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The Americans season 1

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The Americans
Season 1
DVD cover
No. of episodes13
Release
Original networkFX
Original releaseJanuary 30 (2013-01-30) –
May 1, 2013 (2013-05-01)
Season chronology
Next →
Season 2
List of episodes

The first season of the American television drama series The Americans premiered on January 30, 2013, and concluded on May 1, 2013. It consisted of 13 episodes, each running for approximately 45 minutes, except for a pilot of over an hour. FX broadcast the first season on Wednesdays at 10:00 pm in the United States. The series is produced by DreamWorks Television. The Americans was created by Joe Weisberg.

Set in the 1980s during the Cold War period, The Americans is the story of Elizabeth (Keri Russell) and Philip Jennings (Matthew Rhys), two Soviet KGB officers posing as an American married couple in the suburbs of Washington, D.C., their two children, and their neighbor, Stan Beeman (Noah Emmerich), an FBI agent.[1]

Cast

Main

Recurring

Production

Conception

The Americans was created by Joe Weisberg, a former CIA officer.[2] Despite its spy setting, Weisberg set out to tell the story about a marriage.[3] "The Americans is at its core a marriage story. International relations is just an allegory for the human relations. Sometimes, when you're struggling in your marriage or with your kid, it feels like life or death. For Philip and Elizabeth, it often is."[4] Executive producer Joel Fields described the series as working different levels of reality: the fictional world of the marriage between Philip and Elizabeth, and the real world involving the characters' experiences during the Cold War.[4]

"The most interesting thing I observed during my time at the CIA was the family life of agents who served abroad with kids and spouses. The reality is that mostly they're just people going about their lives. The job is one element, and trying to depict the issues they face just seemed like something that, if we could bring it to television in a realistic way, would be new."

—Joe Weisberg, creator and showrunner of The Americans[5]

Working at the CIA, which Weisberg later described as a mistake, has helped him develop several storylines in the series,[6] basing some plot lines on real-life stories,[6] and integrating several things he learned in his training, such as dead drops and communication protocols.[7] Weisberg was fascinated by stories he had heard from agents who served abroad as spies, while raising their families.[7] He was interested in bringing that concept to television, with the idea of a family of spies, rather than just one person.[7] Weisberg also said how the CIA inadvertently gave him the idea for creating a series around spies, explaining, "While I was taking the polygraph exam to get in, they asked the question, 'Are you joining the CIA in order to gain experience about the intelligence community so that you can write about it later – which had never occurred to me. I was totally joining the CIA because I wanted to be a spy. But the second they asked that question…then I thought, 'Now I'm going to fail the test.'"[8]

Weisberg was partially influenced by the events of the Illegals Program to write a pilot script for the series. His research material included notes on the KGB's Cold War left by Vasili Mitrokhin and conversations with some of his former colleagues at the CIA.[3] He stated that, unlike the circumstances involving the 2010 Russian spy ring, he had opted to set the story in the early 1980s because "a modern day [setting] didn't seem like a good idea", adding, "People were both shocked and simultaneously shrugged at the [2010] scandal because it didn't seem like we were really enemies with Russia anymore. An obvious way to remedy that for television was to stick it back in the Cold War. At first, the '70s appealed to me just because I loved the hair and the music. But can you think of a better time than the '80s with Ronald Reagan yelling about the evil empire?"[3]

Development

After reading Weisberg's novel, An Ordinary Spy, executive producer Graham Yost discovered that Weisberg had also written a pilot for a possible spy series. Yost read the pilot and discovered that it was "annoyingly good", which led to the beginning of motions to develop the show.[9] Shooting of the pilot began in May 2012 and lasted until mid-June. Filming began for the rest of the first season in November 2012 in the New York City area. The production used location shots to simulate a dramatic setting of Washington, D.C. Early filming was delayed by flooding caused by Hurricane Sandy.[10]

