Pretty crazy episode. Pretty much everyone is in space that could be besides Molly and Ellen. Things are set up for an intense finale. Let me know what you think will happen.
I think those cosmonauts are there for a rescue mission. Plan is to storm the base, get their comrade in a suit, and get him out of there. Probably didn't ask Moscow for permission. So the union wants to deescalate but the Cosmonauts know how it will play out. The US will defend their own and the one who pulled the trigger won't go to international court, the one who wants to defect, or "defect" with the armed Americans around him, will defect and both sides will glare at each other before shaking hands.
1. i'm surprised there's no metal shutters that close down for a breaches. 1.5 also the first time we see the window its very small im surprised they managed to get inside. 2. karen pregnant our last look at karen she looked fat at the stomach. 2.5 i know way to early for her to look fat there but foreshadowing?. when she's laying down on the ground 3. the russians are there to either to take back the alive cosmonaut or to take a hostage/take over the base. 3.5 or to kill he cosmonaut so any secrets he has wont be leaked. 3.6 wished he said if he was jewish/christian or just wanted a better life in america thats why he's doing want he wants to do/defect.
1. i'm surprised there's no metal shutters that close down for a breaches. 1.5 also the first time we see the window its very small im surprised they managed to get inside. 2. karen pregnant our last look at karen she looked fat at the stomach. 2.5 i know way to early for her to look fat there but foreshadowing?. when she's laying down on the ground 3. the russians are there to either to take back the alive cosmonaut or to take a hostage/take over the base. 3.5 or to kill he cosmonaut so any secrets he has wont be leaked. 3.6 wished he said if he was jewish/christian or just wanted a better life in america thats why he's doing want he wants to do/defect. 4. it looks like it's JOHN dies the astronaut that dies. 5. rewatching the scene with the window it does look like the window is big enough(they went for the bigger side windows). 6. we saw in an early episode that they have oxygen makes surprised they didn't have masks on ever desk/wall in case of a breach.
@@stupidminotaur9735 1. Well they didn't expect a breach that fast. Meteorite would crack the windows, yes, but they can get the panel over the glass if they need to. Didn't expect a shooting. 2. We Dame. Probably. We will have to see how that goes. 3. My guess is the same but I wonder if they assume he's not defecting and is just scared shitless. He's being held by the americans and dosen't have many options... Till his comrades come to save the day.
I have a feeling you might be on to something with this not being something Moscow ordered them to do because of all the reasons you said and it really is an act of war
I was absolutely taken aback too. And then I thought: hey wait a minute, if he can ask to defect in English, why the hell did he need to go for the translation card when confronting the marines? That makes no sense at all.
@@ralphmarx7554 yeah he seemed very angry because of the cosmonaut who died. But maybe they went there to take their injured cosmonaut back. Can’t wait till the next episode.
@@ralphmarx7554 Whether the base commander went rogue or not, what’s certain is that the soviet government has armed the soviet base. In a sense the soviets embargoing the moon under the suspicion of a nuclear weapons shipment accompanied by armed escorts is an exact analogue of the Cuban missile crisis but with the roles of the US and the USSR reversed. The Soviets are shown to be doing exactly what the Americans did in the 1960s and yet our “allegiance to the flag” leads us to side with the Americans (who are behaving as the Soviets behaved, whom we also paradoxically deplore).
I'm guessing they are there to forcefully take their comrade back, when they heard he wanted to defect. I presume he carries invaluable information about the russian base and the weapons they already had. They must have had them before the Americans because the Buran hasn't arrived with reinforcements yet.
Damn I just realized that when they tell the cosmonaut DR. that the room for the med bay can be a hyperbaric chamber so they know that they can depressurize the base and their guy will be ok.
I suspect you are correct. And that the Soviet military green lit the extraction operation without the Soviet space agencies knowledge. Using it as a vale of peace.
But does the hyperbaric chamber have its own airlock system? How can you enter the med bay without depressing it and killing the people inside in the process? Unless they just so happen to have an space suit and helmet just lying around in the med bay in the first place, which I doubt very much. And how would the Russians know that the hyperbaric chamber was sealed in time?
I just realized the Apollo Mission number for the apollo-soyuz, 75 is a nod to the year 1975 which OTL Mission happen. Side note: my dad got in trouble for sneaking off during lunch at camp and watching Apollo-soyuz in the staff room. The counselor made him 25 burpees
@@Excalibur01 4 armed marines in a base versus the... about 6 or more armed cosmonauts already rockn and a rollin in the reactor control room. They may not have more than a couple more rifles and some pistols available.
In E8 the Russian cosmonauts didn't speak English, but once the surviving one woke up in Jamestown he could speak English and ask for political asylum. Makes total sense!
@@olegshtolc7245 Or he could have used universal sign language for EVA to establish basic communication. Or maybe not even a standardized version, even the improvisation, standard hand signaling that we do when someone does not understands us, would have saved their lives - instead of just running towards the closed box while the armed men are holding you in your sights? And even if he did memorize only one phrase, when would be a better time to use it? Because it was literally the question of life and death - you have armed men around you, you are without guns, outnumbered, and you don't think it is a good idea to say that ONE phrase that you know? Huh...
@@Wustenfuchs109 I am not sure if words mattered more then actions. The two cosmonauts got shot because of the case. No matter what they said if the marines think they are reaching for guns they are going to shoot.
@@garrold7123 the real shuttles had the capability to use oms fuel pods in the payload bay to get to a higher orbit but the fuel feeds in the bay were never used
Main thing that bugs me about the ending, is the fact that there was no perimeter breach warning. You'd think if this were co-opted by the DoD, there would be some type of security at Jamestown.
Maybe It's a plot hole... I believe they came lke the marines, when they take the mining field, in the "Beeast", so some kind of radar or defense stutf should bep... In the other hand, if they came by "car" maybe it could be ignore.
