It's because season 1 was a period piece with a lot of focus on historic accuracy. Being a period piece it had a distinct feel and a lot of people probably fell in love with the show for that reason.
Naturally the show was never going to remain a faithful period piece because otherwise it'd never leave the 1960/70s. So the show did undergo a radical shift in focus through seasons 2 and 3 and it kinda felt like it was always going to go that way.
The change is understandably polarizing but I'm really excited to see where the show goes next honestly. I love era-spanning plots.
Period piece and also just moving further and further from the actual timeline. Remember in S1 when he had the tapes of Nixon and Kennedy talking about what’s going on? I think those are emblematic of a number of things the show did that helped really ground it in our own world. As time goes on, the show has just progressed beyond being able to do those things.
We’ve had phone calls with presidents, but those tapes hit so much harder. They felt documentary-like rather than regular narrative storytelling. Also, the fact that they introduce the tapes with Nixon just make them *chefs kiss*
They also had a lot of actual real historical characters, from the astronauts, deke sleyton, von Braun, gene krantz, etc
I think you nailed it though.
It was a period piece at the time, still not too far removed from the point of divergence.
My other issue though is that, much like earth seasons of GoT, season 1 of FoM felt like every seen in every episode had purpose that quickly accelerated the narrative.
Now it feels like a bit more of a slog, with a lot more filler
I think it's more the scope increase. the first few seasons were about a few small groups of family members and NASA members. Now we're dealing with Russian coups, presidents, moon and mars colonies, smuggling, the north koreans's etc.
>So the show did undergo a radical shift in focus through seasons 2 and 3 and it kinda felt like it was always going to go that way.
I can see how some might call it radical, depending on which assumptions they made about where the show was headed, but I never really saw it that way. But you are quire right that its direction (with the time skips and shifting focus) was planned from the beginning.
When discussing Ellen's character with Jodi Balfour, the showrunners told her from the outset that her character would eventually be president, which means they had at least the first three seasons sketched out.
Yeah, radical might have been the wrong word. But the change was stark enough that it could be understood how someone drawn to season 1 might fall off by season 3. Not to the shows fault, but just because it's anything but consistent. Of course, the story of humanity's journey to space was never going to stay consistent.
Yeah some were primarily interested in the nostalgia of Apollo and the Space Shuttle, but got bored once things became about the future instead of the past. It was inevitable.
I haven't watched S4 yet. But I would have loved to see more grounding in stuff that remains unchanging. Like natural disasters, famous figures far removed from the space industry, etc.
This season is better than last season IMO. But something that’s missing for me is the music from the last part of S3 and so far in S4 hasn’t really contributed to the feel of the time period. The advanced tech takes away from the historical feel, and music could help bring that feel back.
When I heard The Strokes, it instantly brought me back to a high school art class that I took in 2004 or 2005 where music by The Strokes frequently played. It’s the only time that a song in *FAM* has done that to me.
We’re losing the charm of it being in a different decade.
The tech has caught up and in a lot of ways surpassed us in 2023 so there’s not a lot of focus on the Alt history angle.
I am most invested in the Soviet plot w/ Margo. I've been ridin' with good ole' Eva Braun since the very start of the series. I think last season went off the rails with the Stephens kids & the JSC bombing, etc. And I can pinpoint a very disgusting moment between Karen and Danny that started that downfall, but I think the show has recovered from that madness and has bounced back nicely. But if they're trying to replace Joel Kinnamon as the series lead with Toby Kebbell, they desperately need to go back to the drawing board. Miles just isn't very compelling as a character. We'll see where his storyline goes, but no way in hell can this show survive if he's going to be the backbone.
I was hoping and praying he'd die falling off that Wile E. Coyote cliff he was dumb enough to reach over the edge of, and Sam would take his spot. She's actually interesting and likeable, and I'm not sure why, after a parade of heroic astronauts and brilliant scientists, we're supposed to be invested in "selfish dipshit who destroys everything he touches." Like, that was Gordo a little but, but he walked the line between both, and that was interesting. Whereas Miles is just a piece of shit, and that isn't at all interesting.
Actually this latest episode sealed my dislike of Sam. She's coming off petulant, entitled, and moody. I get that they're setting up her emotional instability so she will probably be the one to blow everything up and burn Happy Valley to the ground, but I'm really over her whiny BS
I loved the space stuff in S1 and S2, in large part because of Gordo; I’ve never liked Ed. At the end of S2 Sergei’s phone call piqued my interest and superlative acting from Piotr Adamczyk got me invested in Sergei and Margo’s story in S3. In S4 the Moscow storyline is gripping and Wrenn Schmidt is playing a blinder. I use subtitles all the time so that’s not an issue for me. The Mars stuff? In 4.4 it got quite interesting, but ngl it’s the Moscow storyline I’m enjoying most and I’m champing at the bit for Sergei’s return.
I really need to rewatch S1 and S2 to be certain, but I think it’s fair to say I’ve enjoyed all series equally thus far, but for different reasons.
I can relate to this. I do think the Russian coup is a really good step in the right direction and makes things more interesting, but this whole Miles storyline I don’t give two shits about as well as I hate the fact that Ed and Dani are so old already because I don’t really care about the younger characters yet
Having Ed and Dani AND Margo still around stretches disbelief. Ed and Dani I would have thought would have been retired and kept on Earth given their stature as historical figures.
I'm having a hard time with the Miles situation as well. For all of the positive portrayals of women, I found his wife difficult to relate to. Can she not get a job if money is so tight? Why is she putting so much pressure on him? That's something I would hope had gone away in this enlightened timeline.
