Turning Point: The Bomb and the Cold War Episode Rating Graph

During World War II, the US begins to work on a top-secret project that results in the atomic bombings on Japan — and a global conflict lasting decades.

As communism takes off in Russia and China, Joseph Stalin begins his ruthless reign and the Soviet Union enters an era of terror.

Preparing for war against the Soviet Union, the US starts to test thermonuclear weapons. The CIA forms and interferes with global politics.

The US and Soviet Union get caught in a nuclear arms race. A wall divides Berlin. John F. Kennedy looks for a peaceful solution after a crisis in Cuba.

With both sides planning for the worst-case scenario, Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev find common ground. Tragedy strikes after a nuclear disaster.

The USSR's grasp on Eastern Europe weakens as the Berlin Wall comes down and the Communist Party mounts a coup against a prominent Soviet Union leader.

A new Russian leader emerges, and the republics seek independence. As the Soviet Union dissolves, several powers sign a landmark treaty on nuclear arms.

Russia struggles to find a national identity as Vladimir Putin comes to power. With the Cold War in the rearview, a war on terror begins.

Russia invades Georgia and Ukraine, putting Putin under intense scrutiny. While disinformation thrives, threats of nuclear war persist.