In For All Mankind Season 5 Episode 6, the situation on Mars is pretty dire—hostages, MPKs searching for weapons stockpiles to try to reclaim the base from its citizen uprising, a totally packed medbay where loved ones wait for news—and it’s even worse for the crew of Sojourner-Titan out there, isolated, with no control room to guide them. At the center of it all is a small group of people who, as a protest turned to violence, took advantage of the chaos and took over. They have no idea what comes next, but they do know they’re desperate for two things: Stop the automation. And free Mars.
That second demand—freedom—sounds so simple and is supposed to be a human right. But, once lost, it’s never easy to regain. And once there’s an opportunity to violently overthrow oppressors, seizing the moment doesn’t always mean winning. In fact, far too often, it means a harsher crackdown will follow. (See also: How we found Happy Valley at the beginning of this season following last season’s worker revolt and Goldilocks heist.) In the moment, it’s also quite easy for things to spiral maddeningly, hopelessly out of control. Especially when there’s no clear path forward, just an anxious group of ordinary people with their fight-or-flight response stuck in fight mode because they have no other choice.
Desperate times call for desperate measures. But what happens when desperation leads to more desperation, and the only way to maintain your tiny gains, which are actually nothing but really also everything, is to keep the threat of more desperation, and more violence, and more chaos alive? Through Gerardo and the small group of Marsies trying to maintain what little power they’ve managed to gain, For All Mankind Season 5 Episode 6 asks us exactly those questions. Things are very bad in this hour. They’re tense (to say the least). And all the people holding the weapons are even more tense, on edge, bracing for full-blown war in the name of defense.
For as prepared to do battle as everyone is, for as much as the MPKs are as trigger-happy as ever, and for as much as every intense standoff featuring Gerardo, Ronnie, Malka, or countless others absolutely vibrating with the need to stay in charge by any means necessary, there are no more major casualties. Why? The people keep the major weaponry out of the hands of both the police force and their most riled-up comrades. Put another way, the “peacekeepers” don’t keep the peace—the very same people drowning in this mess do. Because the way to protect and serve isn’t shooting people or rounding them up when they don’t comply, and the way to peace isn’t war. It’s deescalation, negotiation, and seeing each other as human. Capable leaders go a long way, too.
For All Mankind Season 5 Episode 6 doesn’t magically resolve everything. And although the hour places a major emphasis on cooler heads prevailing as the only way to move forward, there’s no delusion that any of that will be easy. In fact, back on Earth, President Bragg absolutely refuses to “negotiate with terrorists.” So, in a stunning sequence, the hour closes with a sense of doom. Propaganda forces the various citizens back on Earth to see the Marsies just looking for control of their own destinies as terrorists, unreasonable, ungrateful…monsters. And on Mars, there will now be a total embargo of any aid.
We’ve seen this all before; we’ve seen what desperate people can do, that understanding the why doesn’t always mean that the ends could ever justify the means. Here’s hoping fiction can figure out what the real world continues to fail miserably at.
MORE: Earlier this season, we said goodbye to Ed Baldwin.
The peacekeepers
There’s been a terrible irony to Palmer and his hyper-militarized thugs being called “peacekeepers” all along. Now, For All Mankind Season 5 Episode 6 shows us what actually working to maintain peace looks like. When Celia Boyd and Miles Dale team up, they do so as completely reluctant leaders. Miles has been trying to avoid more conflict. He’s also attempted to his friends down when they’ve been upset about things like Lee Jung-Gil’s arrest all season. And although Celia has tried to stick to doing what she knew to be the right thing, she’s not exactly been looking to take Palmer’s job or actively go out of her way to seize any kind of power. She’s tried to find justice from within a completely corrupt justice system, avoiding crossing major lines and following the rules—not hanging out with the rule-breakers.
Mireille Enos and Toby Kebbell have some really interesting scenes together in this hour, but the easy favorite is the one where Miles recruits Celia in the first place. Celia puts on such a good show for the other MPKs, it could almost throw off some viewers and make them actually think she’s all in on the unnecessary use of force. But only almost. Enos just…doesn’t play the character in quite the same nervous, apologetic way she has all season here, so definitely after a second glance—if not the first one—it should be plainly obvious that Celia is doing some major acting for others’ benefit. And it’s great, layered work from Enos.