The most intense episode of the series, to date, overall: Apollo 75, Pathfinder, Buran all fly into a situation comparable to the Cuban Missile Crisis, only worse: Shots fired and people dead on the moon, looming blockades of Luna and Panama, all kinds of weapons in play, along with volatile or troubled personalities in several key places. Sets up what could be a hell of a finale. I feel like my faith in this show has really paid off.
I agree with your analogy with the Cuban missile crisis: it’s what I thought of too. It’s like the writers are rehashing the same scenario but reversing the roles of the two superpowers: now the USSR is suspecting nuclear weapons are being transported and therefore embargo the moon, which is a very close analogue of how the Americans came to know that nuclear missiles were due to be installed on Cuba and therefore interdicted the shipments. There were armed escorts involved in both scenarios too (Pathfinder and Buran in this scenario).
@@rootypoots thanks! but I don't mind the spoilers. I can concentrate batter on the script and technical details if I already know what is going to happen. I always read the movie plot during the traillers, so I can concentrate on the technical aspects of it. 😉
its always worth trying a new platforms launch titles (house of cards on netflix etc), cos they likely spent a lot of money to make a good show for reputation sake.
In the season 2 trailer, it showed a very small 2 second clip of some of the astronauts in the base, in spacesuits and with their guns out with the lights red. They’re probably going to defend their base. On the season 2 cover, there are astronauts with their guns standing near to the Russian base. Maybe they will raid the Russian base in return for the Russians raiding theirs.
Wow This is by far my favourite episode of this series!! That final part with the badass cosmonauts entering from the window! Ahah can't wait for the final episode of this season I bet that will become my abdolute favourite for sure C'mon in this moment there are ALL the protagonists IN SPACE
The way they’ve handled Ed and Karen’s storyline has been terrible. We start off the season with them seemingly in a good place and SHE even tells him that he should go back to space. Then suddenly she starts questioning their marriage when they never hinted that their marriage was struggling in the beginning. Completely ridiculous that she would even tell him that they need counseling AFTER she bangs a kid😂. Who ever is in charge of this storyline needs to go lol. But at least the other plot lines have been good and finally something crazy happened with the Cosmonauts.
Dude the scene with Karen was about her complete destruction. when she talked to Ed she showed no remorse she wasn’t sorry she told him that we see that from season one he went from the perfect housewife to a drug using loser of a wife who is only interested in her self interest because she had been felt or passed over by everyone else.. The scene with Danny was to show how completely she fell from grace and was totally lost.. she was totally lost by doing the worst thing she could possibly do. She told Ed the most hurtful way that she possibly could without telling him who she had the affair with.She didn’t say she was sorry she showed no remorse she was thinking only of her self interest that was the plot
It was handled so bad it became obvious they where forcing completely different paths for both those characters which is not necessarily bad but, the execution is everything and here they just executed character
@@vannesgersellya I’m just watching as well. Awful awful execution. Like she was pretty grounded as a character. Then in 3-4 episodes pulles a Ghislean maxwell.. like where did this come from. It hurts more with a binge. I just saw her cry over her dead son. Now she’s boning his friend and has the audacity to suggest counseling after she fucked a child she helped raise. Like damn try and ruin a great show with that bs. I’d be okay if it was a random guy. Nope had to make me physically ill. Idk how the ppl I showed this show to will react. Garbage for shock value imo. She went from a tier to Jared from subway. I just can’t at least I got a win with molly
Sometimes throughout this episode I was just like god I don’t care for molly or Ellen’s stories right now cause I knew how crazy it was gonna be out in space
Wait for season 3, when more than a half of each episode time, they will show blind Molly struggling to get permission to fly to the Moon or Mars and Ellen struggling to become president of USA. In season 4 space will be completely minor part of the story.. :P
@@aquamonkee I’m wondering if the writers are using it as a reason to have Ed distracted and for him to fuck up somehow during the pathfinder mission ultimately getting him killed or something bad to happen
Very nice recap. Thanks. The show is GREAT when it focuses on the technology and alt-history - and BLOWS when it focuses on relationships. It's not that the introduction of relationship dynamics couldn't help the show from being a thrill ride only ... but that the relationship dynamics as written are not good.
As Gordo and Tracey are in the airlock and have access to the weapons, they have the potential to take back the control room. But that would mean at a cost. The lives of another 4 cosmonauts and possibly one or both of our heroes. And the Doomsday clock moves to one millisecond to midnight.
I know that physic will not let it happen, but imagine if Pathfinder sees buran and it’s just a giant Dogfight of billions of dollars space planes, next episode will be crazy as hell
I remember the Apollo - Soyuz mission. I had just gotten my driver's license and listened to the launch on my car radio. I even had a model of the two spacecraft I made from a kit. It will be interesting to see how the link up will go. It was great seeing that in this time line that Skylab did not de orbit as it did in ours and that they have found a use for it. I think I had a model of it too but that was a long time ago. I wonder if in their time line they had the Viking probes to Mars? I look forward to the season finale.
I think the cosmonauts are acting on their own. I don’t think the soviets would sacrifice their high ground for an assault. It seems like the world would be divided on what happened with the marines shooting the cosmonauts because it was a confusing situation. There is nothing confusing about an assault team killing an astronaut and assaulting the base. I think the USA and Soviet Union might have to work together to talk down the rouge cosmonauts. If a war were to start it would look bad for the SU. They would be the first ones to intentionally try to kill on the moon.
If it happened the other way around would you be surprised if the US sent special forces to “take back their own guy”? I mean if the soviets also said that the astronaut they’re holding wants to defect and was actually a secret communist sympathizer all along. It looks like in this universe the soviets have more balls and are acting like the US in our timeline.
