In the first two episodes of Star City, we were introduced to the world of Star City. It’s the home base for the Soviet space program in the 1960s, and they have just landed on the Moon first.
But it’s not about what they’ve accomplished, but what comes next. Now, we get to see what’s coming next and the potential pitfalls. Star City season 1 episode 3, “Bad Dancer,” also had time to put relationships in focus.
Married life
We get some time to focus on our two central couples. Tanya (Ruby Ashbourne Serkis) is having a tough time. She’s not enjoying life in Star City, nor is she happy that Valya (Adam Nagaitis) is always working on secret projects. She tries to pass the time by finding illegal American records. That’s something Irina (Agnes O’Casey) overhears and reports.
When Valya comes home and hears the records, he chides her. It leads to a fight. She feels neglected, and Valya feels guilty. But is it just marital woes on his mind? Sasha (Solly McLeod) tries to offer some advice. He also still holds a torch for Tanya, though she’s shunning him now that he’s married. Still, Sasha shows up and provides a letter in case his upcoming mission to the moon goes poorly. It’s another thing Irina overhears and reports, though she’s conflicted.
Valya, meanwhile, steps up. He offers to take Tanya on a night out—the same night of Sasha’s mission no less. It’s a means of making amends, or so she thinks. When he slips out during the show, she follows and sees him talking to a stranger.
As it turns out, Valya is the mole for the Americans, and that could mean a lot of danger for him and Tanya.
The mission to Venus
Meanwhile, the Chief Designer (Rhys Ifans) has a lot of balls in the air. He has the fast-tracked mission to the Moon and his base, but he has his secret project for Venus. And the clock is ticking. Sergei (Josef Davies) is getting the pieces ready. But the window is rapidly approaching, and someone has to staff the mission.
After sneaking the craft into Star City, Sergei and the Chief Designer take another step. They recruit Valya, needing him to train the crew. He agrees and agrees to keep it a secret. But knowing of his connection to the Americans, this is yet another idea that is sure to get leaked. But will the plan be uncovered by the KGB first?
Mission error
Meanwhile, Sasha is on a mission to the Moon. It’s his reward for agreeing to marriage. And while he’s happy to be a part of it, and a part of the landing party that will build a base on the Moon, he’s not taking things seriously. Valya calls him out during training, which leads to a tense moment. But it’s a dangerous mission, and they have to cut corners in order to be able to achieve the goal ahead of schedule. That puts a lot on Sasha.
Eventually, the mission launches. But while the mission is in space, hurtling toward the Moon, the ground team makes a discovery. There is an unknown frequency that the Chief Designer realizes is a transmission to the Americans. A bug has been placed in the craft, something he has to share with Col. Roskova (Anna Maxwell Martin).
Roskova doesn’t take it well. She orders them to reboot the system to kill the transmission, even though the Chief Designer warns that could cause a critical error. They do the reboot, and it does, indeed, sabotage the craft, even though it halts the transmission. That leaves Sasha and Arseni (Cameron Cook) forced to abort. But even the abort doesn’t go as planned.
The duo have one chance to make it back to the rocket to make it to Earth safely. Arseni moves to deflate the Hab so they can dock. He does it just in time, as Sasha docks safely. But once he’s docked, he realizes the cost. The Hab exploded, and Arseni is dead, floating in space.
Valya isn’t who I would have suspected of being the mole, and yet it makes sense. It means there are some rough times coming for him and the team. One man has already died, which means the hunt for the leak will intensify. Will Valya be able to escape? What will it mean for Tanya? It’s all hanging in the air right now.
Star City streams Fridays on Apple TV. Check back next week as we recap all the action of season one right here.
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