Casting

Weisberg stated that he had no idea about who would star in the series before casting began.[11] FX president John Landgraf had the idea to cast Keri Russell in the series.[11] Leslie Feldman, who is the head of casting at DreamWorks, saw Matthew Rhys in a play and suggested him to Weisberg.[11] Russell and Rhys had met briefly at a party years before, but were not fully introduced.[12] They both were attracted to the series because of its focus on the relationship between their characters. Said Rhys, "You have two people who have led the most incredibly strange life together with incredibly high stakes, in this scene of domesticity that is an absolute lie, and at the end of the pilot they're finding each other for the very first time."[12]

Russell described the pilot script as "interesting ... it was so far from a procedural. I didn't know that I wanted to do it. I always say no to everything. I never want to do anything. [Laughs.] But I just couldn't stop thinking about it. I read it...and I kept trying to figure it out, because it's so not clear. It's still not clear to me. But there's so many different levels to it".[13] Rhys said of his character, "He's a sort of gift of a part in that he's very sort of layered and multi-faceted. And when you meet him, he's at this great turning point in his life where everything's changing for him. You just get to do everything. You get to do the kung fu, and you get to do the emotional scenes, you get to do the disguises. It's the full package for an actor. It's a dream."[13] Noah Emmerich was initially hesitant about taking a role in the series. He explained: "The truth is, from the very beginning, I thought, 'I don't want to do a TV show where I carry a gun or a badge. I'm done with guns and badges. I just don't want to do that anymore'. When I first read it I thought, 'Yeah, it's really interesting and really good, but I don't want to be an FBI guy.'"[14] His friend, Gavin O'Connor, who directed the pilot episode, convinced him to take a closer look at the role.[14] Emmerich stated that he responded to the aspect of marriage and family. "It was really interesting, and it was really intelligent and unusual, and it stood out from the pack."[14]

Episodes

See also: List of The Americans episodes
No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateProd.
code		US viewers
(millions)
11"Pilot"Gavin O'ConnorJoe WeisbergJanuary 30, 2013 (2013-01-30)BDU1793.22[15]
22"The Clock"Adam ArkinJoe WeisbergFebruary 6, 2013 (2013-02-06)BDU1011.97[16]
33"Gregory"Thomas SchlammeJoel FieldsFebruary 13, 2013 (2013-02-13)BDU1021.65[17]
44"In Control"Jean de SegonzacJoel Fields & Joe WeisbergFebruary 20, 2013 (2013-02-20)BDU1031.91[18]
55"COMINT"Holly DaleMelissa James GibsonFebruary 27, 2013 (2013-02-27)BDU1041.44[19]
66"Trust Me"Daniel SackheimSneha KoorseMarch 6, 2013 (2013-03-06)BDU1051.88[20]
77"Duty and Honor"Alex ChappleJoshua BrandMarch 13, 2013 (2013-03-13)BDU1061.70[21]
88"Mutually Assured Destruction"Bill JohnsonJoel Fields & Joe WeisbergMarch 20, 2013 (2013-03-20)BDU1071.65[22]
99"Safe House"Jim McKayJoshua BrandApril 3, 2013 (2013-04-03)BDU1081.38[23]
1010"Only You"Adam ArkinBradford WintersApril 10, 2013 (2013-04-10)BDU1091.50[24]
1111"Covert War"Nicole KassellJoshua Brand & Melissa James GibsonApril 17, 2013 (2013-04-17)BDU1101.81[25]
1212"The Oath"John DahlJoshua Brand & Melissa James GibsonApril 24, 2013 (2013-04-24)BDU1111.49[26]
1313"The Colonel"Adam ArkinJoel Fields & Joe WeisbergMay 1, 2013 (2013-05-01)BDU1121.74[27]

