S01.E07: The Paradox Andropov

[ohjoy]

Doug gets intel. Petra visits a comrade. Tara hits rock bottom. Bentley makes a choice.

Originally aired 11/26/2019

[blackwing]

Best part of this episode was the decreased amount of Doug and his wife.  
 

But I’m still confused.  Old Petra travels to Greece and stares at a man on a yacht.  Then she has a flashback of her young self sleeping with that training instructor of hers.  She also sees her dead husband at his funeral (after she killed him in the barn).  So the training instructor became her husband?  At least it’s not John.  
 

Then who was the man on the yacht?  I think she called him Yuri?  Isn’t Yuri also the training instructor?   How can he have been her dead husband but also the man on the yacht?

Sad that there are only three episodes left and I have pretty much zero idea of what is going on.

Edited November 27, 2019 by blackwing

[mxc90]

In 3 years, Sam picked up a few tricks in her spare time (shooting someone, pulling teeth/cutting up a body, knowing to dye her hair, buying an inconspicuous jeep, and having cash/passports ready for the both of them). I don't trust her!

The show opened with Doug and Sam then we don't see them until the end (trying to help someone they don't know anything about). I had to rewind just to remember why they went there.
 

25 years ago, Yuri told Petra to watch the missile, he'll keep in contact, he never called her all that time and since that time he made billions/running around with young women/hanging with US politicians/speaking English. Current news does not travel to Petra's farm or no Russian version of Forbes magazine or she doesn't go to the local hair salon for the latest gossip? Now she realized she has missed a lot from life and killed her husband for this program.

That's messed up Meghan had to die! I wonder why they (I guess Yuri's people or maybe the guy from the embassy double crossed her) spared Tara's and Sebastian's lives when they got the cryptocurrency?

Tara is going to travel to Moscow, alone and try to do what?!! Good Luck!  

Of course John's confusion and anger with Petra leads him to sex. I guess Petra is playing the long game/faking being a traitor with John just to gain his trust and still control him for the cicada program.

The man John killed had a "bug" on his collar, now the CIA knows John shot him, thinks Matheson is still alive and is trying to save him? Or is it possible that guy wasn't CIA and is working with the KGB, the gun had blank bullets and faked dying. All this to mess with John's head?

The bartender could have googled the word to know the meaning.

There were some snobbish people looking at Soyun. To be fair to those people, I don't think Soyun showered since she left her house for the trip to China.

Is there a rule the bad guys (the Koreans and Russians) travel in a group with 3 vehicles?

What is with these Cicadas and their makeshift devices and pickpocket skills? Soyun was fortunate to rob two people that had an enormous amount of cash on them. Did she use the money get new bandages along with the clothes and hair?

Cicadas are trained to take a bullet and avoid being blown up!

Edited November 27, 2019 by mxc90

[nuraman00]

20 hours ago, mxc90 said:

In 3 years, Sam picked up a few tricks in her spare time (shooting someone, pulling teeth/cutting up a body, knowing to dye her hair, buying an inconspicuous jeep, and having cash/passports ready for the both of them). I don't trust her!

The show opened with Doug and Sam then we don't see them until the end (trying to help someone they don't know anything about). I had to rewind just to remember why they went there.
 

25 years ago, Yuri told Petra to watch the missile, he'll keep in contact, he never called her all that time and since that time he made billions/running around with young women/hanging with US politicians/speaking English. Current news does not travel to Petra's farm or no Russian version of Forbes magazine or she doesn't go to the local hair salon for the latest gossip? Now she realized she has missed a lot from life and killed her husband for this program.

That's messed up Meghan had to die! I wonder why they (I guess Yuri's people or maybe the guy from the embassy double crossed her) spared Tara's and Sebastian's lives when they got the cryptocurrency?

Tara is going to travel to Moscow, alone and try to do what?!! Good Luck!  

Of course John's confusion and anger with Petra leads him to sex. I guess Petra is playing the long game/faking being a traitor with John just to gain his trust and still control him for the cicada program.

The man John killed had a "bug" on his collar, now the CIA knows John shot him, thinks Matheson is still alive and is trying to save him? Or is it possible that guy wasn't CIA and is working with the KGB, the gun had blank bullets and faked dying. All this to mess with John's head?

The bartender could have googled the word to know the meaning.

There were some snobbish people looking at Soyun. To be fair to those people, I don't think Soyun showered since she left her house for the trip to China.

Is there a rule the bad guys (the Koreans and Russians) travel in a group with 3 vehicles?

What is with these Cicadas and their makeshift devices and pickpocket skills? Soyun was fortunate to rob two people that had an enormous amount of cash on them. Did she use the money get new bandages along with the clothes and hair?

