For All Mankind (SciFi Apple TV+)

Cina · 16-01-2021 9:27pm

I actually watched it recently and couldn't believe how good it was. Amazing how it managed to fly under the radar so much. A real shame as it's sublime TV.

pixelburp · 19-01-2021 12:55am

Cina wrote: »

I actually watched it recently and couldn't believe how good it was. Amazing how it managed to fly under the radar so much. A real shame as it's sublime TV.

In many respects the best thing that could happen would be a cancellation so a bigger service could swoop in and acquire it (it's technically a Sony Pictures show IIRC, not directly an Apple+ production). But then I'm not sure its fanbase is as vocal and mobilised like (say) The Expanse when it did its own service switch.

19-01-2021 10:12pm

I have to tip my hat fellow members.
On the strength of this thread , I've thrown an eye at this.

Excellent so far.
Loving it.
Clever too.
Good sound track

awec · 06-02-2021 11:12am

Does it get better later in the season? I've watched the first three and its ok at best for me.

Some pretty cheesy bits and it's too heavy on the girl power thing. I don't have a problem with this being pushed, but it's just so obvious and overt at times that it detracts from the story.

I feel like I'm kind of watching now in the hope it improves.

johnire · 06-02-2021 5:47pm

Yes...try and stick with it. I really enjoyed it and am looking forward to Season 2.

awec wrote: »

Does it get better later in the season? I've watched the first three and its ok at best for me.

Some pretty cheesy bits and it's too heavy on the girl power thing. I don't have a problem with this being pushed, but it's just so obvious and overt at times that it detracts from the story.

I feel like I'm kind of watching now in the hope it improves.

Agent Coulson · 10-02-2021 11:54pm

Thargor · 11-02-2021 12:32am

Nope not watching that, just going to go in blind and enjoy the best thing in years that nobody seems to have heard of.

Agent Coulson · 18-02-2021 5:14pm

Looking for to this as it starts back tomorrow.

expectationlost · 20-02-2021 1:25am

there is an Irish astronaut, great first ep

Tristram · 20-02-2021 7:21pm

Good opener that sets the stage nicely.

Slydice · 20-02-2021 9:01pm

Me:

OH SH*T!

2 seconds later..

Molly: Oh S*IT!
I was like F*CK! no not Molly! F*CKING FU*K!

2.1: Great opener. I was a bit TMI at the start with so much history to take in but it set the scene, gave enough updates and then hooked me by the end.

Skerries · 20-02-2021 9:25pm

yeah I got some of the historical changes but there were ones that I didn't know the original story to so didn't know what had changed

awec · 21-02-2021 12:17am

The first half of the episode I thought was awful, it was a bit soap opera with some awful comedy and I was starting to worry where it was going.

The scene with the two astronauts chatting before the red headed one went into see Baldwin was excruciating IMO.

The second half of it improved massively.

PhiloCypher · 21-02-2021 10:32am

Agree with the above , the necessary scene setting after the time jump was somewhat awkward tonally speaking , but the rest, the moon based stuff specifically, worked gangbusters. Really wished I'd done a rewatch or they'd done a 5 minute long 'previously on' tho. I remember the broad strokes

Baldwins son dying, but I have no recollection of who the Asian girl at their dinner table is, did the Baldwins adopt ?

.

What are peoples thinking,

is Molly essentially ****ed ? Margo described a 1000 Milli ram dose as killing you in an hour. If Molly knew that, it begs the question did she genuinely think there was ever any chance of the guy she rescued ultimately surviving the rads he'd taken , or did she just feel obligated to spend her life trying to save him regardless , because someone(Deke) had given his to rescue her at the end of last season.

I know in universe 10 years have past, but it feels the writers went back to the well a little too soon putting Molly in Mortal danger so soon after the events of season 1 finale. Having the weight of

Dekes Sacrifice

sit on her (onscreen) for an ep or two before she made the decision she made in this episode would have been more effective I think.

iguana · 21-02-2021 1:03pm

I found this episode pretty slow. Mainly, I'm sure, because I had binged S1 3 weeks ago. So between an episode that was half set up due to the time jump and the change to week to week after a binge it felt flat. I also have to say that I hate that Margo still lives in her office. It was understandable at the earlier point in her career but seems like total overkill at this point. I could see her having the bed for especially busy times but if she lives there fulltime as was implied, then it's just silly.

awec · 21-02-2021 2:12pm

PhiloCypher wrote: »

Agree with the above , the necessary scene setting after the time jump was somewhat awkward tonally speaking , but the rest, the moon based stuff specifically, worked gangbusters. Really wished I'd done a rewatch or they'd done a 5 minute long 'previously on' tho. I remember the broad strokes
Baldwins son dying, but I have no recollection of who the Asian girl at their dinner table is, did the Baldwins adopt ?
.