Not to mention, it makes for some excellent TV. No, it’s not only because Celia decks the sh** out of Miles, right in the gut. (But, yeah, that helps!) It’s an instructive moment. Because, for Celia, the only way to remove all doubt that she’s on the side of the cops is to attack a civilian who’s just out, claiming to mind his own business. We should sit with that, and feel as uncomfortable as possible, for a few moments. But, afterwards, Miles’ griping after the guys are gone, coupled with Celia telling him he’s lucky he didn’t get worse, is a nice, little moment of comedic relief. Both things can exist alongside one another—that’s life, and that’s why this all works.
Then, there’s Miles’ actual request for Celia to come with him. After staying under the radar for so long, he’s finally back in the game of trying to lead, and the first thing he does is reach out to one of the only people—if not the only person—from the other side that’s reasonable and trustworthy. It’s the right move, probably the only move. So, from that point on, it doesn’t matter that Miles has messed up more times than we’d probably like to admit. Right now, he’s one of the heroes this place needs.
Kebbell has such an understated, yet meaningful, reaction to Celia saying it’s “a bit late” for keeping people from being hurt. Miles knows—he gets it—and it bothers him. But he’s trying so hard to keep a level head for himself before he reluctantly goes to try to convince his friends to calm down. And Celia is so, so conflicted about going to MOCC. This is a big moment. She sees that with clear eyes and is just…wary of going forward. Luckily for Miles, and everyone else, she does.
That doesn’t mean everything is suddenly all “back to normal” just because these two characters join up. Although the Marsies are very happy to see Miles, they don’t trust Celia. She’s now on the other side of things, miserable, a gun pressed into her shoulder, having to prove her worth as an individual to people who don’t see her as one. At all. It’s the same way the news back home discusses the Sons and Daughters of Mars, the same way the MPKs see all of them, and the same way the terrified people all around the room (understandably) do.
The way Miles deals with his friends’ anxiety and lack of trust in For All Mankind Season 5 Episode 6 is truly fascinating. He’s smart about it, very conciliatory. And he has the ability to connect with people—Gerardo in particular—on their level, based on who he actually is, both as a friend and as someone who’s invested in Happy Valley the same as they have. He also leans into that hero myth they’ve built up around him. Miles projects strength and confidence—makes everyone believe he can fix it; he knows what to do!
But…we know, both from the way he hesitated to get involved in the first place and through Kebbell’s performance of that restrained, buried sense of urgency, that Miles doesn’t know what he’s doing. He doesn’t have all the answers, anymore than anyone else does. So, the overt way Chacon portrays Gerardo being at the end of his rope is reflected in what Kebbell does here with how Miles hides it well, yet has all the same feelings. He very clearly knows what happens with a single wrong move, so he’s determined to get through to Gerardo and the others. Because he has to. There’s no other option. And he can’t show how worried he is because then, things will really go downhill.
The tension during Miles and Celia’s initial arrival in MOCC is as much a presence in the room as any of the people there. It’s also as well done as at any other point in For All Mankind Season 5 Episode 6. And when that tension breaks, Celia’s deep sigh before telling Gerardo she’s “on the side of everyone calming the f*** down” says it all. From there, things begin to shift enough for the group to try to figure out a way to keep the situation from getting even worse. That, however, is a difficult problem to solve. If it was easy, anyone could do it.
From that point on, there are still arguments to be head—the biggest one being that, no, these people can’t go back to how things used to be like Celia suggests in a conversation that gets the “old,” more passionate, Miles to come out to play—but now, at least, everyone can work toward a common goal. That goal is keeping weapons of war away from the people who were supposed to be tasked with keeping the peace. Again, I can’t stress the irony—or the parallel to the real world—there enough.
Our takeaway? One of many should be that those who are committed to peace have to work together, regardless of if they have all the answers. They can argue; they can have setbacks. Additionally, they can—and should—even recognize they don’t have all the answers. But they have to be committed, and they have to try to stay calm. (Easier said than done.)
