History Characters / TheAmericansTheRezidentura

* ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight: [[spoiler: Oleg doesn't trust his own government to properly handle the Lassa virus so he makes sure that it never leaves the USA.]]

* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: [[spoiler: Soon after Gaad is forced into retirement, he's propositioned by several Russian men only to be killed in a freak accident trying to escape them. It's heavily implied that Arkady sent the men in a far fetched attempt to recruit Gaad, but he's utterly horrified by the result. Much later, when American officials accuse him of illegal activity and declare him "persona non grata," he heatedly denies all their charges. But when they accuse him of killing Gaad, he goes silent and cannot bring himself to refute that charge, despite it being the only charge for which they had no proof.]]

* LieBackAndThinkOfEngland: Does this with her boss.

->'''Portrayed By:''' Lev Gorn

->'''Portrayed By:''' Peter von Berg

->'''Played By:''' Annet Mahendru

->'''Portrayed By:''' Costa Ronin

->'''Portrayed By:''' Vitaly Benko

->'''Portrayed By:''' Vera Cherny

* PromotedToOpeningCredits: For the second season.

* ForWantOfANail: Her entire arc, [[spoiler: which ultimately culminates in her execution back in Russia]], happens because she gets caught committing the relatively minor crime of [[spoiler: smuggling American stereo equipment back home to make a little extra cash for her family.]]

* DeadpanSnarker: He has his moments. In season 3, Oleg's powerful father tries to pressure him to send Oleg home against Oleg's wishes. Arkady politely refuses, and when a resigned Oleg warns him that his father is the Minister of Railroads, Arkady's only response is "So next time I'm home, I won't be able to ride the train?"

* DeadpanSnarker: He has his moments. In season 3, Oleg's powerful father tries to pressure him to send Oleg home against Oleg's wishes. Arkady politely refuses, and when a resigned Oleg warns him that his father is the Minister of Railroads, Arkady's only response is "So next time I'm home, I won't be able to ride the train?"
* OnlySaneMan: Amanda Taub has argued in Vox that Arkady is the show's moral center. [[http://www.vox.com/2016/4/28/11512768/the-americans-episode-7-recap-travel-agents-martha Spoilers for season 4, episode 7.]] While every other character compromises their values and ultimately crosses their MoralEventHorizon at some point or another, Arkady refuses.

* TheOnlyOneITrust: In Season 6, he discovers that certain hardline KGB agents working in the United States are plotting to sabotage reforms in the Soviet government and persuades Oleg to secretly return the the US on his behalf because he's the only person he trusts.

* TheFirstCutIsTheDeepest: As of season 6, he's married to his VictoriousChildhoodFriend, [[spoiler: but he admits that he's still not over Nina years after her death.]]

Arkady Ivanovich Zotov is the KGB's resident in the United States and does his work out of the Soviet Embassy. He replaces Vasili Nikolaevich, with whom he rarely sees eye to eye, in the position of resident after Vasili is suspected of being the FBI's mole. Vasili seems more focused on maintaining his status within the government and enjoys the perks of being an important guy with a comfortable life. Arkady seems more focused on the various missions at hand and has a more direct approach to doing his job. Arkady is a thoughtful and pragmatic leader, however, and is always looking for ways in which even a potentially bad development can be turned into an opportunity.

Vasili Nikolaevich is an older, high-ranking official in the Soviet Embassy who is quite content to maintain his status within the government and enjoys the perks of being an important guy with a comfortable life. Vasili's duties often have him meeting with KGB resident Arkady Invanovich, and the two don't always see eye to eye.

Arkady Ivanovich Zotov is the KGB's resident in the United States and does his work out of the Soviet Embassy. He succeeds Vasili Nikolaevich, with whom he rarely sees eye to eye, in the position of resident. Vasili seems more focused on maintaining his status within the government and enjoys the perks of being an important guy with a comfortable life. Arkady seems more focused on the various missions at hand and has a more direct approach to doing his job. Arkady is a thoughtful and pragmatic leader, however, and is always looking for ways in which even a potentially bad development can be turned into an opportunity.