What are peoples thinking,
is Molly essentially ****ed ? Margo described a 1000 Milli ram dose as killing you in an hour. If Molly knew that, it begs the question did she genuinely think there was ever any chance of the guy she rescued ultimately surviving the rads he'd taken , or did she just feel obligated to spend her life trying to save him regardless , because someone(Deke) had given his to rescue her at the end of last season.

I know in universe 10 years have past, but it feels the writers went back to the well a little too soon putting Molly in Mortal danger so soon after the events of season 1 finale. Having the weight of
Dekes Sacrifice
sit on her (onscreen) for an ep or two before she made the decision she made in this episode would have been more effective I think.

The Asian girl is new. I assume they've adopted.

We have black astronauts, gay astronauts, the female astronaut who finally gets her chance after previous rejection (Cobb), the female astronaut who ultimately outshines her astronaut husband (Stephens), now we have the Asian cast member. You could play diversity bingo with this show.

I suppose it works as it's an extension of the whole alternative history thing, but this is the first show where I've ever noticed it being so obviously in-your-face.

Slydice · 22-02-2021 11:24pm

PhiloCypher wrote: »

What are peoples thinking,
is Molly essentially ****ed ? Margo described a 1000 Milli ram dose as killing you in an hour.

I assume

Mollys story is going to be something that reminds me of K-19

(Link)

.. either the immediate or the stories about how the survivors didn't last long afterwards.

Slydice · 27-02-2021 7:34pm

2.2: Alright, lemme see..

feels like there's 3 speeds of something wrong going on.. Gordo fast, Molly medium and Ed slow.

So I'm guessing

something really bad is gonna happen with Gordo this season, it'll cover over for Molly probably have some kinda of cancer develop but he shrugging off for a while.. and then there's this uneasyness about Ed.. something just feels off.

Oh and it looks like

there's gonna be a hot war of some kind.. I'm guessing regional.

awec · 03-03-2021 10:26pm

I thought this was a fairly weak episode. Real smell of filler off it.

And maybe it's just me but I've noticed a few space-travel related inaccuracies this season that I wasn't noticing before.

Agent Coulson · 05-03-2021 2:50pm

That was a great episode this this

Skerries · 05-03-2021 9:41pm

I'm not crying, you are!

awec · 05-03-2021 11:35pm

I dunno guys, maybe I'm in the minority but it's starting to lose me. This week was a LOT better than last week but still didn't grip me too tightly.

If I were to describe season 2 so far I'd say it's a family drama with characters who work at NASA, versus being an actual space show.

expectationlost · 05-03-2021 11:57pm

are we supposed to know what it is the engineer girl did wrong ? I can't remember?

expectationlost · 05-03-2021 11:59pm

awec wrote: »

I dunno guys, maybe I'm in the minority but it's starting to lose me. This week was a LOT better than last week but still didn't grip me too tightly.

If I were to describe season 2 so far I'd say it's a family drama with characters who work at NASA, versus being an actual space show.

well the first season was like 60/40 space/drama this is 30/70 space/drama

expectationlost · 06-03-2021 12:13am

ed's gotta go back to the moon too right, and how is Treacy getting away with missing so much work, I was surprise Ed didn't call her a 10 year disaster not just Gordo.

PhiloCypher · 06-03-2021 12:22am

expectationlost wrote: »

are we supposed to know what it is the engineer girl did ? I can't remember?

She's the Janitors daughter from the first season.

awec · 06-03-2021 12:27am

expectationlost wrote: »

are we supposed to know what it is the engineer girl did ? I can't remember?

I don't think it was ever explained what she did. I only watched S1 recently and I don't remember anything. Margo did refuse to let her live with her, that was all.

expectationlost wrote: »

well the first season was like 60/40 space/drama this is 30/70 space/drama

It's only very loosely related to space now IMO.

expectationlost wrote: »

ed's gotta go back to the moon too right, ans how is treacy getting away with misssing sso much work, I was surprise Ed didn't call her a 10 year disaster not just Gordo.

The Tracy Stephens story is one of the worst parts of the whole show. I get that it's a TV show so some creative license needs to be allowed, but her story is ridiculous. She is missing work cause she's off doing TV things or boozing, and we are to believe she is an astronaut being given missions? Gordo getting a mission is also ridiculous.

On an unrelated note last week they showed the Space Shuttle being used to transport people home from the moon. This irritated me because it's just wrong on so many levels. The Space Shuttle would never be able to undertake that sort of journey. Again, creative license and all, but come on.

Wibbs · 06-03-2021 11:19am

awec wrote: »

On an unrelated note last week they showed the Space Shuttle being used to transport people home from the moon. This irritated me because it's just wrong on so many levels. The Space Shuttle would never be able to undertake that sort of journey. Again, creative license and all, but come on.

