It also gives the series the perfect excuse to explain to the audience what the heck is happening.Īs Bernard tells Mason and the viewers, Citadel is a network created to counter the potentially destructive actions of other spy agencies. Mason and Nadia's amnesia allows the series to jump eight years in the future when Bernard is all left from Citadel and Manticore rules the world. In addition, to prevent Citadel secrets from falling into the wrong hands, the organization tech-genius Bernard Orlick ( Stanley Tucci) activates a special chip implanted in the agents’ brains, erasing their memories. In the opening scene of Citadel, Mason and Nadia are attacked by Manticore agents, barely escaping alive. Mason and Nadia are part of a spy organization called Citadel, which gets destroyed by the villainous Manticore after a single scene. He escaped the Soviet Union through M16’s plan undetected by the KGB.The first two episodes of Citadel introduce the series leading stars, Richard Madden as Mason Kane and Priyanka Chopra Jonas as Nadia Sinh.Gordievsky eventually escaped the Soviet Union due to his cover being blown and had to leave his family.He assisted with ending the cold war by showing the United States and the Soviet Union a way they can communicate with each other.Gordievsky was critical in the Cold War because he delivered the psychology about Soviet leaders to M16.He took his family with him to London after going through the KGB files at their head office.He planned his own route back to London in case of an emergency even though the M16 already had a plan in place to evacuate him if necessary.The first meeting went well, but it was not until eight months later that Gordievsky began spying.In 1970, Britain asked Gordievsky to become a double agent and spy on Russia.If Oleg’s early life influences allowed him to be exposed to western culture and media.Oleg almost joined the KGC but never had an interest in communism.The Spy and the Traitor discusses the story of Oleg Gordievsky, a Soviet double agent who helped end the Cold War through his historic efforts. Ready to learn the most important takeaways from The Spy and the Traitor in less than two minutes? Keep reading! Why This Book Matters:

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Spy and the traitor