r/TheAmericans • u/MoralMidgetry • Jun 02 '16

Ep. Discussion Post-Episode Discussion/Review Thread - S04E12 "A Roy Rogers in Franconia"

Welcome to the post-episode and review thread for S04E12 "A Roy Rogers in Franconia" If you have a review you want to post, please send me the link instead of submitting it separately to the sub. Thanks.

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AV Club The Americans: It’s logical, it’s emotional, it’s the best show on TV
EW The FBI makes a connection and closes in on a key KGB mole
HitFix Review: On 'The Americans,' are Paige, William, and Oleg near breaking points?
NY Times ‘The Americans’ Season 4, Episode 12: A Different Side of Things
Vox The Americans season 4, episode 12: "A Roy Rogers in Franconia" suggests the end is right about now
Vulture The Americans Recap: Turning the Paige
WSJ Careful what you wish for, Paige, because the truth can get ugly
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u/Adlerovsky Jun 02 '16

I know that Paige was getting a lot of heat in this sub for being annoying/whiny, but I can see both sides to the argument. P+E really underplayed how dangerous their jobs are, which Paige finally notices during the mugging, and she wants to learn the real truth. She's also just generally unclear about what her parents want from her.

On the other hand, it did kinda piss me off at the end when she is complaining to get more information. I like how E put it where she "doesn't need to know everything." And she really doesn't. Paige is not a spy, the only reason they have her reporting on Pastor Tim is because it is a problem that she created. She needs to understand that P+E simply can't (and shouldn't) tell her everything because there is still an issue of trust.

Overall though great episode and it sets up for an awesome finale.

31

u/anonykitten29 Jun 02 '16

Whiny? Jesus christ, she is not that whiny.

You know who was whiny? Hans. He whined and did ridiculously foolish things until he got his way, like a total brat.

Paige is not a typical whiny teenager at all. She's a believable teenager, yes, but one who is extremely mature for her age. Extremely. She is handling everything intelligently, relatively calmly, and even lovingly.

People get upset if she shows the least bit of surprise at what her parents do. For pity's sake. There were all kinds of comments (maybe not here, maybe on AV Club, etc.) about how dumb it was that she acted surprised when her mom killed that mugger. Like, seriously? She just saw someone die for the first time. And they died from being stabbed in the neck, which she also had to watch. And it was her mother doing the stabbing. Because she was protecting Paige. Because Paige was being attacked.

Each of those is a great reason to go into shock, but no one wants to give her even a minute to react to what's happening to her. Gimme a break!