Reception

Reviews

The first season of The Americans received positive reviews from critics. Based on 51 reviews collected by Rotten Tomatoes, the first season received an 88% approval rating from critics, with an average score of 7.8 out of 10. The consensus reads, "The Americans is a spy thriller of the highest order, with evocative period touches and strong chemistry between its leads."[28] On Metacritic, the first season scored 78 out of 100 based on 35 reviews.[29] The American Film Institute listed it as one of the top ten television series of 2013.[30] Rob Brunner of Entertainment Weekly described it as "an absorbing spy thriller"[31] while David Hinkley of the New York Daily News praised the pace, noting that "It's a premise that requires as much clever dramatic footwork as you might expect, and creator Joe Weisberg, a former CIA agent, handles the challenge".[32] Verne Gay of Newsday called it a "smart newcomer with a pair of leads that turns The Americans into a likely winner" and gave it a grade of an "A-".[33] Gail Pennington, television critic for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch gave The Americans a rating of three out of four stars. In her review of the debut episode, Pennington stated "The Americans isn't just a heart-pounding action drama; by presenting heroes that are also villains, it also confronts viewers with TV's deepest moral dilemma since The Sopranos".[34] However, Hank Stuever of The Washington Post observed that "The Americans struggles to crack a certain code; the concept is tantalizing, but the follow-through lacks the momentum that gets viewers to commit". He described it, however, as "another well-made, provocative TV drama" and suggested that it "could benefit from having the finite boundaries of being a miniseries rather than launching itself into the ambitious realm of an ongoing series."[35]

Awards and nominations

Year Association Category Nominee(s) Result
2013 3rd Critics' Choice Television Awards[36] Best Drama Actor Matthew Rhys Nominated
Best Drama Actress Keri Russell Nominated
Best Drama Series Nominated
Best Drama Supporting Actor Noah Emmerich Nominated
29th TCA Awards[37] Individual Achievement in Drama Matthew Rhys Nominated
Outstanding New Program Won
Outstanding Achievement in Drama Nominated
Program of the Year Nominated
65th Primetime Emmy Awards[38] Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series Margo Martindale Nominated
Outstanding Original Main Title Theme Music Nathan Barr Nominated
18th Satellite Awards[39] Best Actress in a Drama Series Keri Russell Nominated
Best Drama Series Nominated
Best Supporting Actress in a Series, Miniseries, or TV Movie Margo Martindale Nominated
66th Writers Guild of America Awards[40] Best New Series Nominated
American Film Institute Awards 2013[30] Best Television Program of The Year Listed

Home media release

The first season of The Americans was released on Blu-ray and DVD in region 1 on February 11, 2014[41] and in region 2 on March 3, 2014.[42] The set includes an audio commentary for "The Colonel" by Joe Weisberg, Joel Fields and Noah Emmerich; three featurettes, "Executive Order 2579: Exposing the Americans", "Perfecting the Art of Espionage" and "Ingenuity Over Technology"; a gag reel; deleted scenes; and trailers.[41]

