You Americans think everything is white and black— For us, everything is gray.
S1 E15Unfinished Business
Elizabeth. I know there's bad blood between us. But believe it or not, I feel a camaraderie with you.
A camaraderie?
Yes.
You have a funny way of showing that.
This isn't an easy life we've chosen. But there's no way to get through it without the truth.
What "truth" exactly are we talking about?
In New York, Philip was with the woman we assigned him to.
I can think of five different reasons you'd poison our life.
Ask Philip, then.
I did.
You believe him? If you start to think of your marriage as real, it doesn't work. The men don't think of them that way.
So, what's your thing?
My thing?
Oral? Anal? Ecclesiastical?
Oh. I am much kinkier than that.
Clark, I'm in love with you. I waited my whole life for you, and I would do anything for you. Anything. All you have to do is ask. Just please, just tell me one thing? Is this real?
Yes.
A counterintelligence artiste?
Yeah, I'm like Picasso, only with a gun and not a brush. My work is my life, and my life is my art. I have no wife, no kids, no pets, no hobbies, no distractions—except for pussy. I got no attachments. I'm as unencumbered as bedbugs in a flophouse, and I like it. It works for me.
You're gonna lose this war. You know that, right? You can torture me and you can kill me but we're gonna kick your motherland's marbled ass, and there's nothing you can do about it.
When you shoot a bird—duck or pheasant, say—your dog, your retriever, picks it up in its mouth—its soft mouth. Soft mouth is key. Otherwise, the dog sinks his teeth into the bird's flesh. Anyway your dog brings it to you and lays it at your feet. But sometimes, when you shoot the bird, it's not dead. It's just wounded. Strange thing is, whether the bird is dead or just wounded, once the dog gets it in its mouth, the bird goes limp. Like a rag—doesn't move. It acts like it's dead. Doesn't struggle or scream. It just goes limp. Don't you think that's strange? You know what I think it is? Fear. The bird's scared out of its goddamn mind. Who wouldn't be? I know I would. Then again, maybe the bird is faking. You know what I'm saying? Maybe it wants you—talking about the bird now—to think it's dead so when the dog drops it out of its soft mouth at its master's feet, it can take off. It works sometimes. You wouldn't think it does, but it does. Not a lot. Once in a blue moon.
Please, I swear I'm not KGB. I don't know anything. Please, I swear.
You're scared. I know. I would be, too, because I've got you in my soft mouth, and you're not dead—not yet. Maybe you think you can run when I drop you at my master's feet. Maybe you can. Maybe you will. But the thing is, you have my partner. If you don't tell me where he is, you will never get dropped at my master's feet. My bite will go hard, and you will know you are dead before your heart stops beating.
Vietnam turned you into a skirt chaser?
I was straight as an arrow when I signed up. I was an altar boy till I was 17.
Really?
Yeah. Then 'Nam changed things. You know, there was crazy shit over there. You never knew when your number was gonna be called. I learned two things. One, tempus fugit—"time flies". One way or the other, you snatch it, or it's gonna snatch you. There's no pause button. And, two, there are worse things than dying.
Like?
Shame. Shame's not an option for me.
I had to fill out an "officer in the field" special-request assessment form. It has 27 sections.
Well, I guess your job can be dangerous, too.
My point was, you've been in the field too long. You've lost touch with both your basic obligations and the central rules and regulations that make this organization function. It's happened before with officers in your position, and it can be remedied.
I'm sure they'll send someone else to remedy it.
Don't be sure. I've been serving faithfully much longer than you, my dear. I told them they're in danger of losing you. And whether you see it or not, I'm right.
I'm surprised they gave you this job, when you have no understanding of people at all.
I know you better than you know yourself. And you don't know me at all.
[to Patterson] You won't be able to move for 20 minutes... which is 10 minutes longer than you have left. Viktor Zhukov was my friend. We met in Stalingrad in 1942. He was ragged, skin and bones, same as we all were. First time I saw him, He was standing over two dead Nazis. I was surprised, after the war, that he'd survived. We found ourselves working together in what was then called the NKGB.
Besides, if you're wrong, we'd be giving up the greatest intelligence success since we got the atom bomb.
That's what we always say. Right before our people die for nothing. The next thing we always say is "it was so obvious."
Hey!
(surprised) Stan!
Hi, Paige.
What … what are you doing h-
These quotes come from Wikiquote's The Americans pages and are available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.




