"The Americans," which premieres its fifth season Tuesday night on FX, follows KGB spies living as a married American couple with kids in the suburbs of Washington, D.C., during the early 1980s. The show stars Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys as Elizabeth and Philip Jennings.
Despite relatively low ratings, the FX drama — which premiered in 2013 — is universally loved by critics and remains on the air. In 2016, the show was nominated for four Emmys including best drama, best actor in a drama, and best actress in a drama. It's an underrated gem.
Last year, FX renewed the show for a fifth and sixth season, with the sixth being its last. (You can watch the first four seasons on Amazon Prime.)
Here are all the reasons you need to watch "The Americans," according to critics:
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It's based on a real-life Russian spy program.
In 2010, the FBI busted a Russian espionage ring, which resulted in the US kicking out 10 Russian spies who were living in the country under false identities. One couple had two sons who were unaware of their parents' true identities — they thought they were Canadian.
One of the showrunners is a former CIA agent.
Showrunner and cocreator Joe Weisberg is a former CIA agent, having worked for the agency in the early '90s. Because of this, the CIA has to approve all of the scripts to ensure that the show doesn't reveal any classified information.
It follows a historical period that isn't often covered in movies and TV.
The front lines of the Cold War and the early '80s in particular are not saturated in film and television. It was a time rich in music, but not fashion.
"It's a subtle, complex portrait of a relationship etched into an engaging espionage thriller set in 1981."—The New York Times
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