For All Mankind (2019) s02e04 Episode Script
Pathfinder
Mm-hmm.
- Morning.
- Morning.
What's this?
It's just some paperwork
for you to sign.
What? You're canceling
our cruise to the Bahamas?
If you're going back to space, it
doesn't make much sense, does it?
- Wait, what?
- So which mission is it gonna be?
You've already been to the moon,
so that's out of the question.
And Skylab, you know,
is doing good work,
but let's be honest, it's
far too boring for you.
So I'm guessing the first
flight of Pathfinder, yeah?
I mean, you know, it's
cutting-edge technology
filled with stuff that can malfunction.
It's a test pilot's dream.
Karen, I'm not going back.
I'm perfectly happy
No, you're not, Ed.
You made that very clear last night.
What are you talking about?
You said you made a promise to yourself
that you would never
leave me and Kelly alone,
no matter what you had to give up.
Come on. I was very upset,
and I overreacted.
And you said exactly what you feel.
- What I meant was
- I know what you meant, Ed.
It's not just that.
You don't think I notice the look
in your eyes at every launch.
Or when you talk about Pathfinder.
We raised a wonderful daughter.
And you've been there for
her every step of the way.
And now she's going
off to live her dreams,
and there's no reason
that you shouldn't too.
I won't put you through that again.
I can handle it.
But you should know, it's
gonna be different this time.
You know, I have a business to run.
So I can't sit by a squawk box
all day and night
wondering if you're okay.
It's not that I don't support you.
I do.
I can't get sucked
into all of that again.
I c I can't.
Then
I shouldn't go.
Yes, you should.
Do you really think you can sit
behind a desk from 8:00 to 6:00
for another 15 years?
Y You really think
Yes. I do.
I said I can handle it.
And I will.
Sometimes you just gotta
stop wringing your hands
and fly, or nothing gets done.
Roger that, Gordo.
It's refreshing to have
you back in the saddle.
It's good to be back.
I miss you hard chargers. Test pilots.
Yeah, we like to push everything
to the fire wall, all right.
Amen.
You good with this suit, Gordo?
If not, we could put you
into one of the old A7LB's.
I like it.
Can raise my hands a lot higher.
Gotta say though, don't
much like this turtle shell.
Durability comes with a price.
But be sure you're comfortable.
You'll be spending a lot
of time in one of these.
Loving every minute, thinking of you.
You never give up, do you?
Charm looms large in my legend.
Just the brain bucket
and you're ready to rock.
About time.
You okay? All good?
I can't hear you.
Comm's on.
Gordo, are you okay in there?
Yeah, I'm good.
Comm's cut out.
- You look a little flushed.
- Yeah, it's kinda hot in there.
We'll swap out the CCA and get
you rolling inside ten minutes.
That's a no go.
Might have to scrub this for today.
I just remembered I'm
due over at building 9.
I gotta take a leak, and I'm
not gonna use the damn MAG.
I'm telling you, Dan,
keep an eye on her.
I know Annapolis has
changed and everything,
but it hasn't changed that much.
Don't let any of those midshipmen
razz my daughter, okay?
Aye, aye, sir.
Hey, hey! Where you going with that?
- Hi, Bob.
- Hi, Bob.
Hi, Bob!
Grab a glass.
What are we celebrating?
Well
two old-timers managed to finish
first and second on
their proficiency tests.
I will drink to that.
Y'all did good.
Waxed the tails of those
pimply-faced rookies.
Expected nothing less.
Okay, now what are we
drinking to this time?
Someone we all know and
love and deeply admire.
One of the greatest,
if not the greatest
astronaut of our time
has decided to return to space
and command Pathfinder.
Oh. Neil Armstrong.
Mm-mmm, mm-mmm. Frank Sedgewick.
Fuck y'all. I'm going back.
We heard. We heard.
Yeah, word travels fast.
Hey, I thought, uh,
you didn't miss it and you
had no desire to go back?
- You inspired me.
- Mm-hmm.
So, you gave yourself Pathfinder.
Must be nice to be king.
What can I say? I got an eye
for spotting talent, like with you guys.
I meant what I said. Y'all did great.
I mean, that's a bit of a challenge.
After all those years, just jump
right back into the deep end
and making it look easy.
It's impressive.
You okay, Gordo?
Yeah.
Something I should know about?
No.
Okay.
I mean It's just
I had a weird little moment
in my suit today.
- Weird moment? Where?
- Like what?
It was nothing. It was just
I felt trapped and
short of breath and
Mm-hmm.
I had to
Mmm.
I had to take my helmet off.
- Yeah.
- Did you tell anybody else about this?
Course not.
You didn't see anything?
Oh, no. No, it was nothing like that.
Trust me, it's just, you know,
like I said, felt a little hemmed in.
- Oh.
- Yeah.
Look, what happened
up there was nine years ago.
- Mmm.
- You're not that guy.
- I know.
- You're a different person now.
And you've been to therapy.
You've dealt with your issues.
Oh, yeah. I know.
You finally cut the cord with Tracy.
I mean, you're on the
upswing, buddy. You're
You're getting your mojo back!
I am. I haven't felt this good in years.
- It was just a moment, is all.
- Yeah.
No biggie.
- Good. Good. Glad to hear it.
- No biggie.
How you holding up?
Fine. Feels good to be back.
Uh, I gotta go to Dallas to see
Clayton's sister tomorrow,
take care of some family business.
Really not looking forward to it.
All right.
So, Ed, now that you are stepping out
who's taking over the Astronaut Office?
Molly?
Ed? Is that you?
Yep.
Come on in. I'm in here.
You always leave the door open
while you're bathing alone?
Who says I'm alone?
Golly gee. Visitation
from the chief astronaut.
To what do I owe this honor?
You missed our golf game again,
so I thought I'd check in.
Right. You wanna get a beer
before you drop the other shoe, or
No. I'm just Well, a beer is fine.
Forgive me for not getting
up. Gravity's a bitch.
I'm, uh, here to put you back to work.
This wild, happy, free
life has got to stop.
Why do I think I am not gonna like this?
- Because you know me.
- Uh-huh.
I want you to run the Astronaut Office.
Me run the Astronaut
Office. What the hell for?
Well, someone just put me
in command of Pathfinder.
Oh, wow.
You just assigned yourself
the command of the E
ticket ride of the decade.
Yep. Just like you told me to.
Jesus Christ. You weren't
supposed to listen to me.
I was just messing with you.
Well, you were right.
And assigning your own missions
is one of the perks of the job.
That's a pretty ballsy move, Ed.
You've never flown a shuttle.
Mmm. No one's flown Pathfinder.
Looks to me like you
just handed yourself
a golden opportunity to screw the pooch.
Always the optimist.
So what do you say?
I say no to that crown of thorns.
Look, don't overlook the upside.
Homage from favor seekers.
Opportunities to wreak vengeance
on people who cross you.
- Well, that sounds fun.
- Mm-hmm.
But no. No.
I just wanna fly.
So, fly.
You assign your own flights.
When your six-month medical hold ends
I pull a Baldwin?
Put myself in the coolest thing flying?
You bastard.
You start in a week.
You can thank me later.
A bottle of Glenfarclas
25 would be nice.
Although Glenfiddich never disappoints.
Molly Cobb
chief of the Astronaut Office.
No way.
I want you to know I
appreciated your call.
We never got a chance
to talk at the funeral.
- I wanted to
- You said you have something for me.
Yes.
I finally worked up the nerve
to go through Clayton's closet.
This was on the floor,
shoved in the back.
