Last year Matthew Rhys and Keri Russell earned Golden Globe nominations as the titular Soviet spies in deep suburban cover in Reagan-era America. The series created by former CIA officer Joe Weisberg has earned wide critical praise as one of the best in TV and its fifth season coincides with renewed interest in the real-life relationship between Russia and the US. Call it serendipity; fact is that the blend of mundane family life and credible international geopolitical skullduggery reverberates more than ever on multiple levels today. Here’s what Russell and Rhys (also a real-life couple and now proud parents of a son) recently told us about the evolution of their characters during the arch of the series.

We thought it would be fun to pay homage to some of our favorite ‘looks’ on The Americans over the years.