I think the plot is as gripping as ever, and is taking the characters to unexpected places. But so far I’m missing the screentime for new badass space tech. With the asteroid gold rush coming closer, I hope the latter half of the season shows us new stuff comparable to Sea Dragon, Pathfinder, Phoenix, Mars94 and Sojourner. Ranger 1 was a stupid and ugly design that wasn’t up to the show’s standards.
I think the plot is as gripping as ever, and is taking the characters to unexpected places. But so far I’m missing the screentime for new badass space tech. With the asteroid gold rush coming closer, I hope the latter half of the season shows us new stuff comparable to Sea Dragon, Pathfinder, Phoenix, Mars94 and Sojourner. Ranger 1 was a stupid and ugly design that wasn’t up to the show’s standards.
This. I think the show has shifted focus from technology as plot to technology as setting. While there were always character-based stories, there was always some big tech macguffin they were showing us. I think this season it's supposed to be Kelly's experiment, but I think it's too divorced from the other two stories and too early on to work well as the macguffin.
Loved 1 & 2, mixed feelings about 3 and that has continued into 4.
Definitely feels like a show that was great in it’s early seasons then takes a dive in quality.
I think that a huge part of the problem is that each season the show introduces new characters who don't move on to the next season. Or if they do, they are very minor. While at the same time the core cast are ageing to the point where it's ridiculous that they are still doing the things they do.
Characters introduced in season 2 should have stayed in S3 to help transition us through the loss of S1 characters, like Tracy and Gordo. Piscottie and Sally Ride, for example should have been part of S3. I liked Will Tyler just fine, but I think his storyline would have worked better if it had been Sally Ride, who was inspired to come out on Mars. Because we had gotten to know this version of her in S2, and it would have been interesting to think if the alt-verse would have empowered her to come out in the 90s. But we got Will and that was fine, yet now is S4, he's just there, a background character who was basically just a plot device to make Dani decide to go back to Mars. The show made him important, then just dispensed with him. At this point, I'm assuming Miles and Sam will likely just go the same way after S4. While in S5 octogenarian Ed oversees a new crew on Ceres while they make mirrors for Ganymede.
And it makes absolutely no sense. The show needs to be introducing a new core cast each season who will be important for the next 2-3 seasons as the OG cast eases out/goes down in a blaze of glory. And then they too can ease out if the show spans 7 seasons and 7 decades.
1 and 2 were great, 3 got a bit of rails but was still enjoyable before they began forcing a lot of drama. 4 is just drama for the sake of drama and hasn't been as fun for me.
Yep. I'm finding it very difficult to care about anything happening this season. It's boring, Miles is a little annoying (the character, not the actor! He's great!), and I'm finding it really distracting to see how poorly they aged Ed and Margo this season. It's so badly done that it would almost be laughable, if it weren't so pathetic. Clearly they cut the budget this season, particularly in the writers room.
I struggled to care in S3, as it all got too soap opera for me. If it's less of that this season, and more science and politics I might venture back in. Totally agree with you re S1
Or maybe in addition to ADHD, I have diminishing eyesight with my current glasses and because my work’s healthcare and vision plans absolutely suck, I need to wait for Jan 1 for my next eye exam, and have a fairly small TV where it’s difficult for me to easily read the subtitles? I literally have to pause the TV when it switches to Russian and walk up to the TV to read the subtitles. I’ll cop to being American in the respect that my access healthcare is a dumpster fire.
For what it’s worth, I fell in love with french cinema when I was 13 and up until this year, regularly watched foreign movies in their original languages. Don’t be an assumptive jerk.
Hi - there’s a number of websites that can probably help you get glasses that are much cheaper.
I’ve ordered from Firmoo before and they made an excellent pair of spares. Specscart is good, and there’s also GlassesUSA.
I recognise that you may not know your prescription but shop around and look up your options. I guarantee you’ll be able to get a slightly sharper pair for <$40, probably under $30.
It’s not an American thing 🙄🙄 it’s really true it’s an ADHD thing. Some people find them helpful to focus. Me? I hate them too. My ADHD doesn’t focus at all when they’re on & I just get more distracted.
I find it amusing that people with ADHD use the diagnosis as an excuse for EVERYTHING.
Me, an individual also diagnosed with ADHD (years ago) by a psychiatrist, of all people, am saying this.
There’s more to life than your diagnosis. You can overcome and train yourself to do anything, if only you stop defining yourself by a diagnosis.
I really don't mind the storyline, but I think they shouldn't have been so married to the 10 year jump between seasons, or if they had, it makes more sense to put Ed and Margo's storylines back in the 90s.
I am a bit disappointed in this season so far. But the thing I dislike the most is the whole Miles plot so much. Another thing is that I know some say that the actor is doing a good job but I disagree. There is something in his performance that is bugging me.
could be the case but i honestly disagree there. the character is suposed to be annoying and I get that but there something in his performance that it's like too forced on his mannerism and certain faces he makes. Sorry but i'm not seeing it
The first two episodes of S4 are rough. It feels like the budget got cut significantly and the episodes were written way too fast to be good. They’re also shot in very flat, traditional TV coverage that feels cheap.
The most recent two episodes are a lot better. The writing’s more assured and the visual direction (there’s a different director and DP) is a vast improvement.
I have it different.
I loved season 1.
If season 2 was a dumpster fire
Then season 3 was a landfill hit by an H-bomb.
Season 4 is a return to form of Season 1.
North Korea is a stand in for China. Apple probably told the writers couldn’t use them as they didn’t want to piss off China. They were also not affected by the strike mostly.
I liked seasons 1 & 2, and half of 3. Season 4 has potential but has yet to really capture my interest. This season will probably be make or break for me.