There are some personal items
in here I thought you might want.
These are some of Clayton's report
cards from elementary school.
These are some, uh, birthday
cards your mother wrote to him.
Thank you for bringing me these.
I know you and I haven't
always seen eye to eye,
but I'm I'm hoping we can
find a way to make a fresh start.
Why?
Because we both loved Clayton.
Uh-huh.
What's that supposed to mean?
I know you wanted him to admire you,
worship the ground you walked on.
Is that what you call love?
That's not at all what I
You don't know me.
- You never bothered to.
- Oh, I know you, all right.
Clayton told me what really
happened on the moon.
What?
- He wouldn't.
- He's never kept secrets from me.
Told me how you really broke your arm.
All to protect some white man's career.
That man was my friend.
A part of my crew.
The color of his skin
had nothing to do with it.
And look how they've rewarded
you. Made you a laughingstock.
If that were true, why would
they send me back to the moon?
You're going again?
Well, that's just great.
You're gonna help them spend millions
to find out if beans
will sprout on the moon.
If they'd used that money
to fund a decent counseling
program at the VA,
maybe Clay wouldn't have killed himself.
I don't know why I thought this
time would be any different.
You are never gonna change.
Hold on.
I've got something for you too.
This was Clay's?
But he threw away all his
medals. I saw him do it.
Not this one.
- How did you
- He gave it to me.
I don't understand.
Why are you giving this to me?
You're the one who filled Clay's
head with all that patriotic crap.
He joined the army because of you.
He joined the army to serve his country.
His country?
He ever tell you what
his fellow soldiers did
the day after Martin Luther
King was assassinated?
They threw a party.
Put on Klan outfits, paraded
around with Confederate flags.
But, hey, they gave Clay a medal,
so that makes it all okay.
That wasn't the men in Clay's platoon.
I'm not talking about his platoon.
I'm talking about the
United States government.
Uncle Sam used us as cannon fodder.
Clayton was proud to serve.
At first.
But by the time he got back,
he was just putting on a
good show to please you.
He did everything for you.
And now that's he's gone, all
you wanna do is forget him.
Well, go ahead.
Go back to the moon, help them
start another Vietnam up there.
That is not
We are doing serious research
to build a better future for us all.
You sound just like them.
But you're not one of
them. Never will be.
They may have let you on the bus,
but you will always
have to ride in the back.
I know I've already brought this up
but
the moon was supposed
to be a stepping-stone,
and it's become a quagmire,
sucking up more and more of
our funding and resources
That's true, but the president
doesn't want the Soviets
to gain the upper hand.
Neither do I.
If we put boots on the surface of Mars,
we'll have the ultimate upper hand.
- What?
- You know what your problem is, Ellen?
You're not fooling anyone.
I, uh
Uh, what do you mean?
You need to be a better poker player.
You remember a couple years back
when Senator Lang attacked the
cost overruns of our lunar program?
Yeah, he called it a "moondoggle".
Mm-hmm.
I wrote that speech for him.
Why would you do that?
Lang was in the middle of
a tough reelection fight.
Yeah, I remember.
Coen accused him of
being a pimp for NASA.
And John needed to demonstrate
his independence.
We already had more than enough
votes to pass the funding bill,
so why not help him out?
Then, after he won reelection
Lang turned around
and sponsored the bill
that allows NASA to license its
new technology to private industry.
And because of that,
this agency will be entirely
self-funded in less than ten years.
Which will free us from
the whims of Congress.
Exactly.
We'll have enough money to explore Mars.
And we won't stop there.
You and I will have a front row seat.
As long as the Democrats
don't win next year.
That must've been pretty difficult.
Being at the center of everything,
and then Teddy Kennedy wins
and you're out of a job.
Just part of the game.
The ups and downs.
Hmm.
Was it Nixon who
initially recruited you?
No.
No, no one recruited me. I
lobbied my ass off for this job.
Really?
Caught the bug when I was aboard
a submarine during the war.
We'd surface at night to
recharge our batteries.
Yeah, out there,
alone in the Pacific, the
sky was packed with stars.
We learned the names of quite
a few to navigate, but
I wanted to know them all.
Hmm.
After I got demobbed, I went out
and bought my first telescope
from the Sears catalog.
- Shall I freshen you up?
- Sure.
I didn't know you felt so
passionately about space.
I guess I thought
What? That I'm a glad-handing politician
who cares more about my
career than I do about NASA?
Nah, it's okay, El.
I know everyone at JSC thinks
I'm just Reagan's lackey,
just like they thought I was
Nixon's lackey a decade ago.
But I don't mind it.
People have hated politicians
as long as there have
been politicians, but
the truth is
we're the ones that
make this all possible.
I wanna get to Mars as much
as you do. Believe me.
You're gonna be a great
asset to me, Ellen.
You're as genuine as the sunrise.
People respond to that.
Thank you, Tom. That's very kind.
You'll get used to all the gamesmanship.
We all play different roles
with different people.
I'm a different Thomas Paine
with Reagan than I was with Nixon
or Tip O'Neill or Margo Madison.
And there's yet another me with
my wife when I go home at night.
The trick is not to lose track
of who you really are.
It's Scorsese's best picture.
- You cannot be serious.
- It's a masterpiece.
Oh, my. You're saying that
'cause you like Jerry Lewis.
Well, what's what's not to like?
Everything.
The Nutty Professor
is a brilliant indictment
of the American male psyche.
Okay, yours maybe. I do not
get this obsession at all.
Says the guy who's seen Yentl 15 times.
- That's so
- Hey, El.
How'd your day go?
It was, uh, very interesting.
Hey, we should go.
We don't wanna miss that first set.
Where you guys off to?
The Bullshot.
They apparently have a fantastic
Donna Summer impersonator.
- Oh.
- You should come with.
- Yeah.
- I'd love to,
but I have an 0800 meeting at JSC.
Oh, you could stay for
an hour, then head home.
You really should get
out more, have some fun.
Yeah, come on.
Another time.
- Mmm.
- Ah.
Okay. Well, if you're staying,
maybe you can go through your moon mail.
You haven't touched it
since you've been back.
- Okay. Oh, my gosh.
- Mm-hmm.
- Have fun.
- You too.
That's a lot of mail.
Discovery, Launch Control.
We're gonna run abort check now.
Wilco.
Looks good, Control.
That brings us to the built-in
hold at T-minus nine minutes.
Time for Tracy's big interview with NBC.
Starting to wonder if
we're just chauffeurs here.
Think they left a makeup case
on the mid-deck if you wanna freshen up.
Yeah. Very funny, y'all.
Launch Control, we have
power to the Tracy cam.
Roger, Discovery. Feed looks good.
Okay. You're live in three, two, one.
Hey there.
Well, I am very happy to be talking
to you aboard the
space shuttle Discovery.
That's right, I'm headed
for six months on the moon.
It's the trip of a lifetime.
Only one regret, Sam and I
couldn't make it our honeymoon.
A number of viewers have asked
why you're still using "Stevens"
instead of your married
name, "Cleveland".
Care to tell us why?
Well, you know, everybody
already knows me as Stevens.
So, figured I'd stick with it.
Save the taxpayers some money.
I love you bunches, Sam.
Astronaut Tracy Stevens,
speaking with us 40 minutes ago
as she and her crew made their
final preparations for launch.
I'm now being told the shuttle is
a mere two minutes from liftoff
Thank you. Thank you very much.
Welcome to Wheel of Fortune.
Good to have you here.
And now if you would do that
one more time for our hostess.