“I might lose you”
When I think about this series, I don’t necessarily think “recent high school graduates falling in love. Let’s ship it!” But, considering how poorly things went when we last had a younger generation as a major part of the story (Danny and Jimmy Stevens, anyone?), I’m not necessarily opposed to this sort of arc either. I mean, as a general rule, I love my ships on most of my other shows. Not to mention, Sean Kaufman and Ruby Cruz play the buildup to that little medbay first kiss so just…innocently, sweetly, and a little bit awkwardly. As a result of all the above, it’s perfectly spot on.
There’s also a real value in putting something, anything, positive and light into an episode like For All Mankind Season 5 Episode 6 to help break up all the heaviness. And these kids, who have known Mars as their home for most of their lives, are the future. If everyone’s fighting over this place and its resources, it’s them—this—they’re really fighting for. Additionally, maybe more importantly than all of the above, it’s the exact same stumbling, vulnerable lack of experience we see here that put them and everyone else in danger in the first place. That’s not a criticism of them leaking the automation plans without any idea how bad things could get if they did—much less any kind of harm mitigation plan. It’s actually a defense.
Because these are just two people who are so young, who are going to make mistakes, who are going to need the older generation to help them see the obvious. But their hearts are in a good place, and at least they’re willing to take a chance. That’s true of both their personal stuff and within the context of the bigger Free Mars picture. If their parents’ generation are leaving them in a world (in worlds?) where things as bad as they are and are so close to the worst case scenario while trying to gain full control of Happy Valley, how could we have ever expected kids to not mess up? Because that’s what they are, really. Just kids.
…and one of those kids never knew his dad, had a complicated relationship with the grandfather that just died, has a massive legacy to live up to, and has got to be terrified of losing his mom while she’s on the Titan mission. All of this is happening while everything is a disaster here at home. So, to my earlier point: In so much darkness, people need light and a reminder that what they’re fighting for is actually worth fighting for.
MORE: Wonder if Alex and Lily have compatible blood types like Alex’s parents did…
“…problem on Mars.”
This series has told us, since the beginning, that space is a fickle, risky b**ch. And that’s…with a functioning mission control. But with the Happy Valley communication systems down, Sojourner-Titan and Kosmos-1 are in a much, much more dire situation that the people on Mars despite being so, so far away. These people are just…out there in the great, big unknown with nothing but the vast emptiness of space and each other.
Sojourner can’t reach anybody back on Mars when they try—all they hear is static—and when they finally hear another voice, it’s from the crew of Kosmos-1 informing them that something bad is happening back home. In this way, For All Mankind Season 5 Episode 6 reminds us that we’re all far more connected than we realize. What happens in one nation (or in the case of this series on one planet) can have a ripple effect that goes beyond our wildest dreams.
Right after Gerardo orders all communication systems to be shut down, that’s when we see that tiny ship alone out there in the darkness. Once the crew learns about the “anarchists” and the “hostage situation” with no additional details, we’re left with that profile shot of Cynthy Wu, Kelly’s fear for her son’s safety incredibly clear. And although the bulk of the storyline takes place on Mars, every time we return to the mission, there’s that horrible desperation. There’s nothing Kelly can do, as a mom, to protect Alex where she is. It’s possible she’s just now realizing what being that far away and on a trajectory to continue expanding the distance is actually like.
Back at Helios’ Mars headquarters, Dev’s pacing around—also worried about Alex above any and every other person on the planet, despite their recent falling out—and Aleida is facing desperation of her own. She feels responsible for these people. It’s her willingness to be so open and vulnerable about that, along with the sheer dumb luck of facing the right Marsies first, that gets her into MOCC and in charge in a way that only someone like her can be.
As Aleida talks her way back into mission control, Coral Peña brings a raw sincerity to what is one of the most human moments of the hour. Nobody holding those weapons wants to hurt her, and she’s not trying to fight them. They know she’s not their enemy…but what if. It’s mutual care and concern for others that breaks through all the chaos so the Marsies can trust her enough to let her pass. Then, immediately upon getting in there and seeing the situation for her own eyes, braced for the worst, she rips on Miles and Gerardo. (Get you a Helios boss who can do both.)
