For All Mankind Season 4 Review: Alternate Histories With Real-World Paralells

For All Mankind is one of the best TV series currently on television. Or, rather, on streaming. Apple TV+ already has a huge stable of original series that are all hitting so hard, that they may be rivalling Netflix soon. Yet another hit on their hands is this series from Ronald D. Moore, the same genius who remade Battlestar Galactica for a new generation. For All Mankind season, 4 closes out another chapter in this awesome alternate history series. Read on for my review of For All Mankind season 4.

Please note that the following review of For All Mankind season 4, has some minor spoilers from the seasons before.

For All Mankind Is An Alternate History Of Real World Events

Image via Apple TV+

The entire premise of For All Mankind on Apple TV+ is how the history that we know in the real world drastically changes with one historic event playing out differently. This inciting incident is the moon landing in 1969, where, in the reality of the show, the Russians made it first. This one significant event not happening how it did in reality, changes the course of the world’s history. As the show explores during its 4-season run so far.

The infamous Space Race between Russia and America continued, instead of ending in in 1969. America’s need to save face causes both nations to keep trying to increase their impact on the moon with new bases, and colonies and sending new kinds of astronauts. This accelerates the need for women astronauts, racial lines start being crossed and progress happens very differently than we know it. And what the show does amazingly is jump every 8-10 years between seasons, so audiences can fully see exactly how these minor changes impacted the larger history of planet Earth. The writers ground all of these massive political, economic, cultural and technological changes in very real human stories and characters whose journeys span decades in a season of storytelling.

For All Mankind Season 4 Gets Closer To Real-World History

Image via Apple TV+

Despite being a huge ensemble show, there are certain characters in For All Mankind Season 4 that bring some story beats around full circle. The stories of Ed Baldwin (Joel Kinnaman) and Danielle Pool (Krys Marshall) see some satisfying growth and resolution, while others are thrown further in the fire. Margo Madison’s (Karen Schmidt) decades-long journey to change the world results in a difficult choice between her former home in America and who he betrayed them for in Russia. Not to mention Aleida (Coral Pena) who has to deal with the fallout of her mentor’s betrayal, and how that affects her personally.

For All Mankind season 4 also does something unique that other seasons haven’t so far. While the changes in history affect a lot of things for the better in the world of the show, some things stay the same. After building a fully functioning colony on Mars with multiple nations serving at the same time, this new society needs workers. A new character of Miles Davis (Toby Kebbell) begins season 4 as a down-on-his-luck technician looking for work, who agrees to go to Mars. But through the character of Miles, the writers really showcase a world that is similar to ours.

The Class Warfare Of Season 4

Image via Apple TV+

Despite the progress in tech and space flight, season 4 exposes how the class divide is alive and well, even in this alternate history. Miles ends up becoming a working-class maintenance worker, serving the astronauts in this Mars colony. He and his colleagues are not made aware of what the NASA folks are doing on the higher levels, while they suffer garnishing of their wages at the lower levels. This disparity in pay and economic status threatens to start a revolution. Some didn’t sign up to be lower-class citizens on Mars, and their dissatisfaction is something that ripples through the colony.

This storyline of For All Mankind season 4 is great as it kind of shows that no matter how much progress humanity may make, some would still prefer a society where some benefit while others suffer. It’s a stark parallel that reflects on the current world in a very cool and unique way. The show isn’t all that accessible for new audiences, but the drama will definitely intrigue a newcomer into catching up. And season 4 does some great things with its cast of characters to make that investment of time, totally worth it. It’s truly one of the best series on television.

For All Mankind season 4 is now streaming on Apple TV+.

What did you think of For All Mankind? Let me know in the comments below, or on X (Twitter) at @theshahshahid.