Here comes Vanna White.
Vanna.
Hello.
only hope they don't get
to our ships before we do.
- The air pressure's dropping.
- You're right.
Father of two. You care to
talk about those two a little bit?
Two fantastic kids.
One under a year, still a baby,
and then a beautiful
three-year-old daughter
given to me by my gracious wife.
- Well, it was
- Two wonderful kids.
a fine thing of her to do.
And it's nice to have you here,
Jeff. Wish you a lot of luck.
Eight, seven, six.
Main engine start. Two, one
So long, Trace.
See you soon.
What you got there, Mr. Piscotty?
Oh, uh
Just a sandwich, sir.
I hear it's your last day
on the job. Congratulations.
Why don't you put that on.
Uh, due respect, sir, I'm
air force, sir, not navy.
Put it on.
Now pull it down lower.
Lower.
That's gonna work.
First of next week, I want
you to check out a T-38,
meet me in Palmdale.
Palmdale California?
Congratulations.
You just drew right seat of
Pathfinder's maiden flight.
Roger that, sir.
Thank you.
T-minus two hours and counting.
- Hi, Bob.
- Hi, Bob.
Man, this place is gonna
feel so odd without you.
I think I'm gonna leave this to Molly.
Her short game sucks. She
could use the practice.
I'm sure she'll love that.
What's up?
Ed, I want you to know that
I appreciate the assignment
to Jamestown 91
and that you came up with it so quickly.
I really do.
But
But what?
It's not good enough.
Not good enough?
I'm sorry, but it's not.
I want a command slot.
Dani, you really have been
out of the loop for too long.
You don't just waltz in and demand
You know the sacrifices I've made.
How much time I've lost.
I was the first African
American in space, Ed.
And now here I am,
still riding in the back.
Come on, Dani.
You really gonna take it there?
I've given it a lot of thought.
I want to be the first African American
woman to command a mission.
First woman Black commander
is now a thing?
Seriously? We're gonna
parse it that fine?
You're damn right we are, Ed.
If you don't give me a command spot,
I will always be seen
as that weak little
Black girl who fell apart on the moon.
But if I were a white man,
they'd have forgiven me a long time ago.
I understand it feels that
way, but it's just not true.
Remember Mercury 4,
when Gus Grissom splashed
and the hatch blew early?
Press never let him forget about that.
You know, that had nothing to
do with the color of his skin.
Ed, how many astronauts do we have now?
Two hundred and five.
And how many of 'em are Black?
Eleven.
And how many of them
have commanded a mission?
- One.
- Mm-hmm.
Look, I hope you're not saying
I hope you're not
trying to imply that
I'm not trying to imply anything.
I'm saying it straight.
This is not good enough.
Look, Dani, you gotta understand.
These things, they take time.
You know, first they gotta qualify,
then they gotta be trained,
and then they gotta get some
missions under their belt.
Believe me, if they were ready,
they'd be commanding.
"If they were ready"? You
sound like an NFL owner.
Look, we've dealt with this issue.
No. We haven't.
Ed, I came into this program
as the token Black girl.
And I was grateful for the opportunity,
no matter what the reasons.
But that was 13 years ago.
This program,
it has the power to change
the way people see the world.
You know that.
I can't believe you're bringing
this to me on my last day.
That's exactly why I'm bringing it up.
Because until Molly
takes over on Monday,
you are the only one with
the power to do something.
I gotta get to a meeting.
Sorry I'm late.
Hey, hey.
For you, Ed.
In honor of your nine years of service
as head of the Astronaut Office.
Am I supposed to make a wish?
Hasn't it already been granted?
You're commanding Pathfinder.
What'd you wish for?
To get on with this meeting.
Amen to that.
Uh, well, I have some exciting news.
The, uh The Soviets have
accepted the president's offer
to mount a joint mission
between our two space programs.
You gotta be fucking kidding me.
You said there was no chance
they would agree to this.
Apparently Premier Andropov is
eager to demonstrate to the world
that the Soviet Union has
peaceful intentions
toward the United States.
I've said it before.
This is complete bullshit.
The Soviets are still flying Soyuz.
Haven't even managed to get their
shuttle Buran off the ground.
And the only reason
why they agreed to this
is so they can get a closer look
at our current technology.
We don't have to give it to them.
We can show the Reds only
what they've already seen.
Meaning?
We have an old Apollo command
module in storage here at JSC.
It was a backup rescue ship for Skylab
before shuttles took over that job.
And we were gonna send
it to the Smithsonian.
If we use an Apollo for this,
the Russians won't get anywhere
near our shuttle systems.
As long as we have a Saturn
1B lying around as well.
Huntsville's got one.
Well, then it's doable.
The president is gonna love this.
He still talks about how heroic-looking
the old Apollos were.
Right, well, the Soviets say
they're already picking a crew, so
To demonstrate that
they're fully committed.
So we need to do the same.
I hate to put pressure on
you on your last day, Ed,
but I'm not sure I want
to leave this to Ms. Cobb.
At least you'll only have to pick
two now after the modifications.
I can give you the commander right now.
I hope you're not appointing
yourself to this one too.
Nope. I'm assigning Danielle Poole.
She has extensive Apollo experience,
and she'll be perfect for this.
Well, uh
Well, uh, we might want to
consider other possibilities.
Why is that?
Ed, this mission is very
important to the president.
He wants only the best
of the best to fly it.
I spent three months
on the moon with her.
She performed brilliantly under
very stressful circumstances.
I appreciate your loyalty,
but you know that's not true.
What the hell is that supposed to mean?
Come on, Ed. Do I really
need to spell it out?
- The whole thing with her arm
- That wasn't her fault.
- Well, the public thinks
- So we change public opinion.
Tom, I trained with Poole.
And I agree with Ed.
So do I.
She did an exceptional job for
us during the Apollo 24 crisis.
And I think it's time
for an African American woman
to command a spaceflight.
There's no argument there.
Hell, I'm the one that selected Poole
as an astronaut to begin with.
So what's the problem?
I'm gonna get a lot of blowback
from the White House.
You need to remind them of the plaque
that we were gonna
bring up on Apollo 11.
"We came in peace for all mankind".
Now we need to live up to that.
And this mission, with
all its symbolic value,
is the perfect opportunity to do so.
I think Ed's right on this one.
Now look, the Soviets love
to grab any opportunity
to highlight our troubled
history with race relations.
This will send a powerful message
about the progress that we've made.
All right, I'll run it up the flagpole.
Let me know if anyone gives
you any trouble on that.
I'll call the secretary of defense,
and he'll support this.
I got your back on this, Tom.
T-minus five, four, three, two
Can I have a minute?
You got one fucking minute.
- What's going on?
- What are you talking about?
I thought we were friends.
You blindsided me back there.
Wasn't premeditated, Tom.
Just happened in the moment.
Yeah, I guess a lot of things happen
for you in the moment lately.
You never discussed
Pathfinder with me either.
And then, bang, Gordo Stevens
is suddenly off to the moon
after being ground bound
for nearly a decade.
Gordo's on salary. He's one
of the best pilots we got.
Everyone knows he's a dr
He's got a drinking problem.
Have you taken a good
look at him lately?
The man's a train wreck
waiting to happen.
Look, he's a little bit on
the chunky side right now,
but he'll whip himself into shape.
He always does. He
aced his proficiency
I just hope you're making
all these decisions
for the right reasons, Ed.
Not out of nepotism or favoritism
Whatever kind of ism this is.
Goddamn it!
Shit.
Ed did say noon, right?
That's affirm.
