Posted in: Review, TV | Tagged: fx, The Americans, The Americans final season, The Americans season 6, The Americans season 6 episode 8, The Americans season 6 episode 8 "The Summit"

Let's Talk About The Americans Season 6 Episode 8, "The Summit"

Published Wed, 16 May 2018 21:00:47 -0500

by Mary Anne Butler

Last updated Wed, 16 May 2018 22:18:06 -0500

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The 6th and final season of FX's Cold War era spy drama series The Americans continues with episode 8, "The Summit".

Last week, Elizabeth (Keri Russell) dealt with the fallout of her Chicago mission, and Philip Jennings (Matthew Rhys) made his position on several things in their lives (both on mission and at home) quite clear, including the continuation of Paige's training. Stan Beeman (Noah Emmerich) continues to try to get to the bottom of the Russian spies' plans.

If you missed what happened last week, you can catch up here.

S6e8 is titled "The Summit", and the synopsis reads:

"With the arms control summit under way, a shocking revelation from Philip throws Elizabeth and her work into turmoil; Stan follows a dangerous hunch."

Things that happened in s6e8:

The episode begins with a "previously on" segment
We see Philip waiting for Elizabeth to come home, and it's clear he's thinking about something.
He begins to talk to her- but she keeps cutting him off saying that she knows he worries about her.
He brings up her suicide pill, and again says he needs to tell her something.
Philip tells her that someone from 'Home' reached out to him, but not who.
Philip tells her that there are people who want to get rid of Gorbachev, and that the man asked Philip to report on Elizabeth.
She takes the news pretty well, all things considered.
"I told him you were dedicated, that you were looking into a negotiator that you thought was a traitor, that you were going to Chicago."
Elizabeth takes it that all Philip's concern wasn't genuine, that it was only to get information, she tells him to go to hell
"You lied to me for months because of GORBACHEV?"
"I would do anything for you. I just did. But not anymore," Philip tells her.
Elizabeth is in disguise as Wendy (the blonde with the glasses), meeting her young foreign film friend Jackson
He's interested in the program she told him about, he's brought a resume (aww how cute)
She tells him to write a report about the Senator he works for, with a 24 hour turnover.
Back at the FBI, Aderholt is sending out a task force to look for priests
At Claudia's, the girls are watching Gorbachev's speech at the opening of the summit
Elizabeth reveals she knows someone attending day two of the talks, and is going to plant a listening device into his briefcase.
It's the husband of her sick artist friend Erika (Miriam Shore)
Elizabeth walks in to find Haskard (Scott Cohen) sitting with his wife, after he tried to give her a morphine overdose.
(I seriously just realized that Haskard is Scott Cohen, from 10th Kingdom)
Elizabeth tells him to say goodbye to his wife, and sends him out of the room
We knew this was coming, but man.
With a final look around the room of the beautiful art on the walls, Elizabeth kisses Erika's forehead and uses a paintbrush to cause vomiting and suffocation.
Elizabeth sends Haskard out of the room, and starts taking photos of papers in his suitcase
Back at the FBI, the agents are looking at artist sketches, several familiar faces from the Jennings' large collection of faces
Haskard tells Elizabeth to pick one of Erika's paintings and take it with her. She choses the large one, of a woman peering through foggy glass.
Elizabeth takes it to their safe house, and removes the canvas from it's frame and makes ready to burn it but hesitates at the last moment. She rolls it up instead, and I can't help but feel this sentimentality will cause problems.
Oh, wait, she's pulled it back out and burns it anyway.
Elizabeth is Wendy again, and meets with her young friend Jackson to give him a new suitcase and congratulate him on making it into her fake management training program
They share a drinks, and he leans in to kiss her.
Back at Stan's house, Renee has gotten an interview for a personnel position at the FBI
Elizabeth-Wendy gives Jackson a box of files to take with him to the summit, tells him to drop it in a specific room for a specific person.
Stan takes a photo of Elizabeth to a former informant, and asks if he recognizes her. The mention of her smoking like a chimney immediately triggers Stan's spidey-sense
Philip goes to visit one of the guys he fired from the Travel Agency
Elizabeth-Wendy goes to pick up Jackson, and Jackson looks shellshocked. Obviously something happened.
Turns out he looked in the files and saw the bug…..and she tries to calmly alleviate his concerns while driving them to a questionable alley.
Oh poor poor Jackson, you are gonna die.
DON'T LET HIM GO WHAT ARE YOU DOING
Elizabeth is listening to the recording, where the Russian voice is telling the US representatives that US nuclear disarmament would lead to the Russians drop the Star Wars program protests
Claudia gives her a new mission, that she has to take out the Russian diplomat who made the offer.
She goes to do it, but hesitates at the last minute and pulls her hand back
Philip has rented himself a movie, a Russian flick called "The Garage", and sits by himself watching it
Elizabeth tells Claudia she couldn't take out the subject, and argues the why this person.
Claudia tells her that back in Russia, their leader doesn't know their history, what they've sacrificed
Turns out the entirety of Elizabeth's missions this season have been to plant information to implicate Gorbachev and get him removed from power. She keeps asking about who the orders came from, and Claudia warns her to keep quiet, to not throw away all her years serving her country.
Elizabeth comes home and finds Philip watching his film.
"I need to talk to your guy," Elizabeth tells him
She tells Philip to tell his guy that the Center is trying to get rid of Gorbachev, that everything they're doing is to prevent Gorbachev's returning to Russia
The episode ends with Elizabeth telling Philip to go check on their priest himself

***

AAAARG this is a slow burn towards what I'm sure is going to be an explosive series end. While perhaps not the biggest reveals of previous episodes, seeing Philip and Elizabeth come full circle with their motivations is brilliant.

The Americans airs on FX on Wednesdays…..FOR ONLY TWO MORE EPISODES.

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