Allegiance (TV series)

Allegiance
Genre	Spy drama
Created by	George Nolfi
Based on	The Gordin Cell
Starring	Hope Davis Scott Cohen Gavin Stenhouse Margarita Levieva Morgan Spector Alexandra Peters Kenneth Choi
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	13
Production
Executive producer(s)	George Nolfi Avi Nir Ron Leshem Amit Cohen Yona Wisenthal Giora Yahalom
Camera setup	Single-camera
Production company(s)	Universal Television Keshet Media Group Matchbox Pictures Nolfi Productions yes
Distributor	NBCUniversal Television Distribution
Release
Original network	NBC
Picture format	1080i (16:9 HDTV)
Original release	February 5 – April 30, 2015
Chronology
Related shows	The Gordin Cell Spy
External links
Official website

Allegiance is an American adaptation of the Israeli spy drama series The Gordin Cell. The series premiered on February 5, 2015, on NBC.^[1]

On March 6, 2015, NBC canceled the series after five low rated episodes.^[2][3] On March 12, 2015, NBC confirmed that the series would move online,^[4] and a new episode premiered in the U.S. via Hulu and NBC.com.^[5][6] The final episode of the series was released on April 30, 2015.^[7]

Cast

Main

• Hope Davis as Katya O'Connor, a retired Russian intelligence operative. Her father was a KGB general who forcibly recruited her when she was 17 years old.
• Scott Cohen as Mark O'Connor, an American-born businessman who was recruited by Katya to spy for Russia.
• Gavin Stenhouse as Alex O'Connor, a gifted CIA analyst who is assigned to a joint FBI-CIA investigation into an SVR plot to destroy critical infrastructure within the United States. Until episode 4, he had no idea about his parents' and sister's spying. In episode 5, it is mentioned that he graduated from Princeton University with both a bachelor's and master's degree in three years.
• Margarita Levieva as Natalie O'Connor, eldest daughter of the O'Connor family. She is also an SVR spy and was recruited at age 20. She is dating Victor Dobrynin, her family's SVR handler.
• Morgan Spector as Victor Dobrynin, an SVR operative assigned to be Katya and Mark's handler when they are both reactivated. He is dating Natalie O'Connor.
• Alexandra Peters as Sarah O'Connor, youngest daughter of the O'Connor family.
• Kenneth Choi as Sam Luttrell, CIA Station Chief of New York.

Recurring

• Robert John Burke as Special Agent Brock, the FBI agent-in-charge of the joint FBI–CIA investigation.
• Floriana Lima as Special Agent Michelle Prado, an FBI agent who is partnered with Alex O'Connor on the joint FBI–CIA investigation.
• Fred Dalton Thompson as the Director of the FBI.
• Diane Farr as Elizabeth Simpson U.S. Dept of Transportation, pipeline and hazardous materials safety administration.
• Giancarlo Esposito as Oscar Christoph / Marcus Bolivar / John Phillips.

Production

On January 10, 2014, NBC ordered the series to pilot under a different title Coercion.^[8]

On February 14, 2014, Gavin Stenhouse was cast as a lead role.^[9] Hope Davis and Margarita Levieva were cast as female lead roles on February 24, 2014.^[10] The pilot was later ordered to a 13-episode series to premiere mid-season under the final title Allegiance on May 6, 2014.^[11] On December 12, 2014, NBC announced that the series would premiere on February 5, 2015 following The Blacklist as a part of the "All-New NBC Thursday" and replacing Parenthood.^[12]

Filming on the series finale ended on March 15, 2015.^[13][14][15]

