FANTASTICAL ALTERNATE HISTORY SCIENCE FICTION: 'For All Mankind'...Workplace Thriller, Spy Thriller, Action Show, Big Crowd-Pleaser

Intro: Now in its third season, For All Mankind started with a simple question: What if the Americans weren’t first to put a man on the moon?

From that premise, though, it has built something far more complex: a show that combines political intrigue, military brinkmanship (aka a lunar standoff between American and Russian forces), and a space race that eventually lands on the surface of Mars.

 

REVIEW

Why ‘For All Mankind’ Is TV’s Next Great Drama

By Miles Surrey Jun 10, 2022, 5:50am EDT

The Ringer |

The third season of the alt-history series reinforces that ‘For All Mankind’ is not just an entertaining drama, but a truly great one, and an unlikely contender as the crowning achievement of Apple TV+. . .

[    ] Compared to Better Call Saul and Succession, which illuminate the darker side of human ambition, For All Mankind holds a more optimistic view of humanity in spite of our flaws. Even when characters become entangled in corporate greed or geopolitical face-offs, they strive to find common ground in the shared pursuit of scientific discovery. Their world is far from perfect, but For All Mankind presents an alternate history that imagines what people can accomplish when logic and empathy largely prevail. That it happens to be the one of the best shows on television only makes its hopeful message more resonant. When it premiered as part of Apple TV+’s launch in November 2019, For All Mankind was one small step of the company’s push into streaming. Four years later, the show is following its characters’ lead and reaching for the stars."

 

For All Mankind Is the Best Sci-Fi of Its Era

The Apple TV+ alternate history series is simply more ambitious and thought-provoking than its contemporaries.

[Image Courtesy of Apple TV+]

 

Graeme McMillan

Wired |