I think that the rubber compound on the 4 Season sounds like it's made to grip better in the cold, and I can speculate on a few things, having just switched over from 700x28 gators to 700x28 GP4S tires:
-They're at LEAST 3 placebos more comfortable
-They corner about 5 placebos faster
-They are definitely narrower, though I haven't measured them
-I've gotten 1 flat from a teensy weensy wire staple that worked its way through the 4S, that in a few hundred miles, while I went a looooong time without flatting a gatorskin at all... could be coincidence, though. I used the gatorskins without incident for city riding while the 4S has been used son the shoulders of country roads... which is better or worse I am not sure I can speak to
-The 4S in the time I've used it has gotten a few distinct tire cuts, while my gators didn't get any in the time I had them
-The 4S is definitely about 1 placebo slower, and 2 placebos more "supple" (whatever that means)