02x02 - The Bleeding Edge

[bunniefuu]

- [WOMAN]

All right, Wubbo.

Let's take a look here, buddy.

- [MAN]

Okay, follow the light for me.

- [WOMAN]

You're good.

[MOLLY]

I took shelter in the lava tube

right next to base camp.

Okay, Wubbo.

Let's take a look.

Muller, take care of Molly for me, okay?

[MOLLY]

I tried to reach Wubbo over the comm,

but there was no response.

And that was when the storm hit.

[WOMAN]

Molly, you okay?

Step up.

Step up.

Right.

Do me a favor.

Put some...

[CONTINUES, INDISTINCT]

[ELLEN]

Molly, okay?

[MOLLY]

I've never seen anything like it.

It was like...

the regolith was boiling.

[WOMAN]

All right, Wubbo.

Let's see what we can do here, huh?

All right.

Come on.

[MOLLY]

I knew Wubbo was in trouble,

but, uh, it wasn't safe to proceed

with the rescue until the storm was over.

So I waited.

Two hours, minutes.

I waited.

You made the right call, Molly.

Will he be okay?

There aren't really any tests that can tell us how much radiation passed through his body during that time.

But his dosimeter badge measured rems.

What does that mean?

It's more than the maximum dose any person should get in a lifetime.

He will almost certainly develop cancer in the next few years.

[ELLEN]

I'm moving my return trip up to tomorrow so I can get him back to Houston.

[MAN]

Understood.

And I'm taking you back with me as well.

What?

The hell you are.

My badge was green.

I...

I have two more months up here.

That lava tube gave some protection, but it wasn't ideal cover.

The approved amount of radiation for a six-month tour is rems.

- Your dosimeter's at .

- Come on.

I'm almost finished mapping the southern ridge of Stafford.

I know there's lithium there.

I'm sorry.

My decision is final.

We leave at .

That's so easy for you to say.

You can't wait to get off this rock and start your cushy new desk job.

Nothing about this is easy, Molly.

Once you're recovered, you'll come back up.

Six months, a year tops.

And Wubbo?

[ELLEN]

He's never coming back.

The Reagan administration continues to defend its decision to go to DEFCON during yesterday's solar storm.

The escalation led to the th Bomber Wing's deployment near Soviet airspace.

Soviet premier Andropov criticized the actions as provocative in a speech to the Duma earlier today.

Administration officials claim it was simply a cautionary measure.

But a growing number of critics here at home are questioning that rationale.

If that's true, why'd they rush the president onto Air Force One?

A solar flare brought us to the brink of w*r, thanks to the saber-rattling policies of this administration.

[SIPS]

And how's the power situation holding up?

Solar's picking up most of the slack

while we're getting the nuclear reactor back online.

What about life support systems?

Got a lot of people up there.

Life support should be fine,

but ice mining output's been affected.

And the advanced development operations for the Mars program

will have to be put on hold.

Again.

And that's not all.

During the scram, the fuel rods were damaged.

We're not gonna get more than another

couple of months out of the reactor,

if we're lucky.

Okay.

We'll have to send up more plutonium.

It'll be tight, but I think the next Sea Dragon launch should get it there in time.

Certainly safer with an unmanned flight.

Mm-hmm.

I'll alert Guam to implement nuclear transportation guidelines.

That'll have to be approved by the Pentagon first.

That'll take weeks.

We'll miss the launch date.

I don't want Jamestown stuck in the dark because of red tape.

Well, I don't want that either, Margo, but it is protocol.

And we may be back to DEFCON , but we still need to remain vigilant.

[DOOR OPENS]

Good morning.

I come bearing good news.

We could certainly use some.

So, uh, after this storm fiasco, the president thinks it's prudent to ease tensions with the Soviets, show Americans he's a man of peace.

[SCOFFS]

Sticking missiles on Pathfinder

is probably not the best way to do that.

I know.

I know.

That's on hold.

For now.

But I do want you to put together a proposal for a new mission.

An American astronaut and a Soviet cosmonaut coming together to show our common purpose with a handshake in space.

[LAUGHS]

I'm sorry.

A handshake?

You dock the two ships, open the hatch, they shake hands on live TV, Bob's your uncle.

Ed, I'll need some ideas on the crew, people that best reflect what our country is all about.

