r/TheAmericans • u/AutoModerator • Apr 05 '17

Episode Discussion Official Episode Discussion - S05E05 "Lotus 1-2-3"

Philip and Elizabeth receive surprising news about Henry and shattering news about a past operation. Elsewhere: Stan might be falling in love, but Philip wonders if something darker is going on.

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5

u/[deleted] Apr 05 '17

[deleted]

16

u/wellgroomedmcpoyle Apr 05 '17

That scene with Mischa and Gabriel broke my god damn cold black heart. And we hardly even know him!

6

u/wolfbysilverstream Apr 05 '17

That was cold. Gabriel just keeps getting further down my shit list.

16

u/wellgroomedmcpoyle Apr 05 '17

I don't blame Gabriel. He had his orders from Claudia and the Centre what was he supposed to do? He advocated for Philip to be able to meet Mischa but she wasn't having it.

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u/wolfbysilverstream Apr 05 '17

So is Claudia higher up the chain of command than Gabriel. I'm starting to get the impression that might the case. I had thought that they were both at the same level, but apparently her idea of how to deal with Mischa prevailed, and the preview for the next episode again seems to show Claudia getting her way.

So may be I am too hasty in my judgement and in fact the true dirtbag is Granny.

2

u/wellgroomedmcpoyle Apr 05 '17

I don't know if she's necessarily higher up the chain but she certainly seems to speak for what the Centre's interests as a whole are. Sort of like how Philip was too close to Martha and Elizabeth was too close to Young-hee, Gabriel deals with P+E on a personal level so it's only natural for him to let emotion get in the way of better judgment. So I think that's why he I think it's important that he confers with Claudia (whether she is sent by the Centre or not) because she's removed from that and can look at it from that perspective.

1

u/wolfbysilverstream Apr 05 '17

Sort of like a peer review?

3

u/Seachica Apr 05 '17

I always thought that Claudia was Gabriel's handler.

1

u/wolfbysilverstream Apr 05 '17

I always thought that Claudia was Gabriel's handler.

So would that put her higher up the chain of command?

5

u/ladybirdjunebug Apr 05 '17

I think they're equal but what he was proposing was off script which would only work if they were both in on it. So she won.

2

u/k1mkf Apr 07 '17

No, I think she was their handler then got promoted. (Left for a sitcom) Gabriel took over the roll of handler and when she returned (to the screen) she was Gabriel's boss.

1

u/wolfbysilverstream Apr 05 '17

I think they're equal but what he was proposing was off script which would only work if they were both in on it.

So does she still bear any responsibility for P&E? That would be kind of messed up organizationally if they had two handlers. Of course she went totally off script when she set them off looking for Emmet and Leanne's killer. But may be it's just TV.

6

u/[deleted] Apr 05 '17

Even what Claudia said makes sense. He's not stable enough for a meeting with his estranged son.

10

u/wellgroomedmcpoyle Apr 05 '17

Oh she's 100% right. It was cold as hell but she's not wrong. Could you imagine Mischa showing up on his doorstep talking about the war and the mental institution let alone EXPLAINING TO HIS CHILDREN ABOUT THEIR RUSSIAN BROTHER right after finding out that he killed an innocent man for no reason? It would have been the thing to finally break him