Cicadas are trained to take a bullet and avoid being blown up!

I'm surprised Yuri's people let Tara and Sebastian live after getting the cryptocurrency.

They should have killed Tara and Sebastian, so Tara and Sebastian couldn't interfere in the future.

I didn't understand why so many people were staring at Soyun either, when she was walking around town.  She's just a person, not a half man, half animal.

Even if she hadn't showered, you'll find people that haven't showered when in a large city.

Yuri's people had to kill Meghan, so they had some leverage and threat over Tara and Sebastian, and show them they meant business.

That security guard Soyun into the VIP area, all because she was wearing fashionable clothing, and learned over so there was the slightest of physical contact? 

I don't understand why 1973 Petra sided (or pretended to side) with John and help him escape, yet then spent 25 years ago as a devout Russian, protecting Mother Russia's interest, and guarding Stilletto Six.  How did she get from from mentally her angle in 1973, to what she'd then do for 25 years on a farm?

[themadman]

This show started off in a promising way but now I have to bail on it. It's too convoluted and the writers have not tied all these past and present plot lines in a meaningful manner. I have zero interest in doing another Lost. I'd like to figure out at least something when I watch an episode.

[Loandbehold]

12 hours ago, nuraman00 said:

I didn't understand why so many people were staring at Soyun either, when she was walking around town.  She's just a person, not a half man, half animal.

I was wondering if she was wearing pjs or a "peasant" outfit that looked out of place in the heart of the city. I didn't notice passers-by reacting as if she really smelled from lack of showering. 

12 hours ago, nuraman00 said:

That security guard Soyun into the VIP area, all because she was wearing fashionable clothing, and learned over so there was the slightest of physical contact? 

When Soyun first approached the sign that said VIP area, I was wondering why there was no security before being allowed to go upstairs. Then, upstairs, there's only one smallish guy acting as security. This club really needs to do better, or else any old spy can basically just walk in. 

[Tachi Rocinante]

The stories are rather compelling to me, so I'm still in. (Probably because I read every Ludlum book growing up.)

However, the camera shot logistics are atrocious.  In the station shootout, there was a guy behind John and Petra when he needed another gun, and then he shoots forward. Also, those guys didn't notice Soyun in the back seat?  It's not like she was covered with blankets.

I smelled the Pretty Woman homage a mile away.

Also shouldn't the title of the episode be "The Andropov Paradox"?  It makes more sense that way.

Edited November 28, 2019 by Tachi Rocinante
Spelling

[BaskingsharkGTX]

The overwhelming problem with this show - as many have said - is that there is just too much going on, making it near impossible to follow. But also, the writers don't seem to have enough ideas to go round; Doug/Sam and John/Petra are basically the same storyline (woman involved with Treadstone falls for male subject - regardless of whether Petra is conning him). With fewer storylines and more screentime to explore characters, this would be a lot more engaging.

Jeremy Irvine's wavering fake American accent is atrocious.

I have literally no idea what's going on in Tara's storyline.

"Maybe you need to make some life changes." - seriously, Sebastian? Who talks like this in the middle of a nuclear missile plot involving crypto-currency, a dead friend and many other cliches and buzzwords? You have just tied Sam's idiotic question to Doug about whether their marriage was OK for dumbest dialogue of the season.

Said it before/will say it again;

Spoiler

John/Irvine is the "Russian Farmer" she kills at the beginning.

Edited November 28, 2019 by BaskingsharkGTX

[AnimeMania]

What did SoYun make from those radios she broke apart and put in the tin box?

On 11/27/2019 at 1:25 AM, mxc90 said:

The man John killed had a "bug" on his collar, now the CIA knows John shot him, thinks Matheson is still alive and is trying to save him? Or is it possible that guy wasn't CIA and is working with the KGB, the gun had blank bullets and faked dying. All this to mess with John's head?

I thought the dead CIA guy put a tracking device on John.

[mxc90]

On 11/27/2019 at 9:39 PM, nuraman00 said:

I don't understand why 1973 Petra sided (or pretended to side) with John and help him escape, yet then spent 25 years ago as a devout Russian, protecting Mother Russia's interest, and guarding Stilletto Six.  How did she get from from mentally her angle in 1973, to what she'd then do for 25 years on a farm?

At Yuri's home, he mentioned to Petra her 25 years was really punishment for her many emotional decisions instead of being a mission. 

I wonder why the KGB didn't just kill her for killing those agents. 

They must have taken everything away from her so she had no choice but to be loyal/follow their instructions to watch the missile.

9 hours ago, AnimeMania said:

I thought the dead CIA guy put a tracking device on John.

He did put it on John. My mistake. I can't telling if it is a tracking or listening device.

