The first episode of Star City quickly establishes its alternate-history setting. The series starts with Soviet officials taking a young woman, Lyudmilla, to see a historic event as Alexei Leonov becomes the first man to walk on the Moon. The Soviet flag is proudly flying on the surface of the moon, and the balance of power in the world changes overnight. This is an interesting alternate history in which the USSR wins the space race.
But the mysterious Chief Designer has bigger plans in store as the world celebrates. He dreams of extending Soviet exploration to Venus and Mars but government officials are more concerned with political victories than scientific progress. Their competing priorities expose the tension between innovation and state control that drives the episode.
Suspicion Within Star City
Within months, a new problem arises after the lunar triumph. Lyudmilla told the Chief Designer that somehow the Americans had got hold of secret plans for a Soviet lunar base. The papers were locked up tight, which meant that the leak had to come from someone working inside Star City proper.
There is a sense of paranoia in the whole episode because of the threat of a mole. Within the Soviet system, trust becomes almost impossible, every conversation suddenly dangerous.
At the same time the Soviet program is re-directed towards sending the first woman to the Moon. Yana is the one who stands out, a gutsy and very capable cosmonaut who immediately makes herself more than capable than a lot of her male counterparts during parachute training exercises.
Irina’s Intro Changes Everything
The episode also introduces Irina Morozova who begins working in the monitoring department. She works by eavesdropping on cosmonauts through bugs placed in their apartments. It’s a chilling reminder of the Soviet Union’s obsession with control and constant surveillance.
Watching Yana, Irina’s friend Vika learns something disturbing. It is officially recorded that Yana failed to disclose that she had a brother called Ivan, who is allegedly involved in an underground publication criticizing the state. Therefore, Yana is immediately suspected.
The Chief Designer, however, does not believe Yana to be a traitor, despite the accusations. But he still believes she’s been framed, even when he hears her coerced confession under torture. But his opinion is of little importance once Moscow removes her from the mission, replacing her with Anastasia Belikova, a politically acceptable cosmonaut, with far less experience.
The decision is a devastating blow to the team. Yana is obviously the most powerful pilot in attendance, while Anastasia is viewed as little more than a government puppet.
Pressure mounts ahead of launch
Tensions mount and the Chief Designer’s health begins to fail under the strain. The already precarious situation surrounding the mission gets even more complicated when he collapses with heart problems.
In the meantime, Irina starts to delve into Yana’s past. She finds out that Yana has not spoken to her family in years, in direct contradiction to the charges against her. Irina is determined to get to the bottom of things. She is shocked to discover that Yana’s brother died as a child, which means the accusations against her might have been fabricated.
This discovery puts Irina in a dangerous position. Lyudmilla soon notices Irina’s growing curiosity and starts to doubt her loyalty to the state. Then comes one of the darkest moments of the episode.
Lyudmilla takes Irina to Yana herself and orders her to kill the accused cosmonaut. Irina can’t bring herself to do it, leaving Lyudmilla to kill Yana herself. The scene captures beautifully the fear and brutality behind the polished image of the Soviet Union.
Moon Mission Catastrophe
Political turmoil on Earth is brewing, but the lunar mission has its own crisis. But during the journey the suit of Anastasia is damaged and dangerous levels of carbon dioxide are rising. She pushes on, unwilling to abandon the mission, even in the face of life-threatening circumstances.
The Chief Designer gets up from his sickbed to help the team remotely. Thanks to engineer Sergei’s advice, Anastasia is able to relieve the pressure in her suit and makes it into the lunar lander just in time.
As Anastasia finally steps onto the Moon, she starts to deliver her carefully prepared speech to the Soviet people. But nerves get the better of her and she abandons the script entirely. In a surprising emotional moment, she refers to Yana as a patriot.
The statement causes immediate panic back on Earth, as Yana has already been executed as a suspected spy. Mission control cuts Anastasia’s transmission short, but the damage may have already been done.
Episode Review
Star City’s premiere provides a solid first chapter of political tension, emotional drama and intriguing alternate history ideas. Even if the series is connected to For All Mankind, it works perfectly fine as a standalone drama.
The atmosphere is the best thing about the episode. Each scene is laden with secrecy, surveillance and fear. The Soviet Union is depicted as both ambitious and viciously oppressive, able to turn even heroes into victims overnight.
Irina is the most interesting character so far. If she’s not the heart of the series, she’s very close to it, and her growing doubts about the system around her might be the thing that anchors the series moving forward. The mystery of the real mole inside Star City is another good long-term hook for the story.
The only thing that might put some people off is the cast’s heavy use of British accents. It’s a bit distracting for a Soviet setting initially. But, as with Chernobyl, the performances become easier to buy as the drama escalates.
All in all, the first episode does a good job of generating intrigue as an introduction to a world of paranoia, ambition and political manipulation. If the series continues to delve into these themes with the same intensity, Star City could be one of the more interesting sci-fi dramas of the year.