For All Mankind makes a persuasive case as the best space drama since The Expanse—not because the two shows are interchangeable, but because it grows from an alternate-history space race into a story about life and power beyond Earth. The ranking is a matter of taste, not a measurable fact; the comparison rests on their ambition, politics and evolving view of human expansion into space.
What is the Apple TV space drama?
It is For All Mankind, the alternate-history series that asks what might have happened if the Soviet Union had reached the Moon before the United States. Rather than treating space exploration as a short-lived contest, the show follows the consequences of that changed history across decades, as missions and settlements push farther from Earth.
| # | Preview | Product | Price | |
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| 1 |
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For All Mankind: Season One (Blu-ray) | $28.99 | Buy on Amazon |
| 2 |
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For All Mankind (2019) - Season 02 | $32.99 | Buy on Amazon |
| 3 |
![For All Mankind (The Criterion Collection) [4K UHD]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51LVGzsjvqL._SL160_.jpg)
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For All Mankind (The Criterion Collection) [4K UHD] | $39.24 | Buy on Amazon |
| 4 |
![For All Mankind (The Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51fxTNziU8L._SL160_.jpg)
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For All Mankind (The Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray] | $26.73 | Buy on Amazon |
| 5 |
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For All Mankind: Season 2 Blu-Ray | $41.41 | Buy on Amazon |
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Season five premiered on March 27, 2026, and its ten episodes were released weekly through May 29. Apple’s season description picks up years after the Goldilocks asteroid heist, with a thriving Happy Valley colony on Mars and mounting tension between its residents and Earth’s governments. Apple TV Press announced the season and schedule on January 21, 2026.
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#1 Best Overall
Why compare it with The Expanse?
Both series make space more than a backdrop: it is where human communities, competing interests and political power take shape. But they approach that idea from opposite directions. For All Mankind begins with a changed version of twentieth-century history and traces how a more intense space race could reshape society. The Expanse starts in a future where people already live across the solar system.
The Expanse is based on James S. A. Corey’s book series. TIME characterizes it as a space opera about the politics of a colonized solar system, a description that captures why it remains a natural point of comparison for a show increasingly concerned with off-Earth communities. Apple’s listing for The Expanse identifies its book-series origin, while TIME’s science-fiction television list offers its editorial framing.
Rank #2
- This thrilling “what if” take on history from Golden Globe nominee and Emmy Award winner Ronald D. Moore spotlights the high-stakes lives of NASA astronauts and their families in a global space race that never ended.
Where the shows differ
| What to compare | For All Mankind | The Expanse |
|---|---|---|
| Starting point | An alternate history shaped by a different outcome in the space race. | A future in which human settlements and political tensions already span the solar system. |
| Direction of travel | Follows the expansion of space programs and settlements from early exploration toward Mars and farther destinations. | Centers on an established, colonized solar system and the interests of its off-Earth communities. |
| Political frame | Institutions and governments respond to a space program developing along a different historical path. | Political conflict plays out among communities and powers across the solar system. |
| Science-fiction emphasis | Alternate-history speculation and the evolution of space exploration. | Future-facing space opera. TIME describes it as a story about navigating the politics of a colonized solar system. |
| Structure and scope | A generation-spanning drama, attentive to how people and institutions change over time. | A complete six-season series; Universal Pictures At Home lists the complete series at 47 hours and 9 minutes. |
Space.com’s May 1, 2026 feature draws a connection between For All Mankind’s expanding Mars and solar-system setting and The Expanse. It is a critical interpretation, not evidence that the shows are the same or that every viewer will prefer one.
Does For All Mankind deserve the “best since” label?
It does if the measure is a space drama’s ability to turn exploration into a sustained story about what people build, who controls it and how power shifts as humanity moves farther from Earth. The show’s alternate-history premise gives those questions a long runway: each era inherits the ambitions and consequences of the one before it. Its fifth-season Mars tensions bring the comparison with The Expanse into especially clear focus, while preserving a distinct historical path.
Rank #3
- For All Mankind (Criterion Collection)
- Product type: PHYSICAL MOVIE
- Brand: The Criterion Collection
That case is not a consensus ranking. The cited sources provide no viewership figures or quantitative measure that could establish a “best” series. The more useful distinction is what kind of story you want: a speculative history of spaceflight’s growth, or a space opera set amid established settlements and solar-system politics.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How to watch and what is confirmed
Apple presents For All Mankind as an Apple TV series. Its January 2026 announcement confirms the season-five rollout; check Apple TV in your region for current access details. The Expanse’s Apple listing identifies Amazon Prime as its global airing platform, but availability can vary by territory. Universal Pictures At Home lists The Expanse: The Complete Series as seasons one through six, with a 2023 release year and a 47-hour-9-minute runtime; that listing shows a digital purchase option and does not establish physical-edition availability.
Quick Recap
Best Value
Rank #4
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