Strength, freedom, maybe, uh...

maybe a young face in there for the MTV crowd.

- Yeah.

I'll see if Madonna's available.

- [CHUCKLES]

There is no way I'm allowing our shuttle to dock with a Soviet craft.

They'll have access to our most classified technologies.

We can't...

Margo, relax.

It...

It won't ever get to that.

We reach our hand out in peace, and when the Soviets smack it away, we come out smelling like roses.

And they look like the aggressors.

It's a win-win.

[MARGO]

Tom, I'm not sure if you've noticed, but we've got a lot on our plate right now.

So planning a PR stunt that's never gonna happen isn't exactly high on my priority list.

You'll figure out something.

It's what you do.

- It's what you do.

- [SIGHS]

Bet you're pretty excited to get down here and join all the fun, huh, Ellen?

[SIGHS]

Yeah, can't wait.

Signing off.

[SIGHS]

How we looking?

Ah.

LSAM's prepped for launch.

Guess it's about that time then.

This is gonna be your last time up here, right?

Gonna miss it?

Four tours, days.

I've, uh...

I've had my fill.

Anyway, I think I can have more of an impact on the program down there.

Maybe start with getting us a working dishwasher.

I can't do the impossible, Al.

[CHUCKLES]

Right.

- Well, should we, uh...

- Yeah.

I hereby relieve you as commander of Jamestown.

I stand relieved.

Good luck down there.

Thanks.

Foster.

Thank you.

Take care.

Price.

Keep up the good work.

Fassi.

Thank you.

- Geller.

- Thank you.

Good.

Don't be too good to him.

- Jonway.

- Thanks.

Oh, and, uh, almost forgot the most important thing.

[KEYS JINGLE]

What are these for?

- The liquor cabinet.

- [CHUCKLES]

All right, ADI is to inertial.

Yep.

- Check your errors and rates and medium.

- Mm-hmm.

I'm gonna kick off the maneuver.

Item .

Execute.

All right.

Cobb, time to strap in.

All right.

- [MAN]

Engine mode .

- [ELLEN]

.

[VIDEO GAME SOUNDS]

Come on, you little alien bastards.

Yes.

Yes.

You might as well give up.

You're never gonna get it.

Bullshit.

I'm almost there.

[ED]

You're cheating.

No, I'm not.

It's called hunting.

- Jimmy showed me.

- Proud of you, Gordo.

Yeah.

- [YELLS, GROANS]

- [LAUGHS]

I was right there.

- Right there.

- One day.

One day you'll get it, buddy boy.

[ROCK MUSIC PLAYING]

sh*t.

Thanks.

You think she'll show up?

We'll see.

[CAR DOOR CLOSES]

[GROANS]

[EXHALES]

"And when he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for the time of figs was not yet".

[SIGHS]

I didn't really know him that well.

Certainly had his demons.

Ah, some guys just never get free of it, you know?

It's like they're still over there.

Poor Dani.

Can't imagine what she's going through.

Mm.

It's gonna take time, but she'll get through it.

Yeah.

Just seeing her at the funeral, that was like...

[DANI]

Hey.

- [GORDO]

Hey, there she is.

- Hi, Bob.

- Hi, Bob.

- Hi, Bob.

Sorry I'm late.

[CLEARS THROAT]

The I- was jammed.

[CHUCKLES]

[ED]

Mm-hmm.

Uh...

what the hell is that?

- Plants in a bar.

What's next, huh?

- I tried telling her.

- Oh, what'd she say?

- She said it freshens up the place.

Oh, please.

The place was fine the way it was before.

Come on, it was a dump.

Sure, it was a little rough around the edges, but, I mean, it was ours.

- You know, it had character.

- It had roaches.

- Roaches have character.

- Mm.

- I miss the pool table.

- You never played the pool table.

I loved the pool table and the old chairs.

Oh, I loved those old chairs.

The way they would wobble ever so slightly.

Yeah, you sure wobbled out of plenty of 'em.

[LAUGHING]

[DANI SIGHS]

[EXHALES]

How you holding up?

I'm okay.

- I just miss him.

- Yeah.

Day by day.

You know?

Day by day.

Wh...

These last nine years, they...

they were just so hard.

And Clayton, seeing him struggle like that, and he was in so much pain.

I just...

You okay?

