On the premiere of Astronaut Wives Club, we met the pilots of Project Mercury- the first case for manned spaceflight from NASA, and their wives. In the first episode, they adjusted to their newfound celebrity, and Alan Shepard took part in his first mission of the overall goal. The full recap can be found here.
The new episode kicks off as news reports pour in about Alan’s success on his part of the mission, and Betty and prepare for their own. All of the wives go shopping for dresses to have them for press appearances. Meanwhile, Alan and Louise do TV interviews. At home, Marge gets a visitor- a PI, Anthony Pantos. He’s supposedly checking up on a story- not about her husband, but about her. She drags him off to go snap at him about it. He says they’re focusing on her first marriage. She freaks out and kicks him off of her property.
Betty talks to Louise about coping with the stress and worry about watching a husband go into space. She says that she just needs to do her best and hold her head high. In town, Marge goes to talk to the P.I again. She tries to pay him off about keeping the first husband story away from the press. He wants a new story in the form of insider info about the men’s’ flights.
In town, Louise rips into the reporter who’s following them about making her the almost picture perfect obedient wife. He essentially waves her off. Betty and Gus check into a hotel so they can be close to the test site. Gus sees one of the worker’s boys drawing pictures of spaceships and the like so he charms the boy and signs an autograph. His mother sees and thanks him, then goes on, accidentally admitting being weary of space flight. She catches herself, but not before it’s clear Betty shares the concern. Meanwhile, a NASA exec talk to Betty and John and admit being apprehensive about Annie speaking publically with the stutter. She says America will love her once she practices. Meanwhile, Marge is on the phone with her husband, and she says that things from her past should possibly be discussed. He agrees. Gus and Betty prepare for bed and talk about how and why they love each other- which includes him letting her do her own thing and have her own opinions and such, and then they head to bed. Gordon does a collage with their daughter. The latter finds a news report where an old friend has succeeded in doing something that Trudy could’ve won. Gordon tells their daughter to go to bed, then she lays into him about their marital trouble and storms off.
July 21, 1961: The wives arrive at Betty’s house for a press release/to watch Gus’ mission start up. In the meantime, NASA has released a statement that the launch will be delayed. The reporter with them says they’ll continue to be picture perfect women, and Rene acts the part to get a laugh. In turn, Louise notices that it matches her to a T. One of the other wives calls everyone in- the shuttle’s about to be launched. They gather in the room to see the launch, and it works. Marge arrives and a friend notes to Marge that she saw a man talking to her. Her friend asks about an affair, and Redhead sets her straight. Strawberry insists that she understands about the whole press thing, and she’ll look after her. In the living room, there’s a problem with the mission- the pod that Gus is in has crashed and is sinking into water.
The women watch helplessly for a while, and then the news reporter notes that Gus has been saved and is being recovered now. The press knocks on her door and she goes to meet them. The press turns the failed mission on her telling her that Gus opened the hatch prematurely and spins it so he might have tried suicide or something like it. She freezes. Meanwhile, Marge talks to a psychologist elsewhere. She mentions being divorced from her first husband.
Trudy and Gordon talk, and Trudy gets angry over misinterpreting something. He tries to save the day, but fails and she leaves, calling for a ride from a friend. That night, Gus and Betty and their kids are headed to their beach house for a little getaway they got for him being in the program. After a small fight brought on by Betty realizing they got the house out of sympathy, she wants them to go back home, and he reluctantly agrees and turns around.