Episodes

No.	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air / release date	Prod. code	U.S. viewers (millions)
1	"Pilot"	George Nolfi	George Nolfi	February 5, 2015	101	4.98[16]
When a Russian intelligence officer approaches New York CIA Station Chief Sam Luttrell (Kenneth Choi) with information relating to an SVR plot to destroy critical infrastructure within the United States, gifted CIA analyst in Russian affairs Alex O'Connor (Gavin Stenhouse) is brought on to assist a joint FBI-CIA investigation into it. Unbeknownst to him, his mother, father and older sister are part of a Russian sleeper cell that have been reactivated with the purpose of monitoring him and preventing the identities of key Russian assets from being revealed in the course of his investigation.
2	"Teamwork"	George Nolfi	Story by: Jon Worley Teleplay by: John Glenn	February 12, 2015	102	3.65[17]
Mark (Scott Cohen) and Katya (Hope Davis) are nearly exposed as spies by their own son, Alex. Then, in a brilliant bit of manipulation, Katya manages to convince Alex he is wrong. Katya's lies cause a rift between her and her husband and son. Victor is acutely warned of what will happen to him if he doesn't keep the O'Connors on a tight leash. Meanwhile, Alex partners with Agent Michelle Prado (Floriana Lima) as part of a joint CIA-FBI task force to find the hidden SVR cache before it's destroyed. Alex's unique perspective is the key to unmasking the identity of a new defector, leading to a deadly confrontation with an SVR hit team.
3	"Surreptitious Entry"	George Nolfi	George Nolfi	February 19, 2015	103	3.32[18]
In the aftermath of a violent shootout, Alex must convince the FBI to risk a dangerous covert operation to find Mikhail's hidden cache. With Agent Prado at his side, Alex leads a team to Philadelphia to retrieve the laptop from a secure government building, but Victor (Morgan Spector) is a step ahead and orders the O'Connors to break in and steal the laptop first. Meanwhile, Katya discovers one of Natalie's (Margarita Levieva) most dangerous secrets, and forces her to choose between love and family.
4	"Chasing Ghosts"	George Nolfi	Eoghan Mahony	February 26, 2015	104	3.53[19]
A shocking discovery leaves Alex struggling to reconcile his theories with the evidence found at City Hall, and Sam encourages him to keep looking for clues. Meanwhile, Mark and Katya must answer for their actions when the Rezident (David Vadim) doubts their commitment to the cause, and Natalie learns just how lethal Black Dagger will be if they don't stop it.
5	"Tipping Point"	Jeffrey Nachmanoff	Niceole R. Levy	March 5, 2015	105	3.28[20]
When the FBI suspects a mole in the organization and brings in an investigator, Alex must confront his morals; Victor finds a new way to watch the O'Connors.
6	"Liars and Thieves"	Michael Smith	Jenna Richman	March 12, 2015 (US VoD)	106	N/A
Natalie must rely on an outsider for help finding important information on Black Dagger; Alex and Sam plan a risky sting operation; Katya wants Alex to throw the task force off track.
7	"Stranger in a Strange Land"	Jamie Barber	Brett Conrad	March 19, 2015 (US VoD)	107	N/A
Victor teams up with the O'Connor family to take down Black Dagger; task force members head to Italy; Sam poses as a businessman to deliver a suitcase of counterfeit cash.
8	"The Arrival"	Anton Cropper	Mimi Won Techentin	March 26, 2015 (US VoD)	108	N/A
Victor spies on the Rezident; Alex reveals a big secret to Michelle; Sam grows increasingly suspicious of the boy genius.
9	"Clean Hands"	George Nolfi	Whit Anderson	April 2, 2015 (US VoD)	109	N/A
Alex must deal with being framed for Michelle's murder.
10	"A Convenient Place to Die"	Kenneth Fink	John Glenn & Jon Worley	April 9, 2015 (US VoD)	110	N/A
Alex takes help from an unlikely source.
11	"Blowback"	Bronwen Hughes	Rashad Raisani & Jenna Richman	April 16, 2015 (US VoD)	111	N/A
Assuming their headquarters has been compromised, the task force relocates; the Rezident heads to the O'Connor home to hunt for evidence; Mark and Katya rush to Sarah's school as Alex lies bleeding in the back seat.
12	"Those Who Help Themselves"	Jeff T. Thomas	John Glenn & Rashad Raisani	April 23, 2015 (US VoD)	112	N/A
13	"Family Crisis"	Alex Zakrzewski	John Glenn & Rashad Raisani	April 30, 2015 (US VoD)	113	N/A

Reception

Critical response

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reports a 47% approval rating with an average rating of 5.6/10 based on 32 reviews by critics, but an 87% audience score with an average rating of 4.4/5 based on 111 user ratings.^[21] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 57 out of 100 based on 28 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".^[22]

