Mobile menu toggle

sci-fi - page 3

For All Mankind goes out with a bang in season 3 finale [Apple TV+ recap] ★★★☆☆

By

For All Mankind season 3 finale recap Apple TV+: Things are getting dicey at NASA.★★★☆☆
Things are getting dicey at NASA because of course they are.
Photo: Apple TV+

Apple TV+ space opera/soap opera For All Mankind closes its confounding third season this week by introducing us to a new character and a new geopolitical rival for the beleaguered space crews.

In this week’s season three finale, entitled “Stranger in a Strange Land,” Ed Baldwin learns Danny’s terrible secret. Jimmy Stevens hangs out with the wrong crowd for just a few minutes too long. Margo’s in trouble, Kelly’s giving birth, Karen’s making bold choices, and Dev is up a creek.

None of that’s going to matter by this week’s third act, of course. Just you wait and see.

Mars is getting monotonous on For All Mankind [Apple TV+ recap] ★★★☆☆

By

For All Mankind recap: It's always something.★★★☆☆
Whether on Earth or on Mars, it's always something.
Photo: Apple TV+

For All Mankind holds a few cliffhangers up its sleeve in season 3’s penultimate episode, but first it must deal with its soapy dilemmas.

Ellen and Larry are in the hot seat, Kelly Baldwin’s baby is coming along ahead of schedule, Aleida Rosales is all out of heroes, Karen and Dev might switch jobs — and Danny Stevens’ goose might be cooked!

A decent episode of the Apple TV+ alt-history sci-fi hit focuses on plot nitty-gritty and emotional turmoil, until it gives way to a typically frustrating final reveal.

For All Mankind faces Martian disaster in ‘The Sands of Ares’ [Apple TV+ recap] ★★★☆☆

By

For All Mankind recap: Danielle Poole (played by Krys Marshall) tries to save lives on Mars this week on For All Mankind.★★★☆☆
Danielle Poole (played by Krys Marshall) tries to save lives on Mars this week on For All Mankind.
Photo: Apple TV+

For All Mankind has a Martian crisis on its hands this week’s episode, “The Sands of Ares.” Ed and Danny are trapped, Danielle has to come get them, and Karen, Jimmy, and Amber wait on tenterhooks for news of the rescue.

It’s all hands on deck at NASA in the meantime, in the Apple TV+ space soap. People start confessing dark things as they face down death. And there may not be enough people left to make any sense of the Mars mission when it’s over.

For All Mankind suffers from an unbearable lack of imagination [Apple TV+ recap] ★★☆☆

By

For All Mankind recap: The jig is almost up for Ellen (played by Jodi Balfour) and Larry (Nate Corddry).★★☆☆
The jig is almost up for Ellen (played by Jodi Balfour) and Larry (Nate Corddry).
Photo: Apple TV+

For All Mankind spins its wheels this week until a catastrophe in the back half of the episode. Danny’s losing it. Ed’s being Ed. Jimmy commits some low-level espionage. Ellen and Larry find themselves under a microscope. Aleida closes in on the truth. And Margo is losing everything.

A surprise cameo from one of history’s greatest monsters reinforces the lack of imagination on the part of a show whose only job is to imagine greater things.

Americans and Russians spar on Mars, this week on For All Mankind [Apple TV+ recap] ★★☆☆

By

For All Mankind recap: Looks like we made it to Mars.★★☆☆
Looks like we made it.
Photo: Apple TV+

Apple TV+’s For All Mankind finally made it to Mars! Still, it’s pretty much business as usual this week, what with Americans and Russians bickering and making back-alley deals, and men being boorish and short-tempered and proud of nothing.

On Earth, U.S. President Ellen Wilson must deal with gays in the military right on schedule. And on Mars, Danny’s going nuts, Ed and his adopted daughter Kelly meet, and the Russians find water — and vodka!

A perfectly OK episode of the alt-history space show is made all the more frustrating by its flashes of greatness.

For All Mankind finally makes it to Mars, and it’s depressing [Apple TV+ recap] ★★☆☆☆

By

For All Mankind recap: Ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner in the race to Mars.★★☆☆☆
Ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner in the race to Mars.
Photo: Apple TV+

In “Seven Minutes of Terror,” Apple TV+ alt-history space race show For All Mankind returns this week to where it left off last season, with America and Russia once more holding hands begrudgingly to fix some space problems.

Ed and Karen have the same trouble with authority. Danny’s cracking up. Margo’s head is in a noose. Kelly’s got a crush. And Sojourner 1 suffers from a serious a problem.

Behind the scenes, WALL-E helmer Andrew Stanton directs this week. His brand of post-classical Hollywood craftsmanship is much appreciated, if also a sad sign of where we are as a country.

For All Mankind relishes its three-way race to Mars [Apple TV+ recap] ★★☆☆

By

For All Mankind recap ★★☆☆
Next stop: Mars. (Maybe.)
Photo: Apple TV+

Apple TV+’s lunar headache For All Mankind is headed to Mars for real this time. Three competing spaceships strive to make it to the red planet first to win a huge cash prize.

