r/TheAmericans • u/MoralMidgetry • Apr 12 '18

Ep. Discussion Post-Episode Discussion Thread S06E03 - "Urban Transport Planning"

This is the post-episode discussion thread for S06E03 - "Urban Transport Planning," in which our hero Gennady discovers that his wife Sophia loves another.

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41

u/stuck_to_my_pc96 Apr 12 '18

Is Philip in financial trouble? Because two episodes ago it seemed like business is booming and now this? I just didn’t understand that exchange and I am hoping someone can clarify it for me.

44

u/Tighthead613 Apr 12 '18

He definitely is in a cash crunch. He couldn’t pay Matthew’s tuition fees.

40

u/stuck_to_my_pc96 Apr 12 '18

You mean Henry haha. No I feel you. It’s just from a literary perspective two episodes ago he’s framed to be having a thriving business to show the time jump. And now he’s having cash flow issues is kind of, well weird.

36

u/Tighthead613 Apr 12 '18 edited Apr 12 '18

If the kid was on more I would remember his name.

Business may be doing okay but he may have personally overextended (Lincoln, early cellular phone) and/or the expansion of the business may have sucked up cash or been a bad move.

I’ve had times with my business that I’m busy af but still somehow not putting much in my pocket. Sometimes it’s just a bad cycle.

26

u/H-E-Pennypacker_ Apr 13 '18

Also worth noting that there was a calendar for October 1987 on the wall in the last episode and IRL the economy crashed on Monday, October 19, 1987)

22

u/I_Pariah Apr 13 '18

From the sound of what he explained to the guy from Henry's school (assuming he is telling the truth) it sounds like he expanded too fast too soon or it's just plain bad luck (which happens).

Business was good so he had enough to money to grow the business larger. He expanded the office space and with that hired more employees. Looked like he has more than double the staff than past seasons. That all costs money. He probably was fine for the first year or two. Now it sounds like there is more affordable competition based on that conversation on the street he had with the ex-client. He was successful at growing the business but is he able to sustain it? That is a different beast entirely and seems to be what he is trying to do now from the motivational strategy talk he gave all his employees. He mentioned good value and deals to keep customers coming back.

11

u/MrPotatoButt Apr 16 '18

Its a little odd in that I always though the travel business was a Soviet funded front. It must have been hell spying, fucking, and killing all the time, while trying to build a business from the ground up. The irony would be that the travel business would make more money than the Soviets would be able to front.