I'm fine.

Really, I'm just...

I'm trying to get back to my old self.

Honestly.

Which is...

why I, um...

[CLEARS THROAT]

What?

I wanna go back.

- Back where?

- Jamestown.

Huh.

It has been nine years since I've...

since any of us have been up there, and, uh...

it's time.

Mm-hmm.

I...

I wanna see how it's changed.

I wanna see what it's become.

Well, you know what it's become.

I mean, you helped design the damn thing.

[SCOFFS]

That's not the same thing.

I wanna see it.

With my own eyes.

I wanna suit up in the morning.

- Put my boots in the moondust.

- [CHUCKLES]

- See the sun rise over Shackleton again.

- [ED CHUCKLES]

Don't y'all miss it?

- Come on, Ed.

- Mm.

You're telling me you don't ever think about going back?

I mean, we were there before there was a "there".

Th...

Don't y'all wanna see what we started?

- Mm, not really.

- No.

[SIGHS]

Well, I do.

I mean, don't get me wrong, I...

I love sitting here in this formerly shitty bar with y'all every few weeks having a few laughs, but I'm tired of talking about the good old days when we were astronauts.

- We're still astronauts.

- [SCOFFS]

No, we're not.

There's more to being an astronaut than going up in space, Dani.

Look...

I don't regret a minute of the time I spent here with Clayton these last years.

But I will not spend the rest of my life just sitting around saying, "You remember this?

You remember that?" [SCOFFS]

Okay.

Um...

I'll put in the paperwork tomorrow.

Really?

- Thank you, Ed.

- [CHUCKLES]

[ALL LAUGHING]

- To Dani.

- To Dani.

[ALL LAUGHING]

["GIRL U WANT" PLAYING]

[PHOTOGRAPHER]

Now raise your visor.

Yeah, there we go.

All right.

Can you raise your arm now?

Yeah, just show us that watch.

Okay, okay.

Now give me that million-dollar smile.

Little bigger.

Nice.

Okay.

Guess that's good enough.

Okay.

We're done here.

[BELL RINGS]

Ah, thanks for rolling with me, babe.

I know that took a while, but those last few are really gonna pop.

Your pretty face is gonna be all over Times Square.

Well, I think you mean that pretty watch.

[CHUCKLES]

Oh, thank you, Angie.

I'm f*cking boiling in this suit.

[PHONE RINGS]

Hey, baby.

Jamestown was just a single room back then.

You know, barely enough space for the three of us to live and work together.

Not like the Taj Mahal that they've got up there today.

[CROWD LAUGHS]

Don't even get me started on the food.

Might as well have been eating cardboard.

[LAUGHING]

Yeah.

It was the pioneer days.

Frontier.

The Wild West.

We were the settlers, and the Russians...

well, they... they were the Indians.

[LAUGHING]

[WOMAN PANTING, MOANS]

Gordon.

[GASPS]

[ENGINE RUMBLING]

[MAN SPEAKING OVER RADIO]

[PILOT SPEAKS OVER RADIO]

[MAN SPEAKS]

[MAN SPEAKS OVER RADIO]

[INDICATOR BEEPING]

- [INDISTINCT RADIO CHATTER]

- [INDICATOR BEEPING]

- [ENGINE RUNNING]

- [DISTORTED VOICES ECHOING]

[HATCH OPENS]

- [MAN SPEAKS, MUFFLED]

- [METAL CLANGS, RATTLES]

[INDISTINCT RADIO CHATTER]

[MAN SPEAKS, INDISTINCT]

- [FLASHBULB POPS]

- [VEHICLE INDICATOR BEEPING]

Welcome home.

[HYDRAULICS HISSING]

- [HELICOPTER WHIRRING OVERHEAD]

- [INDICATOR BEEPING]

[FLASHBULB POPS]

[MUFFLED CHATTERING]

[FLASHBULB POPS]

[MUFFLED APPLAUSE]

[MICROPHONE FEEDBACK]

[ELLEN]

Thank you, everyone, for all the work you've done to bring us back to Earth safely.

There is no such thing as a small part to play in this program.

The work of every person here is valuable to the greater mission of NASA, and we are very grateful.

- Thank you.

- [SHUTTERS CLICKING]

[ENGINE WHIRRING]

[DISTORTED CHATTERING]

[FLASHBULB POPS]

[WAYNE]

Babe!

