The Americans
Summary
The Americansending was an aroused finale that sway things up for its principal characters . arrange during the Cold War in the 1980s , Philip ( Matthew Rhys ) and Elizabeth Jennings ( Keri Russell ) are Russian KGB undercover agent posing as an American conjoin duet with their American tyke , daughter Paige ( Holly Taylor ) and son Henry ( Keidrich Sellati ) . The series explore Elizabeth and Philip ’s conflicts between duty and kin , and hiding their true line of work from their neighbour , FBI agentive role Stan Beeman ( Noah Emmerich ) .
The Americans ' time of year finaleswere always top - snick , but " START , " the last episode ofThe Americansseason 6 , is especially intense , a superb ending to a bang-up spy drama . The series finale was so acclaimedthat it garnered two Primetime Emmys : Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series ( given to showrunners and writers Joe Weisberg and Joel Fields ) and Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for Matthew Rhys . Here ’s a full breakdown ofThe Americans’ending that became a famous ending for the hit TV serial .
The Americans see characters go through life - chaning experience during its test , which is sometimes seen in their first and last note .
Why Paige Gets Off The Train In The Americans' Ending
This Was The Finale’s Big Twist
One of the most emotionally withering scenes inThe Americans ' ending is when Paige gets off the train to leave the country , check as Elizabeth and Philip look outside their windows in shock . It ’s a heartrending scene even without dialogue . As for why Paige even made that choice , part of it can be attribute to her love for her pal . Elizabeth and Philip are on the phone at the train station with their son , Henry , who they ’d decided to go away behind in America since he does n’t knowhis parents are Russian spies .
Philip and Elizabeth have a grievous conversation with Henry , telling him that they love him , though Paige , on the other paw , ca n’t bring herself to say adios to him forever . Paige cares about Henry and does n’t desire to go the rest of her life without seeing her brother . In an audience withGold Derby , Holly Taylor says that Paige was in all likelihood angry about being lie to her whole lifeand would n’t have wanted to start over in a place where she did n’t know the linguistic process :
" I reckon she ’s recall that her parents have lied to her so much and she ’s been betrayed pretty much her whole life history that what was she gon na do if she moved with them to a different country , where she could n’t even speak the language and thing like that ? I think she make out that there was really no hope for her there and she did n’t really trust her parents at all any longer . "
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What Will Happen To Elizabeth & Philip Jennings In Russia?
Life Will Be Totally Different
The final tantrum ofThe AmericansshowsElizabeth and Philip out of doors in Moscow . Philip says being back"feels strange,“and Elizabeth replies in Russian that they ’ll get used to it . After over two decades in America , Philip and Elizabeth have to reacclimatize to life in Russia . Russia is far dissimilar from what it was when they provide , especially with Mikhail Gorbachev result the Soviet Union . In a few year , the Soviet Union dissolves , and Elizabeth and Philip will have to voyage this alteration .
Philip and Elizabeth were born and raised in Russia , so they ’ll get used to living there again . However , Philip bosom American custom , and he will undoubtedly miss the comforts . Fortunately , the couple is under the trade protection of Arkady Zotov , the Directorate S deputy chief , so they should be treat well . Still , there ’s one thing Elizabeth and Philip do n’t have - their tike . They have no way to get through Henry and Paige and may never see them again unless Paige and Henry visit Russia .
Why Stan Lets The Jennings Go Free After Learning The Truth
The Show Built To Their Confrontation Since Day One
Stan ’s intuition of the Jennings grow throughoutThe Americansseason 6 , culminating in a tense confrontation in a parking service department duringThe Americansending . Stan is enraged , having thought of Phillip as one of his best friends . Stan has the opportunity to shoot Philip or Elizabeth or release them over to the assurance . However , he end up let the family go freeafter hearing Philip ’s ardent confession about his undercover agent piece of work and what his friendship with Stan truly means to him .
Though Stan is wild and hurt , he still loves Philip and his menage , which is finally why he lease the Jennings family walk aside . Instead of taking the chance to become an American hero , Stan ’s sloppiness win out , and he allows Philip , Elizabeth , and Paige to flee . He consider these mass like mob , especially Henry , and in the end , he ca n’t suffer to put Elizabeth and Philip in gaol . This is a heartrending motion since Stan grapples with the fact his best friend function for a cause Stan spend so recollective combat .
What Happens To Henry In America?
Does Stan Tell Him The Truth?
While Elizabeth , Philip , and Paige make plans to flee the country , Henry is at St. Edward ’s Academy , a prestigious boarding school in New Hampshire , where he ’s part of the field hockey team . Stan come to one of Henry ’s hockey game and presumptively tells him the truth about his parent . Though their conversation is n’t audible , Henry ’s physical chemical reaction to the word is clear : he ’s furious and disappointed and probably feels like his life and class have been a lie . Stan is the only reliable adult figure Henry has .
Stan has grown to think of Henry like a Logos and hold fast with him over sport . Henry even feels comfortable enough around Stan to talk to him about girl . There ’s no doubt Stan will await after Henry , especially since Paige and Philip plead with him to take care of their Word . Now that Henry have sex the accuracy , he ’ll take emotional documentation , and Stan can provide that . Henry should continue his normal spirit , though he will grapple with his parents and sis being out of the movie - unless Paige cipher out a way to reconnect with him .
The Americans TV show was steeped in Cold War - era history , leading hearing to wonder if it was based on a lawful historical story about real people .
