Apple renews sci-fi hit 'For All Mankind' for a fourth season

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The Apple TV+ alternative-reality space drama will return for a fourth season, with the storyline set to take place in the 2000s.




On Friday, Apple announced that its hit sci-fi drama will begin filming its fourth season starting in August.

The series tells the tale of the space race in an alternate reality that sees the Soviet Union beat the U.S. to the moon.

Each season tells the story of a different decade, with the third season taking place in the 1990s.

Showrunners at the San Diego Comic-Con For All Mankind panel (spotted by 9to5Mac) confirmed that season four would focus on events that will take place in the 2000s.

In December, USA Today named "For All Mankind" the best television show of 2021, praising it for addressing issues of 20th-century America.

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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 21
    clemynxclemynx Posts: 1,552member
    I find this last season 3 worse than the previous ones. The storylines feel forced and the sense of wonder is diminished somehow. 
    AniMillwilliamlondon
  • Reply 2 of 21
    MadbumMadbum Posts: 511member
    This is probably the best show on TV today
    edited July 2022 watto_cobradavidinsfzeus423narwhal
  • Reply 3 of 21
    entropysentropys Posts: 3,937member
    clemynx said:
    I find this last season 3 worse than the previous ones. The storylines feel forced and the sense of wonder is diminished somehow. 
    Risks falling into soap and statement TV. Which will suck. Americans do tend to keep stories going for overly long. Tell the story, end it and do a different story. Nothing worse that having too many series so that a good show dies the death of poor ratings.
    mattinozAniMill
  • Reply 4 of 21
    iOS_Guy80iOS_Guy80 Posts: 727member
    entropys said:
    clemynx said:
    I find this last season 3 worse than the previous ones. The storylines feel forced and the sense of wonder is diminished somehow. 
    Risks falling into soap and statement TV. Which will suck. Americans do tend to keep stories going for overly long. Tell the story, end it and do a different story. Nothing worse that having too many series so that a good show dies the death of poor ratings.
    Started thinking the same thing, especially after. Just watching. S3 E7.
  • Reply 5 of 21
    AniMillAniMill Posts: 128member
    Yes, Season 3 has been way to Soapoperatic. The character arcs have become waves and the race to Mars storyline contrived. I find myself skimming through the show to focus on what I perceive to be important plot points. I believe that if they’d made the Soviet v America rivalry into a true friendly partnership, and make space the villain (like The Martian), the show would be far more compelling - not just a set of hot mess characters infighting and making stupid decisions.
    RudeBoyRudyStrangeDays
  • Reply 6 of 21
    JP234JP234 Posts: 1,431member
    To state the obvious, the echo of the Clinton era "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" from episode 6, and the potential outing of the gay "first gentleman" which is taken from the great book and movie "Advise and Consent" in episode 7, risk ensuing episodes becoming polemic. And the poorly executed and obvious reference to the real-life opiod crisis, with a character abusing well-labeled bottles of Oxycodone and Hydrocodone also does disservice to the original intent of the series. What starts out as a well-done if derivative speculative science fiction, evolves into multiple story lines about tangential or unrelated issues, losing focus and audience attention along the way.

    It a dilemma many prime-time network dramas run into when success rewards them with multiple seasons. Medical and police dramas spend less and less time addressing core plot lines, and more and more time promoting problematic and ill-advised romantic relationships. For instance, in Chicago Med, the serial and interlocking affairs among colleagues have taken on the appearance of trite farce-dramas set in 19th century Britain, rather than saving lives. Writers have abandoned any pretense of real medicine, with both staff and patients ignoring basic sanitation and COVID-19 prevention measures addressed in earlier episodes, and hyped-up scenarios, where every scratch or bruise becomes a life-threatening situation which only one heroic doctor can cure.

    One can only hope that For All Mankind can avoid this trap, and return to it's original focus on the space race and the interactions between competing governments and private industry, but it's not looking good at this point.
    edited July 2022
  • Reply 7 of 21
    22july201322july2013 Posts: 3,292member
    In season one I was watching each episode the moment it came out. 