International broadcast

The series premiered in Australia on June 30, 2015 on SoHo.^[23]

See also

• The Americans

References

1. Bibel, Sara (December 12, 2014). "NBC Announces Midseason Schedule: Premieres of 'Allegiance', 'A.D.', 'Odyssey', 'The Slap', & 'One Big Happy'; 'The Night Shift' Takes Over Monday 10PM Timeslot". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved December 12, 2014.
2. Bibel, Sara (March 6, 2015). "'Allegiance' Canceled by NBC, 'The Slap' Moves to Thursday at 10pm & 'Dateline: The Real Blacklist' at 8pm". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved March 6, 2015.
3. Andreeva, Nellie (March 6, 2015). "NBC's 'Allegiance' Pulled From Schedule; 'The Slap' Moves To 10pm". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved March 6, 2015.
4. "NBCAllegiance on twitter.com". NBC. Retrieved 12 March 2015.
5. "Allegiance on Hulu.com". Retrieved 12 March 2015.
6. "Allegiance on NBC.com". NBC. Retrieved 12 March 2015.
7. "Allegiance Episode 113 Family Crisis". NBC. Retrieved 30 April 2015.
8. "Breaking News - Development Update: Friday, January 10". TheFutonCritic.com. January 10, 2014. Retrieved February 22, 2015.
9. "Breaking News - Development Update: Friday, February 14". TheFutonCritic.com. February 14, 2014. Retrieved February 22, 2015.
10. "Breaking News - Development Update: Monday, February 24". TheFutonCritic.com. February 24, 2014. Retrieved February 22, 2015.
11. "Breaking News - Development Update: Tuesday, May 6 - NBC Gives Series Series Order to Drama "Allegiance"". TheFutonCritic.com. May 6, 2014. Retrieved February 22, 2015.
12. "Breaking News - NBC Sets Debuts for New Dramas "Allegiance," "A.D," and "Odyssey," Event Series "The Slap" and New Comedy "One Big Happy"". TheFutonCritic.com. December 12, 2014. Retrieved February 22, 2015.
13. "scottecohen on Twitter.com 5:16 AM March 11, 2015". Retrieved March 11, 2015.
14. "scottecohen on Twitter.com 10:36AM March 12, 2015". Retrieved March 12, 2015.
15. "RealHopeDavis on Twitter.com 8:30 AM March 15, 2015". Retrieved March 15, 2015.
16. Bibel, Sara (February 6, 2015). "Thursday Final Ratings: 'The Blacklist', 'Scandal', 'Grey's Anatomy' & 'The Big Bang Theory' Adjusted Up; 'The Vampire Diaries' Adjusted Down". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved February 6, 2015.
17. Kondolojy, Amanda (February 13, 2015). "Thursday Final Ratings: 'Backstrom' Adjusted Down, No Adjustment to 'The Blacklist', 'Scandal' or 'The Vampire Diaries'". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved February 13, 2015.
18. Bibel, Sara (February 20, 2015). "Thursday Final Ratings: 'The Big Bang Theory,' 'Scandal', 'Two and a Half Men' & 'How To Get Away With Murder' Adjusted Up". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved February 20, 2015.
19. Kondolojy, Amanda (February 27, 2015). "Thursday Final Ratings: 'The Blacklist' & 'American Idol' Adjusted Up". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved March 6, 2015.
20. Bibel, Sara (March 6, 2015). "Thursday Final Ratings: 'The Big Bang Theory', 'American Idol' & 'The Blacklist' Adjusted Up". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved March 6, 2015.
21. "Allegiance: Season 1 - Rotten Tomatoes". rottentomatoes.com. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
22. "Allegiance (2015) - Season 1 Reviews - Metacritic". metacritic.com. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
23. "Foxtel in June: 200+ new shows including Orange Is The New Black, True Detective, Suits, PLL, Wimbledon and more". The Green Room. Foxtel. June 1, 2015. Retrieved June 4, 2015.

External links

• Official website
• Allegiance at the Internet Movie Database