Finally back in the same time zone, join John and a jet-lagged Danielle to discuss The Americans 6x8, “The Summit.” Together, they break from their typical form with a character-focused analysis, using Elizabeth Jennings to orient the entire discussion. They dig into Elizabeth’s moves around Jackson and Oleg, the opening exchange between Philip and Elizabeth, the Erica mission and her painting, and the conversation with Claudia in the safehouse through this prism. Of course, Danielle contemplates Renee’s role in the Dossier, and John poses a few questions to push Danielle into full tinfoil-hat-mode, before turning to Stan and Philip via Elizabeth once more in Glas, including sad-boy Philip’s own Soviet film club showing of Garazh. They give a shout out to Vidal Sassoon, indie video stores, and the arms summit among other things in Borrowed Nostalgia. In the Cave, Danielle asks us to contemplate the fallen Persian empire and its relationship to The Americans with Aeschylus’ The Persians and John sprinkles some Arendt into the mix for this week’s TheoryShip. Enjoy!

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This week, Danielle is physically in Greece but John and Danielle mentally travel to Chicago with Philip to analyze The Americans 6x7, “Harvest.” They take up the theme of haunting to organize the discussion - from how Stan is haunted by the past six years of his life next to the Jennings (s/o to William), to how Philip is haunted by his past life as a spy, to how Elizabeth is haunted by past and present alike.

Danielle speculates about the timeline for Stan finding out the truth in the Dossier, and the hauntings continue in Glas for Henry and Aderholt. Dirtbag Philip happily haunts the mission before some solid fit/wig checks in Borrowed Nostalgia. Tragedy SZN rages on with a true banger this week as Danielle provides a deep dive into Euripides’ Bacchae ahead of her trip to see a live production of the show at Epidaurus. John caps off the episode with some pivotal feminist theory recs for Elizabeth and Erica. 

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Back on their own, Danielle and John dig into The Americans 6x6, “Rififi.” They consider Aderholt’s speech about the Soviets before moving onto Henry and Stan’s relationship as a way into thinking about what remains within the family, and what information travels beyond it. They also unpack Philip’s outburst during slot car racing, the backyard conversation between Henry and Elizabeth, as well as the bizarre phone call between them later on.

Danielle speculates about Renee and the potential return of Mail Spy Robot in the Dossier before your hosts touch on Elizabeth and Jackson’s producer-Amy-coded meet-cute at Rififi and Erica’s Forced Art agenda, among other things, in Glas. In Borrowed Nostalgia, they convert Henry’s potential summer wage into contemporary numbers and laugh about the 80s decor that ensconces the Chicago hotel. Tragedy SZN continues with the age-old banger, Antigone. And this time, Henry slips in his own TheoryShip for Elizabeth among those offered by your hosts. Enjoy!

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Jordan Cass returns to help Danielle and John to discuss The Americans 6x5, “The Great Patriotic War.” Together, they focus on the theme of trust to dig into the relationship between Philip and Elizabeth, the relationship between Paige and Elizabeth, as well as how trust both structures and flows from Philip’s choices within the episode. In the Dossier, Jordan poses some questions about artwork and of course they check in on Danielle’s evaluation of Renee. In Glas, the trio returns to the theme of trust, chatting about the role of institutional trust and whether Paige is the definition of a spy nepo baby. They also let John cook for a bit on the visual language and editing in the last 15 minutes of the show. Jordan treats everyone to a discussion of 80s hockey lore in Borrowed Nostalgia, among some quips about calculators, jeeps, and the ‘fits. In TRAGEDY SZN, Danielle goes back to her roots (literally), guiding the trio through a brief discussion of Euripides’ Medea. 

Stick around for a little bonus NQGB After Dark. Durational cinema (podcasting).

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Your hosts try to find their way through the backrooms as they unpack all things The Americans 6x4, “Mr. and Mrs. Teacup.” Framing their discussion through the concept of losing one’s way, John and Danielle analyze the main moves of the episode, beginning OF COURSE with the ultimate lost boy, Philip, before working through the Jennings family dynamic and then Elizabeth and Paige separately. They chat about what it means for Philip that KIMMY BACK! plus the failing business and line dancing, before evaluating whether Paige has already lost her way a bit and what it means that we are 4 for 4 episodes in Season 6 where Elizabeth has done a murder to ‘save’ the mission.

