With a giant step forward in time, Apple’s alternative history series For All Mankind has its welcome return with season two’s opener, ‘Every Little Thing’. *Warning! This contains Spoilers!*
If you haven’t come across For All Mankind before, the basic premise is that the space race between the USA and the USSR never ended, and focus on the Moon escalated. The critical split point between our history and this imagined future is 1969, with Russia landing a man on the moon first, prompting a doubling down from the US. This ultimately leads to competing Moonbases from both superpowers, and increased militarisation of space.
Obviously, alternative history sci-fi is nothing new, and this mixes flavours from fiction and non-fiction, including The Right Stuff, The Man in the High Castle, Away, The West Wing, and books such as Stephen Baxter’s ‘Voyage’. All of those influences are mixed here, with there being an interesting balance between the technological differences, the human consequences, and the political side, which makes this even more compelling. It would have been easy, especially in the early part of last season for it to tend to lean towards one of these elements, but they managed to keep it intriguing, while also always recognising the impact on their central characters.
Primarily, the show revolves around a few key people, including astronauts Ed Baldwin (Joel Kinnaman – Suicide Squad, Altered Carbon), Gordo Stevens (Michael Dorman – Patriot), Tracy Stevens (Sarah Jones – Alcatraz, Damnation), Karen Baldwin (Chantel VanSanten – The Flash, Shooter), and Flight Director Margo Madison (Wrenn Schmidt – Boardwalk Empire, Person of Interest), alongside an extensive ensemble cast. Some of these are clearly based on real people, such as Gordo and Tracy Stevens being proxies for Gordo and Trudy Cooper, while others are either completely fictional, or amalgamations of several people.
At the end of last season, For All Mankind had branched off to the point that the US now had a moonbase called Jamestown on one side of a crater, with the USSR and their Zvezda base on another. This proximity is all due to the location of ice deposits necessary for survival, so they are both forced to deal with an enemy on the doorstep. Politically, this keeps the more military and suspicious minded in a very amped up state, much like the worst moments of the Cold War. This continues to be the case as Season 2 opens, despite the time jump forward to 1983.
In this new decade, a few things have changed. Ed is now in charge of the Astronaut office, while Karen runs The Outpost (the astronauts hangout), and they have an adopted daughter Kelly (Cynthy Wu – Holidate). Others have also been promoted, as Margo is now the NASA administrator, while some have fallen apart somewhat. Gordo, for instance travels the after-dinner speech market, as his now ex-wife Tracy is lauded on national tv as a hero. Into this mix comes a few new faces, with the expansion of the astronaut ranks, as well as the return of some key characters such as Molly Cobb (Sonya Walger – Lost, Flash Forward) and Ellen Wilson (Jodi Balfour – Bomb Girls, True Detective).
As you can imagine, a lot of ‘Every Little Thing’ is essentially establishing the show in this new time period and preparing us for the season ahead. This is to be expected and the episode does a good job of moving things along and making everyone seem suitably aged. There are a couple of exceptions, such as Ed and Karen who still seem about 10 years younger than the ages they are supposed to be. This is a minor quibble though, and generally it feels well done with some intriguing changes to history, including John Lennon surviving, Roman Polanski being arrested, and Prince Charles marrying Camilla Parker Bowles.
While it may seem that not a lot happens this week, there is one significantly major event as an unusual solar flare and Coronal Mass Ejection erupts from the Sun, sending a wave of deadly radiation outwards. While Earth is protected by its magnetic field and the atmosphere, the moon, any satellites or spacecraft are vulnerable. On the moon, Ellen, commanding the Jamestown base, has a lot of first-time astronauts on the surface, while Cobb and a colleague are out collecting samples. This means there is a scramble to get into suitable shelter, which most manage, except Cobb and her colleague Wubbo (Bjørn Alexander). Having crashed the rover on his way to safety, Cobb runs out to save him through the bombardment of radiation, despite the extreme risk.
No doubt this will be an ongoing storyline, as Cobb took off her exposure meter before running out, so she wouldn’t get grounded later. She will also surely have some significant health issues due to the radiation as the years roll by. While this may seem reckless, it does seem entirely in keeping with Cobb’s character. It will also create an interesting look at the consequences of the job the astronauts have and how it affects their loved ones. Wayne (Lenny Jacobson) will have to paint a few more pictures.
As you’d expect from a series co-created by Battlestar Galactica creator and Star Trek writer/producer Ronald D. Moore, For All Mankind is no slouch. At its core it is a incredibly solid drama, with fantastic writing, and an excellent cast. Not only is the technology and its progression totally believable, it is also hung on the backdrop of a well worked out alternative timeline. There aren’t too many things where you might question the likelihood of something happening, or doubt someone’s reaction. For all space aficionados, there is a solid foundation that makes this a realistic extension of The Right Stuff, with all the right connections and references you’d expect. As we travel further away from the real timeline it will become much more of a science fiction show, but for now it sits cleverly astride both sci-fi and historical drama. Season two has so far picked up the story perfectly, and it looks like this season will be a great one.
For All Mankind is on Apple TV+ on Fridays