Babe.

Babe.

Hey.

[SIGHS]

Mm.

- You okay?

- Yeah.

Fine.

- Let's get you outta here.

- Yeah.

Yeah.

Come on.

- They won't even notice.

- Yeah.

[SIGHS]

[POP MUSIC PLAYING, FAINT]

Kelly, breakfast!

Kelly, come on!

[POP SONG PLAYING ON SPEAKERS]

- [KAREN]

Kelly!

Breakfast.

- Coming.

[MUSIC STOPS]

[REPORTER]

Protests continue to grow out of hand

near the Panama Canal Zone

after the Reagan administration declared

the reelection of Panamanian president Omar Torrijos invalid,

alleging widespread voter fraud.

Torrijos, who has recently embraced socialist policies,

vowed to stay in office,

while peace activists here in the US

are voicing opposition to the administration's policies.

If Ronnie Reagan thinks peace is a cliché from the ' s,

that's his problem.

Peace is forever.

Come on, Nancy.

Tell your husband

to come back to bed and grow his hair.

[CLEARS THROAT]

Oh, : .

- Time for me to go.

Bye.

- [LARRY]

Bye.

Well, Ellen, it was very nice to meet you.

You too.

Sure I'll see you around.

Yeah.

See you around.

[REPORTER]

... in the United States,

it is estimated that more than three million people

have openly demonstrated against the Reagan administration...

- [DOOR CLOSES]

- Wow, you've trained him well.

Oh, yeah, he's great.

Always on time.

Goes through the back so Mrs.

Williams won't see.

He even parks his car two blocks away.

- [CHUCKLES]

Impressive.

- Mm-hmm.

Larry Wilson, is this serious?

It's...

[LAUGHS]

I mean... not really.

I...

I like him, but I don't know.

Anyway, what about you?

Now you're back down here for good, you gonna make up for lost time?

I have too much on my plate right now with the new job and everything.

Uh-huh, right, right.

[CHUCKLES]

Uh, I better get to the office.

Hey, uh, did they agree to your raise yet?

"While you are a valuable member of our team, Boeing only considers additional compensation during our annual employment reviews in December".

- And I thought NASA was bureaucratic.

- Mm-hmm.

Maybe I should just go back to bed like John and Yoko.

[CHUCKLES]

[SIGHS]

I should get going too.

Oh!

I almost forgot!

- [DOOR OPENS, CLOSES]

- [LARRY CHUCKLES]

For your first day, Deputy Administrator.

- [CHUCKLES]

Larry.

- Hmm?

[CHUCKLES]

You don't like it.

No, it's beautiful.

I just, um...

[CHUCKLES]

I don't know.

[CHUCKLES]

Is it me?

You're gonna be hobnobbing with congressmen and cabinet secretaries.

You gotta look the part.

Just remember why you took this job to begin with.

- The way to Mars isn't through Houston...

- Right.

It's through Washington.

That's my girl.

- Have a great day.

- Thank you.

[DOOR OPENS, CLOSES]

[SIGHS]

Morning.

- [BRADFORD]

Welcome.

- Thank you.

Very excited to have you over on the administrative side, Ellen.

Looking forward to it.

Hear you got the good coffee over here.

Just don't go following in his footsteps too closely.

She could do worse, believe me.

Well, I'm sorry your first meeting as deputy administrator is about something as exciting as budgets, but...

shall we get started?

Um...

Now that things are calming down, we're gonna need to implement a retrofit of Jamestown to better protect against future solar events.

Well, that doesn't sound cheap.

No, and unfortunately the only place I can see to draw funds from, yet again, is the Mars program.

We could k*ll the new Mars EMU.

Well, it's still early in its development, so...

I guess that makes sense.

- Great.

- [ELLEN]

But...

I'm sorry...

Um, isn't there...

I mean, we're...

we're five years into the Mars program, and it's already ten years behind schedule.

I know I'm new to this part of it, but there's gotta be another way.

Mars is what this program is all about.

Pushing forward...

We have to pick our battles here, Ellen.

We can't just run to Congress every time we need cash.

But I appreciate your passion.

We're gonna need it in the fights ahead.

Okay, now that we're agreed on cutting the EMU...

[BRADFORD]

Mm-hmm.