In the Dossier, Danielle makes a bold Paige prediction, and John poses some not-so-leading (you decide!) questions. In Glas, they consider the game of telephone for info to get from Oleg to Arkadi, and Philip’s cowboy boots. Your hosts laugh about line dancing, D.A.R.E, and wigs in Borrowed Nostalgia. It’s definitely still TRAGEDY SZN in the Cave - Danielle offers up Euripides’ Iphigenia at Aulis this week (a new one for John) before a quick game in TheoryShips. Enjoy!

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This week, John and Danielle are joined by their friend and returning guest Michaela Rife! Together, these three dig into Season 6 Episode 3, “Urban Transport Planning,” using the frame of nostalgia to structure their discussion. They start with their takes on the Soviet cooking club as a key entry point into the topic and then consider Philip’s return to spying later on to flesh out their discussion. They tackle how Stan is fighting counterintelligence nostalgia and the construction of the final scene before moving onto the segments, where Michaela interrogates Danielle on her takes to everyone’s enjoyment!

In Glas, Michaela treats everyone to an analysis of art in the season thus far, and it turns out an actual art historian is more useful than your trusty hosts. Together they all consider whether Paige is a nepo baby before some music drops and an EST revamp in Borrowed Nostalgia. They welcome Michaela to TRAGEDY SZN in the Cave with a quick trip into Euripides’ Electra, and Michaela gives us a lot to think about with her reference to Svetlana Boym in TheoryShip. 

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Lace up those skates, prepare your tuna melt, and lock in for an open skate through the show Heated Rivalry with THREE special guests joining John: Ray Carman makes his NQGB debut while stalwarts Amy Schiller and Regan Levitte make their triumphant returns to the show. 

The team examines the show’s eroticism, queerness, gender politics, and more, in addition to of course covering the main characters/character pairings. HR’s style is discussed from the music drops to the phallic logos to everything in between, while the show’s engagement with romance and fannish tropes becomes a consistent touchpoint as the squad debates how safe (or not) the show is. 

In our version of a penalty box, one of the four (guess who) couldn’t resist strident criticism of the narrative structure and editing, depiction of masculinity, and more. Finally, The Cave brings Foucault, Vito Russo, and Lauren Berlant and Michael Warner, among others, to HR, with about the results you’d expect. 

Happy Pride!

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Well, well, well - look what happens when your chickens come home to roost. John and Danielle are back at it for The Americans Season 6 Episode 2, “Tchaikovsky.” Tackling the ways past decisions and events shape the present conditions for different characters, they begin with some meta-reflections on what it means to be in the sixth and final season of the show. They then unpack the different chickens that Elizabeth, Philip, and Stan must contend with over the course of the episode. They touch on Elizabeth’s lies, Paige’s existence as a spy, and Sofia and Gennadi. In the Dossier, Danielle once again beats the drum of Renee as a spy, which John (as usual) ‘no-comments’ - stay tuned for more Renee check-ins in later episodes. Glas has Claudia and Erica, and of course, MAIL ROBOT BACK! We are treated to a chat about Reagan’s dementia and Jack Kevorkian in Borrowed Nostalgia. There’s another installment of TRAGEDY SZN in the Cave as Danielle guides us on an exploration of Aeschylus’ Libation Bearers, with the added bonus of some creative TheoryShips too. Enjoy!

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We are back, Arkadii is SO back, and it is time to embark on the final season of The Americans here on Not Great Quite Books! For the first episode, "Dead Hand," Danielle and John accept the season premiere's invitation to consider all things art: the arts of spying, how spying may prevent one from appreciating art, the art of national identity, and much more. In unsurprising but nonetheless engaging developments, Danielle is still highly suspicious of Renee in the Dossier, and has pronounced Season 6 Tragedy SZN (proffering Ajax this time around) in The Cave, while John has much to say about The Sadboi Summit of 1987. The episode's creative deployment of 1980s bangers, Soviet Film Club, and saturation in the politics of 1987 round things out. 

Did Danielle and John convince themselves to start a travel agency, use an Ancient Greek word for its name, and seek brand deals for it? We think you already know the answer to this one. 

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Danielle and John are BACK* from their long espionage sojourns and reunited to preview The Americans Season 6. Having both rewatched the S5 finale, they note their surprises and ideas upon this revisiting, before talking through what the show asks of its viewers and what Danielle expects, predicts, and wants heading into Season 6. 

     *"we are SO back" reserved for the actual start of S6 episodes

Season 6 episodes coming your way in 2026. 

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