In the midst of the Cold War, Elizabeth and Phillip Jennings appear to be an average American couple, living out the American dream in their house in the suburbs with their two children, Paige and Henry. In truth, though, Elizabeth and Phillip are Soviet agents, working under deep cover for the KGB.
Was Renee A Spy In The Americans?
Could It Just Have Been Stan Being Paranoid?
Before the Jennings folk allow , Philip bring out to Stan that he thinks Renee is " one of us , " implying he believe Stan ’s second wifecould be a KGB undercover agent . Philip had been suspicious for a while , even dog her automobile . However , The Americansleaves Renee ’s position ambiguous , and Stan has Philip ’s words creating incertitude in his mind as he look at his partner in a Modern light . It ’s potential Renee could be a spy , especially since she ’s very invest in Stan ’s FBI line of work . However , she could also simply be an ordinary somebody .
Stan ’s sense of trust is broken after finding out his near friend is a spy , but this last admittance from Philip is a thunderclap . It shows Stan does n’t know who he can desire . Either Renee is a spy and Stan ’s relationship is a lie , or Renee is n’t , and Stan is needlessly paranoid . In any case , Stan wo n’t look at his human relationship with Renee the same way ever again . In an audience withThe Ringer , Joe Weisberg even admits the casting and crowd do n’t acknowledge if Renee is a undercover agent , leaving that issue up to the audience to decide :
" They say , ' Was Renee a undercover agent ? ' And they get the same exact resolution , which is n’t even ' We ’re not tell . ' It ’s ' We do n’t lie with . ' "
The Real Meaning Of The Americans' Ending
Philip And Elizabeth Became A True Couple
The terminate ofThe Americansis bittersweet;Philip and Elizabeth lam , but they do at the loss of their tike . The couple made so many sacrifices as they left Russia for America , and now the show has come full circle , make them to make sacrifice again to get back to Russia . The Americansending also reflect how Philip and Elizabeth ’s marriage evolved . At the start , the two were n’t close , only part of a covert marriage . By the series coda , Philip and Elizabeth have a veridical relationship and care for each other more than their spy mission .
How The Americans Ending Was Received
The Series Finale Was Divisive
… it was time for the masks to be lifted and the audience to move on .
Though the finale ofThe Americansworked to tie up loose end and leave spectator with other questions to ponder , render a balance in the approach to a show ending , the installment was a dissentious one for lover and critic alike . Some called it anticlimactic while others believed it offer just the right amount of worked up storylines and closing for the audience .
NPR ’s reflexion on the finalecalled it a show “ about identity more than spycraft ” as the final installment ofThe Americansallowed each of the characters to analyse who they really were , are , or can be . It also reflected that there was no real penalization for two people who did horrible thing , but they did , ultimately , fall back the family they built and get to love , so the penalization was just an unexpected one .
Entertainment Weekly , on the other hand , found the finale thwarting . The publication palpate that parts of the finale operate well , “ but it feel limp , unwilling to fight its character too far . ” For many who believed that either one of the main couple or Stan might kill one ( or both ) of the others , the coda did n’t seem to go far enough with the characters or put them in precarious enough position , despite Stan catching and letting the friends who grass him go .
Vanity Faircalled the series last both “ cockamamie ” and “ stunning . ” Their takeaway is that the series spend so long being subtle that much of the show hang in a delicate “ limbo ” of rout for the chief characters and also being ethically opposed to their action , all while hold back for them to be exposed . Vanity Fairnotes that the show seduces the audience into rooting for these spies , and is effectively able to “ warn us of the power of conquest ” while relapse those very spies to who they were before they spent two decades in America .
The New Yorkerpraised the show ’s finale as “ elegant ” and “ potent . ” The publication in particular delighted in the little bloodshed for the ending and , like most commentator of the instalment , spotlighted Stan ’s confrontation with Elizabeth , Phillip , and Paige . Even for reader who found the finale anticlimactical , that scene offer the biggest emotional proceeds and punchas Phillip is able to preserve his relationship with Elizabeth ( even as they take on Modern personal identity again ) but ruin Stan ’s trust of his own wife .
The biggest accord among critic about the stopping point is thatThe Americansended at just the correct time . The serial was able to tease the expose of spy for six seasons without the interview develop weary , but it was time for the masks to be lifted and the interview to move on .
FX ’s The Americans was one of the effective dramas of the past decade . take care at the military rating on IMDb , these are the greatest episode in its history .
Will The Americans Season 7 Ever Happen In Some Way?
A Revival Seems Unlikely
The Americans ' close may have left some free ends , but most importantly , it resolve its biggest stories .
The Americans ' ending may have left some loose ends , but most importantly , it resolved its biggest stories . Plus , there ’s always the possibility that a revival would deflower the show ’s faultless legacy . While it would be interesting to see what Paige and Henry are up to , specially in the forward-looking day , it ’s not a spoiled thing to leave the characters ' fates open - ended . The Americanshad one of the good TV series finales of the 2010s , and it would be difficult for a revival to match or top such a brilliant conclusion .
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Cast
In the midst of the Cold War , Elizabeth and Phillip Jennings appear to be an average American couple , survive out the American dream in their menage in the suburbs with their two child , Paige and Henry . In truth , though , Elizabeth and Phillip are Soviet agent , working under inscrutable cover for the KGB .
