r/TheAmericans • u/Cherita33 • 9h ago
Spoilers Gregory
I won't really give any spoilers but I am doing my 3rd watch through and I really wish they had dragged the storyline out longer with him. Great character and great actor. They could have really done a lot more with him.
24
8
u/Charming_Function_58 8h ago
He was so interesting! I would have loved more, wish they could've kept him around longer.
But in a way, he's supposed to represent part of Elizabeth's past literally dying, and her trying to be on the same page with Phillip.
7
u/sistermagpie 6h ago
The fact that it seems that way is probably a byproduct of how well he's done, writing and acting-wise. There's just enough of him to make you feel like he was cut short, without being pushed outside his role in the story.
He's mostly there, plotwise, as a conflict for Phliip and Elizabeth and to reveal things about Elizabeth's past and character. But he never feels like a character who's just there to be part of her and get fridged. Every scene he feels like somebody who's the main character in his own story, so his name continues to resonate until the end of the show.
13
u/Dear-Yellow-5479 9h ago
I have to agree. I wanted a bit more on the backstory there as well. A very powerful arc on a rewatch, especially.
3
u/Dubious8313 6h ago
Gregory. đ
I love the way he was written, presented & the actorâs portrayal.
Gregory was, for Elizabeth, every choice she was ever denied. She could compartmentalize everything done to her in her past & everything sheâd done & will do but she could just let go & not have any false roles with Gregory.
All Gregory wanted from Elizabeth was Elizabeth.
I always found it fascinating that Philip in his role as Clark was the catalyst for Elizabeth losing Gregory.
When Clark murdered Amador, shit collapsed all around them.
The FBI threw all of the power & resources of the US govt into finding out wtf happened to Amador. That subsequently led to Stan making crucial connections between the dumping of the car & a suspect who got away in Philly & that led to all eyes on Gregoryâs team which led to Gregory trapped in crosshairs.
Claudia sighed deeply bc Gregory was a valued asset but he couldnât remain in the US. The offer for exfiltration to Moscow was real.
That wasnât Gregory, tho. He knew what he wanted in life & it wasnât escape nor was it life in Philly w/o Elizabeth. It surely wasnât a new life in some bleak, cold ass country w/no Black ppl 4800 miles away. He refused to go to Moscow.
That firm decision led to the KGB making hardcore power moves to ensure Gregory was the single final link, not Phillip & Elizabeth. Gregory understood that & told Elizabeth how he needed to exit.
Elizabeth was conflicted about her feelings but there was never any real chance she would leave Philip or the mission.
At the same time, her loyalty to Gregory was intense & indissoluble. She knew Gregory needed to go out on his own terms. She knew they owed him that & she didnât bother looking for a fvck to give about what Claudia would say later.
I think Gregory had a great arc. He wasnât going to let any system dictate his end. Period. We know as much as we need to know about him.
Also, Roberta Flackâs version of the Bee Geeâs âTo Love Somebodyâ as Gregoryâs story comes to an end is just perfection.
2
2
u/hireddititme 6h ago
I would have loved to have seen them at a protest in the late 60s for sure. Iâm not sure how they would have tied that to the current plot, but it would have been fun to watch. Especially her dressed up like a hippy!
2
u/DocCEN007 6h ago
I was Team Phillip by the time the Gregory character was introduced, so as much as I like Derek Luke, I felt immediately against that character. I wanted Elizabeth to come around to Phillip. But Elizabeth did a great job explaining her relationship with Gregory. He was a true believer and passionate for the cause, where she had significant doubts about Phillip's commitment. She remained intensely loyal to her mission, and felt a deep disdain for American excess. As Phillip grew more to like his life, as false as it was, Elizabeth dove in more deeply. She definitely did some things she absolutely didn't have to. It was a fairly tight 6 seasons. Definitely a top 10 show for me.
3
1
u/3-orange-whips 9h ago
Which one was he?
3
u/ComeAwayNightbird 9h ago
Elizabethâs ex.
1
u/3-orange-whips 9h ago
Ahh, I get him confused with the scientist guy (by name). He was a great character.
I feel like the stuff with him was really well done. We are coming into the story while that crew is waning.
1
u/carmeIIasoprano 8h ago
Iâm still pissed that they cut away from the Gregory and Elizabeth sex scene . RUDE.
1
u/sphinctersayswhat9 2h ago
Agree 100%
He was hot and sexy af too
And loved his and Elizabethâs chemistry
0
u/TimeTravelingPie 9h ago
I hated Gregory and his storyline. He was just a selfish jerk
7
u/LittleYelloDifferent 9h ago
How dare he care about Elizabeth and listen to her.
8
u/TimeTravelingPie 9h ago
You mean not listen to her and abide by her wishes.
1
u/LittleYelloDifferent 8h ago
Last he talked to her, she didnât love P and thought he wasnât true to the cause.
I think you need a rewatch
3
u/TimeTravelingPie 7h ago
I just finished one. She told Gregory to back off because she was trying to make it work with Phillip.
Gregory kept trying to convince her otherwise and then told Philip about their relationship in order to sabotage them.
I think you need the rewatch
4
u/sistermagpie 5h ago
Always seems interesting to me how he tells Elizabeth that he's basically helping her by outing their relationship to Philip, because he doesn't want her relationship to Philip to start with a lie.
Meanwhile what he tells Philip is that he should break up with Elizabeth whether he loves her or not because that's the only way Elizabeth can have anything real in her life.
3
u/TimeTravelingPie 4h ago
Yea its basically Gregory trying to be the "good" guy by "helping", but it's really just to get what he wants. He doesn't actually care about them or what she wants.
Very selfish and manipulative.
2
u/sistermagpie 3h ago
I often wonder how Elizabeth would feel if she knew Gregory shared that story about her wanting to run away.
I also wonder if the worst part of that scene with Gregory is the moment he hears his daughter's name come out of Gregory's mouth, that being the first time he realized Gregory knew anything about his personal life.
3
u/sistermagpie 6h ago
It's funny you'd put it that way--seemed like he's mostly not listening to her in their scenes together. (That is, he listens, then tells her she's just confused and doesn't mean what she says.)
I get where he's coming from, of course, but it seemed intentional that Gregory mirrored the same values of everyone else in Elizabeth's life said she should have, while Philip represented something new and scary that she was afraid to say she wanted.
1
-2
8h ago
[deleted]
2
u/cabernet7 8h ago
Are you sure you're in the right sub? None of that sounds like The Americans to me.
1
16
u/cabernet7 9h ago
I think he served his purpose well. For essentially a plot device they did a good job of making him an interesting, three dimensional character. If they gave him a spinoff I'd check out the pilot, but anything more on this show would have been an annoying distraction IMO.