Now can we push ahead to this overage in the Geology Department?

Do we really need all this money for spectrometers?

We...

[CLEARS THROAT]

Um, would you just ex-excuse me for one second.

[CLEARS THROAT]

What...

What's this about?

Oh, uh, sorry, he was just saying it was regarding Al... Aleida Rosales?

Should I have known who that is?

No, uh, it's just, um, someone I knew from a long time ago.

Thank you.

[BRADFORD]

... the Soviets are not cutting their reconnaissance budget at Zvezda.

[PAINE]

I get it.

But even with all the new revenue from these patents, we're still stretched thin.

Look, I'm open to anything.

I just think we have to be smart about this.

- [HIGH-PITCHED WHINING]

- [MUFFLED]

Right, Margo?

[BRADFORD, MUFFLED]

Margo?

[WHINING CONTINUES]

[PHONE RINGING IN DISTANCE]

- [DOOR OPENS]

- [KNOCKS]

[TRACY]

Oh, that's right.

There's a new class starting today.

They don't know what they're in for.

Nope.

What can I do for you, Trace?

Well, I got you something in LA.

Is that...

[CHUCKLING]

His mug.

You stole Ed McMahon's mug?

[CHUCKLES]

I sure did.

Wow, oh, that's...

that's really...

Mr. de Cordova...

uh, that's Johnny's producer...

he had a great idea about, uh, maybe sh**ting a few segments while I'm up at Jamestown.

Yeah.

I need you to be less concerned with Johnny and, uh, more focused on the program right now.

Oh, it'd be great for the program, Ed.

It'd give kids a close-up look at the moon and all the amazing things we're doing up there.

Yeah, that's all well and good, Trace, but you launch in less than a month, and you just missed your third SIM, so...

I know.

I'm sorry, Ed.

I, uh...

I just got the schedule mixed up.

With all the celebrating that Sam and I have been doing, I've just been a little distracted.

Yeah.

Saw that.

That was...

really something.

Well, guess I'll head over to SIM.

Yeah.

- Is there a problem, Ed?

- Nope.

Hey.

- You can't just be happy for me?

- [SCOFFS]

- Happy for you?

- Yeah.

You didn't have to announce it on national TV, Trace.

All right, so this is about Gordo, 'cause it always is.

He deserved to know.

I...

I don't remember you being concerned about what I deserved to know when Gordo was f*cking all those Cape cookies in Florida.

Come on.

Yeah, you're right.

You're right, Ed.

Yeah, tell all those new recruits about them good old days.

- Yeah.

- Thanks a lot.

[SIGHS]

[CHATTERING]

[ED]

Take a seat.

Welcome to NASA.

You are, as of this moment, officially astronaut candidates.

Affectionately referred to from this point on as "ASCANs".

Now, this is a rigorous

- training program preparing you for space travel.

I'll be grading you as we go, and everything you do will be graded.

Academics, pilot performance, your character and motivation.

I'll be posting results from time to time in the hall outside.

If your name's not on that list,

- well, you're cut.

- ... you're cut.

k*ll the lights.

["A MESSAGE TO YOU, RUDY" PLAYING]

[SONG CONTINUES]

[ED]

sh*t.

All that practice in your office really been paying off.

Yeah, it's my knee acting up.

Oh, it's your knee?

[GRUNTS]

Try coming back from one-sixth gravity to play holes.

[WAYNE]

Whoo!

[INDISTINCT]

Drive gets a lot less distance down here.

[MOLLY]

Oh.

That's a nice swing.

[KAREN]

Wow.

[CHUCKLES]

Every time.

That's a really nice sh*t, Wayne.

Thanks, Ed.

[SONG CONTINUES]

[SONG FADES]

[SIZZLING]

[DOOR CLOSES]

All this for little old me?

Captain Stevens.

[ROCK PLAYING ON HEADPHONES]

[CHUCKLES]

Get out of here.

Come here.

[SIGHS]

So good to have you back, Danny.

Jimmy.

- [MUSIC CONTINUES]

- Jimmy.

Jimmy!

Come and say hi to your brother.

You're lucky he made an appearance.

Usually doesn't leave his room.

[MUSIC STOPS]

Hi, sh*t bird.

- Hey, bird sh*t.

- [VEHICLE APPROACHES]

I got steaks going.