She reaches that place after Miles has already steadied Gerardo slightly so she doesn’t see him at his worst—when he’s most likely to do something irrational if pressed the wrong way—but I’m not even sure Aleida would care if he was still a complete wild card. She’s a survivor. She can survive this, too. And nobody knows the ins and outs of running a massive operation like a Mars colony, much less the Titan mission, the way she does. So, she gets everything up and running and puts people who know what they’re doing back at their stations. All’s well that…eh. It’s not over. But this is a start.
MORE: A couple decades ago, Aleida survived the attack on Johnson Space Center.
More For All Mankind Season 5 Episode 6 reactions
- There are a number of times in this episode when Gerardo kind of snaps or, maybe more accurately, blows up. As a general rule, he’s not himself because of the stress. All that pent up anger and helplessness finally explodes out of him in short, little bursts because things are so wildly out of control right now. However. When he yells at Governor Polivanov to STFU? Justified, perfectly normal, 100% support that. Guy is so freakin annoying! There at the beginning, especially! Like, seriously, holler at him more!
- Same goes for pistol whipping him when he is so condescending, asking who’s in charge. HIT HIM HARDER.
- “What’s the plan, Gerardo?” “What do you mean? Stop the automation.” “How?” Such lovely timing from Salvador Chacon and Tess Lina here. Those long pauses are almost unbearable and do such an excellent job of showing how in over their heads the SDM are. And Gerardo being a leader by default doesn’t mean he has a clue what to do. That’s not an indictment of the character. It’s just realistic. When something matters this much, expecting people to step up in the heat of the moment doesn’t mean the people who are willing to do so recognize just how difficult that will be.
- “Everybody just…be calm. Ok?” Says the decidedly not calm Gerardo.
- “Anarchists.” Ok then.
- Love the way Aleida shakes her head while it just…hangs after she hears the protests turned violent.
- “That room? Controls every critical system on this base. Power, life support, communications, not to mention the Titan mission. Do they not understand that?” So much emotion in Peña’s voice here, and it’s pretty telling that she raises her voice when she gets to the part about Titan. She came here for this. Those people are depending on her, and however afraid she may be for her own safety, this is what matters most. They are.
- The Pitt: Mars Edition. (As in, that medbay is packed.)
- “He’s angry, like all of us.” Yeah, that part. And that profile shot of Toby Kebbell is such a stunner. Something as simple as looking down and closing his eyes can reveal such a bone weary exhaustion with all of this. Then, there’s how he works his jaw…
- There is literally no reason to tase someone after they’re already cuffed. Excessive use of force. Period.
- “Uh, I’m a peacekeeper. Idiot.” What a line reading from Enos.
- “Nobody asked you to speak, F—face.”
- “Come on, you know me. I could use the help.” Celia’s little half smile? Adorable. Then, there’s how she tries to stay casual/tough/like she’s still doing the job about it, all “all right. But watch your step, Miles.”
- “I think maybe you ought to change before we go there.” “Oh, yeah.” And now a real smile and that little laugh after she notices her uniform??? This is sweet, somehow? Not in a shippy way at all…but still. Sweet. Now, compare that to the performative so-called partnership or “friendship” from Fred…
- These shots of just the huge crowds of terrified people…wow.
- Miles and Gerardo’s hug. MY HEART.
- “Did you see what they did back there?” “You know I did. And I’m as mad about it as you are, but it wasn’t all of them. It wasn’t her.” Yeah…holding individual members of a group responsible for actions they didn’t participate in is bad, actually!
- “So, what? You’re on our side now?” “I’m on the side of everyone calming the f**k down.” I know I mentioned this up above and all, but…whew. That SIGH. And that delivery!
- “You have already hurt people.” Lenya’s, like, growling almost??? Wow.
- But also: “WOULD YOU SHUT THE F— UP?!” Exactly.
- Is that…what is that expression from Irina? Is she…is she enjoying watching Gerardo verbally beat the sh** out of Polivanov or…
- Stellar (no pun intended?) use of sound in For All Mankind Season 5 Episode 6: Miles and Gerardo just totally tuning Lenya out, so we hear them clearly while he just goes on and on like background noise. They do not care what this man has to say! (Same, as a general rule.)
- But his “these are innocent bystanders” point…is actually valid. About a lot of the people there, at least.
