"For All Mankind" Season 4 Explores Mars Colonization and Space Capitalism Amid Return from Season Disappointment

Apple TV+ series makes a comeback by addressing past mistakes and focusing on controversial themes such as space capitalism, international collaboration, and workforce exploitation in Mars-based colonization.

In season 4 of 'For All Mankind', an alternate reality Apple TV+ series, the U.S. lost the space race causing a continuous competition in space, which explores themes like space capitalism, international cooperation, and labor exploitation on Mars.
Danielle Poole, a veteran astronaut, takes command of Happy Valley, a Mars base run by American, Soviet, and North Korean governments along with tech company Helios, reflecting the series' focus on international collaboration in space.
A newly introduced character, Miles, a former oil driller, represents the blue-collar workers at the Mars base and puts the theme of worker exploitation under the spotlight.
Space investment, represented by an asteroid with valuable mineral deposits brought to Mars' orbit for mining, is a prominent theme of season 4, representing the concept of space capitalism.
The season faces characters with the tensions between personal ambitions and the overall mission in space, adding to the complexity of interpersonal relationships and the plot itself.