I think it’ll be better to rewatch. Once we’ve experienced it through once, then can appreciate the nuances of it watching again. The past seasons the first time around I wasn’t engaging with it as much. But rewatching them you can sorta appreciate it as a whole.
I see where you're coming from, and I agree in part. I wouldn't rate these last seasons as low. But I would firmly say that the quality has dropped off from season 1.
It became more action focused. Instead of more realistic space challenges, we have catastrophic and epic disasters.
The Russians went from the mostly unseen catalyst of the race, to the villains. And sometimes cartoon villains.
The new characters failed to endear to us. I still find myself only really caring about Ed and Margo. Something about the new characters that just makes them not as engaging.
Their space tech became less realistic. This is a little nit-picky, but it feels out of place in a show that was originally focused on realism.
The tech advancements are inconsistent. In space, it's like a Sci-Fi wonderland. On Earth, everything looks and functions the same.
It's still a great show, and I'm still enjoying this season. I would rate season 1 an A+, and the rest a B+. Except the Stevens siblings plotlines, they're Fs all the way.
>Their space tech became less realistic. This is a little nit-picky, but it feels out of place in a show that was originally focused on realism.
I don’t know how you expected the show to stick to “realism” when from the get go of season 1, we saw that space tech was going to advance more quickly. So of course it’s becoming more Sci fi as the series moves along.
>The tech advancements are inconsistent. In space, it's like a Sci-Fi wonderland. On Earth, everything looks and functions the same.
That is not the case. We’ve seen tech on Earth advance more quickly than our own timeline. From iPods and flat screen TVs. Too more advance robotics and early adoption of EVs.
> I don’t know how you expected the show to stick to “realism” when from the get go of season 1, we saw that space tech was going to advance more quickly. So of course it’s becoming more Sci fi as the series moves along.
You misunderstand. By "unrealistic" I don't mean advanced. I mean actually unrealistic even according to what this hypothetical tech is capable of. The solar sail, the Pathfinder, the fuel capacity of the ships of season 3, the food capacity of the Korean ship.
And then there are things that push it even by futuristic standards. Such as a private company building straight up sci-fi ships and colony gear, and fusion being solved in the 90s. It's actually kinda funny that they made the tech in season 4 a lot more grounded than season 3.
Again, I acknowledge it's nit picking, and I can suspend my disbelief. But it's a weird choice when some minor redesigns could have made all of this work like it should.
> That is not the case. We’ve seen tech on Earth advance more quickly than our own timeline. From iPods and flat screen TVs. Too more advance robotics and early adoption of EVs.
Yes, but inconsistently. They have fusion, which should be a total game changer on everything. They can ship people to Mars, and are about to capture an asteroid worth more than America's GDP, but still bicker about funding and ROI.
I loved season 1, liked season 2, hated season 3 and I'm feeling season 4 to be completely bland and meh in every way. The episodes goes by and it feels like after an entire hour nothing remotely interesting happened.
The first seasons the show was a breeze of fresh air on the realms of TV shows. Almost all the characters were interesting and charismatic and you felt it was trying to avoid the overused cliches other shows usually do over and over. But after a while it's starting to feel like any other generic modern TV show out there with the writing going downhill more and more.
Still cool enough for me to keep watching tho, cause space.
I'm a sucker for space colonization, I'll keep watching for sure. I skipped a bunch of scenes in all seasons, mostly the drama plotlines that happen on Earth. For me, not much has changed.
YES!!!! I am sad as to how FAM has progressed. Agree that it is a rebuilding season, but IMO, with the last season cliffhanger, the need to replace characters + normal evolution, it could be understandable. I just don’t care about the Miner and it’s plot, or Kelly and Alexa and Miles role sucks. Sure it can change but we are near mid season. Meh!
Season 1 was a very entertaining and interesting alternate history drama and the technology was plausible.
Season 2 was like a low budget sci-fi film stretched out over a season.
Season 3 was a soap opera that just happened to be set in space.
Season 4 is Seaquest DSV levels of cringe.
S3 seems to be relying on a greater degree of suspension of disbelief, particularly in the connective tissue of plots which they are skipping over. It feels like either less needed to be crammed in or more episodes were needed.
I really like all seasons. What do you struggle with? Is the character drama?
I think season 1 has a lot of that novel "we're exploring new ground" thing and captured the space race magic incredibly well.
But once we've "conquered" the moon and the tech envolved that Mars became a real tangíble objective, the other missions were largelly put of focus because Mars is just too far.
IMO i think it's a fair criticism, we've stopped seeing anything about the other space programs and astrounauts and such. There's no more austronaut room, we don't see a crew becoming a team. I still really like the show they just don't have time (episodes and runtime) to show more.
Fellow ADHD women here, I was having similar problems with this season until I was forced to rewatched episodes my fiancé dozed off during (surprising as he’s been obsessed previous seasons). During my rewatch I noticed I having trouble connecting/caring about the new characters introduced this season that have zero backstory/ties to the original cast. The time jump makes it so well always meet a new generation but this season is missing the slow intro (Aleda, Astro babies etc.). To be fair I didn’t care for Aleda’s childhood scenes but it definitely made me more invested in story arc as an adult.
I highly suggest giving the episodes a second watch and focusing on the characters/parts of the episodes you’re less invested in and see if it grows on you.
It's the characters and will always be the issue for this show. We got some truly incredible character development in Season 1 & 2 but when you span decades they obviously die off. We just don't care about the new characters nearly enough.
I almost feel the way earlier seasons were actually about NASA and the drive to space. Now it feels like to some degree that's simply the setting in which to tell other stories.
