The Americans season 3 explained

Season Number:	3
Bgcolour:	C0C0C0
Image Upright:	1.15
Network:	FX
Num Episodes:	13
Episode List:	List of The Americans episodes

The third season of the American television drama series The Americans, consisting of 13 episodes, premiered on FX on January 28, 2015, and concluded on April 22, 2015.^[1] The series was renewed for the third season on April 16, 2014.^[2]

The events of the third season begin in late 1982 and end on March 8, 1983, the night of Ronald Reagan's Evil Empire speech.^[3]

Cast

Main

• Keri Russell as Elizabeth Jennings (Nadezhda), a KGB officer
• Matthew Rhys as Philip Jennings (Mischa), a KGB officer
• Lev Gorn as Arkady Ivanovich Zotov, the KGB's Resident
• Annet Mahendru as Nina Sergeevna Krilova, Beeman's Soviet mole
• Susan Misner as Sandra Beeman, Stan's wife
• Costa Ronin as Oleg Igorevich Burov, a KGB officer
• Keidrich Sellati as Henry Jennings, Elizabeth and Philip's son
• Holly Taylor as Paige Jennings, Elizabeth and Philip's daughter
• Richard Thomas as Frank Gaad, special agent in charge of the FBI Counterintelligence Division
• Alison Wright as Martha Hanson, Gaad's secretary and Philip's informant
• Noah Emmerich as Stan Beeman, an FBI agent

Recurring

• Frank Langella as Gabriel, one of Philip and Elizabeth's KGB handlers
• Brandon J. Dirden as Dennis Aderholt, an FBI agent
• Vera Cherny as Tatiana Evgenyevna Vyazemtseva, a KGB officer working at the Rezidentura
• Peter Mark Kendall as Hans, a South African graduate student and KGB informant being trained by Elizabeth
• Svetlana Efremova as Zinaida Preobrazhenskaya, a defector from the Institute for US and Canadian Studies
• Karen Pittman as Lisa, a Northrop employee from whom Elizabeth is gleaning information
• Kelly AuCoin as Pastor Tim, the head of a church Paige Jennings attends
• Julia Garner as Kimberly Breland, the daughter of the head of the CIA's Afghan group
• Rahul Khanna as Yousaf Rana, an officer in the Pakistani ISI Covert Action Division
• Michael Aronov as Anton Baklanov, a scientist involved in stealth technology
• Jefferson Mays as Walter Taffet, an officer for the Office of Professional Responsibility
• Gillian Alexy as Annelise, an informant of Philip's
• Daniel Flaherty as Matthew Beeman, Stan's son
• Callie Thorne as Tori, a woman Stan meets at EST
• Margo Martindale as Claudia, one of Philip and Elizabeth's KGB handlers
• Reg Rogers as Charles Duluth, a journalist and KGB source
• Peter Von Berg as Vasili Nikolaevich, a former KGB Resident
• Katja Herbers as Evi Sneijder, Nina's cellmate

Production

Lev Gorn, who portrays Arkady Ivanovich, was promoted to series regular for the third season, after having a recurring role throughout the first two seasons.^[4] Additionally, Costa Ronin and Richard Thomas were promoted from recurring status to series regulars. In October 2014, Frank Langella was cast in a recurring role.^[5] Filming for the season began in October 2014.^[6] Co-star Noah Emmerich directed the seventh episode of the season, marking his directorial debut.^[7]

Episodes

See also: List of The Americans episodes.

Reception

Critical response

The third season received widespread critical acclaim. On Rotten Tomatoes, it received a 100% approval rating, with an average score of 9/10 based on 53 reviews. The critical consensus reads: "Family-driven drama and psychological themes propel The Americans' tautly drawn tension, dispensing thrills of a different ilk this season."^[8] On Metacritic, it scored 92 out of 100 based on 23 reviews.^[9]

Accolades

The series was given a 2014 Peabody Award, with the organization stating, "In this ingenious, addictive cliffhanger, Reagan-era Soviet spies—married with children and a seemingly endless supply of wigs—operate out of a lovely 3BR home in a suburb of Washington, D.C. Between their nail-biter missions (and sometimes in the midst of them), the series contemplates duty, honor, parental responsibility, fidelity, both nationalistic and marital, and what it means to be an American."^[10]

For the 5th Critics' Choice Television Awards, it won for Best Drama Series and received three acting nominations—Keri Russell for Best Actress in a Drama Series, Matthew Rhys for Best Actor in a Drama Series, and Lois Smith for Best Guest Performer in a Drama Series.^[11] For the 31st TCA Awards, the series was nominated for Program of the Year, Rhys was nominated for Individual Achievement in Drama, and it won for Outstanding Achievement in Drama.^[12]

For the 67th Primetime Emmy Awards, Margo Martindale won for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama series after her third consecutive nomination, and Joshua Brand was nominated for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series for "Do Mail Robots Dream of Electric Sheep?".^{[13] [14]}

