sense to max! Philip arrives in Chicago to help Elizabeth with the extraction of Harvest. In a sequence reminiscent of Season 1, they attempt the move and it ends with resounding failure and death all around them. Dennis and Stan react to the Chicago mayhem. After dealing with the aftermath, Philip and Elizabeth head home. Which Stan did first. Erica later pushes Elizabeth to understand…something. Elizabeth then pushes Paige to commit. And Philip remembers his wedding to Elizabeth. Remember that we do love to hear your thoughts about The Americans so please keep sending them in! You can email text or audio feedback to watchingtheamericans@gmail.com or signal us (we have replaced the operator!) at 919-907-0542. Follow us on Twitter @WatchAmericans. Please like us on our Facebook page Watching The Americans. And if you do enjoy the show, kindly rate us or better yet rate and review us in iTunes!  

It has taken almost six seasons, and now Henry finally takes center stage! Maybe the only reason he isn’t completely messed up is because the family left him alone all this time! It’s Thanksgiving and we see almost everyone left back together for a meal at the Beemans! Things are starting to look dicey for the Russians, and just when you thought they might finally be done, Philip and Elizabeth may not be! All this and more are in The Americans Season 6 Episode 6 “Rififi” which aired May 2, 2018. It was written by Stephen Schiff and Justin Weinberger, and directed by Kevin Bray. This is Episode 118 and contains our history, tech of yesteryear, and feedback segments. Please check out Episode 117 to get the news and our episode breakdown and analysis. It’s getting so hard to fit all the history, tech and feedback into one episode! We start out at The Key Theatre, there like Elizabeth to check out Rififi, Bob le Flambeur and one she didn’t want to see, Three Men and a Baby (we have a soft spot for Tom Selleck!). On the way home we fight over the radio and end up with Tears for Fears “Ideas as Opiates”, which would sound amazing if done by The California Raisins at an outdoor show at Walden Pond. The tech to get us there involves full-scale versions of slot car racing cars, which can only be bought using special invoices printed in invisible ink cracked with steganography. We have a tie for Wig of the Week between Elizabeth’s French film look and Marilyn’s dark curly lock! After all that, it’s time for your incredible thoughts in your awesome feedback! And we do love to hear your thoughts about The Americans so please keep sending them to us! You can email text or audio feedback to watchingtheamericans@gmail.com or signal us (we have replaced the operator!) at 919-907-0542. Follow us on Twitter @WatchAmericans. Please like us on our Facebook page Watching The Americans. And if you do enjoy the show, kindly rate us or better yet rate and review us in iTunes or Stitcher!

It has taken almost six seasons, and now Henry finally takes center stage! Maybe the only reason he isn’t completely messed up is because the family left him alone all this time! It’s Thanksgiving and we see almost everyone left back together for a meal at the Beemans! Things are starting to look dicey for the Russians, and just when you thought they might finally be done, Philip and Elizabeth may not be! All this and more are in The Americans Season 6 Episode 6 “Rififi” which aired May 2, 2018. It was written by Stephen Schiff and Justin Weinberger, and directed by Kevin Bray. This is Episode 117 and contains the news and our episode breakdown and analysis. To hear our history, tech of yesteryear, and feedback segments stay tuned for Episode 118. There are three choice news items at the TASS bureau this week, beginning with The Washington Post showing us that before ‘The Americans’ and ‘Homeland,’ Russian TV spies were simple villains. No more. Next up we have Collider’s intimate chat with showrunners Joe Weisberg and Joel Fields on navigating the Intense, emotional final season, and we wind up with  Uproxx’s Alan Sepinwall with a comment from the Js on finances and financing and Russian spies. We pick up this week right where we ended, with Philip confronting Elizabeth about the Kimmy operation and his decision to end it! It’s Thanksgiving though, so Henry comes home and shines as the true American in the Jennings household! Dennis asks Stan to come back and help counterintelligence because that the FBI has found an illegal in Chicago and Dennis thinks they will be able to find all of them in the US and quickly! The Beemans host everyone except Elizabeth for a Thanksgiving feast along with a side of patriotic speechifying from Stan. Henry has some time with Philip, and he gets an unusual call from Elizabeth that leads Philip to offer to help her in Chicago! Remember that we do love to hear your thoughts about The Americans so please keep sending them in! You can email text or audio feedback to watchingtheamericans@gmail.com or signal us (we have replaced the operator!) at 919-907-0542. Follow us on Twitter @WatchAmericans. Please like us on our Facebook page Watching The Americans. And if you do enjoy the show, kindly rate us or better yet rate and review us in iTunes!  

