The Americans and Allegiance: Spy Show Face-Off

So much for glasnost! Soviet villains are red-hot thanks to The Americans and Allegiance, dramas that feature married Russian spies getting up to nyet good on U.S. soil. Here’s how they compare:

The Couple

The Americans: Philip and Elizabeth Jennings (Matthew Rhys and Keri Russell)

Allegiance: Katya and Mark O’Connor (Hope Davis and Scott Cohen)

From Russia With Love

The Americans: At the height of the Cold War in the ’80s, the Jenningses are undercover KGB operatives posing as travel agents in Washington, D.C.

Allegiance: Decades ago, KGB agent Katya recruited American Mark. Years after they became involved and cut a deal to leave the spy game, their puppeteers have forced them back into active duty.

Sleeping With the Enemy?

The Americans: Both of the Jenningses have partaken in extramarital hanky-panky on the job. (Philip’s alter ego, Clark, is even wed to an FBI secretary.)

Allegiance: Not yet–though there are signs that Katya may be hiding a past affair. And Natalie has gotten freaky with her parents’ handler Victor.

Brooklyn Confidential

The Americans: The show shoots in NYC, often in the quaint Brooklyn neighborhood that Russell and her kids call home.

Allegiance: Allegiance shoots in Manhattan and Brooklyn. Davis is practically neighbors with Russell.

Family Ties

The Americans: So far, they have managed to keep their true identities hidden from their two kids. But that could change this season as the leaders in Moscow want to recruit their teen daughter, Paige.

Allegiance: Their son, Alex, a rising star at the CIA, is on the brink of finding out that Mom and Dad–and, oh, yeah, big sister Natalie–are working for the other team.

The Americans, Wednesdays, 10/9c, Fx

Allegiance, Thursdays, 10/9c, NBC