References

  1. ^ Harnick, Chris (August 9, 2012). "'The Americans': FX Orders Cold War Spy Series Starring Keri Russell". The Huffington Post. Archived from the original on February 14, 2013. Retrieved October 30, 2012.
  2. ^ Holson, Laura M. (March 29, 2013). "The Dark Stuff, Distilled". The New York Times. Retrieved July 15, 2013.
  3. ^ a b c Waxman, Olivia B. (January 30, 2013). "The real CIA behind 'The Americans'". Time. Archived from the original on October 22, 2013. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
  4. ^ a b Thomas, June (January 31, 2013). "A Conversation With The Americans Showrunners Joe Weisberg and Joel Fields". Slate. Archived from the original on August 11, 2013. Retrieved October 6, 2013.
  5. ^ Arnold-Ratliff, Katie (March 12, 2013). "Spy vs. Spy: A Q&A with The Americans Creator Joe Weisberg". Time. Archived from the original on October 22, 2013. Retrieved October 6, 2013.
  6. ^ a b Leeds, Sarene (October 5, 2013). "'The Americans' Invade New York's Paley Center". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 5, 2013. Retrieved October 6, 2013.
  7. ^ a b c "DIRECTV Interview: The Americans Masterminds Joe Weisberg and Joel Fields". DirecTV. April 24, 2013. Archived from the original on October 19, 2013. Retrieved October 6, 2013.
  8. ^ Bernstein, Paula (October 7, 2013). "'The Americans' Changes Focus in Season Two and Other Intel from PaleyFest". Indiewire. Archived from the original on October 27, 2013. Retrieved October 25, 2013.
  9. ^ Brioux, Bill (January 30, 2013). "The Americans debuts on FX Canada Jan. 30". The Canadian Press. Archived from the original on July 1, 2015. Retrieved January 31, 2013.
  10. ^ "FX's 'The Americans' Studio Flooded by Hurricane Sandy; Shooting Delayed (Exclusive)". TheWrap TV. November 7, 2012. Archived from the original on March 28, 2013. Retrieved March 5, 2013.
  11. ^ a b c Radish, Christina. "Creators Joseph Weisberg and Joel Fields Talk THE AMERICANS Season Finale, Crafting the Cliffhanger, Season 2, and More". Collider. Archived from the original on December 13, 2013. Retrieved December 8, 2013.
  12. ^ a b Egner, Jeremy (January 24, 2013). "The Spy Who Married Me: Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys on 'The Americans'". The New York Times. Archived from the original on December 14, 2013. Retrieved December 8, 2013.
  13. ^ a b Prudom, Laura (January 30, 2013). "'The Americans' Premiere: Keri Russell And Matthew Rhys Talk Sex, Spy Games And America Vs. Russia". The Huffington Post. Archived from the original on February 3, 2013. Retrieved February 2, 2013.
  14. ^ a b c Potts, Kimberly (March 11, 2013). "Yahoo! TV Q&A: 'The Americans' Star Noah Emmerich on His Character, His Twitter, and His Celebrity BFF". Yahoo. Archived from the original on March 20, 2013. Retrieved April 5, 2013.
  15. ^ Kondolojy, Amanda (January 31, 2013). "Wednesday Cable Ratings: 'Moonshiners' Wins Night + 'The Americans', NBA Basketball, 'Workaholics', 'Shipping Wars' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on February 14, 2013. Retrieved February 1, 2013.
  16. ^ Bibel, Sara (February 7, 2013). "Wednesday Cable Ratings: 'Moonshiners' Wins Night, 'Robot Chicken', 'The Americans', 'Workaholics', 'Top Chef', 'Necessary Roughness' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on February 9, 2013. Retrieved February 7, 2013.
  17. ^ Kondolojy, Amanda (February 14, 2013). "Wednesday Cable Ratings: College Basketball Beats 'Moonshiners' + 'Workaholics', 'Full Throttle Saloon', 'The Daily Show' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on February 17, 2013. Retrieved February 14, 2013.
  18. ^ Bibel, Sara (February 21, 2013). "Wednesday Cable Ratings: NBA Basketball Wins Night, 'The Americans', 'Top Chef', 'Workaholics', 'Necessary Roughness', 'Southland' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on February 24, 2013. Retrieved February 21, 2013.
  19. ^ Kondolojy, Amanda (February 28, 2013). "Wednesday Cable Ratings: 'Duck Dynasty' Dominates Night + 'Psych', 'Top Chef', 'The Daily Show', NBA Basketball & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on March 3, 2013. Retrieved February 28, 2013.
  20. ^ Bibel, Sara (March 7, 2013). "Wednesday Cable Ratings:'Duck Dynasty' Wins Night, 'Psych', 'The Americans', 'Workaholics' 'Southland', & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on March 12, 2013. Retrieved March 7, 2013.
  21. ^ Kondolojy, Amanda (March 14, 2013). "Wednesday Cable Ratings: 'Duck Dynasty' Dominates + 'Psych', 'Workaholics', NBA Basketball, 'The Americans' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on March 17, 2013. Retrieved March 14, 2013.
