For All Mankind Trailer Transcends The Space Race For A Thrilling Season 4

Do you feel like there are too many shows on television? So do I. But drop that thought for now — drop it! — and let me sell you on "For All Mankind." Apple TV+'s exceptional interstellar drama boasts many of the same features that other successful and acclaimed shows on streaming have — gorgeous camera work, a diverse cast of refreshingly new faces, punchy storytelling, big ideas — but the particular way that series creators Ronald D. Moore, Matt Wolpert, and Ben Nedivi fit all the pieces together puts "For All Mankind" a cut above the pack.

Somewhere in between an anthology series and a traditional narrative drama, "For All Mankind" features some recurring cast, some cast that remain in their seasons, and story arcs that only glancingly relate across seasons. Part of that is due to the ingenious narrative decision to jump forward in time each season. Season 1 started out in 1969, season 2 jumped to 1983, season 3 to 1992, and according to the new trailer for season 4, "For All Mankind" will be touching down this November in 2003. 

The future seemed optimistic for humanity at the close of season 3, which saw the newly established "Happy Valley" Mars colony fully set up and (somewhat) peacefully hosting an international cadre of astronauts. As you can see from the trailer below, the creators of "For All Mankind" may have hope for humanity, but that doesn't blind them to the inevitable emergence of humankind's baser instincts.

The writers behind "For All Mankind" have always understood the value of the "X" factor in their winning formula: melodrama. From suicide bombings to space fights to coming out as a lesbian during a national press conference, they wisely understand that the lush digital cinematography and contemplative shots of slowly revolving space stations aren't enough to keep audiences hooked.

It's clear from the season 4 trailer that the show's dramatic streak has been kept entirely intact. Lines like "What are you gonna do with all that money when you're dead?" and "I'm gonna get that rock or die trying!" promise an action-packed season full of residual Cold War tension and inter-agency drama. In his review of season 4 on /Film, Jeremy Mathai wrote that "competing self-interests, decades-old geopolitical rivalries, and numerous interpersonal conflicts finally come to bear" on the series, fusing into an explosive nucleus of binge-worthy goodness that "leaves most other sci-fi in the dust."

The primary storyline of season 4 picks up right where season 3 left off, at the Happy Valley Mars colony. Things seem to be going swimmingly there, while back on Earth, Al Gore has been elected President and the "M-7 Alliance" has united the world's major adversaries behind a cooperative goal of altruistic space exploration. But a floating boulder riven with veins of valuable iridium raises the very same competitive tensions that provided the series with its fuse in past seasons, so it seems we're back in the pole position. 

To see exactly how it all plays out, you can catch "For All Mankind" on Apple TV+ on November 10, 2023.