Summary
“House Divided” is quite a jargon-heavy installment with plenty of political drama to wade through too, but after a slow start, the episode quickly builds momentum.
Things are starting to get rather political in Season 4 of For All Mankind. The Apple TV+ series focuses on the growing tensions between the Russians and the Americans on both Earth and Mars in the show’s latest installment, “House Divided.” The Russians demand that one of their own stands trial for their crimes back on Earth, leading to another uncomfortable standoff in Episode 4.
Margo’s storyline seems to be progressing now too, whilst the clear division on Happy Valley leads to much drama and an emotional end.
For All Mankind Season 4 Episode 4 Recap
“House Divided” opens with the fight that causes all of this friction. Astronaut Svetlana argues with Helios worker Vasily outside of Happy Valley. The political argument turns violent and Svetlana pushes Vasily to the ground. His suit tears in the process and precious oxygen leaks out.
Ed and Danielle discuss this argument later that day. Vasily may have survived the assault, but he is now unconscious, still fighting for his life in a coma. Tensions are rising, the Russians are even turning on one another. Danielle wants to make a bold statement and confines Svetlana to her base for 60 days without pay.
What is Svetlana’s punishment?
Svetlana enters Danielle’s office to take her punishment, but the Soviets have beaten Danielle to the punch. They want Svetlana to return to Russia, where she will face a trial for her assault and crimes against a patriot of the Soviet Union. This unique request is fuelled by Vasily’s ties to the new regime.
Danielle talks with NASA about the Soviet’s request and all this political unrest. She doesn’t feel comfortable handing over Svetlana, worried about her colleague’s safety in the Russian’s hands. Eli agrees to speak with Star City’s Irina Morozova, to sort this disagreement out right away.
Eli’s conversation with Irina doesn’t go according to plan though. Irina demands that Svetlana be returned to them, having broken Soviet laws. Eli downplays the situation and states that Danielle is handling it. In response, Irina threatens to remove the nation from the M-7 alliance.
Irina updates her Star City team about the American’s refusal to hand over Svetlana. She then announces that the Russians will not be reactivating the asteroid program until the error has been analyzed and solved. Margo is tasked with reading through the accident report to find the very reason why the mission failed.
What is Miles’ plan to make more money on Mars?
Meanwhile, on Mars, Miles and Ilya continue their illegal business together. Miles suggests selling Mars rocks back on Earth for extra money. Ilya is against the idea though, believing it to be too risky, involving more and more people in their operation. Miles decides to go it alone.
He asks Sam for her help retrieving more of these special Mars rocks. Sam refuses to help, she is more interested in the growing tensions between the astronauts and the maintenance workers. This is highlighted by the Svetlana and Vasily situation. She thinks that Danielle isn’t punishing Svetlana properly. Sam even confronts Danielle about the matter.
Tensions only worsen when the Soviets change the computer systems into Russian. Danielle is then informed that the Russians no longer recognize her as their commander. The divide is growing larger by the day. The Americans plan their response, upping their security and vigilance. President Al Gore orders Eli to resolve these issues immediately back on Earth.
Miles takes matters into his own hands and hires a suit so he can collect Mars rocks on his own. He gets overconfident though and ends up sliding down into a ravine. Luckily, Sam comes to his rescue, saving Miles before his oxygen runs out. There’s clearly some sexual tension between the two, but Sam is still angry with Miles’ stupidity.
What caused the failure of the asteroid mission?
Back at Star City, Margo finally finds the fault that caused the mission failure. She has found a manufacturing error in the asteroid anchor bolts, which were designed and built by the Russians. They were not caught by quality control either. The man in charge, Kirill, had tried to cover up this mistake, but Margo found his error and ratted him out. Irina fires Kirill for his lies. She thanks Margo, impressed with her new worker’s efficiency. Margo is later told that Kirill was taken by the KGB for his crimes.
How does For All Mankind Season 4 Episode 4 end?
As the episode draws to a close, NASA manages to solve their Svetlana issue. They decide to use India as a neutral country in the M-7 disagreement. Svetlana is to be taken to India to stand trial instead. Ed is of course against this decision, desperate for Svetlana to stay on Mars.
Danielle argues with Ed over his naivety. She admits that he is blinded by his emotions, stating that the same thing happened with Gordo and Danny. Danielle refuses to change her mind, Svetlana is to return to Earth immediately.
“House Divided” concludes with Svetlana leaving Happy Valley. She makes her tearful goodbyes with Ed and they kiss one another for the very last time. Ed then walks Svetlana through Happy Valley, past the angry employees. After Svetlana’s departure, Ed intentionally barges into Danielle. Does this mean the end of their long-lasting friendship?
What did you think of For All Mankind Season 4 Episode 4? Comment below.
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