You want a beer?

[CAR DOOR CLOSES]

Come here.

- How you been?

- Good, you?

[TRACY]

Oh, my God.

Has my baby boy grown that much since Christmas?

Damn.

Danny.

Oh, my boy.

Stop being weird, Mom.

I know, I'm just, uh...

I'm just taking it in, is all.

Hey, baby.

Mmm.

[DANNY]

Wow.

- It's the size of your whole hand, that.

- Oh.

Oh, come on, give me a break.

Trace.

Gordo.

Now, I wanna make a toast.

- Dad, no, you really don't have to...

- No, no.

Just...

Just let me do this.

It's an accomplishment, sticking it out that first year at Annapolis.

Hell, you even made it look easy.

So damn proud of you, Danny.

- We all are.

- Thanks, Dad.

- Cheers.

- Cheers.

Ho-Hold on a second.

There's one more thing that I wanted to say.

Trace.

Congratulations.

I'm happy for you.

Sam is a...

He's a good guy.

Thanks, Gordo.

Mm.

Cheers.

Probably could have done a lot better, but there's no accounting for taste.

- [DANNY SIGHS]

- There he is.

- There he is.

All right.

- [LAUGHS]

Ed Baldwin wearing reading glasses?

Will wonders never cease?

Oh, it'll happen to you too, Mol.

[CHUCKLES]

Never.

Twenty-twenty till the day I die.

Just like my nana.

So, uh, how are you adjusting to life back Earth-side, huh?

[MOLLY]

I don't know.

It's funny.

Sometimes I feel like when I'm down here is when I'm in outer space.

When I'm up there, everything is just... right, you know?

Till that f*cking storm hit.

Yeah, it was a mean son of a bitch.

Hey, I read the incident report.

I've known you a pretty long time, Mol.

Spit it out, Ed.

There's no way you waited in that lava tube for the storm to pass.

Not while Wubbo was out there.

So I just... wanna know that you're okay.

I'm fine.

Look, we say what we gotta say to the docs.

I get it.

Lie to a NASA flight surgeon?

That would not be correct procedure, sir.

No, I mean, Molly Cobb would never go against procedure.

- Never.

- Preposterous.

No way.

I'm fine, Ed.

What about you?

Don't you miss it, being up there?

Yeah, I miss it.

[CHUCKLES]

I mean, not as much as I thought I would.

I mean, Pathfinder's your baby.

You're okay with someone else taking her up?

I've had all the time up there that I need.

Well, when I first met the great Ed Baldwin, he was the last person in Houston I ever thought would be fine flying a desk.

[CHUCKLES]

Yeah, you and me both.

[SIGHS]

I don't know.

The life you think you're gonna have...

[SIGHS]

... just sometimes doesn't end up making you happy.

And I'm happy, you know, being there for Kelly and Karen and, hell, even those ASCANs.

It means something.

[CHUCKLES]

I know it...

it's not pushing the envelope, but sometimes it's just more important to be with the people you love than doing what you love.

You sound like a fortune cookie.

[CHUCKLES]

Yeah.

[SNIFFS]

Is that what I think it is?

Just ignore it.

They'll only deny it.

[KAREN, WAYNE SNICKER]

Play.

[KAREN LAUGHS]

[WAYNE]

Oh, jeez.

No, I didn't want a soffit built, and then the contractor says to me with a straight face, "It's gonna be two more months".

- Like, what?

Two more months?

- Right.

[CHUCKLES]

Come on, I...

I just...

- No, wait, you...

k*lled it.

- Oh.

sh*t.

Uh, let's just say I spent a night out on the quad naked and hog-tied.

[ALL LAUGH]

Of course you did.

That sounds terrible.

Yeah.

Yeah, it was.

[AUDIO LOWERS]

I mean, if you don't know your Reef Points, I mean verbatim, they get you.

They do it to all the plebes.

[LAUGHTER, FAINT]

[AUDIO RESUMES]

[TRACY]

Okay.

sh*t.

It's getting late, I gotta go.

- Oh, come on, Trace.

You don't have to.

- [KISSES]

It's...

It's barely : .

Well, I got an early SIM tomorrow, and I missed the last one, so...

Well, you don't wanna get on Ed's bad side.

No, you don't.

[SIGHS]

- This was really nice.

