-- The Americans (FX, premiering January 30): Remember the story a few years back about Americans who turned out to be Russian spies living normal lives within our society. Back in June 2010, ABC News shared the story:
The allegations are shocking: four couples living in the U.S. under assumed false identities while secretly working as covert Russian spies on long-term, "deep-cover" assignments to obtain information on nuclear weapons.
They are part of a clandestine network that used a series of cold war tactics such as encrypted Morse code messages, brush passes and invisible writing to send intelligence back to the Russian government, the FBI said today as it announced the results of a multi-year investigation into the alleged spy ring.
Charged are Richard and Cynthia Murphy of New Jersey, Donald Howard Heathfield and Tracey Lee Ann Foley of Boston, Massachusetts, Michael Zottoli and Patricia Mills of Arlington, Virginia, and Juan Lazaro and Vicky Pelaez of Yonkers, New York.
Well, FX is bringing to television a similar story about a family living under assumed identities in the 1980s. Here is the description of the new program:
The Americans is a period drama about the complex marriage of two KGB spies posing as Americans in suburban Washington D.C. shortly after Ronald Reagan is elected President. The arranged marriage of Philip (Matthew Rhys) and Elizabeth Jennings (Keri Russell), who have two children – 13-year-old Paige (Holly Taylor) and 10-year-old Henry (Keidrich Sellati), who know nothing about their parents’ true identity – grows more passionate and genuine by the day, but is constantly tested by the escalation of the Cold War and the intimate, dangerous and darkly funny relationships they must maintain with a network of spies and informants under their control. Complicating their relationship further is Philip’s growing sense of affinity for America’s values and way of life. Tensions also heighten upon the arrival of a new neighbor, Stan Beeman (Noah Emmerich), an FBI agent. Stan and his partner, Agent Chris Amador (Maximiliano Hernández), are members of a new division of Counterintelligence tasked with fighting against foreign agents on U.S. soil, including KGB Directorate S illegals, Russian spies posing as Americans.
From what I have seen and read, it sounds like a winner. Here are some clips of the new show. You can also find more information on the program's Facebook site.
-- Do No Harm (NBC, premiering January 31): Now that we have Beauty and the Beast and Grimm, why not throw in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde for good measure? This new show takes the old tale to the hospital (of course, otherwise he would need to be a detective), where Dr. Cole plays the good doctor by day and the mad man by night.
Dr. Jason Cole (Steven Pasquale, "Rescue Me") is a highly respected neurosurgeon who has it all - a lucrative career, confident charm and the gift of compassion. But he also has a deep, dark secret. One morning, after waking up disoriented in a wrecked hotel room amidst near-naked women he's never seen before, he knows one thing: it happened again. Every night at the same hour, something inside Jason changes, leaving him almost unrecognizable - seductive, devious, borderline sociopathic. This new man is his dangerous alternate personality, who goes by the name Ian Price. For years Jason has battled Ian, keeping him in check with a powerful experimental sedative. But now his - their - body has developed a resistance to the serum, setting Ian free once again. And to make matters worse, after being suppressed for so long, Ian is hell-bent on taking revenge on his oppressor. With everyone Jason cares about at risk - patients, friends, coworkers and even the woman he loves - he must stop Ian once and for all. Will they find some common ground, or will they bring each other down? Hell hath no fury like an alter ego scorned.
-- Space Shuttle Columbia: Mission of Hope (PBS, premieres on January 31): The program is broadcast one day before the 10th anniversary of the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster and focuses on Col. Ilan Ramon, the first Israeli to go into space. According to PBS:
Space Shuttle Columbia: Mission of Hope goes behind the scenes to explore the “mission within the mission” for Ramon, who carried into space a miniature Torah scroll that had survived the horrors of the Holocaust, given to a boy in a secret bar mitzvah observed in the pre-dawn hours in the notorious Nazi concentration camp of Bergen-Belsen. The bar mitzvah boy grew up to become Israel’s lead scientist for the mission, Joachim “Yoya” Joseph.
The film follows the scroll’s path into Ramon’s hands, and the dramatic moment when he tells its story live to the world from the flight deck of Columbia. From the depths of hell to the heights of space, his simple gesture would serve to honor the hope of a nation and to fulfill a promise made to generations past and future.
And here is a quick preview.
-- House of Cards (Netflix, premiering February 1): Netflix continues with its own programming following Lilyhammer, which was actually produced by others but financed by Netflix. In this Netflix produced series (and remake of a BBC series of the same name), Kevin Spacey plays Congressman Francis Underwood who holds sway over his peers in the House and uses this power to hopefully obtain a position as Secretary of State. You can watch all 13 episodes, if you so choose, in one sitting since they will all be available at the same time. Given the reviews to date, you may want to treat this one like a fine wine rather than cheap beer - savor it. Time Out London gave the show 5 stars and noted:
For all the hoo-hah about Netflix shifting the viewing paradigm from traditional television to streaming via computer or set-top box, it wouldn’t mean a thing if its content fell short. So far, Netflix has relied on buying in films and TV shows, but ‘House of Cards’ is its first self-made series. And, on the basis of the opening two episodes, it’s outstanding. Ian Richardson was always going to be a tough act to follow as the scheming politician at the heart of the original British series from the 1990s. Thankfully, Kevin Spacey is little short of impeccable in his place, bringing all his years of complex villainy to bear on Congressman Frank Underwood.
This is high praise from the Brits. Of course, they also have a soft spot for Mr. Spacey, who has spent some time on the London stage.
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