01x01 - The One Way Trip

[bunniefuu]

And I've been
having a lot of fun

with the little Zen
garden you sent.

It... It's weird.

I never would have
thought to rake sand,

but every morning I'm
reaching for that rake,

just out of instinct,
making my neat little rows.

Anyway, boo, I
just wanted to say

I think I'm finally getting
a feel for things up here.

It's been a challenging few
months, as you're all too aware.

Y-You just can't expect

to settle into a
new job overnight,

but I... I feel like I've
finally crossed a threshold.

It's like, it's scary taking
a one-way trip to Mars.

I... I mean, we talked
about it a million times.

But I made a commitment.

And here I am.

And I actually feel
pretty great about it.

I got all the building blocks,

and now it's just a
matter of doing the work.

You know, I got you.

I got my job.

And I feel good.

I feel really, really good.

They had a pack of
mineral-sniffing robotic dogs.

A music director.

A saltwater pool.

A turbocharged sand ski.

A baby.

They even paid a guy to sleep.

Ted. He got paid to sleep.

That's it.

But apparently they
didn't have a need

for thoughtfully
designed newsletters,

eye-catching logos,

calendars that made you
look forward to each day.

Not to mention
elegant new signage.

♪ In the desert sun ♪

♪ Every step that you take
could be the final one ♪

♪ In the burning heat ♪

Awesome to finally
meet you, Jeff.

I want to start by thanking
you for seven months

of truly kick-a*s work,

like this org chart you made
for the Comms department.

Look at this thing,
it's gangsta.

But it's also why we
brought you in this morning.

Sure, whatever you guys need.

I've still got the
original files,

I'm more than happy
to... No, Jeff.

We're actually making a few
tweaks to the structure.

I'm not sure I understand.

We're putting your job on hold.

But... Uh, heh,
okay. It's just I...

I traveled over 200 million
miles, so how can you...

Well, I mean...

The thing is, I left
my entire life behind

so I could be a graphic
designer on Mars.

Mmmm... hm.

Yeah, the bean counters
back on Earth don't get

why there's a graphic
designer up here.

And look, I do understand
where they're coming from.

Well, ha, I... It just...

It seems like maybe this
could've been sorted out

before sending me to Mars.

I mean, y'know, what am
I supposed to do now?

We're gonna need you to trust
the process on this one, bud.

That's right.

Just hold tight while we
figure out next steps.

Every setback is an
opportunity in disguise.

John Adams said that,
and I tend to believe it.

Also, I wasn't
fired, I was on hold.

And when I think about
everything I'd accomplished

over the past few months,

my value to this
colony was undeniable.

I was doing the best
graphic design of my career.

♪ So now you're gonna
sh**t b*ll*ts of fire ♪

I was living my passion.

And more importantly, I was
part of something bigger.

Every last one of us
up here for a reason.

The rugged pioneers of
interstellar travel.

The engineers who built this
colony from the dust up.

The influencers
re-born as ambassadors

for this new chapter
of civilization.

The geologists,
botanists, AI innovators,

biotech trailblazers.

Everyone had a purpose.

Mine was graphic design,

and nobody could ever
take that away from me.

Looking pretty good.

Thanks, Jeff.

Just wanted to let you
guys know that, uh...

And I'm sure you might
have perhaps already heard

that I'm not officially part
of the team at the moment,

and, uh, I...

That's true, but I am
still "open for business."

So, I just wanted to make
clear to you as team...

I still think of
you as teammates...

That if you need
anything, anything at all,

just say, y'know, "Hey,
Jeff. We need you."

Thank you, Jeff. Really
appreciate the offer.

Looks like you guys are
running low on markers.

Need a refill?

Thanks for the offer, Jeff.

I think we're okay.

I-I'm headed down to supplies,

I can just pick some up.

We're all set.

I'll just do it, and
then you can decide

whether you want 'em or not.

Your decision completely.

Would you mind
leaving right now?

Of course.

Okay, team, talk to ya later.

See, the thing
is, I still believe,

at the end of the day,
building a successful career

in the creative arts
is about tenacity.

Because if I had a nickel
for every supervisor

who didn't "get" it,
y'know what I mean?

I told you, Jeff. One a day.

Oh, yeah, sorry.
I just thought

since I didn't come
down here yesterday,

I could double up
and it would...

Yeah, but you did, Jeff.

You did come down
here yesterday.

And you were talking the
same sh*t you've been talking

since you got sh*t-canned.

Your markers.