Or they take the base hostage to order NASA to turn back the Seadragon and Pathfinder. Plus they now control the communications for Jamestown. This all happened after NASA launched the Seadragon, so it could definitely be orders from high up. What i was thinking as well they were just in a critical moment with the reactor being refueled and starting up so that could also become a problem for the whole base including the Russians if that would go wrong and a meltdown or something could ensue.
@@skinnyjasper3097 Maybe, but who knows, it's not like Iran starts a major war each time it gets bombed. Also if you look at any movie with the US as the good guys, they do it all the time. I was probably too general, what I meant was the soviets are acting like the image of the US which it promotes in films and media.
I would imagine a moon base would have sufficient enough protection for impact of micro meteorites, which are basically like bullets. So it wouldn't be that easy to break a glass. Other than that great last few episodes and thanks Pete for giving us this discussion board here in the comments. Cheers!
To be fair, there is next to no chance of micrometeorite hitting that window at that angle. The base is on the Moon, in level with surrounding topography that goes above its level as well - so anything coming straight at it from outer space would hit some portion of the Moon probably. There IS a chance, but there is a greater one that batteries go boom, or that made up reactor melts down or something, and everyone is dead. And if it comes from other directions other than perpendicular to the glass, it has to go though metal first - so the thickness of the glass does not matter. That being said, even if they decided to go with standard anti-meteorite glass, it would be like the ones fitted on ISS, which are around 60mm thick, 4 layers. And here's the catch - materials available in those times needed about that much (~60mm) to stop a standard NATO 7.62mm, and would break on the 5th shot. So Jamestown window breaking on the third shot from your standard assault rifle - that's about it, because you also have a pressure working against it from the inside. That is more or less what they installed, your time period appropriate bulletproof glass used for similar purpose in other parts of space industry. Yes, those windows in space tend to be much smaller, but given the fact that a micrometeorite hit from an angle that would pose a problem is not very likely, I guess they could be excused for going for a bit bigger windows. That part checks out to a large extent. There are many OTHER problems, but that one with the glass - that's ok. Oh, and Reddfieldmusic, you really are going to be that childish to respond to criticism like that, "How's your show doing?", really? So, when ever you don't like something, be it a taste of a cake, how your shoe fits or what ever under these blue skies, the maker's response can be "How's your shoe factory doing on the market?". Because that's basically how you respond to every criticism of the show. You know why For all Mankind has "good" ratings? Because it is the only space-themed show currently airing, at a time when everything is still pretty much closed down and restricted. It is not that impressive when there is practically no contender in the genre airing currently. Try airing the season you are filming now at the same time when the next season of The Expanse airs, then tell me how the shares go. It's fine, you can point to some of the show's redeeming qualities that make it watchable, but don't go throwing ratings at people's faces and asking them how their shows are doing. You are an adult. Guy called the show soap opera - so what? It is. And some people LIKE soap operas, and they commend this show for 98% screen time being focused on "setting up". Because they like those topics. No one is arguing anymore that the show turned into a soap opera - it is just that some people like it, some don't. But it IS a soap opera now, I am sorry man. And to be completely fair - that's not your fault. You are the effects guy, you didn't write the scripts. So chill. Have you noticed that no one has said one bad word about YOUR job on the series? People are bashing writers (rightfully so), so let people be dissatisfied with the product they are getting (and paying), without being patronizing and asking them to then make their own shows and go against you in the ratings. Because, believe me, you don't want to live in a world where THAT is a response of a creator to a consumer, of anything. From yogurt to nuclear reactors.
@@Wustenfuchs109 that is rich. You call me childish, but aren't you the one who comes here every week to rant and rave, about a fictional TV show wish some history and some science in it? You tell me to chill, but you come here and write very very impassioned replies and tell everyone(me, other commenters, the writers, the rest of the audience who likes the show) that they're wrong(or sometimes right), and how bad the writers are, how bad the story is, bad science, etc. How exactly is that chill? Chill would be not liking a show, and just turning the channel. But you don't. You love to hate this show, and you love to tell us all how bad it is. Sure I make snarky comments like 'How's your show'? Everyone is a critic, until they have to stand in someones' shoes. Apparently you know so much about all this, that you're an expert! The expert of experts! Clearly you are smart. You can say whatever you want, just like I can. I will be the first to admit that For All Mankind is not perfect, it is not free from criticism. I've never said otherwise or defended it as impervious to criticism. But please, it's a TV show. I care about it, you care about it. We have a great time making it. We make literally thousands of decisions a day to make it come alive. A lot of people care about it for good or for worse. You call me out by name, as if you want to spar. The show is done. It's almost over for the viewers. I get that the show has issues. I don't sit here and defend everything you write or what others write, because it would be a full-time job. I already have a full-time job, making this show for audiences to enjoy - or hate. Everyone is a warrior sitting behind their keyboard, including you. Read your own messages. You like to tell me what to do, and you like to pretend you know everything about ratings, quality, writing, space travel, etc. You really come across as if you are THE expert. You are an adult too, I assume? Calling me childish is insulting. Have I called you anything like that? I will call you a seeming 'know-it-all' because that is how you represent yourself here. Ah... you might be thinking back about my insinuation that 'you might not know what it is like to be a black woman in the space program' --- that is not calling you a racist. I know that upset you, but I did not call you a racist. You did, however say you 'doubted we had consultants', when you clearly didn't even check to see if that was true. Turns out, it IS true. And Aleida's story you made a claim that wasn't true, and the shuttles with fuel supply(a detail you missed), etc. See? You don't know everything. Alas, I really can't go more tit-for-tat with you, because sheesh, I just don't have time. I am in charge of the Visual Effects on this