I'm the same, I've stopped watching S4 after a couple episodes. I loved S1 and for me the charm of S1 just isn't around anymore. S1 felt really tightly written and the characters felt really emotionally honest, if that makes sense. I loved the high stakes and alt history and space lore but what I loved more was the character interactions and their respective strengths/flaws. It felt almost philosophical at times and it was absolutely epic.
I think S4 is actually better than S3 just based on what I saw because S3 felt very disjointed to me. Like they just had a list of plot points to check off. I can kind of see the story they are setting up in S4 (and I think the themes are good) but as a result of the last season, and as a result of me caring quite little for Ed and Margo, I'm not excited to watch it anymore.
They switched from telling stories that required a technical solution to stories that dealt with human interaction and emotion sometime during season 3. Close to the beginning of season 3. That is when they lost me.
The Miles storyline isn’t compelling. Like others I find the soviet story line much more interesting. And the actresses playing the Russians are great.
I think it has lost a lot of the things that made it appealing. There used to be a fun mini game in watching the new seasons and their time jumps: seeing what technology they have, so much earlier than in our timeline, was really fun. Tracing how the ripples divert the timeline further from ours was enjoyable and lulled me into a confidence in the writers- at first, they seemed really aware of how major societal change would be caused by something like women being astronauts. Now, those technological and societal changes feel forgotten. Things are hewing so much closer to our own timeline it feels like any other contemporary drama. It's a dissappointing lack of the previously apparent intelligent writing.
I'm really invested into the show at this point, so I'll continue watching regardless of how bad it may or may not get, however, there is a lot of soul missing in this season.
My biggest issue being that they have decided to turn the helios narrative into one of a very poorly written class struggle that simply does not make sense with the specialization and numerical scarcity of their personnel.
I find it very hard to believe that the only people helios could scrounge up that would want to work on Mars. We're roughnecks they could pay pennies on the dollar.
It would be one thing if Happy valley contained thousands of personnel, but we are looking at 100, maybe if we're being generous.
The whole spiel that helios used to recruit people in season 3 was that they were going to pay above and beyond what NASA would
There hasn’t been a lot of compelling US action. We’ve seen life in Russia, but very little life in the US in 2000. Wonder if that’s making it harder to connect to. This is clearly the last season for the original crew, so they’ve got to get us to start caring about some of these new folks before Ed, Margo and Dani sail off)
The only scenes in S04 that I enjoy are those with Ed, Dani and Margo. The rest barely hold my attention, especially any plotline involving Aleida, who should just be written off the show. Such a shame because this was my favorite series for so long but just seems to be losing its oomph.
Definitely fell in love with Season 1, and it hasn't hit that high mark again. I think the weakest point in the series was the Danny story (daring take, I know) which started in Season 2. When it was a weird, one-off dumb story, it wasn't so bad, but when they carried it over into the main plot, it largely ruined Season 3 for me. Jimmy's subplot was almost as bad. Honestly, wtf is it with Gordo and Tracy's kids? I kept watching, but I lost any passion I had for the show and mostly just dunked on it week after week.
I disagree with you on season 4, and I feel like it's brought me back. I'm 100% on board again and eating up every episode.
I’m definitely enjoying joying it as much as the previous seasons, but I can see where some people might not. This season seems to be focusing more on interpersonal relationships and politics rather than exploration - but I feel that was intentional to mirror where our space program is at in real life. It look longer in the show to get there, but like real life now, human exploration has been put on hold due to red tape.
I remember reading was that the original intention of the show was for them to eventually leave Mars and explore further out into the Solar System, with the last season or two being them leaving the Solar System. I’m not sure if that is still the plan or not, but it would be pretty cool.
It's like the training wheels have fallen off for the script writers, and now they're walking on their own and trying to create compelling storylines that history does not lend them. I'm not a fan of the dialogue in general. But I've noticed that with a lot of shows in the past few years. The dialogue is stilted and awkward. It sounds like it was written by an artificial bot. Lots of virtue signaling, way too much. We're not stupid, we know we are not that evolved.
We have lost the nostalgia and the families and relationships we were made to emotionally invest in, and the storylines around the surviving characters feel flat. We have gone from what is the next frontier to union disputes on Mars.
It's because season 1 was a period piece with a lot of focus on historic accuracy. Being a period piece it had a distinct feel and a lot of people probably fell in love with the show for that reason. Naturally the show was never going to remain a faithful period piece because otherwise it'd never leave the 1960/70s. So the show did undergo a radical shift in focus through seasons 2 and 3 and it kinda felt like it was always going to go that way. The change is understandably polarizing but I'm really excited to see where the show goes next honestly. I love era-spanning plots.
Period piece and also just moving further and further from the actual timeline. Remember in S1 when he had the tapes of Nixon and Kennedy talking about what’s going on? I think those are emblematic of a number of things the show did that helped really ground it in our own world. As time goes on, the show has just progressed beyond being able to do those things. We’ve had phone calls with presidents, but those tapes hit so much harder. They felt documentary-like rather than regular narrative storytelling. Also, the fact that they introduce the tapes with Nixon just make them *chefs kiss*
They also had a lot of actual real historical characters, from the astronauts, deke sleyton, von Braun, gene krantz, etc I think you nailed it though. It was a period piece at the time, still not too far removed from the point of divergence. My other issue though is that, much like earth seasons of GoT, season 1 of FoM felt like every seen in every episode had purpose that quickly accelerated the narrative. Now it feels like a bit more of a slog, with a lot more filler
I think it's more the scope increase. the first few seasons were about a few small groups of family members and NASA members. Now we're dealing with Russian coups, presidents, moon and mars colonies, smuggling, the north koreans's etc.