- Chacon really does kill it in this hour. Example 283473: That determined, hateful, frustrated look from Gerardo when Polivanov starts going off and making weakly-veiled threats. “Now, I don’t know what it’s like in your country, but in the Soviet Union, we hang terrorists for treason, and that is what will happen to you, all of you.”
- Costa Ronin’s kinda hilarious with the way Lenya flops over after Ger gets him in the gut, though.
- The training exercise is giving video game.
- “Uhhh…are you ok? That looked like it hurt.” And then, Avery thwacks him in the head harder than the others. I LOVE HER. New fave continues to bring it.
- That dead silence at Helios while everyone just…waits, and paces, and worries.
- “Ms. Vogel, if we say we want to go somewhere? …it’s your job to figure out how to get us there. Understood?” Have I mentioned how much I would die for Aleida in total boss b**ch mode? Like, she maintains all that toughness and attitude from her youth…BUT AS THE BOSS. That threat on “understood”?! Amazing.
- Utterly troubled look and heavy line reading on “weapons” from Enos. Remarkable.
- Nah. Irina’s poker face is definitely failing when they duct tape Lenya’s mouth shut. I cracked up. (And so did she, for as much as she’ll allow it…right?)
- “You need to tell me exactly where those weapons are and how to access them.” “Absolutely not.” Just dead on. “You just said, if he gets to them first, we’re F—ed.” “Yeah, but I trust you even less than I do him.” I can’t decide if I want to be like, “girl, BFFR” or “yeah, Celia’s a real one.” So, somehow, both?
- “Then what? Back to the way things were? They can never run this base again. Not Palmer, not the governor, none of them! After what they did?!” That part. Because if they do regain power, it’ll be worse. And this back and forth will never end. Just gotta be careful about who does run things going forward. The day after, so to speak, is the most precarious part.
- “No, I’m not the right person.” “Neither am I. You think I want this? I got Palmer on one side trying to storm the Alamo; I got Ger on the other trying to pull a My Lai. There’s only us two in the middle trying to stop this whole thing turning into chaos! I can’t do that alone.” Big moment for both Miles and Kebbell. It’s impossible not to feel for Miles. So much frustration with all of it, an urgency to get Celia to listen…and it all just builds as he goes. I’m also not entirely sure Kebbell breathes much there at the end either. And I like all the gesturing with the “one side” here and there and in the middle of it all.
- “I’m fine, too, by the way. Thanks for asking.” The beat before Lily’s mom makes that joke. Super timing.
- This whole conversation with Lily and her mom is so sweet. What a nice, little moment of normal mother/daughter closeness amidst the chaos. And such great vulnerability from Cruz.
- “He wouldn’t leave until he knew you were all right, even after Dima practically begged him to.” “Is he ok?” That tiny voice she uses here…
- “All I’m saying is that guys like to pretend they’re brave, but, you know, when it comes to this kind of thing, they’re scared little puppies.”
- “After what happened with the protest? I mean, I can’t get it out of my mind. They were just shooting into the crowd.” For All Mankind said F police violence.
- “The sheriff even threatened Garner here when she wouldn’t follow orders.” Well, the sheriff can get f**ked.
- Such a simple “will you help us” from Celia, such a risk just the same. (But it looks like it works out!)
- My anxiety has anxiety during this long walk to MOCC.
- “Dev? I care about Alex, too, but we have a team of people in there who are my responsibility. I have to make sure they’re ok.” Peña’s voice shakes. I break.
- …and even Dev listens to Aleida because she’s so incredibly sincere there.
- Bad enough for someone like Avery who’s only ever lived on Earth to be so dismissive of the very real limitations to Marsies’ freedoms. But for Haskell, who was part of that little graduation with Lily, Alex, and Gulsora to act like this? That’s just layers upon layers of terrible. Talk about a toxic combination: Military propaganda, with a dash of media that paints your former neighbors as monsters.
- New fave on very thin ice.
- “A conversation does involve two people telling each other things.” “Not great at that.” “Yeah, I noticed.” Oh. Now, I remember why I wanted to protect her. Look at all that insecurity and misery.
- The fact that she can confide in this guy…my heart. He’d better not let her down.