Oh it could. Ish... If you wanted to make the most inefficient spacecraft for purpose ever. It would require multiple launches to get the fuel to it to go trans lunar. Then it gets there, an overweight craft that you've spent a fortune getting there for no good reason. Never mind getting crew up and down to the moon, which would require a lander in the bay, so no room for fuel... Then the real hassle starts, coming back. Coming back from the moon the speeds are significantly higher than coming back from orbit and with all that extra weight you'll have significantly higher G forces(IIRC it was only rated for 4 or 5g?) and worse significantly higher temperatures on reentry. So after all that expense and complexity to send tens of tonnes of useless weight it would break up burn up like a fireball coming back. I suppose it's easier to build in CGI or something and the audience already knows it as a "spacecraft" so it seems more real?

Slydice · 06-03-2021 8:13pm

2.3: Gah dammit

That scene with Ed caught me off guard.. I was in bits! Up there in Good Will Hunting territory.

other stuff happened too I'm sure of it.. space, regional war, spy .. all that kind of stuff

Thargor · 08-03-2021 2:38am

Rough start tbh, bursting with potential for Cold War stuff but all the drama and whining is just timewasting, make with the action now. Sending Gordo back is just stupid aswell.

Thargor wrote: »

Yeah it was that clip randomly popping up on my Youtube feed that tipped me off in the first place.

Just curious:
After the Russian helped him get the fuel from the old lander and he took off to save the 2 in orbit, the cosmonaut turned around and looked at the Jamestown base, kind of looked like he was going to do something while it was empty, did I miss anything there or did nothing happen?

I knew it, that was a good bit of foreshadowing back in S1

Thargor · 08-03-2021 2:40am

expectationlost wrote: »

are we supposed to know what it is the engineer girl did wrong ? I can't remember?

Her father was an illegal working as a janitor who used to get her drawings and other stuff from the bins at NASA for her collection, the feds deported him for being suspicious and Margot couldn't save him, now apparently the daughter is a pain in the ass to work with and got fired from Boeing and all the others. It doesnt really make sense and is just more invented drama wasting time that could be spent on the missions, do they really think this is what their target audience for this show would prefer to be watching? Although as others said the shuttle flying to the Moon and back would make you question if Season 1 was a fluke, they need to pick it up big-time for the few eps they have left now.

awec · 08-03-2021 11:23am

I'm actually struggling to remember, I think there has only been 1 space scene in the past 2 episodes combined?

youcancallmeal · 08-03-2021 11:24am

awec wrote: »

I'm actually struggling to remember, I think there has only been 1 space scene in the past 2 episodes combined?

The budget must be significantly less for this season or maybe the 2nd half will be wall to wall space action

awec · 12-03-2021 11:25pm

A bit better this week but it's still frustrating that after 4 episodes almost nothing has happened. It's still entertaining, but it risks falling away to mediocrity if it doesn't turn it around.

Another week of absolutely zero space bits.

Also I'm not an expert in aerodynamics etc but I am pretty sure that move Baldwin made in the T38 at the end would have resulted in so many Gs being pulled that he'd be unconscious and the aircraft ripped apart. As I said, not an expert, but it just seemed so silly.

Pathfinder appears to be a shuttle with bigger wings.

expectationlost · 13-03-2021 2:01pm

awec wrote: »

A bit better this week but it's still frustrating that after 4 episodes almost nothing has happened. It's still entertaining, but it risks falling away to mediocrity if it doesn't turn it around.
Another week of absolutely zero space bits.

Also I'm not an expert in aerodynamics etc but I am pretty sure that move Baldwin made in the T38 at the end would have resulted in so many Gs being pulled that he'd be unconscious and the aircraft ripped apart. As I said, not an expert, but it just seemed so silly.

Pathfinder appears to be a shuttle with bigger wings.

its

nuclear

iguana · 13-03-2021 2:27pm

I liked how they altered Sally Ride's backstory to fit with the altered history of a heated up space race. Ride is more obviously remembered as the first American woman in space but before she became an astronaut she had earned a PhD in physics. Her speciality was in X-Ray research but it makes sense that in a world where numerous women had already been on the moon she would have been inspired to have specialised in a field to advance the space race. I did not like the horrendous wig/hairstyle they gave her which looks nothing like Ride's hair in that era. I'm also interested to see if the obvious parallels between Ride's real life relationships and sexuality and the character of Ellen are explored.

However, I started watching this show after seeing the S2 trailer and I can't say I'm not finding the lack of escalating Cold War tensions on the moon really disappointing. I wouldn't mind if we were getting more than 10 episodes. But with less than half a season to go, I feel like I'm still waiting for it to kick off. Maybe it's largely because I binge watched S1 that S2 feels slow but I want more action with the drama.

