It's just a soap opera with some space suits sprinkled in. Also it's made by Apple so predictably it looks like a Benetton advert. Not my cup of tea!
Includes Spoilers.
**Cons:**
- The by far biggest problem for me with this series: The writers had the chance to create a fair and equal alternative timeline based on more women in the space race to the moon. What they created is a lazy ripoff from our timeline but just more women in leading position with more space races things and even more capitalism. These women usually earn these positions and we follow them on their paths through the episodes/years but it's just boring fillers. I don't care why they got their posiition if they play a good character which makes sense. This feminisim and forcing a black women and even more people of color into the series to create achievements instead of distributing it more equal feels very forced. Trying to create an unncessary conflict and also depicting it in the series "old white man vs strong women". It's lazy, it's boring, it doesn't add to the bigger story. But see my next point, if you see the none advertised story as the main you don't yet let down.
- The space race is just the timeline which we follow. The character drama: lesbians, divorces, new marriages, cheating, thinking about cheating, problems with drugs and much more is the main plot. And you should be in for it, there are whole episodes only that. The Space Race(s) could have been 1 season and that's it.
- The Diplomaty parts which could be very interesting are also mostly forced. As the story still kinda follows an ongoing cold war there are even aggressions on both sides but even when both US and UDSSR are killing people from the other side, the concflict isn't played out well. I would have liked to see much more Propaganda, courts, also other nations getting into the conflict aswell. Only 3 sentences about United Nations in season 2, thats it. Also ESA 0 words.
- Some very basic Space Rules just got ignored to create more drama/plot. Allowing fire in a pressurized capsule/station, allowing fire weapons anywhere on the space crafts/stations, not checking the logistics for contraband items before shipping. That's things NASA would not in our nor any other similar timeline allow.
- To create plot on the moon, no future US Astronauts get trained on Russion and vice versa to keep tension in Lost of Words scenarios. Also only the Russians learn a little bit of english until Season 3 (40 years of timeline) the smart Americans not one word.
- As major parts of the series are in space and on the moon, the gravitational problem in filming such a series becomes pretty obvious in most of these shots. They only really cared for it when demonstrating it for a training video inside the story and on most of the walking on the moon scenes.
- Using LAM to do transport flights for material aswell as people (holding on the outside of it) feels weird and just like another Plot device to not invent something new. The writes could have gone into Sci-Fi here or use simple conveyer belts instead of such over the top dangerous vehicles.
- The Season 3 Spacecrafts look cheaply in CGI unfortunately.
**Pros:**
- The moon CGI is pretty good.
- The real sets look very decent.
- Sound and Music Design is top. (German Lip Sync on point as always.)
- The major family drama between the Baldwin's and Steven's is mostly good.
- Often depicts space very scientificly real with it's real dangers.
10/10
I'm finally caught up, and I don't want it to end. Really hoping season 5 isn't the last. It's highly entertaining, and it's beautiful, and I don't just mean the incredible cinematography. Every episode has me on the edge of my seat
I enjoyed the first seasons but it is now unrecognizable. There are now only two original characters left as of season five. That is some short sighted shit. The new characters are one note and so is the writing. It has become a high school soap opera. Done.
