In the pilot for Star City, we were introduced to the leads behind the Soviet space effort in the world created in For All Mankind. We wound back to where history split as the Soviets won the race to the Moon. But it is also clear there are plenty of challenges for all those involved.
In the second of the two-episode premiere, we built on those challenges. It starts off quickly in this second episode, “Bear on a Chain.”
A bumpy re-entry
It was a big moment for Anastasia Belicova (Alice Englert) as she became the first woman on the Moon. That gives her a piece of history and makes her valuable for the Soviet Union. Or at least it would, if she remained in their control. Her speech proved that she isn’t as malleable as the KGB hoped. It also leaves Anastasia feeling uneasy as they head for home.
Her partner, Valya (Adam Nagatis), tries to reassure her she’s a superstar. But Anastasia is still struggling. It doesn’t help that re-entry doesn’t go as planned. The capsule is caught and pushed off track, landing well away from its target in the middle of the woods. As she pushes open the hatch, she discovers a bear is there waiting for them. It’s an inauspicious return and a sign of things to come.
Anastasia is a star, but she was right to be concerned. After a threat from Col. Roskova (Anna Maxwell Martin) that she can be replaced if she doesn’t toe the line, Anastasia agrees to return to the program on the victory tour. She’s meant to be a symbol of the Soviet dominance in space and around the world. And as part of the victory tour, she’s to be married to fellow cosmonaut Sasha (Solly McLeod).
This is meant to keep them both under control. Thanks to the surveillance from Irina (Agnes O’Casey), Roskova is well aware that Sasha is having an affair with Valya’s wife. She can’t have anything distract from the program, so marrying them off as a means of staying in the program seems a means to that end.
Thwarted plans
The Chief Designer (Rhys Ifans) has delivered a win and a lead for the Soviet Union. He wants to chase his plans to reach Venus, and he won’t even let a recent heart attack push him off course. But the members of the party don’t see it the same way. With the Americans having acquired his plans for a base on the Moon, the priority is to get there and build it first. The Chief Designer shares that it will take some time, but he's been given an aggressive deadline and told failure is not an option.
He remains undeterred from his other plans. While working on getting the base up and going, he turns his attention to Sergei (Josef Davies). Sergei impressed him with his knowledge of the spacecraft in helping get Anastasia to the moon. Now, he has another project.
The Chief Designer approaches Sergei and feels him out. He brings him to a secret workshop with a lot of equipment and plans. He recruits Sergei to secretly work on a craft to get to Venus. He warns him they will be defying the General Secretary, but Sergei agrees to join the team anyway.
A victory tour
Meanwhile, Anastasia, Valya, Sasha, and Tanya (Ruby Ashbourne Serkis) hit the road for a victory tour. Sasha, despite his engagement, makes overtures toward Tanya, but she rebuffs him. However, when Sasha grows closer to Anastasia, it seems to rankle Tanya. There is more drama coming that will threaten these four and their friendships.
But the tour is also a test. Roskova has brought Irina on the trip. She employs Irina to continue her spying on Valya and his wife, in part to keep Sasha in line. But she’s also there to test loyalty. At a club in Paris, Anastasia is approached by a woman who claims the Americans can get her out. Anastasia declines. We later see that it was a loyalty test offered by Roskova.
She also has a test for Irina. She brings Irina into a crucial interrogation for her ability to translate German. She assists for a while, but they get few answers. Left alone and told that if the subject doesn’t provide a name, he’ll be shot, Irina steps up her efforts. She uses torture but gets to a deeper truth, at which point Roskova returns and reveals she speaks perfect German. It was a test to see how far Irina would go, and a test she passed.
As the hour ends, we get to the end of the victory tour. Though Sasha suggests they don’t have to comply, Anastasia follows through with their wedding. They are joined in a ceremony meant to honor the party. But what will it mean going forward?
Star City season 1 episode 2 was a decent follow-up to the pilot. It’s clear there is surveillance and mistrust everywhere in the program.
How many of these characters who’ve been introduced will continue to find ways to defy the KGB? And what will the consequences be? We know Irina and Sergei make it into the future, but what of the rest? It will be interesting to see how it all develops.
Star City streams Fridays on Apple TV. Check back next week as we recap all the action of the first season.
Add us as a preferred source on Google