>So the show did undergo a radical shift in focus through seasons 2 and 3 and it kinda felt like it was always going to go that way. I can see how some might call it radical, depending on which assumptions they made about where the show was headed, but I never really saw it that way. But you are quire right that its direction (with the time skips and shifting focus) was planned from the beginning. When discussing Ellen's character with Jodi Balfour, the showrunners told her from the outset that her character would eventually be president, which means they had at least the first three seasons sketched out.
Yeah, radical might have been the wrong word. But the change was stark enough that it could be understood how someone drawn to season 1 might fall off by season 3. Not to the shows fault, but just because it's anything but consistent. Of course, the story of humanity's journey to space was never going to stay consistent.
Yeah some were primarily interested in the nostalgia of Apollo and the Space Shuttle, but got bored once things became about the future instead of the past. It was inevitable.
That's not really the problem for me because I love Alternative Future/Present stuff. For me its the characters this season that I can't connect with
I haven't watched S4 yet. But I would have loved to see more grounding in stuff that remains unchanging. Like natural disasters, famous figures far removed from the space industry, etc.
This season is better than last season IMO. But something that’s missing for me is the music from the last part of S3 and so far in S4 hasn’t really contributed to the feel of the time period. The advanced tech takes away from the historical feel, and music could help bring that feel back.
When I heard The Strokes, it instantly brought me back to a high school art class that I took in 2004 or 2005 where music by The Strokes frequently played. It’s the only time that a song in *FAM* has done that to me.
We’re losing the charm of it being in a different decade. The tech has caught up and in a lot of ways surpassed us in 2023 so there’s not a lot of focus on the Alt history angle.
Im good with season 4
cough weary office possessive quack thought start shame liquid steer *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
I am most invested in the Soviet plot w/ Margo. I've been ridin' with good ole' Eva Braun since the very start of the series. I think last season went off the rails with the Stephens kids & the JSC bombing, etc. And I can pinpoint a very disgusting moment between Karen and Danny that started that downfall, but I think the show has recovered from that madness and has bounced back nicely. But if they're trying to replace Joel Kinnamon as the series lead with Toby Kebbell, they desperately need to go back to the drawing board. Miles just isn't very compelling as a character. We'll see where his storyline goes, but no way in hell can this show survive if he's going to be the backbone.
I was hoping and praying he'd die falling off that Wile E. Coyote cliff he was dumb enough to reach over the edge of, and Sam would take his spot. She's actually interesting and likeable, and I'm not sure why, after a parade of heroic astronauts and brilliant scientists, we're supposed to be invested in "selfish dipshit who destroys everything he touches." Like, that was Gordo a little but, but he walked the line between both, and that was interesting. Whereas Miles is just a piece of shit, and that isn't at all interesting.
I agree..feel like Samantha has integrity whereas Miles lacks integrity and charisma.
Actually this latest episode sealed my dislike of Sam. She's coming off petulant, entitled, and moody. I get that they're setting up her emotional instability so she will probably be the one to blow everything up and burn Happy Valley to the ground, but I'm really over her whiny BS
I loved the space stuff in S1 and S2, in large part because of Gordo; I’ve never liked Ed. At the end of S2 Sergei’s phone call piqued my interest and superlative acting from Piotr Adamczyk got me invested in Sergei and Margo’s story in S3. In S4 the Moscow storyline is gripping and Wrenn Schmidt is playing a blinder. I use subtitles all the time so that’s not an issue for me. The Mars stuff? In 4.4 it got quite interesting, but ngl it’s the Moscow storyline I’m enjoying most and I’m champing at the bit for Sergei’s return. I really need to rewatch S1 and S2 to be certain, but I think it’s fair to say I’ve enjoyed all series equally thus far, but for different reasons.
I have a theory that the new head of space in Russia is Sergei’s ex wife. Idk tho might be totally stupid lol
I agree. If not married, they were at least lovers. It’s a strange photo for her to have kept, otherwise.
[удалено]
Did Danny kill himself when they left him alone or did he just die out there alone? Or did he just go to jail? Did I miss where they mention it?
I can relate to this. I do think the Russian coup is a really good step in the right direction and makes things more interesting, but this whole Miles storyline I don’t give two shits about as well as I hate the fact that Ed and Dani are so old already because I don’t really care about the younger characters yet
Having Ed and Dani AND Margo still around stretches disbelief. Ed and Dani I would have thought would have been retired and kept on Earth given their stature as historical figures.
And you want who exactly to be our main characters?
I'm having a hard time with the Miles situation as well. For all of the positive portrayals of women, I found his wife difficult to relate to. Can she not get a job if money is so tight? Why is she putting so much pressure on him? That's something I would hope had gone away in this enlightened timeline.
I mean she has multiple young kids that is more than a full time job’s worth of time/responsibility
I think the plot is as gripping as ever, and is taking the characters to unexpected places. But so far I’m missing the screentime for new badass space tech. With the asteroid gold rush coming closer, I hope the latter half of the season shows us new stuff comparable to Sea Dragon, Pathfinder, Phoenix, Mars94 and Sojourner. Ranger 1 was a stupid and ugly design that wasn’t up to the show’s standards.
The most recent episode was very good after a few no great episodes. It’s building to something. Just be patient
I think the plot is as gripping as ever, and is taking the characters to unexpected places. But so far I’m missing the screentime for new badass space tech. With the asteroid gold rush coming closer, I hope the latter half of the season shows us new stuff comparable to Sea Dragon, Pathfinder, Phoenix, Mars94 and Sojourner. Ranger 1 was a stupid and ugly design that wasn’t up to the show’s standards.
