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I honestly can't wait to see how much NBC fucks up their blatant copy of this. "No, it's totally different, see? We're making the son super-smart, sort of copying off of 'The Pretender,' and setting the show in *modern day*, after the sleeper agents (who still speak with discernable Russian accents) have been deactivated for something like two decades. It'll be ratings *gold*...for us, at least. We consider a solid 1.0 a 'win.'" BIG HEADLINE fucked around with this message at 12:51 on Jan 28, 2015 |
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Jan 28, 2015 12:48
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Paradoxish posted:I kind of hate the whole second generation spy thing. The basic premise of this show is pretty silly to begin with, but somehow that just pushes it over the edge for me. Same here. It's totally implausible, since Paige attempting to enter the intelligence field (as more than a secretary) would scrutinize far back beyond Phil and Liz, and also require interviews (and investigations of) relatives. I don't care how competent an agency is, but getting a security clearance in the late 80s/early 90s was a whole hell of a lot different than it is now. It'd be different if they were chasing the angle simply because Paige is approaching college age and they have an 'in' with regards to Agent Beeman, meaning Paige could get recommendations from him for college, the FBI, CIA, etc. Beeman's still has ultra-top-secret-with-guacamole clearance now, which would make a letter of recommendation from him rather weighty. There's only one problem - Paige hates the gubbermint but luvz Jesus.
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Jan 29, 2015 03:06
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Fetus Tree posted:Well, I for one am going to let the show either do it or not do it before I judge the show for doing or not doing something I may or may not like Same here, it's just one of those  things.
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Jan 29, 2015 03:16
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CAPTAIN CAPSLOCK posted:I wonder what they will do with Nina. I mean it would be a pretty big copout if she came back on the show after what Moscow was threatening her with. Unless they're setting up Oleg. Arkady's being awfully chummy with him all of a sudden, warning him, etc. Kind of makes me think he's letting him fashion a noose as punishment for co-opting his authority and side-stepping him.
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Jan 29, 2015 13:19
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Look Sir Droids posted:Does Elizabeth know who Gaad is? Cause he got a pretty good look at her face before she knocked his rear end out. I thought this was kind of an oversight that she didn't mention that it was Gaad whom she beat the poo poo out of, since I'm almost positive I remember them talking about the bug in his office.
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Jan 30, 2015 16:51
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I'm surprised no one's said anything about it yet, but I think I saw "Clark" have a "lightbulb" moment when Martha was talking about foster kids. Why sacrifice your own kids when you could use kids who have every reason to hate the system they've been abandoned by, who are already naturalized citizens with clean backgrounds? Their 'secret marriage' would never pass muster during the background check, though. So chalk the whole thing up to it being one more thing she talks about that keeps inching that needle up towards the "Martha's finally gonna die" mark on the gauge. Also,  - http://www.avclub.com/article/margo-martindale-will-return-americans-215137If I had my way, we'd have an offshoot series on FXX that focused on Claudia's past. Slitting Nazi and collaborator throats in Stalingrad, getting trained, etc. Junkenstein posted:Just a quick one: how did the CIA get onto them? Was it just being suspicious of the couple who viewed the house? They and the FBI seemed pretty sure they were people of interest. They knew the KGB were interested in the Afghan group, so they put a ridiculous amount of alternating tails on every single one whenever and wherever they moved. So many that Liz didn't really realize they were zeroed until it was too late and they were already compromised. The only thing that probably kept them from being taken completely by surprise is that the car Liz finally spotted as being a tail stayed on them too long before cycling out. ...when it's allowed to operate on US soil, the CIA really goes above and beyond overkill. Mostly to show off their resources to the FBI (whose cooperation they need to make it legal) and make them jealous. BIG HEADLINE fucked around with this message at 18:46 on Feb 13, 2015 |
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Feb 13, 2015 16:26
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I am a bit bummed that they let the Boris Korczak incident slip past on the timeline. They tried to assassinate him with a ricin pellet in a grocery store in Vienna, VA in 1981. Phil and Liz likely would've been tapped for the attempt since it's practically right next door to them. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boris_Korczak#Assassination_Attempt
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Feb 18, 2015 22:59
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The B-2 project is actually pretty rife with storyline potential: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northrop_Grumman_B-2_Spirit#Secrecy_and_espionage Not the least of which was the FBI running a 'false flag' operation where agents posed as Russian spies looking to purchase B-2 secrets. BIG HEADLINE fucked around with this message at 01:47 on Feb 20, 2015 |
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Feb 20, 2015 01:44
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http://theamericans.wikia.com/wiki/Pastor_Tim I've been wondering about the part listed under "Speculation." Maybe Paige is secretly being played by Pastor Tim the same way Kate was with Jared. Gabriel seems oddly comfortable with Paige's religion, almost like he knows more than he's letting on.
