firenze_italia While I enjoyed seeing this true story dramatized, there was much that detracted from it. Sandra Grimes is portrayed as nearly the only one who 'gets it' (save Jeanne Vertefeuille, who is cast as a definite second banana and is only slightly less clueless than Grimes' colleagues). She's portrayed as 100% infallible. In contrast, her colleagues are absolutely clueless and dismissive of her every instinct and suggestion. (By episode 7, I was laughing out loud at how ridiculous this contrast had become.) There is absolutely no subtlety about it; she's right, and everyone else is wrong! Instead of dialogue and debate, they just blow her off. Around episode 6 or 7, Ames becomes her #1 suspect. Why? We have no idea; he just is. The lame attempts to create some sort of domestic drama and conflict fall especially flat, a not even half-hearted attempt to portray the stress on a couple where one of the spouses can't talk about her job at all. Rosario Ames - whose expensive tastes and free spending were the prime motivation for her husband's treason - is hardly seen until late in the series and she's barely a one-dimensional character. The sappy AF ending - when Grimes and Vertefeuille share a hug after signing their book for the granddaughter of one of Ames' victims - had me rolling my eyes all the way back in my head. To paraphrase how another reviewer put it, this is like Lifetime getting their hands on a Le Carre spy novel.In short the portrayal of Grimes is the sort of hagiography a narcissist would indulge in, and attempt to pass off as the 'true version' of events. "Everybody around me was an idiot, I was the only one who 'got it' and I was never wrong."The series is not without its moments. All of the actors portraying Russians are good to excellent. In particular, episode 6 is by far the most compelling, contrasting the interrogation of a Russian general (Peter Guinness) betrayed by Ames with the high-stakes lie detector test that Ames undergoes. The KGB general interrogating Polyakov is Nicholas Woodeson, a dead ringer for Armin Mueller-Stahl ("Eastern Promises"). In fact, I highly recommend following up viewing this series by reading about the key characters involved. In particular, General Polyakov was one of the most important double agents ever in the history of spying; the list of Soviet secrets he gave up is astounding. For instance, the intelligence he provided on Soviet anti-tank missiles was important to the coalition effort in the 1990 Gulf War. Intelligence provided by Polyakov on the estrangement of China from the USSR played a key role in Nixon's decision to open diplomatic relations with China.This could have (and should have) been made into a feature film; I'm confident that a much better job could have been done in a 2 hour long feature than this series does in 8.

jdyx5 My husband and I found this incredible mini-series on Netflix last night and watched 7 of the nine episodes, saving the last two for "desert" today. I kept wondering why we had never heard of it until I looked it up and found it had been canceled after 2 episodes. Shame on ABC!! We knew the story but the suspense is just as intense as if we had never heard of Aldritch Ames. The acting is top-notch and Paul Rhys would have received a nomination at the very least if the show had been given a chance. I intend to tell everyone I know to check it out on Netflix, etc. I assure them they will not be disappointed. It's billed as "based on a true story" but when I researched Ames I was impressed that the series did indeed stick to the facts and didn't try to embellish history.

Christy Leskovar "The Assets" is about the CIA hunt for the mole who turned out to be Aldrich Ames. Fascinating story telling–parallel plot lines of Ames selling secrets to the Soviets, and his CIA colleagues discovering they have a mole in their midst and trying to figure out who it is. It is based on the book written by two of the women on the CIA team tasked with finding the mole. One of them, Sandra Grimes, was a writer on the mini-series. Very well done. It made me want to read the book ("Circle of Treason"). When all this came out in the media back in the '90s, I thought Ames came across as an arrogant narcissist. That isn't how Paul Rhys (Welsh actor) played him. Even so, from the first episode when he walks into the Soviet Embassy, I couldn't wait for this guy to get caught. The last episode is a documentary about the case, so you get to see and hear from the actual people, which I really liked. The show was also a window into FBI methods. I watched it on Netflix.

enaashby46 I was greatly disappointed when The Assets was canceled just after two episodes. Considering that about 30% of the US knows what the three branches of government are but probably know Miley's latest twerking episode or which size bra one of those inane Kardashian sisters is wearing, I am not surprised that a series which stretched one's mental capacities would be canceled.I watched it on Netflix and found it to be a fascinating story of how a very weak and malleable Aldrich Ames was willing to sell his country's secrets just to keep his second wife in the lap of luxury. It captured the grizzly reality of the KGB and the evils of communism. I know in some circles, it is not kosher to criticize communism. Perhaps that was another indictment of this series.I would highly recommend it- great acting, realistic recreations of the 1980s and wonderful storyline.