NASA holds some tricks up its sleeve to beat the wilier competition, but you can’t count out the Russians just yet. They’re always willing to do something stupid to make headlines. A mostly fine episode ends on a nice little cliffhanger to boot.

For All Mankind poses great questions, then refuses to answer them [Apple TV+ recap] ★★★☆☆

By

For All Mankind recap ★★★☆☆
This must be a time machine. A completely infuriating time machine.
Photo: Apple TV+

Apple TV+ alt-history hit For All Mankind makes all the right moves this week, then immediately blows a 26-point lead in the last inning.

For once, the dramatic arcs thrown at Margo, Karen, Dev, Aleida and Kelly all seem pretty satisfying and not at all cheap or hyperbolic. Then the writers ensure we won’t see how any of that plays out, instantly turning this from one of the show’s best episodes into its most frustrating yet.

But hey, at least we’re going to Mars, I guess.

For All Mankind’s mission to Mars gets a little Musk-y [Apple TV+ recap] ★★☆☆

By

For All Mankind recap: Multimillionaire Dev Ayesa (played by Edi Gathegi) wants to get to Mars first.★★☆☆
Self-made multimillionaire Dev Ayesa (played by Edi Gathegi) wants to get to Mars first.
Photo: Apple TV+

For All Mankind heads to Mars a little sooner than expected this week — and with a surprise guest in the cockpit.

Danielle and Ed, then Molly and Margo, fall out. Karen and Ed fall into business together. Aleida worries about her family from the moon. And Danny Stevens is still a little psychopath.

It’s business as usual on Apple TV+’s frustrating space-exploration soap. The highs of last week’s TV movie of the week detour are already forgotten.

For All Mankind season 3 premiere embraces schlock and awe [Apple TV+ recap] ★★★☆☆

By

For All Mankind recap: A space wedding goes wrong in the season three opener.★★★☆☆
A space wedding goes wrong in the For All Mankind season three opener.
Photo: Apple TV+

Apple TV+ alt-history space saga For All Mankind splashes down in the go-go ’90s in its not-really-merited third season. After another decadal jump, Nirvana is king, Bill Clinton is running for office, and we’re apparently going to Mars.

This show’s absurd single-mindedness has not been softened by its premature renewal for a fourth season, by which point presumably we’ll be traveling to the sixth dimension on a rocket sled while Avril Lavigne runs for Congress. Anyway … let’s rip off this Band-Aid.

Severance season finale goes out with a bang [Apple TV+ recap]

By

Severance season finale recap: Lumon Industries' disgruntled workers face shocking revelations this week.
Lumon Industries' disgruntled workers face shocking revelations this week.
Photo: Apple TV+

Severance draws its excellent first season to a close this week with an episode that makes excellent use of every second of its pulse-pounding airtime.

The perfectly curated frames give way to woozy chaos as Lumon Industries workers Irving, Mark and Helly experience the outside world for the “first” time.

Revelations await them. And they’re going to have be savvy if they want to get away with this illegal operation to bring down Lumon. Everyone’s in fine form as usual, and the show makes a great case for a second season. (Which Apple just made official, BTW.)

Lumon’s drones plot their escape this week on Severance [Apple TV+ recap]

By

Severance recap Apple TV+: Lumon Industries doesn't know what lies ahead.
Lumon Industries doesn't know what lies ahead.
Photo: Apple TV+

The plan is set on this week’s episode of Apple TV+’s dark comedy thriller Severance. But will our heroes make it out of Lumon Industries? Will anyone believe Mark, Helly and Irving when they wake up from their regular lives and emerge their work selves?

This week’s magnificently tense episode, directed by series executive producer Ben Stiller, is a real nail-biter. It’s wonderfully edited and excellently performed.

Severance has abandoned its early crux — the depressing lives of office drones who literally have no souls because they’ve been surgically stripped of them — for a more fast-paced approach to the show’s thriller aspects.

It’s no longer a show about the drudgery of both lives lived by lost people. It’s about the race to get back some measure of its characters’ personhood.

Severance cues up a disturbing dance party [Apple TV+ recap]

By

Severance recap,
Actor Tramell Tillman, left, gets a chance to cut loose in this week's episode.
Photo: Apple TV+

A depressing dance party and a murder round out the crazy goings on in this week’s episode of Severance, the Apple TV+ show about a workplace plagued by secrets and underhanded, science fiction-style practices.

Once Mark (played by Adam Scott) sees the truth of his situation, there’s no turning back. But he can’t fix the problems at Lumon Industries alone. Wouldn’t it be helpful if something traumatic happened to everyone on his team, aligning them against their employer?

This week’s episode of Ben Stiller and Dan Erickson’s trippy workplace thriller brings a cavalcade of violent upsets — and each new incident stings intensely. It’s all a hair convenient, but it’s compelling enough to clear the hurdle anyway.