For the 68th Writers Guild of America Awards, the series was nominated for Best Drama Series.^[15]

Home media releases

The third season was released on DVD in region 1 on March 1, 2016. Special features include deleted scenes and a featurette titled "The Cold War for Paige".^[16]

Notes and References

1. Web site: FX sets premiere dates for 'Justified' and more . Entertainment Weekly . Mandi . Bierly . November 21, 2014 . November 22, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141122173248/http://insidetv.ew.com/2014/11/21/justified-americans-premiere-dates/ . November 22, 2014 . live .
2. Web site: FX renews 'The Americans' for season 3 . HitFix . Alan . Sepinwall . April 16, 2014 . April 16, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140416211928/http://www.hitfix.com/whats-alan-watching/fx-renews-the-americans-for-season-3 . April 16, 2014 . live .
3. Web site: The Americans Season Finale Recap: Everyone Lies . Laura . Hudson . Vulture . April 22, 2015 . June 2, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150601001513/http://www.vulture.com/2015/04/americans-recap-season-3-episode-13.html . June 1, 2015 . live .
4. Web site: Lev Gorn Upped To Regular On 'The Americans', Books 'NCIS' Arc . Nellie . Andreeva . Deadline.com . September 5, 2014 . September 6, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140906113310/http://deadline.com/2014/09/lev-gorn-the-americans-promoted-to-regular-ncis-arc-830245/ . September 6, 2014 . live .
5. Web site: Frank Langella Joins 'The Americans' Season 3 . Laura . Prudom . Variety . October 16, 2014 . November 29, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141220132015/http://variety.com/2014/tv/news/frank-langella-joins-the-americans-season-3-1201331909/ . December 20, 2014 . live .
6. Web site: 'The Americans' cast and creators preview season 3 at New York Comic Con . Samit . Sarkar . Polygon . October 20, 2014 . November 29, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141207015331/http://www.polygon.com/2014/10/20/6996199/the-americans-season-3-panel-nycc-2014 . December 7, 2014 . live .
7. Web site: Rolling on 307 with our very own @NoahEmmerich directing... another glimpse of the monitors @TheAmericansFX :-). Twitter. Fields. Joel. January 5, 2015. January 7, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304211614/https://twitter.com/joel_fields/status/552191423022628865. March 4, 2016. live.
8. Web site: The Americans: Season 3. Rotten Tomatoes. February 14, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150220042628/http://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the-americans/s03. February 20, 2015. live.
9. Web site: The Americans : Season 3 . . February 14, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150217021829/http://www.metacritic.com/tv/the-americans/season-3 . February 17, 2015 . live .
10. Web site: 74th Annual Peabody Award Winners . . Noel . Holston . April 16, 2015 . April 16, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150416133305/http://www.peabodyawards.com/stories/story/74th-annual-peabody-award-winners . April 16, 2015 . live .
11. Web site: Critics' Choice Television Awards: HBO, Better Call Saul, Taraji P. Henson and Amy Schumer Among Big Winners. TVLine. Matt Webb. Mitovich. May 31, 2015. June 1, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150601184600/http://tvline.com/2015/05/31/critics-choice-television-awards-winners-2015-full-list/. June 1, 2015. live.
12. Web site: TCA Awards 2015: Empire, Jon Hamm, Amy Schumer, Americans, Fosters and John Oliver Among Winners. TVLine. Michael. Ausiello. August 8, 2015. August 9, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150809155553/http://tvline.com/2015/08/08/tca-award-winners-empire-program-of-year-2015/. August 9, 2015. live.
13. Web site: Emmys 2015: Americans, House of Cards and Shameless Stars, Freak Show, Thrones Among Early Winners . TVLine . Ryan . Schwartz . September 12, 2015 . September 13, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150913091024/http://tvline.com/2015/09/12/emmys-2015-creative-arts-winners-list/ . September 13, 2015 . live .
14. Web site: Emmy Nominations 2015 – Full List . Deadline.com . Patrick . Hipes . July 16, 2015 . July 16, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150716220344/http://deadline.com/2015/07/emmy-award-nominations-2015-full-list-1201476759/ . July 16, 2015 . live .
15. Web site: WGA Honors 'Big Short,' 'Spotlight,' 'Mad Men' at 68th Awards. Variety. Dave. McNary. February 13, 2016. February 13, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160503074029/http://variety.com/2016/film/news/wga-awards-winners-writers-guild-america-1201705269/. May 3, 2016. live.
16. Web site: The Americans – Fox's Official Press Release for 'The Complete 3rd Season'. TVShowsOnDVD.com. David. Lambert. January 19, 2016. January 21, 2016. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20160122215907/http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Americans-Season-3-Press-Release/21918. January 22, 2016.