- I, too, stan Gordo and Tracy.
- “Wow. And I thought my family was fu***d up.” “Yeah. No. Sorry. I got you beat on family drama sh—.” I LOVE THAT DELIVERY.
- Ines Asserson is so good.
- Just unbearably and unfairly good physical performance from Peña as Aleida oh so cautiously slowwwwws her approach and puts her hands up.
- I’m, once again, going to have to note the silence after Aleida sends her backup away. Everything feels that much more precarious, tense, wrong with all these long silences in this hour.
- “What the F— are you doing!” GET THEM.
- “Are you a f***ing idiot? Do you realize that the longer you have these consoles unstaffed, the more danger the entire base is in, right?” THE POWER. IN. HER. VOICE. WITH. THIS. EMOTION.
- Make her the next POTUS.
- “You want to bet our lives on that?” No, seriously. Do it. Put her in charge of allll the worlds.
- Tense, tense, tense.
- “Look, I don’t know how this thing plays out, but if we treat them like this, we’re no better than the people we’re fighting.”
- “Not him. He stays tied.” LMAO. Literally.
- Oh…oh NO. I want to hate Dev so bad, so often…but…not this. No. I can’t…no.
- God GOD that closeup on Peña. Look at our Aleida, all grown up and so moved by all of this! So worried, trying so very hard not to make the people on the mission get too stressed out to be able to keep themselves safe out there in the emptiness. And the way she chooses her words with such painstaking care…Ouch.
- Wu, too! LOOK AT HER.
- Gerardo’s finally come down from that adrenaline high enough to be in the moment and get what all of this is doing to others. He never wanted this. So hard not to feel for him.
- I so do not care about this man’s “apology.” GTFO.
- “What you did was unforgivable.” THAT PART.
- “I’m not looking for forgiveness. But have you thought about who you’re getting into bed with here? Watch yourself.” I mean. She’s not “getting into bed with” anyone who bashed her in the head with a pipe, so. GTFO.
- Real talk: Why didn’t Aleida tell them not to untie Irina and not to listen to her????
- (This little exchange is fun, though.) “Thank you. For bringing some much-needed calm to the situation…” Tiny acknowledgement from Miles. Super, understated reaction from Kebbell. And then, Irina doing more of…whatever she’s doing. “I know you’re trying to find a way out of this mess, but your colleague, for all his numerous limitations, was correct, that without the willingness to follow through on your threat, you have no leverage.” My dude’s buffering. “What, do you want me to shoot you?” “We both know you’re not capable of such a thing.” “Lady, you don’t know me.” I have so many thoughts about that little nod and the way she raises her brows. Amused and impressed, are what stand out the most.
- “…we talked about this. I’m not giving out guns to every itchy trigger finger who wants one. Before I just hand over an armory, I need to know what the plan is.” OMG A SMART PERSON.
- “She’s right.” “Nobody F—ing asked you.” Now, why would you poke the bear? This man does not know who he’s messing with, I fear.
- I love that annoyed reaction, though.
- Lenya looking wrecked when he hears Miles say it clearly: No one cares enough about him for him to be useful leverage. He should be very glad these are decent people in an indecent situation, or else he’d be dead by now.
- “The people of Mars have spoken as one?” Celia: Unimpressed.
- “Would you….care for my opinion?” EVERYBODY NOW: “No.” HILARIOUS.
- Lee! Jung! Gil! What a lovely moment! I love love!
- “The people who helped you before…they need your help now.”
- That shot of the rubble is a killer.
- I hate Bragg, but that speech is beautifully written and read.
- Especially this part: “…without allies, without aid, without your home planet, let’s see how long you can survive. Today, you have made some very powerful enemies.”
- Ok but Dev…that is one HECK of an ending sequence with Bragg’s speech and Dev dragging himself back to his bunker (more or less) there…
- It’s so much more powerful to see the reaction to him before seeing the actual injuries? “Powerful enemies” right as we see his face…indeed.
- This series is forever bringing everything together beautifully like that. Just maximum impact.
Agree? Disagree? What did you think of For All Mankind Season 5 Episode 6 ‘No Sudden Moves’?
New episodes of For All Mankind release weekly on Apple TV.
