Abhiroop Das
Created by Ronald D. Moore, Matt Wolpert, and Ben Nedivi, Apple TV+’s science fiction series ‘For All Mankind‘ sails into its fifth season with yet another timeskip, this time bringing the world to the early 2010s. With a decade’s worth of technological advancements, Happy Valley on Mars is now a fully fledged colony with its own ecosystem as well as a distinct cultural and political landscape. However, it appears that things haven’t moved much farther back on Earth, and our lenses into that side of the story are getting diluted by the minute. Danielle “Dani” Poole, who has been a powerful narrative force for four seasons straight, is surprisingly missing from the larger ebbs and flows of this season. With no mentions of her whereabouts or any updates about her recovery from the gunshot, fans are left to wonder about how her story pans out. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Dani is Most Likely Safe and Sound Back on Earth
After surviving a gunshot wound to the chest, Dani has been mysteriously absent from the first two episodes of ‘For All Mankind’ season 5, which leaves her ultimate fate hanging. Although the simplest explanation for this is that the story is currently focused on Martian life, and Dani was last confirmed to be on Earth, this idea falls apart when we consider other characters featured this season. We have already seen characters like Aleida operating from Earth this season; chances are that there is a bigger in-narrative reason that explains Dani’s absence. Given that the present timeline is hovering somewhere around 2012, Dani should be approximately 68 years old, and while we have no confirmation of her demise within this period, there are no mentions of her being alive either, which only furthers the ambiguity.
As it stands, the most likely explanation for Dani’s prolonged absence from the story is that she has left the world of space science behind. Despite her enduring dynamic with Ed, the two ultimately make vastly different choices, and if the fifth season is centered around what are likely Ed’s final years, it makes sense for the Earth-side of things to take a backseat. However, as it has been confirmed that Dani will make a reappearance in the show, there is likely a plotline in the works that can bridge her side of the story with Ed’s. In all likelihood, the upcoming Titan expedition, combined with Ed’s desire to fly once again, is likely a thread that can explain how the story ties back once again. However, just like Margo, it is possible that Dani might have a very different perspective on life now, decades after her miracle recovery.
Krys Marshall Initially Wanted to End Dani’s Story With Season 4
While numerous reports have confirmed that actor Krys Marshall will be a part of the fifth season of ‘For All Mankind,’ we still don’t know when she will appear, or whether it is as a guest actor or in a recurring capacity. In a conversation with Screen Rant, Marshall briefly commented on what direction her character takes in this season, specifically stating that fans are going to love this question. While she didn’t hint at how Ed and Dani’s bond changes this season, it will most likely be a dramatic highlight nonetheless. Furthermore, fans can expect Marshall to also rely on prosthetics to pull off the look of a much older Dani, just like her co-stars Joel Kinnaman and Wrenn Schmidt.
Notably, this isn’t the first time that Marshall has left fans guessing about the state of her character. Notably, the near-death sequence in season 4 is a direct result of her decision to play around with Dani’s popularity and let it add to the show’s stakes. In an Entertainment Weekly interview, she explained, “Before season 4 began, I sat down with Ben Nedivi and Matt Wolpert (showrunners), and I was like, ‘I have an idea about season 4. Danielle has to die.” From season 3 onwards, she had been keeping tabs on the pulse of her audience, and soon realized that her character was a fan favorite. As such, she described killing off Dani as “the gut punch of the century,” and though the decision was overturned days before the scripts were finalized, the idea never quite went away.
“I think it would’ve been too tragic,” Marshall opined, reflecting on the alternative season finale where Dani dies, adding, “It felt right in the grand scheme of our world to continue to keep our eyes on the horizon and believe that tomorrow can be brighter than today.” When it comes to the fifth season, however, Marshall is a lot more playful, and even mentioned that her character can either survive the show or die “in the first 11 minutes.” Based on the story so far, the latter is not the case, which means that we might have a lot of Dani’s arc left in the tank.
Read More: For All Mankind: Does Ed Baldwin Have Cancer? Is He Dying?
You must be logged in to post a comment.