Arkady Ivanovich Zotov is the KGB's resident in the United States and does his work out of the Soviet Embassy, He meets regularly with Vasili Nikolaevich, an older, high-ranking official in the Soviet Embassy with whom he rarely sees eye to eye. Vasili seems more focused on maintaining his status within the government and enjoys the perks of being an important guy with a comfortable life. Arkady seems more focused on the various missions at hand and has a more direct approach to doing his job. Arkady is a thoughtful and pragmatic leader, however, and is always looking for ways in which even a potentially bad development can be turned into an opportunity.

* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: She loves her brother, and is visibly shaken when he is drafted into the War in Afghanistan.

* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Displays some empathy towards his workers and is not particularly hardass by Soviet standards; [[spoiler: After Nina confesses to her treasonous behavior to him at the end of Season 1, for example, he doesn't immediately punish her, but decides to give her a chance to redeem herself by using her relationship with Stan to act as a ReverseMole for the KGB.]]

[[folder:Nina]]
!!Nina Sergeevna Krilova
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/sergeevna_nina_704.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"I do everything for you. I do my best."'']]
->'''Played By:''' Annet Mahendru

A Russian embassy worker who is ensnared by Stan Beeman and forced to work as a mole.

* AmicableExes: She and her [[spoiler:husband, Boris]], have a warm and affectionate relationship despite being separated for years and both having relationships with other people. He's implied to be among the members of her family that benefited from the stereo smuggling scheme that originally landed her in trouble.
* {{Blackmail}}: She finds herself on the receiving end from Stan Beeman, forcing her to become his mole.
* BoomHeadshot: [[spoiler: How she is executed, being shot in the back of her head with a pistol]]
* DeadpanSnarker: Mostly toward Oleg.
-->'''Oleg:''' I'm being sincere!
-->'''Nina:''' The strain must be terrible.
* DoubleAgent: Nina eventually confesses to Arkady that Beeman blackmailed her into becoming a mole, and subsequently seeks to redeem herself by becoming a double agent.
* FaceDeathWithDignity: [[spoiler: Averted, she starts to sob and falls to her knees after being informed she's been sentenced to death, but she's executed seconds after so her breakdown doesn't last long.]]
* FemmeFataleSpy: Though a much more realistic version than is typical in spy fiction.
* HoneyTrap: For Vasili.
* {{Irony}}: [[spoiler:Russia's harsh punishment for smuggling goods back home gives American operatives the leverage to make her betray her country. If Russian law was more lenient, they would have been safer]].
* LieBackAndThinkOfEngland: Does this with her boss.
* ManipulativeBitch: When she sets her mind to it she can play people like a fiddle.
* TheMistress: [[spoiler:She's Stan Beeman's 'other woman']]
* TheMole: At Beeman's behest. Then later at KGB's behest.
* MsFanservice: She tends to get the majority of sexy scenes.
* NotInThisForYourRevolution: Doesn't seem to have any real ideological stance and thus no particular allegiance or opposition to either the USSR's or the USA's point of view. Nina's only real motivating force is her own personal safety and well-being and that of her friends and loved ones.
* PromotedToOpeningCredits: For the second season.
* SadisticChoice: [[spoiler:In ''The Colonel''.]]
* {{Sensual Slav|s}}: Her beauty does not go uncommented on, and she knows how to use it.
* ShotAtDawn: [[spoiler:After a second act of treason (smuggling a personal message illegally out of a [[ReassignedToAntarctica research facility]] and refusing to incriminate the message's composer), she's unceremoniously shot in the head mere seconds after being told her appeal was denied, and that her death sentence would be carried out "[[{{Understatement}} shortly]]."]]
* SnowballLie: Nina's rather mundane crime of stereo smuggling pushes her into a downward spiral of betrayal and treason.
* StealingFromTheTill: Steals expensive caviar from the Soviet embassy. This allows the Americans to blackmail her.
* SuddenPrincipledStand: After years of betraying whatever side she's on to save her own skin, [[spoiler:Nina attempts to sneak a message out of the country on behalf of her kidnapped friend instead of reporting on him to her handlers. She gets a bullet to the back of the head for her compassion.]]
* ToplessnessFromTheBack: In some of her post-sex scenes.
* WildCard: Nina has very little loyalty to either her country or the FBI and tends to either act out of pure self-interest or make emotionally driven snap judgments. As a result, [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder she switches sides multiple times]] and is generally somewhat unpredictable.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Arkady]]
!!Arkady Ivanovich Zotov
->'''Played By:''' Lev Gorn