show, you are right. I don't write the show, but I am a part of the story-telling. I serve as a creative voice on the show, as the head of a visually-based department. I work with our NASA/JPL/SpaceX consultants creating narratives, through technical means, visual means, etc. in order to TELL THE STORY in an interesting and visually engaging way -- and sometimes we bend the rules to do so. If this were a documentary, you can be guaranteed we'd be treating this material differently. That's not a defense, that's just reality. Fictional TV, with a foot in history and science, the other in fantasy-land. Sometimes we miss details, sometimes we ignore other realities, because we're making our own. It's not black and white. We even have a tittle of one our shows this season 'The Grey'. Again, you have great insights, you have a lot of knowledge. You're here, very verbosely expressing your opinions... and if I see some people making snarky comments, I might snark back. We both have the right. When I see some things that people ask questions about, sometimes I respond in kind, sometimes I don't. I've had some very constructive and generous conversations with people on other threads, who showed curiosity about our process. That's always very nice. You - you don't show that, you just seem to know everything already. But in the off-chance you don't in fact know everything about we make this show, I'm doing interviews now in the press that explain a lot of our processes - creative, narrative, and technical. I recommend you and others check them out. Creating a TV show is a wildly complicated and complex undertaking. It takes hundreds of people, and thousands of hours to make it happen - not unlike trying to launch a rocket into space - a million things can go wrong, and sometimes they do. Sometimes we punt. So when people make reductive and ill-informed comments, I might choose to take issue with it. Sometimes. JUST LIKE you do. 'Bad writing' - yup, to you. Others? It's GREAT writing. When you say things like 'not that impressive' for ratings, etc... you're just coming across rude, insulting, and egotistical, even if that is not your intention. You have never done this sort of thing before, so I don't expect you to know how it's done. But I do expect you and other people to have some humility and perhaps some open-mindedness about production, story-telling, etc. Maybe ask a question, or ponder, or wonder! Curiosity and open-mindedness go a long way, especially when it's done in a constructive tone, instead of a top-down 'know-it-all' self-actualized manner. I've read many of your story ideas, and I am open to them, and I even think some are great, but they aren't going into the show. You should literally do your own show with all YOUR ideas! Pitch your stories and books, and get your show going. I'm not saying that in a snarky manner. I'm very serious. It is incredibly difficult to get anything made. It's a miracle when a show, movie, play - anything that takes hundreds of people to make - gets made at all. I think the host here, Pete Peppers, does a GREAT job of these reviews - he's critical sometimes, and it's done in a humorous, celebratory way - in a not so serious way. He knows it's a fictional story, a TV show, and he can show that the series is not perfect, AND still enjoy most of it. He's a great example of how to review in an open, curious, ego-less way, and he can still make his point and opinion known. I hope you truly love hating the last episode! :)
I loved that they took the Kirk speech from A Taste of Armageddon. The episode is perfect for what’s going on the show. The full Kirk quote-- KIRK: All right. It's instinctive. But the instinct can be fought. We're human beings with the blood of a million savage years on our hands, but we can stop it. We can admit that we're killers, but we're not going to kill today. That's all it takes. Knowing that we won't kill today. Contact Vendikar. I think you'll find that they're just as terrified, appalled, horrified as you are, that they'll do anything to avoid the alternative I've given you. Peace or utter destruction. It's up to you.
Arg... and there's only one more episode in the season to go too! I saw something like this coming in that the Cosmonauts would attack Jamestown Base but, damn, not like this. So here's the breakdown of how I think things are going to go down for a (possibly) very explosive finale: 1. Jamestown Base will probably call for help, saying that they've been attacked and occupied by five cosmonauts with guns. I see Gordo and Tracy heading for the hopper to use that craft's radio and possibly having to run for it while under fire. They get the message off and something bad might happen to one, if not both, of them. The marines inside will probably be trying to rally to get suits on and get guns but will probably be killed in the skirmish. 2. Pathfinder v. Buran: Of course said cry for help will be heard by everyone. Ed, either not thinking clearly because of Karen and/or getting orders from the DOD, will open fire on Buran in retaliation, escalating things further. Buran is going to get destroyed and I can see Ed then wasting the Russian Moon Base just for good measure. Americans (sorta) hold the moon. 3. Apollo-Soyuz: while there is fighting going on over at the moon, these two are hooking up in orbit. This can go down in a few ways. First, one or both are ordered by respective agencies to wave off. Second, one goes for docking while the other follows orders, resulting in a near miss or accident (and it can be either Apollo or Soyuz at this point, don't know). Third, they decide 'fuck the orders' and they both decide to dock anyway, or if they didn't receive orders, they go through with the mission. Then, from here, Fourth: after docking either one party is going to attack the other, one party is going to defect to the other, or (unlikely) they have an ironic handshake in space while fighting is going on at the Moon. Whatever does really happen though in the last episode, please writers, do not let Episode 10 "Grey" be a cliffhanger!
I see this ending badly at Jamestown. The Russian base being destroyed by Ed on Pathfinder. Tracy and Gordo do run for it; but they end up being the only survivors on the moon and unable to dock with Pathfinder and end up stuck... and that’s where Tracy loses her shit but Gordo helps her through it. Don’t know how they’d fit all of that into one episode... but hey.
I think the handshake will happen and maybe it will cool down the moods, exspecially with the big concert that John Lennon is organizing. Maybe the photo will be shown at the concert and like a few hundred million people will see it live.
When the attack was shown on screen, I had a bittersweet reaction thinking “oh, Sergei betrayed Margot with a smile on his lips”, thinking it blatantly obvious that the Apollo 75 crew is going to be held captive. After examining the possibility that it might be ‘rogue’ cosmonauts acting of their own volition (but how would they have firearms? Those are clearly governmentally-sanctioned, as are the marines’ rifles on Jamestown) it occurs to me that it *might* be possible that the Soviet government will be shown to act in good faith, but with all the occurrences they’ve showed going on in the background down on Earth, I’m not holding my breath...
