SPOILER ALERT: The following contains spoilers for American Classic Season 1, Episode 6.

Episode 6 of American Classic is the crescendo that the MGM+ show has been rising toward. “Real Rain” immediately gets to the consequences of all the reveals from the previous episodes—there’s no stringing viewers along for maximum drama. Instead, the story is incredibly heartfelt, with a few moments that will have audiences smiling when they could’ve been crying. In that sense, this episode sums up the whole series.

Richard Bean’s telling Nadia she can’t act comes back to haunt him right away, as Nadia strides into rehearsal for Our Town and tells him off publicly. It’s a fun way to deal with the issue, because instead of letting Nadia simply drop out of the story or making her look even more ridiculous, American Classic lets her have her moment. It may not be on stage, but it’s hers and it’s truthful and The Night Agent‘s Elise Kibler nails it. Richard winds up offering her a new part in the play, too, when a lesser show might have just had her storm off and never return.

Speaking of storming off, though, the one part of “Real Rain” that doesn’t work is that the episode’s biggest revelation (and heel turn) happens off-screen. Pat Patterson arrives shortly thereafter to reveal that his wife (also named Pat) has run off to Brooklyn with Heath, which means those two characters are quickly swept out of the story. It’s understandable that Pat is upset and quits the play—but the next time viewers see him, he’s suddenly become Boyle’s new accountant and mouthpiece. It’s a really quick change of character, and it rings somewhat hollow because fans barely got to know the Pattersons or see what led up to this turmoil. A brief glimpse of Heath flirting with the now ex-Mrs. Patterson backstage in the last episode just doesn’t cut it.

But that can be forgiven because of all of the other emotional moments that do work. Len Cariou has his best episode yet, as Linus Bean struggles with his dementia and believes that his late wife Ethel is in the theater. It’s such a bittersweet moment when Linus realizes once again that Ethel is gone; Cariou perfectly communicates his character’s pain and vulnerability in very few words. He and Kevin Kline are beautiful together as Linus tells Richard that he’s not able to play the part of the Stage Manager, while Richard attempts to convince his father that he still has something left to give. (It would be fantastic if American Classic found some way, perhaps through flashbacks, to utilize Jane Alexander again just so TV viewers could enjoy her with Cariou—two legends of the Broadway stage.)

The casting shakeup means that Richard has to approach his brother and sister-in-law about filling the roles that the Pattersons vacated. This isn’t quite a plot twist, because American Classic wouldn’t feel complete without the whole family on stage. But the sequence between Kline and Jon Tenney in the kitchen, wherein Jon confesses to Richard that he lost Miranda’s college fund, likewise feels so honest and vulnerable. It should be said how much Tenney brings to the show. He doesn’t have the most exciting part, but he’s played that role of hopeful caretaker so well. “Real Rain” is when Jon Bean gets to open up about how he’s always trying to take care of everyone, but who’s taking care of him? (While also serving up some humor, as Jon admits to having a Marge Simpson-level gambling problem: “Every college kid loses cars in poker games, right?”)

A later scene in which Kristen rebuffs Richard’s request to play Mrs. Webb feels unfinished—but Laura Linney’s expressions after Kline exits the scene say a lot more than the dialogue. All of this is building toward the casino vote, which is Kevin Kline’s cue to have his spotlight moment. That vote is the turning point of the whole season and for Richard’s character, because it’s the moment fans want to see, in which he fully commits himself to the town of Millersburg. It’s perfectly staged, too, with Richard standing in the back of the room and thus getting to make a theatrical stride down the aisle to take the microphone. And of course everyone is there to watch him, because this scene has to be big and cheer-worthy. It doesn’t need to be novel; the audience can guess the vote is going to come down to Jon. It just needs to be emotional, and it is as Richard tells Jon’s story (without naming names) to the room, prompting Jon to vote against the casino.

Naturally, this means that the last two episodes of American Classic‘s season are going to be about Richard and the townspeople scrambling to save their production of Our Town from the big, bad developer. It’s that iconic David and Goliath story, which fans have been ready for since Boyle was introduced at the beginning, But it’s Episode 6 that is the series’ high point emotionally. It’s Linus, Jon and Richard all reaching their crossroads and making their big decisions. These are the beats that everyone wanted these characters to get to, and it’s so satisfying to see them happen. Now all that’s left is to get back to the madcap, self-deprecating comedy and put on the most absurd, aspirational production of Our Town ever.

American Classic airs Sundays at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT on MGM+. Photo Credit: David Giesbrecht/Courtesy of MGM+.

Article content is (c)2020-2026 Brittany Frederick and may not be excerpted or reproduced without express written permission by the author. Follow me on Twitter at @BFTVTwtr and on Instagram at @BFTVGram. For story pitches, contact me at tvbrittanyf@yahoo.com.