Follow TV Tropes

Following

Recap / The Americans S1E9 - Safe House

Go To

In retaliation for the agents and scientist killed by the assassin, Agent Gaad and the other agents plan to kidnap Arkady. However, things become even more tense when Chris, who's been stalking Martha, discovers "Clark" coming out of her apartment, and "Clark" stabs him. As Elizabeth and Philip try to find out who the FBI is targeting, Stan, angry about his partner disappearing, orders the FBI agents there to snatch Arkady to snatch Vlad, a low-level KGB agent whom Arkady usually goes jogging with. Later, when Chris is found dead, Stan kills Vlad in retaliation.

Elsewhere, Elizabeth and Philip break the news to Paige and Henry that the two are taking a trial separation, and neither Paige or Henry take that news well.

This episode contains examples of:

  • Armor-Piercing Question: When Elizabeth tells Paige that her separation with Philip is for the best, Paige responds, "For who?".
  • Boom, Headshot!: How Stan kills Vlad.
  • Defiant to the End: Though Chris does eventually give up the fact the FBI is targeting Arkady, he's this way otherwise, telling Elizabeth the Soviet Union will lose the Cold War.
  • Dies Wide Open: Chris dies this way.
  • Everyone Has Standards: Zigzagged. At first, Stan wants no part of kidnapping Arkady, as he feels it's going beyond the pale. However, he changes his mind when Chris goes missing (see Revenge Before Reason below).
  • Flashback: Stan has a couple of these about Chris after he's been captured and then killed.
  • Gratuitous Latin: In one of the flashbacks Stan has about Chris, Chris tells him "Tempus fugit", which translates as "time is wasting".
  • Hoist by His Own Petard: Chris gets stabbed by "Clark" with his own knife.
  • It's Personal: Stan is like this after Chris is kidnapped and then killed.
  • O.O.C. Is Serious Business: When Nina meets with Stan after Chris is kidnapped, she finds him cold and angry with her, and he even pushes her around.
    • Henry, who's usually talkative and bubbly, gives one-word answers to Elizabeth when she brings up the fact he didn't turn in his class assignment.
  • Really Gets Around: Chris was like this apparently; when Stan goes to his apartment to find any clues after he goes missing, and turns on his answering machine, there are a number of women leaving messages for Chris, asking to see him again.
  • Revenge Before Reason: When the FBI sees it's just Vlad jogging, they're ready to call of the mission, but after what happened to Chris, Stan decides to have them take Vlad anyway.
  • Spanner in the Works: Arkady burned his hand when a potato exploded in his microwave, so he wasn't there to go jogging with Vlad.
  • Tranquil Fury: Stan is like this with both Nina and Vlad when trying to find out where Chris is, making him all the more terrifying.
  • Yiddish as a Second Language: At the party early on in the episode, when Chris ogles Elizabeth, Stan calls him a putz.

Top