What's with the hat? You're air force.
I, um lost a bet.
No shit. What was it?
I was so drunk I, uh
don't remember it.
And NASA chose you to fly right seat
in its first nuclear spacecraft.
Sorry I'm late.
My Vette blew a rod on
my way out to Ellington.
How old's that car anyway?
What, 40 years?
I got it 14 years ago,
while you were still playing
tennis in high school.
I'm just glad they don't
make 'em like they used to.
Let's get this moving.
Gotta get back to Houston.
I want you two to supervise the sim mods
while I fly out to the Cape
to check out the launch
control center upgrades.
Something I wanna show you first.
I appreciate you doing
this for me, Troy.
My pleasure, Ms. Poole.
Not much in here but
crates and mothballs.
What are you looking for anyway?
I wanna say hello to my ship.
That's your ship?
That tin can?
That tin can.
I give you Pathfinder.
First time I've seen her ready to go.
She's three times as powerful
as our current shuttles.
And when we go to Mars,
these nuclear engines will
cut 100 days off of our trip.
Our job will be to test her in the
harshest environment we know.
Shake every bug out of her system.
Now, I chose you as my crew
because you're the best.
Dr. Ride's been working
on these engines for years,
and it's time you rode them into space.
Unlike you, Captain Piscotty
here has never been on orbit,
but I've seen him ace six
backup crew assignments.
He seems to have a sixth sense
of what can go wrong and how to fix it.
He's also a pretty fair pilot.
Even though he does have red hair.
Now, there'll be a lot of eyes on us.
So we can afford no fuckups.
That's why we will train our asses off.
Roger that, skipper.
Wouldn't have it any other way.
Let's go make history.
- requests that you all rise
- Oh, no.
and show respect
while he sings his nation's
national anthem.
Kick your ass, you commie bastard.
Go on, keep singing while
you still got some teeth.
Give me a break, Steve.
Give me an umbrella. Hold it!
- There it goes!
- Where is he?
Ladies and gentlemen,
from South Carolina
Sergeant Slaughter!
Yeah!
Slaughter's gonna kick his ass
all the way back to Siberia.
Better watch Volkoff's right hand then.
Last week in Shreveport,
Volkoff whipped out a foreign
object from his trunks
and then coldcocked Tito Santana.
- You like wrestling?
- It's hilarious. Yeah.
He's gonna kick your ass.
Hey, Gordo, aren't you supposed
to be meeting Ed at Ellington?
I thought you two were flying
down to the Cape together.
Can't miss this. I'll drive fast.
That's it.
Pathfinder was amazing,
but I about died when Sally
ribbed the admiral about his car.
My mouth was so dry,
I couldn't say a word.
Listen, zoomie.
Ed Baldwin can trip over
his dick like anybody else.
You're flying his right seat,
so it is your job to call
him out when he fucks up.
- If you can't do that, then
- Jesus, Helena.
Talk about a buzzkill.
Watch out! Slingshot!
Hey, Ed.
Boy, now that is 313 pounds at least!
Just being catapulted through the air
What a right arm!
Yeah, that's it, Sarge! Pulverize him!
- My word! Five rights
- Arrest his ass!
and now the big guy
flung across, Sarge right
Hammer him into the goddamn canvas!
And that one really rocked the
Russian. Volkoff down on a knee.
The table's turning.
Hey, ref, you blind? That's
illegal use of bicuspids!
Dad?
Dad?
You okay, Dad?
Y-You can see those ants?
Yeah, it's pretty hard to miss.
You ready to go, buddy boy?
What's wrong?
I saw some ants.
What?
When? What were you doing?
Was watching TV at the Outpost.
And no booze, just Pepsi.
They were just They were
crawling everywhere, man.
They were crawling everywhere.
- Was anyone with you?
- Yeah, Danny was there.
He was working.
It was over pretty quick.
Karen, she she she killed
'em with some bug spray.
What Wait, you mean
the ants were real?
I thought I was losing it again, Ed.
Thought I was seeing things again.
I couldn't catch my breath,
and I was shaking and
sweating all the way here.
I could just feel 'em on
my hands and on my face.
What if it happens up there again, Ed?
Gordo, you're not hallucinating.
This isn't happening.
You know, my old man
he was the toughest son
of a bitch I ever saw.
And the horrors he endured in that war.
Guadalcanal, Peleliu, Okinawa.
And those banzai charges.
Japs coming at him,
screaming like wild animals,
running right over the
backs of their dead,
but he never left his machine gun.
He just kept right on firing.
I never saw him back down from anything.
Till the cancer.
I'd go and see him. He's laying
flat on his back in his bed.
He's gasping like a fish out of water.
Eyes big and wide, and he's so scared.
I just couldn't take it.
Just ran out of the room.
I don't know.
Maybe the
fear was in him all along.
Deep down.
He was just too weak to
to fight against it anymore.
What am I gonna do, Ed?
You can start acting like a man.
- What?
- You heard me.
You're a goddamn astronaut.
You sat your ass on top of
five and a half million pounds
of high explosive fuel
and told them, "Light the fuse".
And now you're sitting there
crying like a little fucking baby!
"Oh, Ed, I'm so scared. I'm so weak".
How about you grow a
pair, for Christ's sakes!
Careful, Ed.
Or what? El Gordo's gonna do something?
El Gordo just might.
- Maybe you have lost it.
- Shut up.
- Maybe you're not Gordo Stevens anymore!
- Shut up!
Why don't you book a flight
to Florida on Pan Am?
I'm sure they can find you a seat.
Niner-five-niner, niner-one-zero.
Ed, we're beaucoup south of our route.
Fuel's gonna be a major problem.
What's the deal?
Just a little detour.
Thought we'd see if
you got any stones left.
You're flying in
dogfight territory, son.
You bastard. Okay, I'm
gonna kick your ass.
Fight's on, buddy.
In the wake of Cold War tensions
that show no signs of easing,
at least one person is calling for
everyone to just come together.
His name, John Lennon.
The famed musician and activist
is reaching out to world
leaders and fans alike,
promoting what he calls
a concert for peace.
Hosted by Lennon, the concert
would take place in New York City
sometime in the fall.
No word yet from Paul, George or Ringo
as to whether they'll be joining.
In other news,
an absolutely stunning
development in Panama today.
According to the Pentagon,
a team of Navy SEALs
penetrated the Panamanian
military installation
where the American soldiers were held
and rescued all four of the men.
No shit.
At least two Panamanian
soldiers were killed
in the exchange of gunfire.
President Torrijos denounced the action
as an outrageous violation
of Panamanian sovereignty
and has called upon the Soviet Union
to help his country defend itself
- Shit.
- Oh, it's it's okay.
I won't tell anyone if you won't.
Yeah, I don't want you
doing this with Kelly though.
Ever, all right?
Aye, aye, ma'am.
Slippery little bastard.
Ain't gonna save you though.
Check this out, cheesedick.
Oh, no, you don't.
And there you are.
Sorry, sailor. Saw that coming.
Time to eat your lunch.
Pipper's on.
Fox Two! That's all she wrote, buddy.
Ah, geez.
We call that a clean kill.
We call that dumb luck, Gordo.
Let's make it two out of three.
Whoa.
That's not good. Warning tone.
Ah, Jesus, Ed, you're on fire.
You got flames under your left engine.
Aw, shit!
You better get out and walk, buddy.
More like go for a swim.
I'll call SAR. Ed, get out of there now!
Mayday, Mayday. Houston Center.
NASA niner-one-zero over the Gulf.