  22. ^ Bibel, Sara (March 21, 2013). "Wednesday Cable Ratings: 'Duck Dynasty' Wins Night, 'Psych', 'Workaholics', 'The Americans', 'Southland' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on March 24, 2013. Retrieved March 21, 2013.
  23. ^ Bibel, Sara (April 4, 2013). "Wednesday Cable Ratings: 'Duck Dynasty' Wins Night, 'Psych', 'Southland', 'The Real World', 'Haunted Collector' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on April 6, 2013. Retrieved April 5, 2013.
  24. ^ Kondolojy, Amanda (April 11, 2013). "Wednesday Cable Ratings: 'Duck Dynasty' Rules + 'Psych', 'The Daily Show', NBA Basketball, 'The Real World' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on April 14, 2013. Retrieved April 11, 2013.
  25. ^ Bibel, Sara (April 18, 2013). "Wednesday Cable Ratings: 'Duck Dynasty' Wins Again, 'American Hoggers', 'Psych', 'Southland', 'The Americans', 'Real World' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on April 20, 2013. Retrieved April 18, 2013.
  26. ^ Kondolojy, Amanda (April 25, 2013). "Wednesday Cable Ratings: 'Duck Dynasty' Dominates + NBA Basketball, 'American Hoggers', 'Psych', 'The Daily Show' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on April 28, 2013. Retrieved April 25, 2013.
  27. ^ Bibel, Sara (May 2, 2013). "Wednesday Cable Ratings: NBA Playoffs Win Night, 'Psych', 'Mythbusters', 'The Real World', 'The Americans' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on May 5, 2013. Retrieved May 2, 2013.
  28. ^ "The Americans: Season 1 (2013)". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on February 28, 2014. Retrieved October 18, 2013.
  29. ^ "The Americans: Season 1". Metacritic. Retrieved February 1, 2013.
  30. ^ a b Gray, Tim (December 9, 2013). "AFI Names Best Movies and TV Shows of 2013". Variety. Archived from the original on December 11, 2013. Retrieved December 9, 2013.
  31. ^ Brunner, Rob (January 25, 2013). "The Americans Review". Entertainment Weekly: 113.
  32. ^ Hinkley, David (January 30, 2013). "TV review: 'The Americans'". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on January 31, 2013. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
  33. ^ Gay, Verne (January 28, 2013). "'The Americans' review: Spy drama another FX winner". Newsday. Archived from the original on October 21, 2013. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
  34. ^ Pennington, Gail (January 30, 2013). "TV Review: FX's The Americans makes Cold War hot". The St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Archived from the original on August 20, 2014. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
  35. ^ Stuever, Hank (January 29, 2013). "The Americans: A tense look at spies like us". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on January 31, 2013. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
  36. ^ Bricker, Tierney (May 22, 2013). "2013 Critics' Choice Television Awards: Big Bang Theory, Game of Thrones, New Girl and More Earn Nominations". E! Online. Archived from the original on May 30, 2013. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
  37. ^ Ausiello, Michael (August 3, 2013). "Tatiana Maslany, Game of Thrones, Breaking Bad, The Americans, Bunheads, Parks and Rec, Big Bang Among Winners at 2013 TCA Awards". TVLine. Archived from the original on April 22, 2016. Retrieved August 4, 2013.
  38. ^ "The Americans". Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Archived from the original on July 21, 2013. Retrieved July 19, 2013.
  39. ^ Pond, Steve (December 2, 2013). "'12 Years a Slave' Tops Satellite Award Nominations". The Wrap. Archived from the original on January 21, 2014. Retrieved December 8, 2013.
  40. ^ Ausiello, Michael (December 5, 2013). "Breaking Bad, Orange Is the New Black, House of Cards Lead 2014 WGA Nominations". TVLine. Archived from the original on December 6, 2013. Retrieved December 5, 2013.
  41. ^ a b {{cite web |url=http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Americans-Season-1/19234 |title=The Americans – Finalized Street Date, Extras, Packaging for 'The Complete 1st Season' |publisher=TVShowsOnDVD.com |first=David |last=Lambert |date=December 4, 2013 |accessdate=December 4, 2013 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20131207182746/http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Americans-Season-1/19234 |archivedate=December 7, 2013
  42. ^ "The Americans – Season 1 [Blu-ray]". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved August 21, 2013.
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