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Feb 21, 2015 22:29
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According to Hanssen's testimony, evidently after the wall fell, the Russian intelligence services became less cordial in their communications and less grateful for his services. There was about a two year period of intense internal political instability in Russia - 1991-1993 might very well end up being one of the most interesting periods in the show because they really won't know who they're working for, the old guard, or the new boss, up until the putting down of the coup attempt in 1991 and the Constitutional Crisis of 1993.
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Feb 22, 2015 19:06
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Fetus Tree posted:Ill probs check out Allegiance. The difference between the shows is 'Allegiance' is about "RRRGH CRUSH ALL CHANCE OF A PAX AMERICANA" in a way that feels the same as Shadow Recruit (where most of the 'sleeper' family already is 'spied up'), whereas The Americans is more about intelligence gathering than overt (and risky) action against the U.S.. The bad part is that they've painted themselves into a corner Terminator-style. The ~grand plan to destroy America from within~ can't succeed because 1) they wouldn't have a show anymore, and 2) American viewers (specifically those who still watch NBC), don't want to see that poo poo.
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Feb 26, 2015 23:26
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Hollismason posted:Ugh, that Flashback with Phil being in Russia and having to learn sex is pretty messed up when you realize if that was Phil's experience, I'd hate to see hers. That must have been horrific. We *did* get to see her experience - it was one of the first things Phil and Liz bonded over in S1, capturing and then, against their handler's orders, murdering a KGB defector who raped Liz during her training. It's been rumored that the training of female KGB agents involved their systematic rape by one of their male instructors or superiors, but I've never been able to find any primary source confirming it. BIG HEADLINE fucked around with this message at 04:36 on Feb 27, 2015 |
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Feb 27, 2015 04:25
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pentyne posted:When they come to a head over turning their daughter, I can see Liz taking it to the point of killing Phil "for the cause". I think something 'unfortunate' is going to happen to Gabriel (which might explain why Claudia/Margo is scheduled to appear later in the season), since I think Phil has finally figured out that 1) he's the one who keeps egging Liz to turn Paige after last episode's 'do whatever it takes' quip, and 2) that he realizes that ever since Liz dimed him as a potential defector who was "too comfortable" in his cover, that the Center still doesn't trust him. If you look back on it, most of the 'big jobs' have fallen to Liz since then - Phil's honestly just her 'support' at this point.
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Feb 28, 2015 01:21
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howe_sam posted:I'm guessing that preview was for the rest of the season because Philip yelling like that is  -worthy enough since the last time he lost his poo poo on that level was when he was screaming at Paige about Jesus.
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Mar 5, 2015 05:08
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Shadow posted:I think Phil will eventually do what he's told, especially with the veiled threat against his son and the fact they have Irina now. However, I don't think an american television show would cross that line so I'm sure something will save the day. Plus Hans has that ~dreamy~ accent going for him, while Phil's cover has stringy hair.
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Mar 6, 2015 06:08
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Shadow posted:He's South African right? I feel stupid even asking. Yeah, that axxxennt is unmistakable, bru.
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Mar 6, 2015 06:39
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zoux posted:Right, I remember that she met up with Phillip in season one at a travel agent conference, but why did she have to flee? She didn't *have* to flee, she was working with Philip to set up a Polish resistance leader by framing him for beating her to gain leverage. But she felt bad about doing that to a good guy, so she ran. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duty_and_Honor
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Mar 6, 2015 20:03
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Awww, what a shame. 
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Mar 6, 2015 21:07
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Calling it now - they'll kill Martha and Claudia will come back to take her place. No one but the current guy who has the hots for Martha will notice because 'secretary.' Not even Gaad.
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Mar 6, 2015 22:41
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cenotaph posted:I was just re-watching season one and I had completely forgotten that Irina already told Phil about their son. So either Phil was acting shocked for his handler's benefit, he thought the son was a fake by Irina, or he's just shocked that the kid's in Afghanistan. I assume it's the first one. I don't remember Gabriel saying the kid was in Afghanistan. I remember him saying something about a motorized division in East Germany. I assume the threat was that if Phil doesn't play ball, the kid WILL go to Afghanistan.
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Mar 6, 2015 23:55
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Baloogan posted:He is reflecting his parent's spy skills. He breaks into houses to play videogames in the season when Phil breaks into universities to gently caress with computers. He steals the photo of a love interest; and pumps stan for into about her. He needs to work on his 'awkward-o-meter' when it comes to asking questions, though.