NASA niner-five-niner is
on fire and ejecting now.
- Morning.
- Morning.
What's this?
It's just some paperwork
for you to sign.
What? You're canceling
our cruise to the Bahamas?
If you're going back to space, it
doesn't make much sense, does it?
- Wait, what?
- So which mission is it gonna be?
You've already been to the moon,
so that's out of the question.
And Skylab, you know,
is doing good work,
but let's be honest, it's
far too boring for you.
So I'm guessing the first
flight of Pathfinder, yeah?
I mean, you know, it's
cutting-edge technology
filled with stuff that can malfunction.
It's a test pilot's dream.
Karen, I'm not going back.
I'm perfectly happy
No, you're not, Ed.
You made that very clear last night.
What are you talking about?
You said you made a promise to yourself
that you would never
leave me and Kelly alone,
no matter what you had to give up.
Come on. I was very upset,
and I overreacted.
And you said exactly what you feel.
- What I meant was
- I know what you meant, Ed.
It's not just that.
You don't think I notice the look
in your eyes at every launch.
Or when you talk about Pathfinder.
We raised a wonderful daughter.
And you've been there for
her every step of the way.
And now she's going
off to live her dreams,
and there's no reason
that you shouldn't too.
I won't put you through that again.
I can handle it.
But you should know, it's
gonna be different this time.
You know, I have a business to run.
So I can't sit by a squawk box
all day and night
wondering if you're okay.
It's not that I don't support you.
I do.
I can't get sucked
into all of that again.
I c I can't.
Then
I shouldn't go.
Yes, you should.
Do you really think you can sit
behind a desk from 8:00 to 6:00
for another 15 years?
Y You really think
Yes. I do.
I said I can handle it.
And I will.
Sometimes you just gotta
stop wringing your hands
and fly, or nothing gets done.
Roger that, Gordo.
It's refreshing to have
you back in the saddle.
It's good to be back.
I miss you hard chargers. Test pilots.
Yeah, we like to push everything
to the fire wall, all right.
Amen.
You good with this suit, Gordo?
If not, we could put you
into one of the old A7LB's.
I like it.
Can raise my hands a lot higher.
Gotta say though, don't
much like this turtle shell.
Durability comes with a price.
But be sure you're comfortable.
You'll be spending a lot
of time in one of these.
Loving every minute, thinking of you.
You never give up, do you?
Charm looms large in my legend.
Just the brain bucket
and you're ready to rock.
About time.
You okay? All good?
I can't hear you.
Comm's on.
Gordo, are you okay in there?
Yeah, I'm good.
Comm's cut out.
- You look a little flushed.
- Yeah, it's kinda hot in there.
We'll swap out the CCA and get
you rolling inside ten minutes.
That's a no go.
Might have to scrub this for today.
I just remembered I'm
due over at building 9.
I gotta take a leak, and I'm
not gonna use the damn MAG.
I'm telling you, Dan,
keep an eye on her.
I know Annapolis has
changed and everything,
but it hasn't changed that much.
Don't let any of those midshipmen
razz my daughter, okay?
Aye, aye, sir.
Hey, hey! Where you going with that?
- Hi, Bob.
- Hi, Bob.
Hi, Bob!
Grab a glass.
What are we celebrating?
Well
two old-timers managed to finish
first and second on
their proficiency tests.
I will drink to that.
Y'all did good.
Waxed the tails of those
pimply-faced rookies.
Expected nothing less.
Okay, now what are we
drinking to this time?
Someone we all know and
love and deeply admire.
One of the greatest,
if not the greatest
astronaut of our time
has decided to return to space
and command Pathfinder.
Oh. Neil Armstrong.
Mm-mmm, mm-mmm. Frank Sedgewick.
Fuck y'all. I'm going back.
We heard. We heard.
Yeah, word travels fast.
Hey, I thought, uh,
you didn't miss it and you
had no desire to go back?
- You inspired me.
- Mm-hmm.
So, you gave yourself Pathfinder.
Must be nice to be king.
What can I say? I got an eye
for spotting talent, like with you guys.
I meant what I said. Y'all did great.
I mean, that's a bit of a challenge.
After all those years, just jump
right back into the deep end
and making it look easy.
It's impressive.
You okay, Gordo?
Yeah.
Something I should know about?
No.
Okay.
I mean It's just
I had a weird little moment
in my suit today.
- Weird moment? Where?
- Like what?
It was nothing. It was just
I felt trapped and
short of breath and
Mm-hmm.
I had to
Mmm.
I had to take my helmet off.
- Yeah.
- Did you tell anybody else about this?
Course not.
You didn't see anything?
Oh, no. No, it was nothing like that.
Trust me, it's just, you know,
like I said, felt a little hemmed in.
- Oh.
- Yeah.
Look, what happened
up there was nine years ago.
- Mmm.
- You're not that guy.
- I know.
- You're a different person now.
And you've been to therapy.
You've dealt with your issues.
Oh, yeah. I know.
You finally cut the cord with Tracy.
I mean, you're on the
upswing, buddy. You're
You're getting your mojo back!
I am. I haven't felt this good in years.
- It was just a moment, is all.
- Yeah.
No biggie.
- Good. Good. Glad to hear it.
- No biggie.
How you holding up?
Fine. Feels good to be back.
Uh, I gotta go to Dallas to see
Clayton's sister tomorrow,
take care of some family business.
Really not looking forward to it.
All right.
So, Ed, now that you are stepping out
who's taking over the Astronaut Office?
Molly?
Ed? Is that you?
Yep.
Come on in. I'm in here.
You always leave the door open
while you're bathing alone?
Who says I'm alone?
Golly gee. Visitation
from the chief astronaut.
To what do I owe this honor?
You missed our golf game again,
so I thought I'd check in.
Right. You wanna get a beer
before you drop the other shoe, or
No. I'm just Well, a beer is fine.
Forgive me for not getting
up. Gravity's a bitch.
I'm, uh, here to put you back to work.
This wild, happy, free
life has got to stop.
Why do I think I am not gonna like this?
- Because you know me.
- Uh-huh.
I want you to run the Astronaut Office.
Me run the Astronaut
Office. What the hell for?
Well, someone just put me
in command of Pathfinder.
Oh, wow.
You just assigned yourself
the command of the E
ticket ride of the decade.
Yep. Just like you told me to.
Jesus Christ. You weren't
supposed to listen to me.
I was just messing with you.
Well, you were right.
And assigning your own missions
is one of the perks of the job.
That's a pretty ballsy move, Ed.
You've never flown a shuttle.
Mmm. No one's flown Pathfinder.
Looks to me like you
just handed yourself
a golden opportunity to screw the pooch.
Always the optimist.
So what do you say?
I say no to that crown of thorns.
Look, don't overlook the upside.
Homage from favor seekers.
Opportunities to wreak vengeance
on people who cross you.
- Well, that sounds fun.
- Mm-hmm.
But no. No.
I just wanna fly.
So, fly.
You assign your own flights.
When your six-month medical hold ends
I pull a Baldwin?
Put myself in the coolest thing flying?
You bastard.
You start in a week.
You can thank me later.
A bottle of Glenfarclas
25 would be nice.
Although Glenfiddich never disappoints.
Molly Cobb
chief of the Astronaut Office.
No way.
I want you to know I
appreciated your call.
We never got a chance
to talk at the funeral.
- I wanted to
- You said you have something for me.
Yes.
I finally worked up the nerve
to go through Clayton's closet.
This was on the floor,
shoved in the back.
There are some personal items
in here I thought you might want.