Great recap! Always enjoyable to hear speculation and thoughts. Glad you liked the Pathfinder surprise. We had fun with that whole concept and sequence, even thought i'm sure there are a couple people here who will just criticize it all. :)
Present and accounted for! :) It was a really nice looking shot, and the pan to horizontal view, nice touch... but, you already know what I am gonna say so, I won't bother.
@@reddfieldmusic4769 "You must be really fun at parties" - well, yeah, as those parties include engineers and scientists, and IF we ever talk about a show during a party, it is usually a good one. And I didn't destroy anything mate, writers did. Better than I ever could - or wanted for that matter. I really thought that this was going to be the next "Man in the High castle" level of show after the first season. But, cow's milked, no way of getting the milk back in again ;) And I did in fact defend several things this episode - contrary to your delusion, I do not hate the show, I still commend the things done right. It's just that with each passing episode I am actually struggling to find what that redeeming scene or a 2 second segment might be. You just hate being on a receiving end of consumer criticism, that's all. And apart from one scene in the first episode of the season, you in fact didn't make mistakes. Writers did. But, somehow, you still take it personally.
@@Wustenfuchs109 yet it’s you who feels the need to come here and criticize a fictional show, to show us all how smart you are. It’s really an interesting display of self-aggrandizement. I’m fascinated actually.
My wife wondered why Jamestown didn't have proximity sensors or Marines on patrol to keep the Russians from pulling off such a surprise attack. I told her the answer was simple, the writers wanted a dramatic scene to leave the episode on a cliffhanger. Mission accomplished. The writers have also set up Ed to make a critical mistake because he has been distracted by Karen's shocking admission of having an affair. You know that having Tracey & Gordo isolated in the smoking room will not end well. I understand Molly's fear but I am glad she overcame it and returned home without having the sketchy procedure on her eyes. I was impressed that Molly had a Chevy Citation that looked like new. I had the X-Car cousin, the Pontiac Phoenix, and it was the worst car I have ever owned. It's a miracle they found a Citation in such an immaculate condition. I also appreciated the newscast commenting that John Lennon's peace concert at Madison Square Garden had sold out. All John was saying is Give Peace A Chance. Another fantastic episode that left me eagerly anticipating the season finale.
I think Tracy and Gordo being isolated ends up working in Jamestown favor. Both will end up saving the day somehow. Maybe 1 dies but I think it will be a sacrifice to save the rest of the team. Agree with most your logic though.
@@harvey1965 yeah it's gonna suck if he died. Love his character. But also I realize it would make for a good rebound of his character if he saves everyone.
I think they really weren’t expecting a direct attack with only four marines they barely had enough people to control the mining site, so I doubt they could also control the base as well. I think the main thing is that Jamestown base is US territory so they wouldn’t expect a direct attack from the Russians instead of the sort of turf wars out on the lunar surface. That’s what makes me think that those Russians are not listening to their government since the occupation of a moon base would be a World War III level of escalation.
@@OldSchoolMinded it could similarly be Tracy who dies while saving Gordo!!!??? Great show ... can't wait for the finals- think a lot of stuff will go down!!
The series has done some things surprisingly well. I didn't think one can make those old style control panels look so good. And basic M16's, on the moon, are still horrifying. The endings of both E8 and E9, while "simple", were quite visceral. (Reminds me of a similar breakthrough in style, for Sci Fi, in BSG 2004, with familiar old fashion projectile weapons.)
The cosmonaut comments that the Soviet patient is kept in a separate room, which can act as a hyperbaric chamber. They learnt they could depressurise the command centre without compromising their comrade.
I grew up in this era. Yuri Andropov, former KGB director, was a paranoid nut job that tried to start WW3 on more than once occasion. After the ABLE ARCHER incident he died in office and Gorbachov took over and becoi
isn't it nice to have to wait it out a week so we can have this talk. Honestly, I don't like the Netflix binge model because now my excitement for the finale can gain more momentum each day I have to wait.
That way we can enjoy the show longer, we longer talk about it, we longer think about it, profit for producers. With all episodes available at once it's even case of one day for hardest viewers and that's it, watch and forget.
On the defecting cosmonaut: He memorized 5 words English which he said in a bed and when no other Soviet could here him =/= communicate in English at gunpoint
Thanks Pete, I know you didn't write the episode. . So I was in the Army and have a mechanical background. With the Events of the last episode, the Marines would not only be standing by at the Mining site but they'd be patrolling around Jamestown. I'm also guessing there would be remote sensors set up so the Russians couldn't be able to just sneak up like they did. There would have to be some kinda satalite right above Jamestown looking for that very activity. I dont think Gordo trying to be getting jiggy with it, hed be on alert for something like what happened. Now I'm guessing that it would take more than a couple of shots with a rifle to blow a hole in that window. Poor writing they could have given him a grenade launcher.
No army experience on my side, but I got the same line of thoughts about it. If they have a bunch armed people there how come the russians just arrived there and started shooting
Sure with the resources and man power you can deploy on Earth. On the moon though? Getting the extra bodies and equipment up to establish patrols since the escalation might take just abit of time.
Upon further reflection on the episode I think I’ve thought of a better alternate storyline (let me know what you think). So going with the idea that they went rogue to invade, I think it would have been better if a single cosmonaut went alone and shot the glass out. They could film the guy’s face, he could have an expression of grief and sadness - these emotions leading to revenge. He could even be brought to his knees in pain in this scene. I feel it would be more realistic and would work better with the human side of this story.
