I started watching For All Mankind probably in its second season. The show was kind of like The Man in the High Castle, which explores what might have happened if the Allies lost WWII. Similarly, For All Mankind (FAM) and Star City explore a world in which the Soviet Union had advanced faster than the USA in the space race by landing a cosmonaut on the moon first. Now that the FAM series has ended, we know the ultimate path that Star City will take. But it doesn't make the story less interesting.
Star City naturally focuses on new characters. But it is also building the backstory of Irina Morozova, a spymaster who ultimately unwillingly recruited NASA's Margo Madison to work at Star City. Irina also wound up on Mars with Leonid Polivanov, the Governor of Happy Valley on Mars, who we expect will be the child of two cosmonauts, Anastasia Belikova and Sasha Polivanov.
What I find most interesting about FAM and Star City is how intertwined the stories are of the characters and how they affect each others' lives directly and indirectly. In some regards, it's like watching the Star Wars franchise. For example, the Andor series follows the origins and development of Cassian Andor, who was able to steal the plans for the Death Star in Rogue One. We know the protagonist won't survive in the long run, but we still want to watch his story and how it connects to other major characters in the larger story.
In this regard, Irina Morova is like a young Cassian Andor who is learning to be a spy. She has potential, which her boss Lyudmilla Raskova sees and exploitively develops. We know that at some point Irina crosses the wrong people and ends up in prison. Eventually, she becomes a hidden power within the Soviet Union.
We also know Sergei Nikulov's fate. He is a smart young engineer who falls in love with Margo Madison, ultimately serving as the mechanism to entrap her to work for Star City. And we know Irina will have something to do with it. It will be a treat, if the show decides to bring back Margo Madison in later seasons to fill in the missing years when she lived in Star City.
That leaves Leonid Polivanov, the son of the first Soviet woman to land on the moon, Anastasia Belikova, and Sasha Polivanov. We know that eventually Leonid will be seen as such a threat to the Soviet leadership that they ship him off to Mars to govern Happy Valley. It seems inevitable that the son of two cosmonauts would have a promising career as a cosmonaut and in Soviet politics.
Perhaps later the show will introduce Dr. Dimitri Mayakovski, who became close friends with Edward Baldwin.
Star City has the ability to introduce new stories in the world built by For All Mankind. As an audience, we will see what was happening on the Soviet side of the space race and how it intertwines with the story we already know. It fleshes out the characters who had little screen time and a large impact.
I'm looking forward to watching the upcoming seasons of Star City. I hope that each season maintains a 1:1 timeline with For All Mankind. But I think it may depend on how well the show does. If it isn't well-received, they may shorten the timeline.
Although you don't have to watch For All Mankind to enjoy Star City, I think it would add to your enjoyment. I wasn't sure I'd like Star City when it first came out. But they have done an excellent job on setting it up and developing the characters. I think the backstory would also improve your enjoyment.
