The Rat (The Americans)

In its original American broadcast, "The Rat" was seen by an estimated 0.90 million household viewers with a 0.2 in the 18-49 demographics. This means that 0.2 percent of all households with televisions watched the episode.^[4] This was a slight increase in viewership from the previous episode, which was watched by 0.89 million household viewers with a 0.3 in the 18-49 demographics.^[5]

"The Rat" received critical acclaim. The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported an 100% approval rating for the episode, based on 14 reviews. The site's consensus states: "An intense and satisfying episode, 'The Rat' underscores the creators' penchant for uncomfortable, slow-burning, compelling storytelling as the seeds are sown for a key character's demise."^[6]

Joshua Alston of The A.V. Club gave the episode an "A–" grade and wrote, "'The Rat' is the latest demonstration of Joe Weisberg and Joel Fields' commitment to never getting too comfortable in their storytelling. The discovery of Martha's betrayal and Philip's decision to bring her in means an altered status quo and a new normal for nearly every character in the show. This is the perfect moment for such a leap, considering that season four is the first time when it seems like The Americans might not be willing or able to deliver on all its promises. The season three cliffhanger, Paige's confession to Pastor Tim, seemed like a knot too difficult to untie, but six episodes into season four, Pastor Tim hasn't been nearly the problem he initially appeared to be."^[7]

Alan Sepinwall of HitFix wrote, "We'll just have to see if she ends up flying to Russia with a suitcase, or zipped inside of one. Hoping for the former as her best outcome at the moment, dreading the thought of the latter. And yet as bad as I feel for her, good on Stan for finally figuring out just how bad Martha had become."^[8] Anthony Breznican of Entertainment Weekly wrote, "Applause for actress Alison Wright. I think all fans of The Americans are amazed Martha has survived this long, but now she is truly teetering on the edge. If looks could kill, the one Gabriel gives her as she walks away would end poor Martha for good."^[9]

Mike Hale of The New York Times wrote, "The Americans gave us what we wanted on Wednesday night — well, what a lot of us wanted, I suspect. The episode, 'The Rat,' was the apotheosis of Martha Hanson. (Until next week, anyway.)"^[10] Genevieve Koski of Vulture gave the episode a 4 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "On some level, Philip means those promises to Martha. He desperately wants everything to be okay, for Martha to survive and not go to prison for colluding with him. His guilt over the position he’s brought Martha to is tremendous. But there's something deeper motivating Philip's behavior: He's protective of Martha, and defiant toward Gabriel and Elizabeth when they question his decision to 'bring her in.' It's enough to suggest that a stronger emotional connection exists — and nobody is willing to admit it."^[11]

Ben Travers of IndieWire gave the episode an "A" grade and wrote, "The ball has started rolling, and there's no stopping it now. The rest of Season 4 is going to be one helluva ride."^[12] Matt Brennan of Slant Magazine wrote, "In 'The Rat,' seeing is indeed believing, and removing the veil lays bare the risk that inheres in the concept of trust."^[13]

Alec Bojalad of Den of Geek gave the episode a 4.5 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "And so Martha is out on her own and the only rat that Philip and Elizabeth are left with is the actual one infected with a mysterious virus that William has brought them."^[14] Amy Amatangelo of Paste gave the episode a 9.8 out of 10 and wrote, "Martha's death has seemed inevitable since the day we met her. But the show continues to surprise me. This was an amazing episode of television."^[15]

• "The Rat" at IMDb