These are some of Clayton's report
cards from elementary school.
These are some, uh, birthday
cards your mother wrote to him.
Thank you for bringing me these.
I know you and I haven't
always seen eye to eye,
but I'm I'm hoping we can
find a way to make a fresh start.
Why?
Because we both loved Clayton.
Uh-huh.
What's that supposed to mean?
I know you wanted him to admire you,
worship the ground you walked on.
Is that what you call love?
That's not at all what I
You don't know me.
- You never bothered to.
- Oh, I know you, all right.
Clayton told me what really
happened on the moon.
What?
- He wouldn't.
- He's never kept secrets from me.
Told me how you really broke your arm.
All to protect some white man's career.
That man was my friend.
A part of my crew.
The color of his skin
had nothing to do with it.
And look how they've rewarded
you. Made you a laughingstock.
If that were true, why would
they send me back to the moon?
You're going again?
Well, that's just great.
You're gonna help them spend millions
to find out if beans
will sprout on the moon.
If they'd used that money
to fund a decent counseling
program at the VA,
maybe Clay wouldn't have killed himself.
I don't know why I thought this
time would be any different.
You are never gonna change.
Hold on.
I've got something for you too.
This was Clay's?
But he threw away all his
medals. I saw him do it.
Not this one.
- How did you
- He gave it to me.
I don't understand.
Why are you giving this to me?
You're the one who filled Clay's
head with all that patriotic crap.
He joined the army because of you.
He joined the army to serve his country.
His country?
He ever tell you what
his fellow soldiers did
the day after Martin Luther
King was assassinated?
They threw a party.
Put on Klan outfits, paraded
around with Confederate flags.
But, hey, they gave Clay a medal,
so that makes it all okay.
That wasn't the men in Clay's platoon.
I'm not talking about his platoon.
I'm talking about the
United States government.
Uncle Sam used us as cannon fodder.
Clayton was proud to serve.
At first.
But by the time he got back,
he was just putting on a
good show to please you.
He did everything for you.
And now that's he's gone, all
you wanna do is forget him.
Well, go ahead.
Go back to the moon, help them
start another Vietnam up there.
That is not
We are doing serious research
to build a better future for us all.
You sound just like them.
But you're not one of
them. Never will be.
They may have let you on the bus,
but you will always
have to ride in the back.
I know I've already brought this up
but
the moon was supposed
to be a stepping-stone,
and it's become a quagmire,
sucking up more and more of
our funding and resources
That's true, but the president
doesn't want the Soviets
to gain the upper hand.
Neither do I.
If we put boots on the surface of Mars,
we'll have the ultimate upper hand.
- What?
- You know what your problem is, Ellen?
You're not fooling anyone.
I, uh
Uh, what do you mean?
You need to be a better poker player.
You remember a couple years back
when Senator Lang attacked the
cost overruns of our lunar program?
Yeah, he called it a "moondoggle".
Mm-hmm.
I wrote that speech for him.
Why would you do that?
Lang was in the middle of
a tough reelection fight.
Yeah, I remember.
Coen accused him of
being a pimp for NASA.
And John needed to demonstrate
his independence.
We already had more than enough
votes to pass the funding bill,
so why not help him out?
Then, after he won reelection
Lang turned around
and sponsored the bill
that allows NASA to license its
new technology to private industry.
And because of that,
this agency will be entirely
self-funded in less than ten years.
Which will free us from
the whims of Congress.
Exactly.
We'll have enough money to explore Mars.
And we won't stop there.
You and I will have a front row seat.
As long as the Democrats
don't win next year.
That must've been pretty difficult.
Being at the center of everything,
and then Teddy Kennedy wins
and you're out of a job.
Just part of the game.
The ups and downs.
Hmm.
Was it Nixon who
initially recruited you?
No.
No, no one recruited me. I
lobbied my ass off for this job.
Really?
Caught the bug when I was aboard
a submarine during the war.
We'd surface at night to
recharge our batteries.
Yeah, out there,
alone in the Pacific, the
sky was packed with stars.
We learned the names of quite
a few to navigate, but
I wanted to know them all.
Hmm.
After I got demobbed, I went out
and bought my first telescope
from the Sears catalog.
- Shall I freshen you up?
- Sure.
I didn't know you felt so
passionately about space.
I guess I thought
What? That I'm a glad-handing politician
who cares more about my
career than I do about NASA?
Nah, it's okay, El.
I know everyone at JSC thinks
I'm just Reagan's lackey,
just like they thought I was
Nixon's lackey a decade ago.
But I don't mind it.
People have hated politicians
as long as there have
been politicians, but
the truth is
we're the ones that
make this all possible.
I wanna get to Mars as much
as you do. Believe me.
You're gonna be a great
asset to me, Ellen.
You're as genuine as the sunrise.
People respond to that.
Thank you, Tom. That's very kind.
You'll get used to all the gamesmanship.
We all play different roles
with different people.
I'm a different Thomas Paine
with Reagan than I was with Nixon
or Tip O'Neill or Margo Madison.
And there's yet another me with
my wife when I go home at night.
The trick is not to lose track
of who you really are.
It's Scorsese's best picture.
- You cannot be serious.
- It's a masterpiece.
Oh, my. You're saying that
'cause you like Jerry Lewis.
Well, what's what's not to like?
Everything.
The Nutty Professor
is a brilliant indictment
of the American male psyche.
Okay, yours maybe. I do not
get this obsession at all.
Says the guy who's seen Yentl 15 times.
- That's so
- Hey, El.
How'd your day go?
It was, uh, very interesting.
Hey, we should go.
We don't wanna miss that first set.
Where you guys off to?
The Bullshot.
They apparently have a fantastic
Donna Summer impersonator.
- Oh.
- You should come with.
- Yeah.
- I'd love to,
but I have an 0800 meeting at JSC.
Oh, you could stay for
an hour, then head home.
You really should get
out more, have some fun.
Yeah, come on.
Another time.
- Mmm.
- Ah.
Okay. Well, if you're staying,
maybe you can go through your moon mail.
You haven't touched it
since you've been back.
- Okay. Oh, my gosh.
- Mm-hmm.
- Have fun.
- You too.
That's a lot of mail.
Discovery, Launch Control.
We're gonna run abort check now.
Wilco.
Looks good, Control.
That brings us to the built-in
hold at T-minus nine minutes.
Time for Tracy's big interview with NBC.
Starting to wonder if
we're just chauffeurs here.
Think they left a makeup case
on the mid-deck if you wanna freshen up.
Yeah. Very funny, y'all.
Launch Control, we have
power to the Tracy cam.
Roger, Discovery. Feed looks good.
Okay. You're live in three, two, one.
Hey there.
Well, I am very happy to be talking
to you aboard the
space shuttle Discovery.
That's right, I'm headed
for six months on the moon.
It's the trip of a lifetime.
Only one regret, Sam and I
couldn't make it our honeymoon.
A number of viewers have asked
why you're still using "Stevens"
instead of your married
name, "Cleveland".
Care to tell us why?
Well, you know, everybody
already knows me as Stevens.
So, figured I'd stick with it.
Save the taxpayers some money.
I love you bunches, Sam.
Astronaut Tracy Stevens,
speaking with us 40 minutes ago
as she and her crew made their
final preparations for launch.
I'm now being told the shuttle is
a mere two minutes from liftoff
Thank you. Thank you very much.
Welcome to Wheel of Fortune.
Good to have you here.
And now if you would do that
one more time for our hostess.
Here comes Vanna White.
Vanna.