Look, man. I... I know
Mars. ly sucks, alright?

I get it. You think
I want to fill out

six forms every time some yuppie

needs a screw to
fix their glasses?

Oh. That reminds me.

If you could have any
of those little...

No, Jeff! Get out of here.

Beat it. Go get
a f*cking hobby.

Oh, my God, yes.

He's like, "Um, do
you need markers?

Do you need other
stuff?"

I'm like, "Jeff, I don't
need anything, okay?

I don't need anything from you."

Huh.

And just like that,
I had purpose again.

I'd always known something
was wrong at the office,

but I just didn't
have the vocabulary

to understand what it was...

A complete lack of respect

for the core principles
of label theory.

Hey, Alejandro.

I know you're super busy,

so, look, I'm not gonna take up

too much of your time.

But I have noticed

that some of the
objects in your area,

on your desk, they
seem out of place,

you understand?

Almost like they don't
know where they belong.

Are you familiar
with the concept

of label-driven
organizational analysis?

Dr. Frei was right,

"Labels pull back the curtain
on the theater of life."

I mean, two weeks ago,
if you'd have told me

I'd free up 50% of my day by
incorporating a label maker,

I'd say you were crazy.

Yeah, but Jeff, imagine
someone coming into your room

moving all your stuff around
and labeling everything...

Yes, exactly! I
would love that!

Oh, and, before I forget,
there's this couple's quiz

I thought we could take.

I'm pretty sure I know what
labeling style you are,

but it'll be fun to see.

You gotta trust me
on this one, Hannah.

She was an
account manager

fresh out of a
long-term relationship.

I was a newly minted graphic
designer in Creative Resources.

The rest?

Well, you can read about
it in the history books.

So, we all know carbon
footprints are a problem.

The thing is,

what are we supposed to
do about it actually?

Nothing, right?

Unless...

we started by putting one
foot in front of the other.

This limited-edition
drop will generate

hundreds of millions
of impressions

for the most important
issue of our times.

And in just a short
13 months and 11 days,

she was going to make
the trip to Mars,

and our new life
together would begin.

Jeff?

Wow.

Grande iced coconut milk

caramel macchiato with
extra shot incoming.

Oh, my God.

Thank you.

What's happening, spaceman?

Listen, thanks
again for letting me

keep your partner
around a little longer.

Oh. H-Hey, Jonathan.

Yeah, no problem, man.

We're all rootin' for
you down here, buddy.

Well, I... Yeah, no.

I appreciate that.

H-He's just getting
you gifts, Hannah?

Jonathan gets everyone
an ice blended

after Friday scrum, Jeff. God!

Anyway, babe, I wish I
could keep chitchatting,

but we've got a karaoke brunch
with the client tomorrow

and I'm way behind on the deck.

Well, don't wanna hold you
up, and, hey, that's one thing

you can look forward
to up here on Mars.

No more client brunches.

100%.

Okay, I'll talk to you soon.

Love you so much. Gotta go.

Oh, okay. Well,
talk to you later.

Okay.

You mind telling me
what the f*ck's going on here?

I'm actually kind of in
the middle of something.

You burned through
three-quarters

of our label supplies, Jeff.

"Burned through"?

Sounds like you need a refresher
on label theory, my friend.

A biologist almost drank a cup

of Fluoroantimonic Acid

because she thought
it was a ginger ale.

You stole labels from
the biology department,

the legal department,
and accounting.

All so you could, what,
label coffee pods?

That are already labeled?

That's crazy, Jeff.

You're actually crazy.

Well, look I'm sorry
that you don't understand

the significance
of the project...

Gimme that! Hey!
What the hell, man?!

Look around, dude.

It's over.

Well, Martin, if you'll recall,

it was actually you

that told me to
get a hobby, okay?

And, really, I think
what's happening here

is you're realizing
change is hard.

It is. There's always
an adjustment period.

"Rome wasn't labeled
in a day", alright?

That's actually a
joke from the book,

but it's true, and...
Oh, is it in the book?!

Ugh, look, I know you're sad,

but quit being f*cking stupid.

I became a ghost,
invisible to my coworkers,

invisible to myself.

One day I went to lunch

and I never came back.

Just wanted to say I'm, uh,

gonna be moving my
battle station elsewhere,

just for a bit,

so this isn't goodbye,

but if you do need
to locate me...

Oh! David! Ohhh!

That's when I started
in on the DVD box sets.

And the chips.

I am the light!

I have to say, I
didn't miss the office.

Not at all.