10 hours ago, AnimeMania said:

What did SoYun make from those radios she broke apart and put in the tin box

A listening device to spy on the men in the VIP room.

[AnimeMania]

51 minutes ago, mxc90 said:

11 hours ago, AnimeMania said:

What did SoYun make from those radios she broke apart and put in the tin box

A listening device to spy on the men in the VIP room.

She could have at least made it look like something fancy so that nobody would look twice at it.

[mxc90]

46 minutes ago, AnimeMania said:

She could have at least made it look like something fancy so that nobody would look twice at it.

She could but chose to spend almost all of the cash on her outfit and hair before buying any inconspicuous holding device.

I guess her plan is to leave a "mint" box on the table and no one would notice. What if someone's decides they need a breath refresher? Or she she could tell them her pet spider is in the tin can with holes (won't show it because it's shy), she couldn't dare leave it home alone, she'll leave the can here on the table/leave the room, advise them to don't open the box for any reason and continue to have your secret conversations (as she listens from the next room). I'm sure they'll believe her.

[momo]

I'm suspicious of Sam bc Doug, Total Recall

[LennieBriscoe]

I thought at least Soyun would put some of those mints back as a top layer.

I binge-watched five episodes today,  so I might get some scenes mixed up,  but one thing: about all the fights. I once saw a program wherein Matt Damon showed the detailed choreography of one "Bourne Identity" fight (the scene where a foe bursts through an apartment balcony window and you yelped,  yes,  you did). It was most enlightening, and is,  frankly,  the only way I can sit through and even appreciate all the "Treadstone" fisticuffs!

I have no idea why Petra didn't stab Yuri to death for his obvious betrayal of her, their values,  and of the (former) Soviet Union. Love? It is to laugh. Self-preservation? To what end?

Perhaps her defeat is a plot point to be used along with her found wristwatch. 

As with "Press," this is a series "event" that I wish were a true series,  with no planned end date. 

Edited December 3, 2019 by LennieBriscoe

[WatchrTina]

Okay the more I think about this show the more ridiculous it becomes.  Petra kept watch over a cruise missile for 25 years and now Yuri is going to sell it to the North Koreans?  How can Petra and Yuri be the only two people in Russia who know about that missile?  What about the people who BUILT the silo?  What about the people who installed the missile?  What about the whole freaking Soviet Military Industrial Complex.  Does ANYONE think they'd just "forget" about a missile?  This plot line is too dumb for words.

And I've already forgotten how it was that Tara had all that money.  She was supposed to use it to buy the missile, right?  So how did those guys who kidnapped her and her friends know about the money?  I thought one of the selling points of cryptocurrency was the secrecy around it.  And damn, the killing of Tara's friend was horrible. This show really is brutal.  I'm not sure I'm enjoying it.  Ordinarily I love a good spy thriller.  

[TV Anonymous]

On 12/21/2019 at 11:27 PM, WatchrTina said:

And I've already forgotten how it was that Tara had all that money.  She was supposed to use it to buy the missile, right?  

I am lost. Who gave her all the money - including the one she used for chartering helicopter and renting the place in Berlin? The CIA through Edwards?

[paigow]

6 hours ago, TV Anonymous said:

I am lost. Who gave her all the money - including the one she used for chartering helicopter and renting the place in Berlin? The CIA through Edwards?

The Ecuadorian Ambassador to France. General Kwon hacked the account, changed the password and left it with the Ambassador.

[TV Anonymous]

Ah right, thank you @paigow.

[John Potts]

Yay! Our “hero” is actually trying to be heroic. It almost makes you want him to survive (still can't remember his name, though). Though quite why he still trusts his wife, who has consistently lied to him, is a mystery to me.

Past guy (yeah, don't remember his name, either) is kind of an idiot, too. Even if Petra was lying to him (which I'm guessing she was), she almost certainly wasn't lying about the fact that the KGB were after him. But he just wonders around a hostile city without any sort of disguise in broad daylight!

On the subject of Petra - she's either utterly ruthless or completely smitten (given she is prepared to kill her own people). It's a credit to the actress that I can't tell which (though it's entirely possible TPTB hadn't made any definitive choice on the matter and told the actress to keep it ambiguous). Either way, I guess it would explain why she was (literally!) sent to Siberia for 25 years. Though if she was a "true believer" even after all those years, why didn't she stab Yuri when she had the chance? She'd almost certainly be gunned down immediately afterwards, but she clearly regarded Yuri as a traitor to the cause (a cause she had already killed her husband for) and it didn't look like she had much to live for. 

So our journalist can’t remember what happened to her daughter? In a world of effective brainwashing, that’s mighty suspicious. But although Megan’s death was shocking, respect for making bad guys actually ruthless. They don't just threaten to kill people, they actually go ahead and do it.