Hello.
only hope they don't get
to our ships before we do.
- The air pressure's dropping.
- You're right.
Father of two. You care to
talk about those two a little bit?
Two fantastic kids.
One under a year, still a baby,
and then a beautiful
three-year-old daughter
given to me by my gracious wife.
- Well, it was
- Two wonderful kids.
a fine thing of her to do.
And it's nice to have you here,
Jeff. Wish you a lot of luck.
Eight, seven, six.
Main engine start. Two, one
So long, Trace.
See you soon.
What you got there, Mr. Piscotty?
Oh, uh
Just a sandwich, sir.
I hear it's your last day
on the job. Congratulations.
Why don't you put that on.
Uh, due respect, sir, I'm
air force, sir, not navy.
Put it on.
Now pull it down lower.
Lower.
That's gonna work.
First of next week, I want
you to check out a T-38,
meet me in Palmdale.
Palmdale California?
Congratulations.
You just drew right seat of
Pathfinder's maiden flight.
Roger that, sir.
Thank you.
T-minus two hours and counting.
- Hi, Bob.
- Hi, Bob.
Man, this place is gonna
feel so odd without you.
I think I'm gonna leave this to Molly.
Her short game sucks. She
could use the practice.
I'm sure she'll love that.
What's up?
Ed, I want you to know that
I appreciate the assignment
to Jamestown 91
and that you came up with it so quickly.
I really do.
But
But what?
It's not good enough.
Not good enough?
I'm sorry, but it's not.
I want a command slot.
Dani, you really have been
out of the loop for too long.
You don't just waltz in and demand
You know the sacrifices I've made.
How much time I've lost.
I was the first African
American in space, Ed.
And now here I am,
still riding in the back.
Come on, Dani.
You really gonna take it there?
I've given it a lot of thought.
I want to be the first African American
woman to command a mission.
First woman Black commander
is now a thing?
Seriously? We're gonna
parse it that fine?
You're damn right we are, Ed.
If you don't give me a command spot,
I will always be seen
as that weak little
Black girl who fell apart on the moon.
But if I were a white man,
they'd have forgiven me a long time ago.
I understand it feels that
way, but it's just not true.
Remember Mercury 4,
when Gus Grissom splashed
and the hatch blew early?
Press never let him forget about that.
You know, that had nothing to
do with the color of his skin.
Ed, how many astronauts do we have now?
Two hundred and five.
And how many of 'em are Black?
Eleven.
And how many of them
have commanded a mission?
- One.
- Mm-hmm.
Look, I hope you're not saying
I hope you're not
trying to imply that
I'm not trying to imply anything.
I'm saying it straight.
This is not good enough.
Look, Dani, you gotta understand.
These things, they take time.
You know, first they gotta qualify,
then they gotta be trained,
and then they gotta get some
missions under their belt.
Believe me, if they were ready,
they'd be commanding.
"If they were ready"? You
sound like an NFL owner.
Look, we've dealt with this issue.
No. We haven't.
Ed, I came into this program
as the token Black girl.
And I was grateful for the opportunity,
no matter what the reasons.
But that was 13 years ago.
This program,
it has the power to change
the way people see the world.
You know that.
I can't believe you're bringing
this to me on my last day.
That's exactly why I'm bringing it up.
Because until Molly
takes over on Monday,
you are the only one with
the power to do something.
I gotta get to a meeting.
Sorry I'm late.
Hey, hey.
For you, Ed.
In honor of your nine years of service
as head of the Astronaut Office.
Am I supposed to make a wish?
Hasn't it already been granted?
You're commanding Pathfinder.
What'd you wish for?
To get on with this meeting.
Amen to that.
Uh, well, I have some exciting news.
The, uh The Soviets have
accepted the president's offer
to mount a joint mission
between our two space programs.
You gotta be fucking kidding me.
You said there was no chance
they would agree to this.
Apparently Premier Andropov is
eager to demonstrate to the world
that the Soviet Union has
peaceful intentions
toward the United States.
I've said it before.
This is complete bullshit.
The Soviets are still flying Soyuz.
Haven't even managed to get their
shuttle Buran off the ground.
And the only reason
why they agreed to this
is so they can get a closer look
at our current technology.
We don't have to give it to them.
We can show the Reds only
what they've already seen.
Meaning?
We have an old Apollo command
module in storage here at JSC.
It was a backup rescue ship for Skylab
before shuttles took over that job.
And we were gonna send
it to the Smithsonian.
If we use an Apollo for this,
the Russians won't get anywhere
near our shuttle systems.
As long as we have a Saturn
1B lying around as well.
Huntsville's got one.
Well, then it's doable.
The president is gonna love this.
He still talks about how heroic-looking
the old Apollos were.
Right, well, the Soviets say
they're already picking a crew, so
To demonstrate that
they're fully committed.
So we need to do the same.
I hate to put pressure on
you on your last day, Ed,
but I'm not sure I want
to leave this to Ms. Cobb.
At least you'll only have to pick
two now after the modifications.
I can give you the commander right now.
I hope you're not appointing
yourself to this one too.
Nope. I'm assigning Danielle Poole.
She has extensive Apollo experience,
and she'll be perfect for this.
Well, uh
Well, uh, we might want to
consider other possibilities.
Why is that?
Ed, this mission is very
important to the president.
He wants only the best
of the best to fly it.
I spent three months
on the moon with her.
She performed brilliantly under
very stressful circumstances.
I appreciate your loyalty,
but you know that's not true.
What the hell is that supposed to mean?
Come on, Ed. Do I really
need to spell it out?
- The whole thing with her arm
- That wasn't her fault.
- Well, the public thinks
- So we change public opinion.
Tom, I trained with Poole.
And I agree with Ed.
So do I.
She did an exceptional job for
us during the Apollo 24 crisis.
And I think it's time
for an African American woman
to command a spaceflight.
There's no argument there.
Hell, I'm the one that selected Poole
as an astronaut to begin with.
So what's the problem?
I'm gonna get a lot of blowback
from the White House.
You need to remind them of the plaque
that we were gonna
bring up on Apollo 11.
"We came in peace for all mankind".
Now we need to live up to that.
And this mission, with
all its symbolic value,
is the perfect opportunity to do so.
I think Ed's right on this one.
Now look, the Soviets love
to grab any opportunity
to highlight our troubled
history with race relations.
This will send a powerful message
about the progress that we've made.
All right, I'll run it up the flagpole.
Let me know if anyone gives
you any trouble on that.
I'll call the secretary of defense,
and he'll support this.
I got your back on this, Tom.
T-minus five, four, three, two
Can I have a minute?
You got one fucking minute.
- What's going on?
- What are you talking about?
I thought we were friends.
You blindsided me back there.
Wasn't premeditated, Tom.
Just happened in the moment.
Yeah, I guess a lot of things happen
for you in the moment lately.
You never discussed
Pathfinder with me either.
And then, bang, Gordo Stevens
is suddenly off to the moon
after being ground bound
for nearly a decade.
Gordo's on salary. He's one
of the best pilots we got.
Everyone knows he's a dr
He's got a drinking problem.
Have you taken a good
look at him lately?
The man's a train wreck
waiting to happen.
Look, he's a little bit on
the chunky side right now,
but he'll whip himself into shape.
He always does. He
aced his proficiency
I just hope you're making
all these decisions
for the right reasons, Ed.
Not out of nepotism or favoritism
Whatever kind of ism this is.
Goddamn it!
Shit.
Ed did say noon, right?
That's affirm.
What's with the hat? You're air force.