When I got lonely, I'd go
see Ted in the sleep tank.

I'd look through that
little hatch and wonder

what kind of heartbreaking,
beautiful dreams

were running through
that head of his.

After a month,
Brandon and Darren

stopped replying to my e-mails.

f*ck!

Stupid! Stupid!
Stupid! Stupid!

Hello? There she is!

Yeah, busy doing actual work.

Remember that?

Sorry
I'm being mean.

I am just under a lot of stress.

I just feel like I need water,

I'm so parched!
Hey, it's okay.

Just get some water. Let's...

We'll just... We'll
connect later.

Somehow, Hannah just kept
getting busier and busier.

Executive Leadership Committees,

brunches,

and of course yoga,

lots and lots of yoga.

One afternoon, I got
an all-company e-mail.

There'd been a gravity accident,

and Carol from the
Dreamspiration department

had been decapitated.

By all accounts, Carol
was a terrific woman,

but as you can imagine,

the first thing to
cross my mind was...

Job opening.

Poor Carol.

The woman, Carol.

Who knew her?

Yeah, good.

Yeah, glad to see it.

Sad day, such a sad day.

You can't ever be ready
for moments like these.

Jeff, I'm actually in the middle

of something real
important here, pal, so...

One minute. Just
give me one minute.

So, obviously this is
a transitional moment

with the Carol stuff.

But that doesn't mean the
Dreamspiration department

can afford to hit pause.

I'd like to formally
submit my application

to be Mars. ly's next
Junior Dream Officer.

In a way, it's the culmination

of everything I've ever done.

Graphics. Design.

Symbols to create change.

Galvanizing people
around a cause.

A cause? A dream.

Flashback to me, age 10,

my grandmother's sewing room.

Now, she'd been collecting
embroidery patterns since...

Jesus. Okay. Enough. Enough.

You promised me if
anything opened up,

I'd be first in line.

I need this, Darren.

I need this so bad.

How bad?

11 out of 10.

Whoa! Big numbers!

Hey, if it were me, I'd
hire you this second.

I really would.

But Dreamspiration
is Reagan's show.

And she's a tough nut to
crack, heh, let me tell you.

But you know what, Jeff?

I have a really good
feeling about this.

Tell you what, why don't you
haul your buns down there,

show the boss lady
these charts and sh*t,

and we'll get this
all wrapped up, right?

Darren, thank you so very much.

I will not let you down.

Open or closed?

Closed, Jeff.

I was on fire.

I just dropped the
act and was like,

"Hey, dude, I want to
make money for Mars. ly,

Let's make money, Dare."

So, wait, how does this
relate to the labels thing?

Oh, that... that was
just a little detour.

A... A valid one,
don't get me wrong.

Hm. Dr. Frei is a genius,

but this... this could
actually be "it."

Mm-hmm. The perfect fit.

For me. For us.

You know, and let's
not forget Carol.

Sorry, Carol... the dead lady?

She's a lot more
than just a dead lady.

You don't know me, but I just
needed to stop by to say...

I'm sorry. About Carol.

She was one of the good ones.

She was a warrior.

What did you say your name was?

Jeff.

And how well did you know Carol?

I-It's interesting
you ask, it is,

because I was actually
wondering the same thing...

Like, how well
can another person

know someone else, really?

Because it can be...
I'm sorry.

This is devastating...

In the best possible way.

God, she was so sexy and
messy and complicated

and powerful and strong!

Look at her. Ah!

And you just whipped
this up overnight?

God, what I wouldn't give to
have one of you around here.

Well, strangely enough,

that's actually the
reason I'm here...

Nah, hey, hey.

It's crooked, bro.

Bring it... Bring
it up on the left.

Oh, yeah, it is crooked.

And when you're done
with that, you can, uh,

haul this trash
out of here, okay?

Thanks, bro.

Ted?

Oh, you know each other?

That's so cool.

Nah, I don't know this guy.

Well, a-actually, when
you were in the tank,

I used to...

Used to what?

I, uh... I used
to watch... you.

That's f*cked up, my boy.

No, sorry, "watch"
is the wrong word.

It was more of a walk-by,
double-take sorta thing.

A double? Oh, naw,
man. Naw, naw.

Not a double like
that! It's...

I'm... I'm not
explaining it correctly.

So, sorry, Ted, what...

When did you wake
up, by the way?

And... And what are you...

What are you doing here?

Oh, no. That's... That's...

Yeah, that's not... I...

Yeah, after Carol...