Couldn't wait to hear your thoughts on this episode. I thought it was a great show, so much happening. I was disappointed when the Russian woke up his English speaking and understanding was suddenly so well when that translation card was what led to the mess. Didn't see the lone attacker on Jamestown coming, I too thought it might be the mad Russian acting alone in revenge but then to see he had others with him was even more shocking! This escalated quickly! With the other vehicles heading to the moon and the peace mission about to happen who knows where they will take this. I had a definite vibe some major character was going to die. It will be interesting to see how this concludes to set up the next 10 year jump for season 3 as in understand will happen. A lot of stuff could be yadda, yadda, yadda'd. Best episode of the season so far!
@@Andrescxli I disagree. I prefer if the show focused more on the sci-fi aspects. Less about relationship drama and dude fucking his dead best friend's mom. I wanted more scenes on the moon and even scenes of the Russians.
@@Excalibur01 sir, I agree with u, this series was all about the space race in alternate time since the beginning, but then this season arrived and made it hell, I hope next episode with this one, will make up all of the garbage of this season.
I think a philosophical argument made by Star Trek and the Apollo-Soyuz mission. Is individuals have ultimate agency. A thing that Ed says the whole series orders may come down but you are the one carrying them out. I think this show tries to remind us of this. In Season 1 Gordo argues with Danny’s husband about the massacre in My Lai. Which was a real event where US soldiers, raped and murders hundreds of civilians mostly women and children. But in that moment some soldiers actively defied order. A helicopter pilot instructed his gunner to shot any American soldiers that approached his craft while he got out to save a group of people a platoon was walking toward. We always have choice and agency.
Not that you would. But with adequate fuel you could take that ship anywhere. Radiation not withstanding. I love how they closet in these cool astronauts like sally ride. They must have fixed the problem with the Nerba engine. We never used it because on stuff like SLAM it had a lot of radiation leaks.
Episode 10 Predictions: Nasa will try to call off Apollo-Soyuz at last minute but Commander Poole will override them. Things will go smoothly. My fear is that they will turn Ed into full-on psycho and he will use his grief over the affair as an excuse to go full on gun-ho against Buran and the Russians (like they did in Season 1....I wouldn't have an issue with this plot device if it hadn't of been previously used and it is also something which Joel Kinnaman gets typecast in (the male who'se quick to anger, see House of Cards and Altered Carbon Season 1 for more examples). I hope i'm totally wrong here as Kinnaman is an incredibly talented actor who deserves a greater variety of roles and I've been loving him as Ed Baldwin. Surprise me Ronald D. Moore! Either way, super hyped. Was questioning this season a couple of episodes ago but now I'm back on board!
I think the writers have set us up for an exact analogue of the Cuban missile crisis with the roles reversed. I’m ambivalent about whether the cosmonaut’s initiative was governmentally mandated or spontaneous, but what’s certain is that there were weapons available on the soviet lunar base, and there’s no chance that those weapons were there without governmental mandate. My visceral reaction to Sergei’s video-call to Margot was “oh no, he’s betrayed her with a smile on his face” (thinking back to how he had said “they know I would never defect”, indicating his undying loyalty is to the Soviet state or perhaps even worse his wife is held hostage or something), I expect the American astronauts are heading into a trap with the cosmonauts seizing them or something. Very alarming developments.... I’m afraid they’re heading into too big a climax to realistically handle in a single episode... it risks being a bit of a deus ex machina where every thread comes together, and that would be unrealistic in the extreme, and a real waste of the intense realism of all the portrayed technology and society.
I think the base commander is screwed too, being trapped in that room with the armed cosmonauts. My theory: the Russians hold him hostage threatening to kill him unless the Americans 1) hand over the defector; and 2) leave Jamestown. Alternatively, the Russians now hold the control room so they could just turn off the oxygen to the base and force the crew from Jamestown that way. They know there are armed Marines there, so why go room to room trying to take the base and risk getting shot? Maybe Tracy and Gordo get left behind in the smoking room, IDK.
Could be right. 🤷♂️ But I think he wakes up from a coma in Texas w his family. They invested too much into his character development this year to just end him. He’ll be a leader at nasa and a hero to the public in season three. He’s the underdog that lost his mind in season one. It makes sense to keep him and Tracey going to replace Ed and Karen’s stable relationship. 🤷♂️
@@TheJwebb30 definitely think it’s a possibility! But it doesn’t look like Jim Hopper of stranger things is finished after season three. We’ll find out the truth soon enough. My bet is that Molly goes. Maybe, maybe, Ed too.
The biggest issue I have with season 2 is that Ed, Gordo and Tracey would all be in their late 50's and Early 60s and wouldnt be flying, if this was around 1990, in season 1 Ed talked about flying in Korea which would have made him around 22 in 1951, by 1990 he would be 60
@@aquamonkee they keep talking about JamesTown 91, unless they consider that a mission number, the episode when Molly gets stuck in the storm was clearly around 83
While I don't know Russian I'm pretty sure the patch has it as Soyuz-Apollo for the Russian side. Would love it if someone who knows better could confirm or deny.
it will happen in our lifetime sadly. every big nation, the us, china, russia, are all planning moon bases in the next twenty years and you can bet your ass that all of them will bring guns.
@@MK-rw1on Not sure about Russia. If the political system doesn't change there then we will probably have not enough funding for space (again, just like good ol' soviet times).
@@MK-rw1on Also Elon Musk. Idk if people really believe it, but if he gets to Mars first he'll probably have a sort of private army there or something.
I have a bad feeing that Rossi is going to end up taken hostage or die since he is trapped with them. And regarding Tracy and Gordo, one of them might not make it out of this situation alive, to save each other. I seriously hope I am wrong..
Oooh Thats a possibility but in the ""airlock module"" where they are, they have spacesuits so maybe they could exit the base and fight back the cosmonauts hopefully in a badass way
What I thought was funny about the attack was that , There would be no patrols near the base and the Soviet's would be able to sneak up a platoon of cosmonauts to the base without being spotted ......