I, um lost a bet.
No shit. What was it?
I was so drunk I, uh
don't remember it.
And NASA chose you to fly right seat
in its first nuclear spacecraft.
Sorry I'm late.
My Vette blew a rod on
my way out to Ellington.
How old's that car anyway?
What, 40 years?
I got it 14 years ago,
while you were still playing
tennis in high school.
I'm just glad they don't
make 'em like they used to.
Let's get this moving.
Gotta get back to Houston.
I want you two to supervise the sim mods
while I fly out to the Cape
to check out the launch
control center upgrades.
Something I wanna show you first.
I appreciate you doing
this for me, Troy.
My pleasure, Ms. Poole.
Not much in here but
crates and mothballs.
What are you looking for anyway?
I wanna say hello to my ship.
That's your ship?
That tin can?
That tin can.
I give you Pathfinder.
First time I've seen her ready to go.
She's three times as powerful
as our current shuttles.
And when we go to Mars,
these nuclear engines will
cut 100 days off of our trip.
Our job will be to test her in the
harshest environment we know.
Shake every bug out of her system.
Now, I chose you as my crew
because you're the best.
Dr. Ride's been working
on these engines for years,
and it's time you rode them into space.
Unlike you, Captain Piscotty
here has never been on orbit,
but I've seen him ace six
backup crew assignments.
He seems to have a sixth sense
of what can go wrong and how to fix it.
He's also a pretty fair pilot.
Even though he does have red hair.
Now, there'll be a lot of eyes on us.
So we can afford no fuckups.
That's why we will train our asses off.
Roger that, skipper.
Wouldn't have it any other way.
Let's go make history.
- requests that you all rise
- Oh, no.
and show respect
while he sings his nation's
national anthem.
Kick your ass, you commie bastard.
Go on, keep singing while
you still got some teeth.
Give me a break, Steve.
Give me an umbrella. Hold it!
- There it goes!
- Where is he?
Ladies and gentlemen,
from South Carolina
Sergeant Slaughter!
Yeah!
Slaughter's gonna kick his ass
all the way back to Siberia.
Better watch Volkoff's right hand then.
Last week in Shreveport,
Volkoff whipped out a foreign
object from his trunks
and then coldcocked Tito Santana.
- You like wrestling?
- It's hilarious. Yeah.
He's gonna kick your ass.
Hey, Gordo, aren't you supposed
to be meeting Ed at Ellington?
I thought you two were flying
down to the Cape together.
Can't miss this. I'll drive fast.
That's it.
Pathfinder was amazing,
but I about died when Sally
ribbed the admiral about his car.
My mouth was so dry,
I couldn't say a word.
Listen, zoomie.
Ed Baldwin can trip over
his dick like anybody else.
You're flying his right seat,
so it is your job to call
him out when he fucks up.
- If you can't do that, then
- Jesus, Helena.
Talk about a buzzkill.
Watch out! Slingshot!
Hey, Ed.
Boy, now that is 313 pounds at least!
Just being catapulted through the air
What a right arm!
Yeah, that's it, Sarge! Pulverize him!
- My word! Five rights
- Arrest his ass!
and now the big guy
flung across, Sarge right
Hammer him into the goddamn canvas!
And that one really rocked the
Russian. Volkoff down on a knee.
The table's turning.
Hey, ref, you blind? That's
illegal use of bicuspids!
Dad?
Dad?
You okay, Dad?
Y-You can see those ants?
Yeah, it's pretty hard to miss.
You ready to go, buddy boy?
What's wrong?
I saw some ants.
What?
When? What were you doing?
Was watching TV at the Outpost.
And no booze, just Pepsi.
They were just They were
crawling everywhere, man.
They were crawling everywhere.
- Was anyone with you?
- Yeah, Danny was there.
He was working.
It was over pretty quick.
Karen, she she she killed
'em with some bug spray.
What Wait, you mean
the ants were real?
I thought I was losing it again, Ed.
Thought I was seeing things again.
I couldn't catch my breath,
and I was shaking and
sweating all the way here.
I could just feel 'em on
my hands and on my face.
What if it happens up there again, Ed?
Gordo, you're not hallucinating.
This isn't happening.
You know, my old man
he was the toughest son
of a bitch I ever saw.
And the horrors he endured in that war.
Guadalcanal, Peleliu, Okinawa.
And those banzai charges.
Japs coming at him,
screaming like wild animals,
running right over the
backs of their dead,
but he never left his machine gun.
He just kept right on firing.
I never saw him back down from anything.
Till the cancer.
I'd go and see him. He's laying
flat on his back in his bed.
He's gasping like a fish out of water.
Eyes big and wide, and he's so scared.
I just couldn't take it.
Just ran out of the room.
I don't know.
Maybe the
fear was in him all along.
Deep down.
He was just too weak to
to fight against it anymore.
What am I gonna do, Ed?
You can start acting like a man.
- What?
- You heard me.
You're a goddamn astronaut.
You sat your ass on top of
five and a half million pounds
of high explosive fuel
and told them, "Light the fuse".
And now you're sitting there
crying like a little fucking baby!
"Oh, Ed, I'm so scared. I'm so weak".
How about you grow a
pair, for Christ's sakes!
Careful, Ed.
Or what? El Gordo's gonna do something?
El Gordo just might.
- Maybe you have lost it.
- Shut up.
- Maybe you're not Gordo Stevens anymore!
- Shut up!
Why don't you book a flight
to Florida on Pan Am?
I'm sure they can find you a seat.
Niner-five-niner, niner-one-zero.
Ed, we're beaucoup south of our route.
Fuel's gonna be a major problem.
What's the deal?
Just a little detour.
Thought we'd see if
you got any stones left.
You're flying in
dogfight territory, son.
You bastard. Okay, I'm
gonna kick your ass.
Fight's on, buddy.
In the wake of Cold War tensions
that show no signs of easing,
at least one person is calling for
everyone to just come together.
His name, John Lennon.
The famed musician and activist
is reaching out to world
leaders and fans alike,
promoting what he calls
a concert for peace.
Hosted by Lennon, the concert
would take place in New York City
sometime in the fall.
No word yet from Paul, George or Ringo
as to whether they'll be joining.
In other news,
an absolutely stunning
development in Panama today.
According to the Pentagon,
a team of Navy SEALs
penetrated the Panamanian
military installation
where the American soldiers were held
and rescued all four of the men.
No shit.
At least two Panamanian
soldiers were killed
in the exchange of gunfire.
President Torrijos denounced the action
as an outrageous violation
of Panamanian sovereignty
and has called upon the Soviet Union
to help his country defend itself
- Shit.
- Oh, it's it's okay.
I won't tell anyone if you won't.
Yeah, I don't want you
doing this with Kelly though.
Ever, all right?
Aye, aye, ma'am.
Slippery little bastard.
Ain't gonna save you though.
Check this out, cheesedick.
Oh, no, you don't.
And there you are.
Sorry, sailor. Saw that coming.
Time to eat your lunch.
Pipper's on.
Fox Two! That's all she wrote, buddy.
Ah, geez.
We call that a clean kill.
We call that dumb luck, Gordo.
Let's make it two out of three.
Whoa.
That's not good. Warning tone.
Ah, Jesus, Ed, you're on fire.
You got flames under your left engine.
Aw, shit!
You better get out and walk, buddy.
More like go for a swim.
I'll call SAR. Ed, get out of there now!
Mayday, Mayday. Houston Center.
NASA niner-one-zero over the Gulf.
NASA niner-five-niner is
on fire and ejecting now.