See, I... I talked to Darren.

He promised me... I mean...

Hey, I-I-I talked to Darren.

Whoa! Nice
shot, Brandon.

Wish I was there to
see it in person.

You gave Ted the job?!

Jesus, Jeff!

The guy who's been
asleep for seven months?

Hey, I'm trying to hit a
f*cking golf ball here, okay?

You knew how badly
I needed this,

and you lied to my face!

Jeff, out of my office now!

Everything okay
in there, Darren?

You said I should
talk to Reagan,

that it was her show.

I made a f*cking poster!

Gimme that thing! No, Jeff!

Do not touch my computer!

Stop! Hey, Dare?

Let me grab the wheel here.

Jeff, let me be clear.

You deserve any job you want.

The thing is, this
isn't about a job.

Now, you are immensely talented.

You can admit that, right?

Uh, I guess? Good.

Now it's my turn to get
something off my chest.

When we met the other day?

I was intimidated.

I said to my wife, "Katie,
I just met a real-life,

"dyed-in-the-wool game changer

"who scares the heck
out of me in a good way.

And his name is Jeff."

That's when a
lightbulb went off.

Big time.

They told me there was
a spot for me in the tank.

Turns out they weren't asking.

We're not offering
you the sleep tank.

We're telling you...
You're in the sleep tank.

It's... It's just, the
idea of going in there.

I... I don't know if
you've seen my file,

but I was trapped in a very
small closet as a child

and I'm... I'm extremely
uncomfortable in small spaces.

Mmm. Mm-hmm.

I-I mean, is... Is
this even legal?

We don't want you to do
anything you don't want to do.

If you decide you're
not interested

in the sleep tank opportunity,
we fully support you.

We just ask that you surrender
all Mars. ly property.

And unfortunately, we
won't be able to host you

in the residences any longer.

Full transparency...
Access to food

is gonna be kind of a problem.

Just
want to reiterate,

we're behind you all
the way here, bud.

Hey, boo.

Not sure if you're back
from your retreat yet

or... or what, but there's been

another little, uh, hitch.

And, uh, it turns out I'm
going away for a little while.

Well, more than a
little while actually.

And I'm sad we didn't
get a chance to talk.

But it's, uh... it's okay.

Maybe you'll get this
and, y'know, call me back.

So, who we got on the
chopping block this morning?

Jeff Cooper.

And he is a graphic designer.

Graphic designer.

Isn't that, uh, Latin
for "failed artist"?

Ah, just kidding around, bud.

Bud?

Hey, bud?

Whoa!

What the hell?!

I mean, try explaining gull-wing
doors to a Golden Retriever.

Right?

But the vet says
he'll be fine, so...

Uh, one sec, Brandon.

Dare, what's that
sound I'm hearing?

♪ In the desert sun ♪

♪ Every step that you take
could be the final one ♪

♪ In the burning heat ♪

♪ Hanging on the
edge of destruction ♪

♪ You can't stop the pain ♪

♪ Of your children
crying out in your head ♪

Hey!

♪ They always said that the
living would envy the dead ♪

♪ So now you're gonna
sh**t b*ll*ts of fire ♪

♪ Don't want to fight ♪
[ Both grunting ]

♪ But sometimes you've got to ♪

♪ You're some soul survivor ♪

♪ There's just one thing
you've got to know ♪

♪ You've got ten more
thousand miles to go ♪

♪ Because you're
one of the living ♪

♪ And if we can't
stick together ♪

♪ Can't stick together ♪
[ Communicator ringing ]

♪ One of the living ♪

♪ Who's gonna make it tonight? ♪

Hey, boo.

But it's like,
is he the coolest guy

in the world? No. Hello?

Is he the most successful?

Obviously not.

Does he get along
with my friends?

No. They hate him. H-Hello?

But what do they know?

You know? It's like... Hello?

God, what do I do?

Hey, all I can do is listen.

Am I being mean?

No. You're being you.

Look, it's clear
you love the guy.

We all do. He's Jeff.

And at the same time,
he is "limited" in ways.

He's a baby soul.

Whereas you... you've
been doing the work.

And I guess the
real question is...

Do you want to travel
nine million miles

to parent that baby soul?

Well, when you
put it that way...

Don't get me wrong.

Mars is an amazing place...

for the right person.

Would I go? No. Never.

My home planet's California,

and my blood type's Pacific-O.

But, hey, that's just me.

This is so hard.

F-F-f*ck!

Warning! Pressure
leak detected.

Ahhhhh!