Even with no patrols, you would think they would have measures to spot if the Russians were trying to observe them or approaching them. Cameras outside and someone watching the cameras constantly. Also, those were really big windows with no emergency measures to prevent just space shit coming down and impacting it.
This episode was as close to a comedy show as we got this season. But the cosmonaut that, when his very life was at stake didn't know a word of English, then waking up and talking fluent English asking to defect - I just lost it and burst out laughing. Genuinely spilled my coffee. Just, brilliant! I think they are testing us every episode, just to see how much crap can we swallow. That being said, nothing really happened this episode. A few continuing melodrama story lines that are there for their own sake, what's there to talk about, really? I would commend the show for taking 9 episodes to throw in 2 second segment telling us that indeed there is a refueling infrastructure in the orbit of Earth, for both Soviets and Americans. Well done crew... 9 episodes in, and you remembered to add something that broke the immersion for the whole season. Maybe should have left is as cliffhanger for a next season? As one person wrote a few episodes back "It would be nice if we got some parts before the heat death of the universe". A few scientific points, as it is my expertise, and I will comment on the last scene. We see that the reactor inside the Jamestown is indeed a standard fission reactor, plutonium fueled. Not that there is such a thing as plutonium reactor, but oh well. The show said that Jamestown's reactor is fueled by plutonium that is delivered by a SeaDragon. Anyway... where did they manage to place such a thing and how the hell are they cooling it? The smallest ones we tend to use are in submarines and even those require a LOT of water to cool down - water which is a luxury commodity on the Moon by the way. You'd need a huge radiator field for such a thing to even work without melting down the moment you turn it on. I thought they were operating with some RTGs up there, but nope, fully operational nuclear fission reactor... fueled by plutonium. We've got the info about what burned the cosmonaut - as speculated, they went with bullet causing a spark that incinerated the man due to the pure oxygen environment. Could not happened, already explained in the previous episode. And we come to the final scene - I don't know how no one noticed the entire squad of cosmonauts driving up to Jamestown, but the show is retarded that way when it needs something to happen. Then a lone cosmonaut fires space AK-74 (what else, right?) to depressurize the control tower... before we see him and the entire squad climbing up through it? Uhm... it's not on the ground level, they know that, right? Actually, it IS on the ground level in one shot, then in the next it isn't, then again is. But who cares, right? So, cosmonauts are storming the US base... why? And how exactly is one Buran going to blockade the Moon? They liked the idea of planetary blockades from other sci-fi shows and decided to have one of their own. That's not how it works. That Buran needs to orbit the Moon and you have a lot of time to land anything you want while it is on the other side. It can't sit on one spot directly above the Moon... unless it is in an L spot. But if it is, it can't really catch you. Nor can is sit indefinitely in that spot. So what, we are going to have Pathfinder and Buran in a dogfight next episode? Dear God, please don't...
Thanks for taking the time to write that out - I found it very insightful. There are two many inconsistencies in this, I think it would have been a better story direction for a rogue cosmonaut to just break the window and run off, killing an American. The invasion was unrealistic. I feel sorry for the commander of Jamestown, he is dead. Also the marines with a massive advantage aren’t going to take this lying down.
Cosmonaut Defecting: Yeah, I agree with you on that one. I laughed my ass off when I heard that line and, to be a little bit fair, it could've been the only English that the guy knew in the event he was ever alone with the Americans. Storming Jamestown: I think that the Cosmonauts are doing it in retaliation but yeah, I do think that it's a bit far fetched that NO ONE saw them coming. They've supposedly been monitoring the Russians for years now and all of a sudden like five of them with Space AK-47s manage to get the jump on them?
@@dieseljester3466 If there was ever a situation for him to use that ONE phrase he knows (I doubt it - makes no sense), then it would be when you are surrounded by the US marines, pointing guns at you, outnumbering you and you have no weapons. Be it that you want to defect or not, simply saying it would create a different situation and save your life. About storming the base - retaliation means that there is a plan, a purpose to it. Two superpowers don't just retaliate on one another because their soldiers are angry. I mean, those guys are not idiots, they would know that going on their own on some vendetta means WWIII for sure. So I don't see a scenario where them going on their own makes sense. Meaning, it was then a directive from Earth. So, again, what would be the point? Take over the station? Kill everyone? Hold them hostage? All those things don't give the Soviets the upper hand. And the prime piece of American infrastructure that enables the transit to the Moon and the lifting of that funny "blockade", the Skylab with its fuel tanks, is just chillin' out there. I just don't see a point of it besides "we need it to happen to turn the heat up". And as I said, the show tends to go full retard when they need something to happen. Invisible cosmonaut squad, cosmonaut speaking fluent English all of a sudden, cosmonauts jumping 6 meters up in their suits... you name it. Usually plots suffer from plot armor given to the characters. I just wish that this time they gave that plot armor to the story itself.
I remember in this episode a woman working on James Town asks about the temperature of engines 4,3,6 and the guy says the temperature is ok, so we can imagine the whole base has some way of refrigerating, and the series is almost sci-fi by now because they already have made advancements that can surpass the current one's we have in real life, so it is acceptable they having a nuclear reactor to provide energy to the base. About the russian speaking english, I think he wasn't so fluent on english, I suppose english is not your first language because of the name of your account is in russian, so you can understand in a situation of panic and few seconds to think he couldn't be able to formulate a phrase to say he was going to grab the note with the english translation, the navy's didn't give him time to think and the woman spoke above his voice on the scene showing they weren't interested in a answer at the time, you can see this happens in real life situtations aswell even with people who can communicate.