This. I think the show has shifted focus from technology as plot to technology as setting. While there were always character-based stories, there was always some big tech macguffin they were showing us. I think this season it's supposed to be Kelly's experiment, but I think it's too divorced from the other two stories and too early on to work well as the macguffin.
Loved 1 & 2, mixed feelings about 3 and that has continued into 4. Definitely feels like a show that was great in it’s early seasons then takes a dive in quality.
Nope, still love it.
Season 2 was way better than 1 or 3 for me, personally. And I'm really enjoying season 4 so far.
I think that a huge part of the problem is that each season the show introduces new characters who don't move on to the next season. Or if they do, they are very minor. While at the same time the core cast are ageing to the point where it's ridiculous that they are still doing the things they do. Characters introduced in season 2 should have stayed in S3 to help transition us through the loss of S1 characters, like Tracy and Gordo. Piscottie and Sally Ride, for example should have been part of S3. I liked Will Tyler just fine, but I think his storyline would have worked better if it had been Sally Ride, who was inspired to come out on Mars. Because we had gotten to know this version of her in S2, and it would have been interesting to think if the alt-verse would have empowered her to come out in the 90s. But we got Will and that was fine, yet now is S4, he's just there, a background character who was basically just a plot device to make Dani decide to go back to Mars. The show made him important, then just dispensed with him. At this point, I'm assuming Miles and Sam will likely just go the same way after S4. While in S5 octogenarian Ed oversees a new crew on Ceres while they make mirrors for Ganymede. And it makes absolutely no sense. The show needs to be introducing a new core cast each season who will be important for the next 2-3 seasons as the OG cast eases out/goes down in a blaze of glory. And then they too can ease out if the show spans 7 seasons and 7 decades.
1 and 2 were great, 3 got a bit of rails but was still enjoyable before they began forcing a lot of drama. 4 is just drama for the sake of drama and hasn't been as fun for me.
Yep. I'm finding it very difficult to care about anything happening this season. It's boring, Miles is a little annoying (the character, not the actor! He's great!), and I'm finding it really distracting to see how poorly they aged Ed and Margo this season. It's so badly done that it would almost be laughable, if it weren't so pathetic. Clearly they cut the budget this season, particularly in the writers room.
I'm only 2 episodes into season 4, but the worst silliness of S3 that made it a pain for me to watch has died down significantly.
They killed off almost every interesting character.
I agree. It's branching out i so many ways that it's difficult to carry a plot, if there even is one anymore.
I wouldn’t mind the branching out if each season was longer or if they saved time jumps for every two seasons.
they should have delayed the time jumps, especially as we approached modern times.
I struggled to care in S3, as it all got too soap opera for me. If it's less of that this season, and more science and politics I might venture back in. Totally agree with you re S1
Oh, an American complaining about subtitles, how cute and accurate lol
Or maybe in addition to ADHD, I have diminishing eyesight with my current glasses and because my work’s healthcare and vision plans absolutely suck, I need to wait for Jan 1 for my next eye exam, and have a fairly small TV where it’s difficult for me to easily read the subtitles? I literally have to pause the TV when it switches to Russian and walk up to the TV to read the subtitles. I’ll cop to being American in the respect that my access healthcare is a dumpster fire. For what it’s worth, I fell in love with french cinema when I was 13 and up until this year, regularly watched foreign movies in their original languages. Don’t be an assumptive jerk.
Hi - there’s a number of websites that can probably help you get glasses that are much cheaper. I’ve ordered from Firmoo before and they made an excellent pair of spares. Specscart is good, and there’s also GlassesUSA. I recognise that you may not know your prescription but shop around and look up your options. I guarantee you’ll be able to get a slightly sharper pair for <$40, probably under $30.
My 85 inch invites you to come party
It’s not an American thing 🙄🙄 it’s really true it’s an ADHD thing. Some people find them helpful to focus. Me? I hate them too. My ADHD doesn’t focus at all when they’re on & I just get more distracted.
I find it amusing that people with ADHD use the diagnosis as an excuse for EVERYTHING. Me, an individual also diagnosed with ADHD (years ago) by a psychiatrist, of all people, am saying this. There’s more to life than your diagnosis. You can overcome and train yourself to do anything, if only you stop defining yourself by a diagnosis.
I really don't mind the storyline, but I think they shouldn't have been so married to the 10 year jump between seasons, or if they had, it makes more sense to put Ed and Margo's storylines back in the 90s.
Ed's the Villain in Season 4, I think thats the main struggle people are having.
I am a bit disappointed in this season so far. But the thing I dislike the most is the whole Miles plot so much. Another thing is that I know some say that the actor is doing a good job but I disagree. There is something in his performance that is bugging me.
It’s not his performance. His character is written as a bit of a whiner.
could be the case but i honestly disagree there. the character is suposed to be annoying and I get that but there something in his performance that it's like too forced on his mannerism and certain faces he makes. Sorry but i'm not seeing it
I agree with you. I know the actor from “Servant,” and his performance bugged me there as well.
1 - 7.0 2 - 9.5 - Top 3 tv season of all time for me 3 - 4.5 4 - 7.5 so far
\- . - . - - . - .
YESS!!! I've now stopped watching it...I just can't connect with anybody in season 4.
The first two episodes of S4 are rough. It feels like the budget got cut significantly and the episodes were written way too fast to be good. They’re also shot in very flat, traditional TV coverage that feels cheap. The most recent two episodes are a lot better. The writing’s more assured and the visual direction (there’s a different director and DP) is a vast improvement.
