Netflix’s “Space Force” follows the titular agency as it brings together the greatest scientific minds and military strategists to create high-level nonsense. Season 2 finds the team reunited and following an “incident” involving American and Chinese astronauts on the Moon. Things look bleak for the space agency and their mission to Mars is in jeopardy due to budget cuts. Of course, there’s already an astronaut halfway to Mars, who now finds himself summarily abandoned (in the funniest way possible, mind you).
But General Mark Naird (Steve Carell) has it all figured out and is moving forward with his loyal underlings and fellow scientist Dr. Adrian Mallory (John Malkovich). The question is, how far do they go? Let’s take another look at the epic antics of “Space Force” Season 2. AHEAD SPOILERS.
Space Force Season 2 Recap
Season 2 opens with all of the Space Force team’s usual suspects at a government hearing. Charges are brought against Naird for an international incident involving American and Chinese astronauts and the fiasco seen in the Season 1 finale. General Kick Grabaston watches happily from the sidelines but is extremely disappointed when Naird has no d trouble. However, Space Force is put on 4 months probation and their funding is cut, leading to one of Dr. Mallory’s best outbursts yet (where he basically attacks a military Humvee!)
And so, the Mars mission is canceled for lack of funds, and an astronaut, 9 months after his flight, finds himself stuck halfway to the red planet. What makes matters worse is that he craves pizza. Meanwhile, back on Earth, Erin explores college alternatives and makes a tidy bundle using her college fund to gamble on the stock market. Despite Naird’s best efforts, his daughter decides to take a year off, apparently inspired by Mallory’s (graphic) accounts of her own college days.
Sparks also fly between Captain Angela Ali and Dr. Chan, who find themselves in a frustrating will-they-won’t-they situation. However, violent robot battles and getting stuck in an elevator prove therapeutic for their budding romance. With the budget cuts tight, Naird finally agrees to do a promo for an energy drink, and yes, it goes as badly as you might imagine. F. Tony luckily (and surprisingly!) saves the day.
Space Force Season 2 Ending: Is There An Asteroid Heading Towards Earth? Why is Team Space Force starting to sing?
The closing season is a doozy, and the final episode opens with the Space Force offices well and truly hacked. The free M&M vending machine is a nice side effect, but an American satellite falling out of orbit is not. The team huddles in the dark and realizes that their rival Chinese agencies are behind the attack. The solution? We won’t go into details, but it’s a quintessential “Naird” solution that’s silly but effective. With the threat of the satellite collapsing averted, the team is then thrilled to learn that its funding (and raises) is restored.
Season 2 ends with our favorite Space Force members celebrating in the control room. Naird introduces the massive Hawaii Telescope, the agency’s latest acquisition. As the telescope feed goes live, an ominous image emerges. A gigantic asteroid, hurtling towards Earth, grows bigger and bigger on the screen. Panicked, our heroes begin to sing about fleeing to tropical beaches.
And so, Season 2 ends on a cliffhanger that puts the fledgling agency in its most dangerous position yet. Having never dealt with an approaching asteroid, all anyone can do is watch it come closer and closer to Earth. There are no details on how long it will take to make an impact. Considering Hawaii’s telescope is ridiculously powerful, the asteroid could still be far away, which could give the agency weeks or even months before it hits.
That being said, the danger is still very real, which shows in the team’s reaction. Judging by their panic, they seem to have no idea what to do, which is why they return to Naird’s secret stressbuster – singing the suave tones of The Beach Boys’ “Kokomo”. We’ve seen the General do this before in a few stressful situations. Now it looks like his team have embraced the strategy as well and, as is often the case with Naird, even his most outrageous strategies end up working.
Are Dr Chan and Angela Ali getting together? How did Dr. Chan and Angela Ali’s romance start?
Dr. Chan and Captain Angela Ali (promoted to Major at the end of Season 2) have a hilarious adventure that literally can’t be understood even by rocket scientists. The romance begins shortly after Angela returns from a tumultuous trip to the Moon that leaves her confused and slightly unsettled. She spends hours playing the drums and keeps throwing her clothes out the window as soon as they get dirty (she calls the people who do the laundry “the real heroes”.) It’s during these confusing moments that she finds solace in Chan, and the two spend the night together at a hotel.
Chan is crazy about Angela, but miscommunication and general awkwardness lead to hilarious splurges. The two hook up for a while but then break up. A brutal robot battle between the two culminates in a fight, leading to even more goofiness. Finally, during the Chinese hack, Angela and Chan are trapped in an elevator and begin to open up to each other.
And so, at the end of Season 2, Dr. Chan and Angela Ali are no longer together. However, they both seem open to the idea, and it seems they decide to stay at Space Force because of each other (after originally planning to leave the agency).
Is Erin leaving Space Force?
Erin struggles to figure out what she wants to do with her life after her father, appalled that she’s playing with his college fund, shuts down his stock trading. After being pressured into giving a college interview, which she succeeds in convincing the interviewer that she is not ready for college, Erin then decides to take a year off. Dr. Mallory’s wild stories about his own gap year at college also fanned the fire, much to Naird’s chagrin.
Eventually, realizing that her worried father needs her to stay close, Erin decides to join the Colorado Forest Service. So she’ll likely stay nearby but not get involved in the day-to-day antics of the government space agency. However, since the Forest Service is also a government agency, we could still see Erin’s paths cross with Space Force, possibly due to some falling out between the two agencies. Ultimately, it looks like Erin won’t be hanging around Space Force facilities as much, but that’s not the last we’ve seen of her.
Read more: Is Space Force a true story?