This is probably the first time since the death of Nina that we were left completely speechless by an episode of The Americans! Things are really coming apart at the seams, in every sense in every relationship, from Gennadi and Sofia to Paige, Elizabeth and Philip. We got a surprising and bitter return of Tatiana confronting Oleg! And the turn in the Kimmy and Jim relationship was unbearable. Top that off with Philip making a stand and you have one of the most amazing episodes in six seasons! True horror and sadness are waiting for you in The Americans Season 6 Episode 5 “The Great Patriotic War” which aired April 25, 2018. It was written by Hilary Bettis and directed by Thomas Schlamme. This is Episode 116 and contains our history, tech of yesteryear, and feedback segments. Please check out Episode 115 to get the news and our episode breakdown and analysis. We start out with political history in the person of esteemed Georgia Senator Sam Nunn, who being a defense wonk knows all about the importance of The Battle of Stalingrad to helping turn the tide against the Nazis. He also knows the horrific level of  World War II casualties, particularly the millions killed in the Soviet Union. Thank goodness we can put that out of mind and crack open a cold one to catch the hockey match and see sexiest man alive Mark Harmon  in a classic 1985 Coors commercial. In an adjacent room the kids can enjoy the entertaining “March of the Wooden Soldiers” sequence from Babes in Toyland while we use our Texas Instruments pocket calculator to try to figure out how to save our travel agency! Then you guys unleash a torrent of terrific feedback! And we do love to hear your thoughts about The Americans so please keep sending them to us! You can email text or audio feedback to watchingtheamericans@gmail.com or signal us (we have replaced the operator!) at 919-907-0542. Follow us on Twitter @WatchAmericans. Please like us on our Facebook page Watching The Americans. And if you do enjoy the show, kindly rate us or better yet rate and review us in iTunes or Stitcher!

This is probably the first time since the death of Nina that we were left completely speechless by an episode of The Americans! Things are really coming apart at the seams, in every sense in every relationship, from Gennadi and Sofia to Paige, Elizabeth and Philip. We got a surprising and bitter return of Tatiana confronting Oleg! And the turn in the Kimmy and Jim relationship was unbearable. Top that off with Philip making a stand and you have one of the most amazing episodes in six seasons! True horror and sadness are waiting for you in The Americans Season 6 Episode 5 “The Great Patriotic War” which aired April 25, 2018. It was written by Hilary Bettis and directed by Thomas Schlamme. This is Episode 115 and contains the news and our episode breakdown and analysis. To hear our history, tech of yesteryear, and feedback segments stay tuned for Episode 116. We have a couple of great news items for you. First up Vulture examines the utter shock of Philip and Paige’s fight. Then it’s time for A/V Club to reveal how The Americans can be a great horror movie, too. Then we start the show with food delivery man Stan who also serves as best friend and marriage counselor. Paige continues to defy Elizabeth and shows a feral side that takes care of a couple of grabby frat boys, much to Elizabeth and Philip’s dismay. Erica continues to sicken and tries to impart some wisdom to the brick wall known as Elizabeth. Tatiana returns to confront Oleg about his actions years before and he learns she is the reason why the GRU was after him and his family. Claudia teaches Paige about the Soviets in World War II aka The Great Patriotic War and she and Elizabeth demonstrate proper vodka techniques to Paige, resulting in an almost humanizing first-time lovemaking discussion. Elizabeth completes her mission regarding Gennadi with horrific collateral damage involving Sofia and Illya. Most sadly, Elizabeth plays a honeypot on Philip, and she pushes him one step too far to make him take an extreme action with Kimmy. After Philip learns what happened to Gennadi and Sofia, he takes a final stand to save Kimmy. Remember that we do love to hear your thoughts about The Americans so please keep sending them in! You can email text or audio feedback to watchingtheamericans@gmail.com or signal us (we have replaced the operator!) at 919-907-0542. Follow us on Twitter @WatchAmericans. Please like us on our Facebook page Watching The Americans. And if you do enjoy the show, kindly rate us or better yet rate and review us in iTunes!