Arkady Ivanovich Zotov is the KGB's resident in the United States and does his work out of the Soviet Embassy, He meets regularly with Vasili Nikolaevich, an older, high-ranking official in the Soviet Embassy with whom he rarely sees eye to eye. Vasili seems more focused on maintaining his status within the government and enjoys the perks of being an important guy with a comfortable life. Arkady seems more focused on the various missions at hand and has a more direct approach to doing his job. Arkady is a thoughtful and pragmatic leader, however, and is always looking for ways in which even a potentially bad development can be turned into an opportunity.

[[folder:Oleg]]
!!Oleg Igorevich Burov
->'''Played By:''' Costa Ronin

A new officer of science and technology at the Soviet Embassy who apparently owes his job to his political connections (specifically, the fact that his dad is a top official in Moscow.) He is a persistent thorn in Arkady and Nina's sides. All the same, he is an extremely savvy spy.
* BreakTheHaughty: Season three onwards appears to be a slow-moving TraumaCongaLine for him. [[note]] First, his girlfriend Nina is convicted of treason and put on death row, and he himself ultimately commits treason in an attempt to get her off. Then he receives word that his little brother has been killed in Afghanistan, causing his mother to spiral into depression, and he clashes with his father after a final, desperate attempt to save Nina fails and she is executed. Returning to America, he learns that the USSR has been skirting biological weapon laws and foils the plot before (almost) anyone can get hurt, but has to flee back to Russia before anyone can trace the treason back to him. Back in Moscow, the American government continues to blackmail him, leading him to mistakenly believe that Stan has betrayed him, and he discovers that his mother spent time in a labor camp before he was born and that he'd been serving the very government that abused her, a government so corrupt that even the grocery industry is not exempt. Finally, he returns to America on Arkady's behalf hoping to make some positive change, only to be caught and arrested, and, this time, no family or political connections can get him out. He ends the series believing that he'll spend the next few decades in jail, unable to return to his family and watch his son grow up.[[/note]]
* CharacterDevelopment: He is introduced as a spoiled rich boy who is only working at the Rezidentura to get a cushy assignment in America, and is using his father's connections to get his way. However, as he spends more time in America, he becomes much more mature and responsible and develops a deep respect for his Rezidentura colleagues, and, by the end of the series becomes perhaps the most GenreSavvy character besides Agent Aderholt and one of the most sympathetic characters on the show.
* EnemyMine: [[spoiler: Teams up with Agent Beeman in an attempt to free Nina]].
* FriendlyEnemy: With Stan in Season 4. [[spoiler: They seem to be the only two people who really felt Nina's death. It leads to Oleg leaking William's existence to him.]]
* HiddenDepths: He is rather familiar with the ways of the West. Also, it's been hinted that his frat-boy JerkJock attitude notwithstanding, he knows a lot more about business than he lets on.
* ManlyTears: Breaks down sobbing at his brother's funeral under the combined loss of his brother and [[spoiler: Nina.]]
* ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections: In "A Little Night Music", Oleg pull strings to get his security clearance updated, ostensibly to find out why the Center is ignoring his recommendations on Baklanov, but also gains access to Nina's reports on her affair with Beeman.
** Averted by his brother, who serves as an officer in Afghanistan.
* ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight: [[spoiler: Oleg doesn't trust his own government to properly handle the Lassa virus so he makes sure that it never leaves the USA.]]
* SmugSuper: Oleg constantly assumes that he has a right to know everything that goes on in the Embassy, even though he's just an officer in the science and technology department. As season 2 unfolds, turns out he can in fact back up his words with results.
* TheFirstCutIsTheDeepest: As of season 6, he's married to his VictoriousChildhoodFriend, [[spoiler: but he admits that he's still not over Nina years after her death.]]
* UndyingLoyalty: Despite clashing with them early on, Oleg develops fierce loyalty to Nina and Arkady, and [[spoiler: by the end of the series he's committed treason for both of them.]]
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: [[spoiler: In season 2 he advocates for forcibly repatriating Anton Baklanov to the Soviet Union. Though he never realizes it, he sorely regrets that decision by the end of season 4 episode 4.]]