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Mar 11, 2015 03:08
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What I don't get is, even if they're 100% successful with Paige, why isn't Philip realizing that the Center's going to want the *same loving thing* with Henry? Elizabeth seems pretty dead-set on turning Paige into ~PROLETARIAT SUPER SPY~, and likely is so zealous about it because 1) she wants to 'save' Paige from a life of religious zealotry, and 2) wants self-affirmation that *she* did the right thing by becoming a spy. Claudia said "the children of Directorate S" - not "eldest child only."
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Mar 12, 2015 10:53
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Party Plane Jones posted:Henry is sort of a dunce though. "He fits the profile perfectly. He's intelligent, but an underachiever. Alienated from his parents. Has few friends. Classic case for recruitment by the Soviets."
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Mar 12, 2015 11:22
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There's no way Martha lives out the end of the season - she's going to die, either by her own hand, murder, or murder that makes it LOOK like she did it with her own hand. The Center is going to wire money into her account and have her 'mugged' shortly thereafter without telling Philip about it, which will likely send him over the deep end into that screaming fit we saw him having with Gabriel in that "this season" clip. Philip can only stall, but soon they're going to want to know why they're not getting any more primo-level intel from the Bureau's counter-intel division.
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Mar 20, 2015 03:12
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zoux posted:Ok, what's the most disturbing scene of the season so far? Luggage lady? DIY dentistry? Or necklacing? Luggage Lady still holds the candle (no pun intended) to Mr. Barbecue. DIY dentistry takes the bronze simply because Liz knew she had to endure it eventually.
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Mar 20, 2015 03:28
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zoux posted:I knew the necklacing was coming because that was a major thing in the 80's, one of the gory details that resonated with Americans from the fight against Apartheid. But goddamn I was not expecting it to be so disturbing. It does kind of feel like the rest of the episode suffered for it, though. Sort of like they were worried about doing anything more controversial in the fear that it'd get it bounced by even the loose standards of violence on general cable TV. "Okay, we're burning a dude alive this week, but we can't have him flail and suffer for more than 20 seconds or we'll trigger 'x' number of FCC tripwires."
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Mar 20, 2015 03:39
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qbert posted:Not only that but he got a Story By credit for the episode. Timothy Olyphant was the closeted agent that raped Archer a while back. FX obviously likes to incorporate talent into things. Fingers crossed for Billy Crystal making a cameo voice appearance in this season or the next to promote his new show.
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Mar 20, 2015 04:51
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I decided to look up necklacing on Wikipedia, and came across this: In 1986 Winnie Mandela, then-wife of the imprisoned Nelson Mandela, stated "With our boxes of matches and our necklaces we shall liberate this country" which was widely seen as an implicit endorsement of necklacing, which at the time caused the ANC to distance itself from her... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winnie_Madikizela-Mandela#Criminal_convictions_and_findings_of_criminal_behaviourNo wonder he divorced her.
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Mar 20, 2015 10:48
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CBJSprague24 posted:This. The old woman making conversation to take her mind off the impending end as she's being forced to overdose on her meds. This is it and it doesn't get any worse. It's a tie with the necklacing. The only thing that would've put the pill scene over the top is if Elizabeth physically put the last four pills in the old woman's mouth and poured the water down her throat. TheAngryDrunk posted:Philip needs a game where Gabrielle doesn't have such an advantage. Let's see that commie bastard play Monopoly. A communist would be amazing at Monopoly. The goal is to take over everything and bring everyone into a collective - rent is a regrettable yet necessary capitalist notion that would be abolished after *everyone* is allowed to live on Boardwalk and Park Place*. * only loyal Party apparatchiks will ever get to live on Boardwalk and/or Park Place, plus they will be the only people ever allowed to pass "Go," albeit with chaperones. BIG HEADLINE fucked around with this message at 07:14 on Mar 26, 2015 |
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Mar 26, 2015 07:10
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Paradoxish posted:She's also completely hosed regardless. The FBI isn't just going to say "oh, I guess you were duped, it's okay." Best case scenario is that she loses her job and can never work for the government again, probably after they force her to turn in Clark just to stay out of jail. Worst case scenario is a whole lot worse. It's worse than that. Martha's eventually going to feel like she has 'power' over Clark - the first time she tries to use it, he'll have to kill her, and for all he knows, she's taken steps to expose him if anything happens to her. She was acting like someone who feels they're in control, not the doting wife. She made the decision to give up on the idea of adopting a kid to publicly display her making a decision without running it past him, even if it's something he wanted her to do. BIG HEADLINE fucked around with this message at 01:46 on Mar 27, 2015 |
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Mar 27, 2015 01:41
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JohnSherman posted:I think a line from Elizabeth about how the alternative would be much more painful might have sold the scene better, but that may have been too overt. I think her reasoning for complying was explained *enough*, if not that satisfactorily, when she started succumbing to the medication (I could only assume they were anti-anxiotics or beta blockers since they didn't look like nitro pills) and asks if her husband 'sent' Elizabeth to her, presumably to bring her back to him, even asking if he was with the 'other woman.' I think she'd come to terms with her demise and was tired of waiting, alone, for death. She took the door that was offered to her. But yeah, I agree that they should've reconnoitered the place better, but maybe they *only* had that evening as a window of vulnerability, and Gabriel had told them to bug Mr. Mail T. Robot *that afternoon*.