We thought last week was the most depressing episode yet of The Americans. Well, we were wrong! Nothing goes right this week, from travel agency finances and fancy school payments to sensor heists to trips to watch a World Series Game 6! And Philip can’t even get a snuggle from Elizabeth! Sadness abounds in The Americans Season 6 Episode 4 “Mr. and Mrs. Teacup” which aired April 18, 2018. It was written by Peter Ackerman and directed by Roxann Dawson. This is Episode 114 and contains our history, tech of yesteryear, and feedback segments. Please check out Episode 113 to get the news and our episode breakdown and analysis. Baseball is one historic sport and we dive deep starting with Glenn’s fave (he has the jacket!) the Yakult Swallows who as far as we know never played at The Metrodome in Minneapolis! Then we review the epic Game 6 of the 1987 World Series while drinking a refreshing Pilsner Urquell before Barb clues us in on the nefarious doings of DC Mayor Marion Barry, who as we know loved playing NERF football! We then proclaim Paige the winner of Wigs of the Week (without a wig!) before you guys tell us what you thought! And we do love to hear your thoughts about The Americans so please keep sending them to us! You can email text or audio feedback to watchingtheamericans@gmail.com or signal us (we have replaced the operator!) at 919-907-0542. Follow us on Twitter @WatchAmericans. Please like us on our Facebook page Watching The Americans. And if you do enjoy the show, kindly rate us or better yet rate and review us in iTunes or Stitcher!  

We thought last week was the most depressing episode yet of The Americans. Well, we were wrong! Nothing goes right this week, from travel agency finances and fancy school payments to sensor heists to trips to watch a World Series Game 6! And Philip can’t even get a snuggle from Elizabeth! Sadness abounds in The Americans Season 6 Episode 4 “Mr. and Mrs. Teacup” which aired April 18, 2018. It was written by Peter Ackerman and directed by Roxann Dawson. This is Episode 113 and contains the news and our episode breakdown and analysis. To hear our history, tech of yesteryear, and feedback segments stay tuned for Episode 114. Two choice items are in the news. Russian propaganda arm Russia Today offers up a look at Hollywood’s malicious propaganda that dehumanizes all Russians. Take it with a heaping helping of salt. Then we have a neat introspective piece in America Magazine on how “The Americans” highlights the dangers of consumerism. We recommence right where we left off – in the park with that hot new couple, Oleg and Philip! Oleg then checks in with Igor using cool spy codes, and then Igor gives the real scoop to Arkady! Elizabeth tries to steal a sensor, and all she gets are 3 more dead guys! Dennis ropes Stan back into marriage counseling, and Henry learns Philip can’t pay! At least Philip can still line dance! Unfortunately that’s all he can do since Elizabeth is too tired to even cuddle. She does convince Erica and Glenn to check out a World Series Game 6 with stomach-upsetting results! To top it all off, Paige ignores Elizabeth and goes all honeypot on a mark! Remember that we do love to hear your thoughts about The Americans so please keep sending them in! You can email text or audio feedback to watchingtheamericans@gmail.com or signal us (we have replaced the operator!) at 919-907-0542. Follow us on Twitter @WatchAmericans. Please like us on our Facebook page Watching The Americans. And if you do enjoy the show, kindly rate us or better yet rate and review us in iTunes!