NASA Vending Machine
Hosted by Dan Moren and Jason Snell
We came to podcast “For All Mankind” — and “Star City,” too. Dan Moren and Jason Snell have the right stuff to watch Apple TV’s space dramas and break them down episode by episode. Dramatic things are always happening around vending machines, if you didn’t notice.
Podcast art by Thom Zahler.
49 “The Wolves” (Star City S1E8)
It’s the end! Guess who’s coming back to Earth? Guess more times! Sergei’s loyalty to the Chief Designer is put to the test. Lyudmilla tries to get the upper hand on the (new) Chief Designer! Irina and Tania… appear! It’s a farewell to our Soviet comrades for now, but is there more to come? (We don’t know, but we sure hope so.)
Previous Episodes
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July 2, 202648 “Plow Deep” (Star City S1E7)
Everyone is sad in 1971. Belicova is sad about Sasha. The engineers are sad about the Chief Designer. Lyudmilla is sad about Petrovsky. Sergei is sad about his career prospects, but never about math. The Chief Designer is sad about certain people interrupting him from pulling beets. Irina is sad about a lot of stuff. And then, in the last moments… is that a flash of hope? Maybe, but it’s probably just gonna make people sad next week.
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June 25, 2026
47 “Awl in a Sack” (Star City S1E6)
The aftermath of the discovery of the mole and the secret space launch is all over this episode. The Chief Designer and Lyudmilla finally have it out. Tania ponders her future, and Irina ponders it too. And there’s some serious drama at Mission Control and on the Venera probe headed to Venus.
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June 18, 2026
46 “Bite Your Elbow” (Star City S1E5)
This one’s a banger. The KGB has got the mole… or do they? What will happen to the Chief Designer’s risky mission to Venus? Is Lyudmilla out of control or does she have the upper hand? And Brezhnev makes a surprise appearance!
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June 11, 2026
45 “Dark Forest” (Star City S1E4)
The fallout of the lunar-mission accident is wide reaching. We learn how a Star City resident can be compromised by those diabolical Americans. Tania is concerned about her husband’s fidelity, but nobody believes her. A newly arrived scientist follows the sound of hammering to discover her unlikely destiny with the inner solar system. And as the tables may be turning on Lyudmilla, her young protegé Irina makes a discovery that could crack the case wide open—or put her in serious danger.
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June 4, 2026
44 “Bad Dancer” (Star City S1E3)
Time for another Soviet mission to the moon, but this one runs into some surprising trouble. Valya just wants to make Tania happy, but a trip to Moscow for a concert ends up complicating matters. And Irina discovers how awkward it is to meet some of her subjects in real life—but hey, you live in Star City, so it can’t be that much of a coincidence, can it?
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May 28, 2026
43 “A Bear on a Chain” (Star City S1E2)
The “Star City” premiere continues with a surprise bear, a tour of western European capitals, the Chief Designer’s secret basement workshop, and a beautiful Soviet wedding. Also, we continue to spot connections to characters in “For All Mankind”… we think.
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May 28, 2026
42 “The Eyes” (Star City S1E1)
We dial back the clock to the 1960s and travel to the Soviet Union for the first episode of “Star City,” the new “For All Mankind” spin-off on Apple TV. Cold war cars, secretive Soviets, a frenemy in the surveillance typing pool, surprising Cosmonaut pranks, and the difficulty of memorizing your propaganda speech are all topics of conversation!
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May 28, 202641 “This Land Is Our Land” (S5E10)
The penultimate season reaches its conclusion! Who doesn’t make it? We were surprised. Does it all hold together? What characters were done dirty? What’s that glowing on the horizon? And what’s with that Soviet DOS prompt? We break it all down. And stay tuned, because our next episode(s) are all about the “For All Mankind” spin-off, “Star City,” which we like a lot!
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May 21, 2026
40 “Sons and Daughters” (S5E9)
That escalated quickly! It’s time to discuss the action-packed penultimate episode of the penultimate season of “For All Makind.” The M-6’s desire to take back control of Happy Valley has some serious, violent consequences. Alex proves to be a whiz when it comes to duct tape. And meanwhile, on Titan, there’s some navigating, scanning, and maybe an amazing discovery or perhaps a catastrophic accident? It’s “For All Mankind,” it could really be either one.
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May 14, 2026
39 “Brave New World” (S5E8)
Now we’re in the thick of it. Avery is forced to grapple with her family history as she prepares for some serious duty. Miles is forced into extreme action to protect Happy Valley long enough to get some help. Polivanov and Boyd decide to take a terrifying joy ride. Kelly really leans into the whole “Ed Baldwin’s daughter” thing. And it’s a bad day to be a Padres fan, but what else is new?