@@RafaelFerreira-ej1mz I think that you might be missing the point here. The point is that if he knows enough English to request defection and asylum, then he knew enough English to avoid being shot and getting his fellow cosmonaut killed in the previous episode, thus avoiding the whole showdown on the Moon in this episode and the next one.
And somehow nobody noticed a Russian strike team marching over the moon until they were in front of the window, while at the same time constantly monitoring them. Thats just great.
This show is oh so criminally underrated. I can't imagine what happens next, but I do think if we saw WW3 it would be very intense and intriguing. That's what I was expecting for this other very good alternate history show called The Man in the High Castle. I think this show doesn't get under the spotlight more because it tells a very neat story with solid characters and solid twists. It doesn't try to make a forced point. it just shows this alternate reality as it is without trying to make it biased towards any side. But Idk maybe that's just my opinion. I like the neutral vibes of it anyways. I even like some of the character-development driven subplots, besides the geopolitical/historical drama. Can't wait to see where they're going next week with the season finale.
I regret I didn't watch these as they came out because it would have been fun to mix it up in the comments. I MAY catch up to you before you get to the end of season 4.
well i am not confortable with having a shooting on the basis "English do you speak it" to have a "by the way i speak English very well and I want to defect. " in the episode after. as well Nerva being a solid core, it kinds of leave behind some radio active material. So i would not point the nozzle at a planet i care about.
I have a bad feeling the black box in the reactor is a remote scuttle if it falls in Russian hands, that or the fuel rod resupply that already landed had a nuke hence why the marines were involved with it earlier in the season
They picked Astronauts who happened to be Marines. (S2 E2 or 3 IIRC). Not the other way around. They used what they had. Those astronauts probably hadn't handled a rifle since qualifying in basic training years earlier. They were all astronauts, so likely marine corp pilots, and doctors and such... Not a bunch of ground pounders used to doing ground combat tactics.
@@remo687 I understand that, but my statement stands... How much time do marine pilots spend at the shooting range?? Learning small squad tactics? Not a lot... Not compared to those who are door kickers for a living...
Stupid thing I noticed, the cosmonaut who was wounded and wants to defect knows English well enough to communicate his intentions but couldn’t have said “hey we need to get our language card, we have no weapons”
so like pete says the soyuz apollo launch doesn't jive with the attack on jamestown...then something like this might happen where pathfinder ends up helping folks on the moon rather than guard dragon cargo (may get destroyed by buran OR)....buran may go back to either escalate or de-escalate the situation...that is if ussr govt even approved this attack that is...
1. I subbed 2. HUGE spoilers for sure. 3. This episode O MY FRACKIN GOSH WOW. Craziest one maybe of the whole show. 4. I seriously hope they dont give us a massive cliff hanger. Like the the way the end of this episode did.
Sent this to a friend and then found this video: Throughout the episode, inordinately high relationship conflict definitely tee up for a spicy battle. Just didn’t expect the battle to be revealed as the cliffhanger. Every single relationship but one is in turmoil. (Err two, but I’ll get to that.) They finished the episode with Gordo and Tracey on a reunion smoke break when the Russians came through. Their arc is the only one trending positive but still in limbo. Basically every character has a fight ahead for a dazzling relationship arc/climax. Doubt my forecast means much since the writers have been doing a fair job of being unpredictable but... My guess is that Molly Cobb is gonna have to fly a mission to save them all and won’t be making it back. Her relationship just went positive before the finale, and seeing that glimpse of progress in her character (to not leave Wayne) places her in position for eternal hero status. Both her and Gordo will somehow sacrifice themselves to save the world/moon-‘mericans. (Well, Gordo might be in a coma, and then wake up with his family bedside.) Margo gets her win with Mikhail too, the good guys in the space program find some way to have their symbolism. But then something is foreshadowed to say that it ain’t all roses in season three. Season three, Ellen becomes president (or is campaigning) since some years will have passed yet again. Then she comes out of the closet.
Pete, love your recaps. One petty little nitpick. The Russian seeks asylum, not amnesty. He didn’t commit a crime. Keep up the good work, though. You’re great.
I feel the attack on Jamestown is motivated by two things: First, the Zvezdev commander might be acting rogue here - taking the General Ripper, Dr Strangelove insane approach to their enemy. I find it unlikely that the USSR would agree to Apollo-Soyuz and simultaneously attack Jamestown. 2) If the rest of the cosmonauts know that they had a defector, it would be a major risk of intelligence and a national embarrassment they couldn’t let happen. Again, the attack is not sanctioned by the Soviet Government (even though they suck)
great dramatic ending. cosmonauts climbing in....now what, they are stuck in that compartment unless they want to blow up the whole base. can the marines get out to fight or is the hatch covered by Russians?
Is no one gonna talk about how the nuclear engine on pathfinder launched pathfinder as if it had a trust to weight ratio of over 1.0? While nuclear engines are efficient, they don't produce much thrust. So I was puzzled when I saw it fly off of the C-5. Very cool scene nevertheless.
Actually yeah after watching the scene it makes total sense for a NERVA to be able to air-launch like that. The TWR looks right, and because they're in the higher atmosphere, it's not impeded by air pressure
@@bee5440 wouldn't having a heavy and complex NTR at the back of a plane push its CoM way far back? Also, how is a Shuttle's TPS supposed to survive lunar/interplanetary reentries?
I do think these cosmonauts are acting on their own, but it would be equally interesting if the Soviet government ordered this. "Eye for an eye", you take our place by force, we do the same, they know full well it will go round and round like this until one side comes out on top. Once force starts being used, you either respond with force, or quit the game.
@@IanFiebigwi If I speak Russian and Russians were walking towards me armed, I would like to establish communications to ask for intentions and convey my intentions.
Because the writers needed him to be shot and could not figure out a smarter way to do it. Simple: show needed it, so it happened. That is the explanation for everything in this show.