[[/folder]]

->'''Played By:''' Peter von Berg

[[folder:Vlad]]
!!Vlad Kosygin
->'''Played By:''' Vitaly Benko

Vlad Kosygin is a co-worker of Nina's in the Soviet Embassy. He's a quiet and shy guy, but clearly has some feelings for Nina.

* AllLoveIsUnrequited: Heavily implied, for Nina.
* BoomHeadshot: [[spoiler: How Stan murders him as revenge for his partner Amador's death.]]
* {{Nephewism}}: Raised by his uncle after his father died.
* NiceGuy: A genuinely sweet guy who only joined the KGB to please his uncle and aspired to become a doctor. [[spoiler: Naturally, he's brutally murdered.]]
* SmallRoleBigImpact: [[spoiler: His death spurs Nina to confess her treason to Arkady, which leads her to become a DoubleAgent.]]

->'''Played By:''' Vera Cherny

* ItsAllAboutMe: Most of the things she does are aimed at keeping herself alive and well.

* WildCard: Nina has very little loyalty to either her country or the FBI and tends to either act out of pure self-interest or make emotionally driven snap judgments. As a result, she switches sides multiple times and is generally somewhat unpredictable.

* WildCard: Nina is not motivated by love of country or family, she does whatever benefits her the most. She was coerced into helping the FBI after stealing from her embassy for personal financial gain, and ever since then she's gone back and forth between helping the KGB and helping the FBI.

* StealingFromTheTill: Steals fancy stuff from the Soviet embassy. This allows the Americans to blackmail her.

* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: [[spoiler: Soon after Gaad is forced into retirement, he's propositioned by several Russian men only to be killed in a freak accident trying to escape them. It's heavily implied that Arkady sent the men in a far fetched attempt to recruit him, but he's utterly horrified by the result. When American officials declare him "persona non grata", he heatedly denies all their charges but when they accuse him of killing Gaad he goes silent and cannot bring himself to refute that charge.]]

* TheOnlyOneITrust: When he discovers that certain hardline KGB agents working in the United States are plotting to sabotage reforms in the Soviet government, he persuades Oleg to secretly return the the US on his behalf because he's the only person he trusts.
* WorthyOpponent: He considers his American FBI counterpart, Agent Gaad, to be this, going so far as to establish a rapport with him when they feel their countries are not communicating well enough for them to do their jobs.

* AmicableExes: She and her husband, Boris, have a warm and affectionate relationship despite being separated for years and both having relationships with other people. He's implied to be among the members of her family that benefited from the stereo smuggling scheme that originally landed her in trouble.

* BreakTheHaughty: Season three onwards appears to be a slow-moving TraumaCongaLine for him. [[note (spoilers)]] First, his girlfriend Nina is convicted of treason and put on death row, and he himself ultimately commits treason in an attempt to get her off. Then he receives word that his little brother has been killed in Afghanistan, causing his mother to spiral into depression, and he clashes with his father after a final, desperate attempt to save Nina fails and she is executed. Returning to America, he learns that the USSR has been skirting biological weapon laws and foils the plot before (almost) anyone can get hurt, but has to flee back to Russia before anyone can trace the treason back to him. Back in Moscow, the American government continues to blackmail him, leading him to mistakenly believe that Stan has betrayed him, and he discovers that his mother spent time in a labor camp before he was born and that he'd been serving the very government that abused her, a government so corrupt that even the grocery industry is not exempt. Finally, he returns to America on Arkady's behalf hoping to make some positive change, only to be caught and arrested, and, this time, no family or political connections can get him out. He ends the series believing that he'll spend the next few decades in jail, unable to return to his family and watch his son grow up.[[/note (spoilers)]]