Severance’s corporate conspiracy gets even creepier [Apple TV+ recap]

By

Severance recap: Just when you thought things couldn't get any weirder at Lumon Industries ...
Just when you thought things couldn't get any weirder at Lumon Industries ...
Photo: Apple TV+

The plot thickens on this week’s tense and exciting episode of Severance, the show about a creeping conspiracy at a shady organization.

Mark is finally ready to start asking questions about what his employer Lumon Industries is up to, even though he knows the company will do everything in its power to stop him. He’s going to have to watch himself on two fronts because his outside world self is starting to dig into Lumon, too. And if he keeps making a spectacle of himself at work, they’ll be watching him extra-closely outside.

Things get even weirder this week on Severance [Apple TV+ recap]

By

Severance recap: Things are not going well for Helly.
Things are not going well for Helly.
Photo: Apple TV+

Severance takes a detour to a birthing cottage as Helly recovers from her suicide attempt and Mark recovers from having misjudged her so wildly. Now that he’s starting to see her side of things, he just has to hope it’s not too late.

Elsewhere in this week’s episode of the Apple TV+ hit about a company with extreme ideas about work/life balance, Irving and Burt circle each other. Mrs. Cobel grows nervous about her grip on the employees. And a psychiatrist comes in to monitor everyone.

Trust is running thin at Lumon Industries, and tensions are running high.

Severance drills down into darker matters [Apple TV+ recap]

By

Severance recap: Lumon Industries' Harmony Cobel (played by Patricia Arquette) is up to no good.
Lumon Industries' Harmony Cobel (played by Patricia Arquette) is up to no good.
Photo: Apple TV+

Severance throws a couple of funerals this week, but only one might be final. Apple TV+’s satirical psychological thriller about the hazards of compartmentalizing runs into a grim cul-de-sac in the episode, with some people giving up and others giving in.

The show’s purposefully lifeless world of corporate culture and suburban malaise find darker territory than ever this week as it becomes clear that each character, in their own way, will stop at nothing to do the job they deem most important.

Severance goes on a serious head trip this week [Apple TV+ recap]

By

Severance recap: Lumon employees go on a field trip this week.
Severance recap: Lumon employees go on a revealing field trip this week.
Photo: Apple TV+

New Apple TV+ thriller/comedy Severance takes a visit to a motivational museum this week. Actors Adam Scott, Britt Lower, Patricia Arquette, John Turturro and Yul Vasquez continue to do amazing work with their offbeat characters in this satirical study of the depressing nature of punching the clock.

Severance’s unique look and science fiction premise continue to pay dividends rich enough to get over some of the hurdles the show occasionally throws at the rational part of your brain.

Severance thrills with a sci-fi descent into workplace hell [Apple TV+ recap]

By

Adam Scott in Severance
Who said maintaining a work-life balance should be easy? Or nonsurgical?
Photo: Apple TV+

New Apple TV+ dark comedy/thriller Severance centers on a company man with an unusual relationship to himself and his job. Every day he goes to work, and his brain stays behind.

At work Mark’s a new man — one who doesn’t have to think about his grief or his petty social problems. At home, he’s a sad sack who doesn’t know he’s about to stumble into a conspiracy.

Comedy veteran Ben Stiller and first-time showrunner/writer Dan Erickson collaborated on Severance, which premieres Friday. The unconventional show takes pointed satirical swipes at modern workplace culture, but ultimately offers a deeper look at the meaning of life.

Massive Godzilla series stomps toward Apple TV+

By

Wow, a Godzilla series on Apple TV+.
You read that right, Godzilla, the King of the Monsters himself, is getting a series on Apple TV+.
Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures

Apple TV+ is making a series set in Legendary’s MonsterVerse that includes movies like Godzilla vs. Kong. The show will be live action, and continue the story of humanity’s battle to survive in a world populated with city-crushing behemoths.

Swan Song is smart sci-fi done right [Apple TV+ review]

By

Mahershala Ali in Swan Song
Mahershala Ali in Swan Song
Photo: Apple TV+

Just before the end of the year, Apple TV+ has one more prestige item to push. New sci-fi movie Swan Song stars multiple Academy Award winner Mahershala Ali and multiple Academy Award nominee Glenn Close.

Swan Song, which premieres Friday on Apple TV+, is a number of things: an inspirational disease drama, a sleek sci-fi parable, a clone movie, and the feature debut of an Academy Award-winning short film director, Benjamin Cleary.

Arriving so soon after Tom Hanks’ ho-hum Finch, viewers could be forgiven for preparing for the worst. Thankfully, there’s no need.

Dr. Brain season finale serves up the ultimate brain sync [Apple TV+ recap]

By

Dr. Brain season finale recap: Brain scientist Sewon braces for the most important brain sync yet.
Scientist Sewon braces for the most important brain sync yet.
Photo: Apple TV+

Apple TV+’s exciting new South Korean sci-fi series Dr. Brain draws its first season to a thrilling close this week. Sewon has one last brain sync to perform — and it’s the most important operation he’s ever conducted.

He needs to get everything right in order to save his son (and redeem himself in his own heart for the job he’s done as a father and a husband). The race is on to find out if he and his cohorts can stop Myung from stealing his son’s body.