- Yeah, it was.

Um, do you need help with the dishes?

No, I got it.

I'm getting pretty good at it actually.

- Really?

- Mmm.

Let me see those dishpan hands.

Uh-huh.

Sheila's coming over tomorrow, isn't she?

- First thing in the morning.

- [LAUGHS]

- Good to see you, Trace.

- Good to see you too.

All right, boys, have a good night.

It's good to have you home, baby.

- Thanks again, Gordo.

- Night.

Night, Mom.

[GORDO SIGHS]

[SIGHS]

All right, boys.

Got a fridge full of beer, and Cheez Balls, and Sgt.

Slaughter's on the tube.

Uh, Dad, we... we were gonna go hang out with some friends.

First night back and all.

Right.

Of course.

No, you go on and have a good night.

- You're sure?

We could just..

- No, no, no, really.

You...

You go on.

Your old man's got a bunch of work to catch up on anyway, so...

All right.

All right, don't wait up.

Come on, Jimmy.

[GRUNTS]

Look after each other.

[CAN OPENS]

[SIPS, GULPING]

[SIGHS]

[COINS CLINK]

[BEEPS]

[SIGHS]

[BANGS]

[TAPPING]

Negative pressure.

Yes!

- [JIMMY]

Thank you, brother.

- [KELLY LAUGHS]

[MAN]

So, does everyone have to get that haircut, or is that some kind cruel punishment just for you?

[ALL CHUCKLE]

No, no, we all get it.

I mean, except the girls, obviously.

Any cute ones?

Like you'd know what to do.

[ALL LAUGH]

Are they as hard on the plebes as they say?

It's not so bad.

Once you get through the first month it's easier.

That's not what you said to Mom and Dad.

Shut up, sh*t bird.

Did you really get to ride on an aircraft carrier?

Yeah.

What was it like?

I mean, you first stand out there, it's like...

like you're standing in the middle of the ocean, surrounded by nothing but water and sky.

- That's pretty cool.

- [DANNY]

Yeah.

The best part is, uh, seeing a Tomcat come in for a landing at knots.

You see this thing barreling towards you, fast as hell, and you're sure that this thing's just gonna skid right off the other side of the deck.

But then, before you know it, all of a sudden that tailhook grabs on to that cable, and it just stops.

Cold.

Right there in front of you.

Never seen anything like it.

[PHONE RINGING]

Hello.

[KAREN]

Hey, Ed.

Could you come down here?

Why?

What happened?

It's Gordo.

♪ The sun in your eyes made some of the lies worth believing ♪

♪ I am the eye in the sky ♪

♪ Looking at you I can read your mind ♪

♪ I am the maker of rules ♪

Oh, sh*t.

Hey, can I get one more, please?

And I'm gonna get one for my friend...

Darlene.

And, um, uh...

Hey, Eddie.

I'll get one for Ed.

Hey.

Hey.

- [ED]

How you feeling?

- [GORDO]

Good.

Wanna go get some fresh air?

- Ah.

- Go for a little walk?

- Just having a good time.

- I can tell you're having a good time.

[BOTH LAUGH]

I need to talk to you though.

Sorry, ladies, I'm gonna have to steal him away from you.

My buddy.

Ed.

- [CHUCKLES]

Yeah.

Oh, yeah, you...

- [GORDO LAUGHS]

- Yeah, you've got those moves.

- Dance moves.

All right.

- [CRICKETS CHIRPING]

- [DOG BARKING IN DISTANCE]

[ED]

Look, I get the whole thing with Tracy getting married is rough, but you know what?

f*ck her.

I mean, you've been divorced five g*dd*mn years.

You...

You gotta move on.

She has.

[GORDO]

Yeah.

[ED]

You got a good job, your boys are growing up strong,

- you almost got all your hair left.

- [CHUCKLES]

And all that stuff that happened in the past, you just...

[SIGHS]

Look.

Just leave it there.

[GORDO SIGHS]

I can't.

I...

I'm stuck.

You know?

It won't...

It won't let me go.

What are you talking about?

Since when?

Where is all this coming from?

I left something up there, Ed.

Ever since we've been back, I just...

it's like I don't even exist anymore.

Like I'm a shadow, or...

a ghost maybe.

I don't know.

I just...

- I just..

- Gordo.

I can't, uh...