Slydice · 13-03-2021 6:50pm

2.4: Hrmmm..

not sure if something is gonna happen to Ed about this ejection. Could be another person looks bad, while Gordo looks good thing. Not sure if this is just something to lull the audience into thinking Gordo is ok. A small hint in the bathtub about something being up with Molly already.
The regional war looks like it's progressing. Maybe they'll do another Cuba style crisis of some kind. Doubt anything would go space based until season 3 or later.
The new shuttle being nuclear powered was like.. woah!

I guess Apple got the rights to Lawerence of Arabia...

Thargor · 14-03-2021 11:17pm

Ah lads whats gone wrong here? S1 was a total classic, best thing since Chernobyl, this is just complete boring fake drama bilge, True Detective level drop in quality between seasons...

Thargor · 14-03-2021 11:19pm

Saw this pic on Reddit earlier, the Soviets really were amazing, you'd nearly wish they did make it to the moon first to trigger a permanent space race (assuming it didnt trigger WW3):

Homelander · 15-03-2021 9:25am

I'm enjoying it and the drama is decent, but there's a shocking lack of space this season which is incredibly disappointing after how unbelievably compelling the first season was in that regard.

Hopefully it picks up.

Unearthly · 15-03-2021 9:28am

Could the lack of space be a drop in budget? I know when Apple first launched they spent huge on the tv shows, probably not sustainable

awec · 15-03-2021 10:20am

Possibly.

But it's just a generic drama now where the characters coincidentally work for NASA. It's all a bit... bland so far?

Cina · 15-03-2021 11:40am

I'm hoping it's all building up for the second half of the season with the guns in space, trip to Mars, collaboration with the soviets etc. and that this is all just build up to that, but it has just been a typical drama so far. The problem is that Gordo is the only really compelling character, maybe Ellen at a push, so it's not working that well for me.

awec · 15-03-2021 11:54am

Agree that Gordo is the best character. I struggle with Baldwin but I'm not a big fan of Joel Kinnaman, find it him a bit wooden. Couldn't care less about Poole, not an interesting character for me. Horton, well she's had like 1? scene since episode 1 so meh.

Margo was interesting but she's also been relegated to a lesser role it seems.

Cina · 15-03-2021 6:18pm

Speaking of Gordo, he's also the lead in a show called Patriot which ran for two seasons on Prime and is fantastic, if anyone wants to see more of him. Great in that too and a very different character.

den87 · 15-03-2021 9:09pm

I do remember reading a review from a critic that I read all the time (Sepinwall) and he said that patience is required because the last few episodes are worth the haul.

_Kaiser_ · 15-03-2021 9:33pm

Discovered this show on Friday and already up to date. Great series.

I don't mind the somewhat slower pace so far. As others have said I am presuming they're saving the budget for the second half of the season and that's fine by me. These are interesting characters and that's the main draw for me as well as the underlying alternate history setting (loved The Man in the High Castle for the same reason).

Soundtrack is great too (but I love the 80s anyway). The one question I find myself asking is is what actual NASA personnel and astronauts from that era make of it? It's an interesting insight into what might have been and the advances we might have seen (eg: the White House guy's early 80s electric car in the first/second episode this season) had the Race and investment continued.

pixelburp · 17-03-2021 9:27pm

Caught the first episode of the second season. Glad this show is back, though found the time jump a bit jarring. Always enjoyed the little variances in the timeline, beyond the major items

John Lennon lives!

Even if the military is beginning to take an interest in the control of space, this show kinda depresses me in some ways. The Cold War appears no hotter than reality, yet this world's cosmic horizons are so much broader, more fulfilled than ours. Moon bases and a fully supported, funded NASA/ ESA. We haven't given over space to corporations, while space in this series is now properly international - Irish in space! My god that woman would be canonised in 1980s Ireland. What's an especially odd parallel is how in 2020 there have been no women on the moon, except on this show where there has been a number lol.

is_that_so · 18-03-2021 11:05am

den87 wrote: »

I do remember reading a review from a critic that I read all the time (Sepinwall) and he said that patience is required because the last few episodes are worth the haul.

I'm not all that convinced you should have to wait for any show and it's almost an apology for them stretching it out. That said I was fully onboard with Season 1. I'm less convinced about Season 2 really, even if I'm still watching. Apart from all the boxes TV shows have to tick these days the 80s are really not a terribly interesting time, politically with the whole Reagan Cold War throwback to the 50s and the reality that the sheen had worn off space programmes. There's also a sense they are hanging onto characters for no good reasons at all.

expectationlost · 20-03-2021 1:30am

so most of that ep was in space....

For All Mankind (SciFi Apple TV+)

Comments