* BreakTheHaughty: Season three onwards appears to be a slow-moving TraumaCongaLine for him. [[note]][[spoiler: First, his girlfriend Nina is convicted of treason and put on death row, and he himself ultimately commits treason in an attempt to get her off. Then he receives word that his little brother has been killed in Afghanistan, causing his mother to spiral into depression, and he clashes with his father after a final, desperate attempt to save Nina fails and she is executed. Returning to America, he learns that the USSR has been skirting biological weapon laws and foils the plot before (almost) anyone can get hurt, but has to flee back to Russia before anyone can trace the treason back to him. Back in Moscow, the American government continues to blackmail him, leading him to mistakenly believe that Stan has betrayed him, and he discovers that his mother spent time in a labor camp before he was born and that he'd been serving the very government that abused her, a government so corrupt that even the grocery industry is not exempt. Finally, he returns to America on Arkady's behalf hoping to make some positive change, only to be caught and arrested, and, this time, no family or political connections can get him out. He ends the series believing that he'll spend the next few decades in jail, unable to return to his family and watch his son grow up.]][[/note]]

* BreakTheHaughty: Season three onwards appears to be a slow-moving TraumaCongaLine for him. [[spoiler: First, his girlfriend Nina is convicted of treason and put on death row, and he himself ultimately commits treason in an attempt to get her off. Then he receives word that his little brother has been killed in Afghanistan, causing his mother to spiral into depression, and he clashes with his father after a final, desperate attempt to save Nina fails and she is executed. Returning to America, he learns that the USSR has been skirting biological weapon laws and foils the plot before (almost) anyone can get hurt, but has to flee back to Russia before anyone can trace the treason back to him. Back in Moscow, the American government continues to blackmail him, leading him to mistakenly believe that Stan has betrayed him, and he discovers that his mother spent time in a labor camp before he was born and that he'd been serving the very government that abused her, a government so corrupt that even the grocery industry is not exempt. Finally, he returns to America on Arkady's behalf hoping to make some positive change, only to be caught and arrested, and, this time, no family or political connections can get him out. He ends the series believing that he'll spend the next few decades in jail, unable to return to his family and watch his son grow up.]]

* CharacterDevelopment: He is introduced as a spoiled rich boy who is only working at the Rezidentura to get a cushy assignment in America, and is using his father's connections to get his way. As he spends more time in America, he becomes more likable, and even develops a friendship with Arkady, and becomes perhaps the most GenreSavvy character on the show besides Agent Aderholt.

* TheFirstCutIsTheDeepest: As of season 6, he's married to his VictoriousChildhoodFriend, [[spoiler: but he admits that he's still not over Nina years after her death.]]

* UndyingLoyalty: Despite clashing with them early on, Oleg develops fierce loyalty to Nina and Arkady, and [[spoiler: by the end of the series he's committed multiple kinds of treason for both of them.]]

* {{Nephewism}}: Raised by is uncle after his father died.

* SmallRoleBigImpact: [[spoiler: His death spurs Nina to confess her treason to Arkady, which leads her to become a ReverseMole.]]

* VillainHasAPoint: She'd been a highly competent KGB officer for years but had never been promoted due to sexism and lack of political connections, and the Soviet myth of a classless society and perfect meritocracy prevented her from ever voicing any objections. When at last she has an assignment that will get her promoted, Oleg sabotages it before fleeing the country and falling back on his family's considerable resources, leaving her "lucky to have the same job [she] had five years ago," and, moreover, saddled with the work of interim Rezident without any promotion. While said assignment was illegal and extremely dangerous and Oleg likely saved lives by stopping it, one can't say her bitterness is unjustified.

* {Nephewism}: Raised by is uncle after his father died.

-->'''Oleg:''' I'm being sincere.

* Nephewism: Raised by is uncle after his father died.

* AmicableExes: She and her husband, Boris, have a warm and affectionate relationship despite being separated for years and both having relationships with other people. It's implied that he was among the members of her family that benefited from the stereo smuggling scheme that originally landed her in trouble.

* AFatherToHisMen: In ''The Deal'', [[spoiler:Arkady is prepared to sacrifice his career if it means getting Philip safely out of danger.]]

!!Tatiana Evgenyevna Ruslanova