Apple TV+’s New Sci-Fi Series Debuts With a Perfect Rotten Tomatoes Score

Apple TV+ is getting strong early attention for its new sci-fi series Star City, which has launched with a 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes based on early reviews. The series is a spin-off of For All Mankind and is set in the same alternate history universe, but it shifts the focus to the Soviet space program during the space race.

The show is scheduled to premiere on May 29, and it explores life inside Star City, the Soviet training center tied to cosmonaut development. Unlike its parent series, this new story spends more time on political pressure, intelligence work, and life behind the Iron Curtain.

The series features Rhys Ifans as the Chief Designer, who is described as the driving force behind the Soviet space program. Anna Maxwell Martin plays Lyudmilla Raskova, who leads surveillance operations for the KGB at Star City. Agnes O’Casey appears as Irina Morozova, a new member of the surveillance department, while Adam Nagaitis plays respected cosmonaut Valya Markelov.

Other cast members include Alice Englert as Anastasia Belikova, an untested female cosmonaut, and Josef Davies as Sergei Nikulov, a young engineer working at Soviet Ground Control. Ruby Ashbourne Serkis plays Tanya Markelova, a cosmonaut’s wife dealing with life inside the restricted world of Star City. Solly McLeod, Priya Kansara, and Eadie Johnson also appear in key roles.

Early reviews have been very positive. Critics highlight the show’s serious tone and its shift away from pure space adventure into political drama and psychological tension.

Carly Lane from Collider described the series as a grounded take on the genre. She wrote, “In this expansion of the ‘For All Mankind’ universe, experience a what-if take on the global space race from the Soviet Union perspective; go behind the Iron Curtain, where it’s more dangerous on the ground than in space.”

Ryan Britt from Inverse praised the direction the show takes with its storytelling. He said, “The best decision Star City makes isn’t to copy or mimic what came before on the original series, but to carve out a completely separate path within the overall franchise.”

Other critics also pointed to the show’s slower and more serious approach. Gavin Spoors from FILMHOUNDS Magazine said, “Sometimes, and this is a compliment, you forget that this is a show about space travel, or that this is an alternate timeline.” He added that the series works best when it becomes a Cold War spy story rather than a traditional science fiction drama.

Craig Mathieson from The Age described the show as a mix of science fiction and political tension, writing, “The show is science fiction as adult Cold War drama. Freedom is always fleeting.”

Ben Rosenstock from AV Club gave a more mixed but still positive view, noting the potential of the setting and characters. He said, “There’s a lot of potential to this setting and story, especially as a refreshing counterbalance to a show that arguably lost its purpose somewhere along the way.”

Nick Schager from The Daily Beast also highlighted the show’s tone and stakes, saying it “wrings taut drama from the story of Eastern Bloc men and women trying, at great personal and moral risk, to foster innovation under the thumb of authoritarianism.”

With strong early reviews and a perfect Rotten Tomatoes score so far, Star City is already building hype before its official release. As a spin-off of For All Mankind, it expands the universe in a new direction, focusing less on space missions and more on the pressure, fear, and politics that shaped the race to the stars from the Soviet side.

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