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Mar 27, 2015 10:36
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Accretionist posted:The way Gabe said, "We don't want to jeopardize the Martha operation," had me thinking it was a snap decision to keep from pressing Phil's attachment, and that when Martha goes it'll be a surprise . Again, my vote is for a 'mugging/robbery gone bad.' And we've already seen that Philip eventually blows up at Gabriel. I don't think Gabriel is getting out of this season alive, and his death will probably undo every bit of progress Phil and Liz have made together. I just hope that they don't make it so Phil kills Gabriel and bolts with the kids, leaving Liz to ~hunt him down~ or some bullshit like that, because the closer they get to 1991, the less material they'll have to work with. They need to give Martha an 'op' codename, though. My vote's on "Penny Dreadful." 
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Mar 28, 2015 10:26
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Shadow posted:What is the approximate date the show is up to? November 83? I'm just interested what's going to happen when 1986 rolls around. "Mom, can I go see Top Gun?" "No, Henry...I don't want you going to see propa...*war movies*."  "But you made us watch those 'Alexander Nevsky' and 'Battleship Potemkin' movies!""THAT'S DIFFERENT!" BIG HEADLINE fucked around with this message at 05:56 on Mar 29, 2015 |
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Mar 29, 2015 05:54
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What worries me is exactly the fact that Paige is 15. She might have let ~Jesus into her heart~, but there's one thing she possesses now that all 15 year old girls would quite literally kill for, 'godly' or not... ...ultimate leverage over *both* of her parents. This could lead to all sorts of bullshit that I hope the writers of the show don't decide to take advantage of, like: "Hey, let me go to Africa with Pastor Tim or I'll tell Mr. Beeman you're both spies." "Hey Dad...you know, your Camaro's really nice. Oh, by the way, I'm 15 and I'll be getting my driver's license soon. ~JUST SAYIN'~." "Hey Mom...give me a hundred dollars to go shopping or I'll tell Mr. Beeman you and Dad are spies." "Tell your Russian friends that I want front-row tickets to (insert concert here) or I'll tell." BIG HEADLINE fucked around with this message at 12:09 on Apr 3, 2015 |
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Apr 3, 2015 06:58
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Let's also reflect on the fact that kids nowadays don't need spank banks like Henry's, they just need thumb drives that they, much like Victoria's Secret and Frederick's of Hollywood catalogs of old, also stupidly leave lying about and not secured after use. Memmmmmmorrrrrieeeeeeeessss, like the color of my minnnnnddddd...
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Apr 3, 2015 12:12
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I've a feeling that Margo Martindale's yet-to-happen return this season will have something to do with Paige.
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Apr 4, 2015 07:18
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LostRook posted:Why is Elizabeth suddenly apprehensive about sleeping with people? What I took from it is that she realizes that her life now potentially could be Paige's. Paige won't be snapping any bones and fitting people into suitcases, but the Center could instruct her to start affairs with superiors or people with important info, etc. I think she finally 'gets' that Paige no longer has a life that'll be her own.
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Apr 9, 2015 04:37
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I just have a feeling Gabriel's gonna get the suitcase treatment from Phil if he even passingly mentions something to the effect of 'now that you've come clean to Paige, you have to start thinking about when you'll tell Henry. The Center wants *both* of them to be native-born assets.'
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Apr 10, 2015 06:17
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Heh. Regardless, I'm hoping the Gabriel/Claudia scene they teased isn't short. I really want to see those two spar verbally.
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Apr 10, 2015 06:39
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JohnSherman posted:Holy poo poo, she's actually going to Russia. All that goodwill undone the second she asks Liz "so where are all the churches?" But god was this another insufferable Paige episode. "So all these pictures are lies?" "If you just quiet down, we'll tell..." "SHUT UP I WANT THE TRUTH!" "Paige just quiet down, Henry's down the hall and we'll tell you..." "SHUT UP I WANT THE TRUTH!" *walks off in a huff* (missed line opportunity for Phillip) "Well, she's definitely *your* daughter." I also worry that the "going to spend the night at my Pastor's house, gently caress you" note is the first shot in the "let's see how much I can get away with" experiment. BIG HEADLINE fucked around with this message at 04:49 on Apr 16, 2015 |
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Apr 16, 2015 04:38
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