Gordo.

Get your ass back over here.

Get off the damn road.

What's going on with you, man?

I don't know what the hell I'm doing anymore, Ed.

You know, we were gonna lift people's eyes up to the sky?

Remember?

Now I'm just nothing.

You know, I know that you had it harder than me, you know, with Shane.

You just...

You found a way to make peace with it.

In yourself.

In your family.

sh*t, I don't...

I don't want my boys to see me like this.

[SIGHS]

Gordo.

Your boys worship you, man.

Mmm.

[CHUCKLES]

You should have seen him, Ed.

In his summer whites.

Midshipman Stevens.

[SIGHS]

You remember your first year?

Yeah, as much as I try to forget.

[CHUCKLES]

Those were the best days of my life, back at Northwestern.

And I was out on my own for the first time, and everything seemed possible.

It was like...

it was all just there for the taking.

You know?

Now here I am.

Gordo Stevens.

American hero.

What a crock of sh*t.

[SNIFFS]

It's all just sh*t.

[SOBS]

It's sh*t.

[SOBBING]

It's...

Come on.

Hey.

Come on, bud.

Get up, get up.

[GORDO GRUNTS]

[SCREAMS]

[SIGHS]

All right.

[DOOR OPENS]

[DOOR HINGES CREAK]

[DOOR CLOSES]

[GORDO MUMBLING]

Better...

Better get some shut-eye.

Night, Ed.

[SIGHS]

[DOOR OPENS]

[DOOR CLOSES]

[CHATTERING]

[SIGHS]

- [MAN]

Take care of yourself.

- [WOMAN]

Gonna miss you around here.

[WUBBO]

Molly.

Hey, Wubbo.

Glad I saw you.

I'm, uh, heading back home to the Netherlands, so, uh, I guess this is goodbye.

sh*t.

Flight surgeons pulled your ticket, huh?

That's not right, Wubbo.

They don't get to do that.

No.

This was my choice.

I'm leaving the program.

You're leaving the program?

f*ck that.

I need to do what's best for me and my family.

No, you're taking the easy way out, that's what you're doing.

No, Molly.

If I only have a couple of more years left,

- I want to spend them down here.

- That's bullshit.

You don't know that.

- Nobody does.

- Molly.

You don't give up, Wubbo.

You keep fighting.

I'm sorry you feel this way, Molly.

Thank you.

[DOOR CLOSES]

[PHONE RINGING]

[DOG BARKING IN DISTANCE]

[RINGING CONTINUES]

[SIGHS]

Yeah?

Mr. Stevens, this is Jane Markus at JSC.

The weekly staff meeting has been moved up to today.



at the astronaut meeting room.

Huh?

I'm sorry, what?



.

Thank you.

- [LINE CLICKS]

- [DIAL TONE]

- [SIGHS]

- [DISCONNECTION SIGNAL BEEPING]

[GRUNTS]

[CHATTERING]

You look like hell.

- [SIGHS]

I feel like a million bucks.

- [CHUCKLES]

You know why they moved up the meeting?

- [DOOR OPENS]

- No.

Good morning, everyone.

Let's get to it.

Jamestown crew debrief will be held at in room .

Attendance is mandatory for all you rookies.

Also, we had a T- close call last week at El Paso.

Even with our new inlets, be sure to check takeoff data carefully, especially while carrying a pod.

And I have a flight assignment to announce.

Danielle Poole will be joining the crew of STS-

Romeo!

Congratulations.

She's headed back to Jamestown.

So happy for you, Dani.

Thank you, babe.

[ED]

Oh, uh, one more thing.

Captain Gordo Stevens will be joining her.

sh*t, man.

Gordo's back.

- You must be flipping out.

- Yeah.

- Yeah.

- [FRANK]

Dani.

Oh.

Great to have you back.

Congratulations, Captain.

I'm not going back up, Ed.

I can't.

You know I can't.

Well...

that's not up to you.

I decide who goes up and when, remember?

You got this.

- [WHISPERS]

Son of a bitch.

- [DANI CHUCKLES]

Let's give the crew of Jamestown another hand.

[CHEERING]

[BIRDS CHIRPING]

[GORDO]

Mind if I bum one of those?

["TIME HAS COME TODAY" PLAYING]

[GORDO SIGHS]

Thanks.