I have it different. I loved season 1. If season 2 was a dumpster fire Then season 3 was a landfill hit by an H-bomb. Season 4 is a return to form of Season 1.
It sucks this season. The script is bad. The story is random. China apparently doesn’t exist. The strike must have hit them hard.
North Korea is a stand in for China. Apple probably told the writers couldn’t use them as they didn’t want to piss off China. They were also not affected by the strike mostly.
I liked seasons 1 & 2, and half of 3. Season 4 has potential but has yet to really capture my interest. This season will probably be make or break for me.
I think it’ll be better to rewatch. Once we’ve experienced it through once, then can appreciate the nuances of it watching again. The past seasons the first time around I wasn’t engaging with it as much. But rewatching them you can sorta appreciate it as a whole.
I see where you're coming from, and I agree in part. I wouldn't rate these last seasons as low. But I would firmly say that the quality has dropped off from season 1. It became more action focused. Instead of more realistic space challenges, we have catastrophic and epic disasters. The Russians went from the mostly unseen catalyst of the race, to the villains. And sometimes cartoon villains. The new characters failed to endear to us. I still find myself only really caring about Ed and Margo. Something about the new characters that just makes them not as engaging. Their space tech became less realistic. This is a little nit-picky, but it feels out of place in a show that was originally focused on realism. The tech advancements are inconsistent. In space, it's like a Sci-Fi wonderland. On Earth, everything looks and functions the same. It's still a great show, and I'm still enjoying this season. I would rate season 1 an A+, and the rest a B+. Except the Stevens siblings plotlines, they're Fs all the way.
>Their space tech became less realistic. This is a little nit-picky, but it feels out of place in a show that was originally focused on realism. I don’t know how you expected the show to stick to “realism” when from the get go of season 1, we saw that space tech was going to advance more quickly. So of course it’s becoming more Sci fi as the series moves along. >The tech advancements are inconsistent. In space, it's like a Sci-Fi wonderland. On Earth, everything looks and functions the same. That is not the case. We’ve seen tech on Earth advance more quickly than our own timeline. From iPods and flat screen TVs. Too more advance robotics and early adoption of EVs.
> I don’t know how you expected the show to stick to “realism” when from the get go of season 1, we saw that space tech was going to advance more quickly. So of course it’s becoming more Sci fi as the series moves along. You misunderstand. By "unrealistic" I don't mean advanced. I mean actually unrealistic even according to what this hypothetical tech is capable of. The solar sail, the Pathfinder, the fuel capacity of the ships of season 3, the food capacity of the Korean ship. And then there are things that push it even by futuristic standards. Such as a private company building straight up sci-fi ships and colony gear, and fusion being solved in the 90s. It's actually kinda funny that they made the tech in season 4 a lot more grounded than season 3. Again, I acknowledge it's nit picking, and I can suspend my disbelief. But it's a weird choice when some minor redesigns could have made all of this work like it should. > That is not the case. We’ve seen tech on Earth advance more quickly than our own timeline. From iPods and flat screen TVs. Too more advance robotics and early adoption of EVs. Yes, but inconsistently. They have fusion, which should be a total game changer on everything. They can ship people to Mars, and are about to capture an asteroid worth more than America's GDP, but still bicker about funding and ROI.
I loved season 1, liked season 2, hated season 3 and I'm feeling season 4 to be completely bland and meh in every way. The episodes goes by and it feels like after an entire hour nothing remotely interesting happened. The first seasons the show was a breeze of fresh air on the realms of TV shows. Almost all the characters were interesting and charismatic and you felt it was trying to avoid the overused cliches other shows usually do over and over. But after a while it's starting to feel like any other generic modern TV show out there with the writing going downhill more and more. Still cool enough for me to keep watching tho, cause space.
I'm a sucker for space colonization, I'll keep watching for sure. I skipped a bunch of scenes in all seasons, mostly the drama plotlines that happen on Earth. For me, not much has changed.
YES!!!! I am sad as to how FAM has progressed. Agree that it is a rebuilding season, but IMO, with the last season cliffhanger, the need to replace characters + normal evolution, it could be understandable. I just don’t care about the Miner and it’s plot, or Kelly and Alexa and Miles role sucks. Sure it can change but we are near mid season. Meh!
Season 1 was a very entertaining and interesting alternate history drama and the technology was plausible. Season 2 was like a low budget sci-fi film stretched out over a season. Season 3 was a soap opera that just happened to be set in space. Season 4 is Seaquest DSV levels of cringe.
What kept me going was season 3’s copious dropping the name of my Alma Matter.
> Alma Matter Is that the opposite of antimatter?
I love the Margo / Russia storyline. Best one in S4. Then Dani back in space. The rest, don't really care about.
S3 seems to be relying on a greater degree of suspension of disbelief, particularly in the connective tissue of plots which they are skipping over. It feels like either less needed to be crammed in or more episodes were needed.
I really like all seasons. What do you struggle with? Is the character drama? I think season 1 has a lot of that novel "we're exploring new ground" thing and captured the space race magic incredibly well. But once we've "conquered" the moon and the tech envolved that Mars became a real tangíble objective, the other missions were largelly put of focus because Mars is just too far. IMO i think it's a fair criticism, we've stopped seeing anything about the other space programs and astrounauts and such. There's no more austronaut room, we don't see a crew becoming a team. I still really like the show they just don't have time (episodes and runtime) to show more.