    In season two I was watching each episode within a day or two of its release.

    In season three I was watching each episode within a week of its release.
  • Reply 8 of 21
    MadbumMadbum Posts: 511member
    It’s better than 90 percent of the crap on Netflix 
    williamlondonJP234george kaplannarwhalStrangeDays
  • Reply 9 of 21
    JP234JP234 Posts: 1,431member
    Madbum said:
    It’s better than 90 percent of the crap on Netflix 
    99%
    george kaplanMadbumnarwhal
  • Reply 10 of 21
    entropysentropys Posts: 3,937member
    True. So what? The point is it is losing direction. It isn’t at the point of irredemption yet, but it risking it. And after S03, it is no longer hard sci-fi.
  • Reply 11 of 21
    george kaplangeorge kaplan Posts: 169member
    While Apple famously has huge cash reserves, it is trying to build the audience for ATV+. That involves making storylines more generalist and of interest to a broader audience. There is no alternative market for revenue as with HBO (which sells DVD sets of its shows and licenses older programming to Netflix), so Apple is 100% funding the show. It can’t afford to be too niche.  
  • Reply 12 of 21
    sphericspheric Posts: 2,353member
    I've read that the whole story is built for a five-season arc. 
  • Reply 13 of 21
    MadbumMadbum Posts: 511member
    entropys said:
    True. So what? The point is it is losing direction. It isn’t at the point of irredemption yet, but it risking it. And after S03, it is no longer hard sci-fi.
    Who said it was going to be hard core sci-fi like Star Trek or Star Wars? It was never going to be that but rather a mix and I think it’s been masterfully done. We can differ.
    narwhalStrangeDays
  • Reply 14 of 21
    toyshootoyshoo Posts: 2member
    Season 3 has incredibly poor scripts, sub-plots are ludicrous and the woman who plays Margot can't act at all.
  • Reply 15 of 21
    RudeBoyRudyRudeBoyRudy Posts: 98member
    Big fan and was excited for Season Three... but ouch! I felt it turned into a bad soap opera. And I see many here feel the same.

    Bummer!



  • Reply 16 of 21
    Stabitha_ChristieStabitha_Christie Posts: 262member
    The comments here are totally entertaining. 
  • Reply 17 of 21
    StrangeDaysStrangeDays Posts: 12,451member
    I like the show, but like any art form it can be criticized based on subjective tastes. I don’t like the personal melodrama between (non spoiler) certain members of the crew. 
  • Reply 18 of 21
    JapheyJaphey Posts: 1,605member
    22july2013 said:
    In season one I was watching each episode the moment it came out. 

    In season two I was watching each episode within a day or two of its release.

    In season three I was watching each episode within a week of its release.
    Lol. Same here.
  • Reply 19 of 21
    JapheyJaphey Posts: 1,605member
    toyshoo said:
    Season 3 has incredibly poor scripts, sub-plots are ludicrous and the woman who plays Margot can't act at all.
    Have to agree with this one too. It’s a shame because Margo was my favorite character in the first 2 seasons. But, yes, this year she seems to be sleep-walking through the role. 
  • Reply 20 of 21
    sdw2001sdw2001 Posts: 17,972member
    toyshoo said:
    Season 3 has incredibly poor scripts, sub-plots are ludicrous and the woman who plays Margot can't act at all.
    The script seems as good as the other seasons to me.  The sub plots are fine, and in fact, some are quite interesting.  This includes Margot’s obvious betrayal with giving Sergei the engine designs.  The actress who plays Margot is the same one in seasons 1-2.  Her name is Wrenn Schmidt.  I totally disagree.  She is playing the same character in three decades, from young assistant who breaks the glass ceiling, to veteran, to middle aged and jaded agency head. She’s 39 years old…and I believe each of those versions of her character.  So I completely disagree.  
    StrangeDaysspheric
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