Having been introduced to the world, the seven men of the Mercury 7 program must now travel the country to promote it, lest funds be withdrawn by a wavering government.

Having established its basic archetypes in episode 1, this second instalment runs with them as the gang are forced to travel the length and breadth of the country getting the public excited about the space program in an effort to make the government continue funding it. The only issue is, with the attention of so much press on all of them, it’s only a matter of time before these relatively unwealthy and unsophisticated men get themselves in trouble somehow.

It’s not really surprising when the issue arrives where it comes from or how it arises, but the response is something else. Seeing Nora Zehetner and Eloise Mumford act their socks off in a scene between Annie Glenn and Trudie Cooper as the men have their own discussion outside is, frankly, worth the price of admission alone, and I hope that we get to see more of both these fascinating characters going forwards.

The solution that’s arrived at, giving one media outlet exclusive access to the pilots and their families, is obviously less than ideal for some. John Glenn takes it all in stride easily enough, spouting off lines which even the journalists couldn’t write better for him. Shepard, fond of his privacy above all else and cocksure to a fault, finds his own way to navigate things and the Coopers just have to do their best to make sure their stories are straight.

Back at NASA, they’re dealing with balance of their own, as the newly minted astronauts find themselves unable to resist the delights being thrown at them from various corners which may cause conflict with certain people whose goodwill – and more importantly money – is required if the space program is to continue.

Once again there isn’t an awful lot of the actual space program stuff here, as the show chooses instead to focus on the men and their domestic lives rather than their quest. And once again it’s all very watchable for me, but how much enjoyment the average viewer will get from it depends entirely on whether that side of this story is appealing to them.

Verdict: Very much staying in the lane it carved itself in the opener, this is very much more Mercury 7: The Soap Opera than anything else. 7/10

Greg D. Smith