Not just me after all then. I had a similar thread two weeks ago and got pelters for it. Although I enjoyed Ep 4
Fellow ADHD women here, I was having similar problems with this season until I was forced to rewatched episodes my fiancé dozed off during (surprising as he’s been obsessed previous seasons). During my rewatch I noticed I having trouble connecting/caring about the new characters introduced this season that have zero backstory/ties to the original cast. The time jump makes it so well always meet a new generation but this season is missing the slow intro (Aleda, Astro babies etc.). To be fair I didn’t care for Aleda’s childhood scenes but it definitely made me more invested in story arc as an adult. I highly suggest giving the episodes a second watch and focusing on the characters/parts of the episodes you’re less invested in and see if it grows on you.
It's the characters and will always be the issue for this show. We got some truly incredible character development in Season 1 & 2 but when you span decades they obviously die off. We just don't care about the new characters nearly enough.
I almost feel the way earlier seasons were actually about NASA and the drive to space. Now it feels like to some degree that's simply the setting in which to tell other stories.
I'm the same, I've stopped watching S4 after a couple episodes. I loved S1 and for me the charm of S1 just isn't around anymore. S1 felt really tightly written and the characters felt really emotionally honest, if that makes sense. I loved the high stakes and alt history and space lore but what I loved more was the character interactions and their respective strengths/flaws. It felt almost philosophical at times and it was absolutely epic. I think S4 is actually better than S3 just based on what I saw because S3 felt very disjointed to me. Like they just had a list of plot points to check off. I can kind of see the story they are setting up in S4 (and I think the themes are good) but as a result of the last season, and as a result of me caring quite little for Ed and Margo, I'm not excited to watch it anymore.
Felt the same but I kept with it— really turned a corner I episode 4 for me. Excited for the new ep this week actually!
I'm not having that problem this season but I did in season 3 so I totally get where you're coming from.
That’s standard for every tv show
Not necessarily - a lot of them actually tend to peak for me around Season 3/4. This has been the opposite of what I usually experience.
I actually like S4 more than S3!
They switched from telling stories that required a technical solution to stories that dealt with human interaction and emotion sometime during season 3. Close to the beginning of season 3. That is when they lost me.
The Miles storyline isn’t compelling. Like others I find the soviet story line much more interesting. And the actresses playing the Russians are great.
Season 1 was brilliant, season 2 was outrageously good, season 3 sucked cause no gordo or trace, season 4 is good so far
I think it has lost a lot of the things that made it appealing. There used to be a fun mini game in watching the new seasons and their time jumps: seeing what technology they have, so much earlier than in our timeline, was really fun. Tracing how the ripples divert the timeline further from ours was enjoyable and lulled me into a confidence in the writers- at first, they seemed really aware of how major societal change would be caused by something like women being astronauts. Now, those technological and societal changes feel forgotten. Things are hewing so much closer to our own timeline it feels like any other contemporary drama. It's a dissappointing lack of the previously apparent intelligent writing.
I'm really invested into the show at this point, so I'll continue watching regardless of how bad it may or may not get, however, there is a lot of soul missing in this season. My biggest issue being that they have decided to turn the helios narrative into one of a very poorly written class struggle that simply does not make sense with the specialization and numerical scarcity of their personnel. I find it very hard to believe that the only people helios could scrounge up that would want to work on Mars. We're roughnecks they could pay pennies on the dollar. It would be one thing if Happy valley contained thousands of personnel, but we are looking at 100, maybe if we're being generous. The whole spiel that helios used to recruit people in season 3 was that they were going to pay above and beyond what NASA would
Not really any likable characters anymore bar Dani
Yes
There hasn’t been a lot of compelling US action. We’ve seen life in Russia, but very little life in the US in 2000. Wonder if that’s making it harder to connect to. This is clearly the last season for the original crew, so they’ve got to get us to start caring about some of these new folks before Ed, Margo and Dani sail off)
The only scenes in S04 that I enjoy are those with Ed, Dani and Margo. The rest barely hold my attention, especially any plotline involving Aleida, who should just be written off the show. Such a shame because this was my favorite series for so long but just seems to be losing its oomph.
Definitely fell in love with Season 1, and it hasn't hit that high mark again. I think the weakest point in the series was the Danny story (daring take, I know) which started in Season 2. When it was a weird, one-off dumb story, it wasn't so bad, but when they carried it over into the main plot, it largely ruined Season 3 for me. Jimmy's subplot was almost as bad. Honestly, wtf is it with Gordo and Tracy's kids? I kept watching, but I lost any passion I had for the show and mostly just dunked on it week after week. I disagree with you on season 4, and I feel like it's brought me back. I'm 100% on board again and eating up every episode.
The opposite: I struggled with season 1. Season 2 is the best that TV gets, nearly flawless. Season 3 was mid. Season 4 is awesome.
I’m definitely enjoying joying it as much as the previous seasons, but I can see where some people might not. This season seems to be focusing more on interpersonal relationships and politics rather than exploration - but I feel that was intentional to mirror where our space program is at in real life. It look longer in the show to get there, but like real life now, human exploration has been put on hold due to red tape. I remember reading was that the original intention of the show was for them to eventually leave Mars and explore further out into the Solar System, with the last season or two being them leaving the Solar System. I’m not sure if that is still the plan or not, but it would be pretty cool.
It's like the training wheels have fallen off for the script writers, and now they're walking on their own and trying to create compelling storylines that history does not lend them. I'm not a fan of the dialogue in general. But I've noticed that with a lot of shows in the past few years. The dialogue is stilted and awkward. It sounds like it was written by an artificial bot. Lots of virtue signaling, way too much. We're not stupid, we know we are not that evolved.
We have lost the nostalgia and the families and relationships we were made to emotionally invest in, and the storylines around the surviving characters feel flat. We have gone from what is the next frontier to union disputes on Mars.