Star City

You're the first woman to walk on the moon.

That'll give you some protection.

Being first didn't protect Gagarin.

Trajectory within mission parameters.

Give the order.

Luna 16, you are clear to initiate deorbit burn.

Star City, Luna 16.

Automated deorbit burn, starting at 08:07 UTC.

Duration, 122 seconds.

Star City.

Deorbit burn approaching the halfway mark.

Copy, Luna 16.

Star City, Luna 16.

Deorbit burn complete.

Copy, Luna 16. Proceed with separation.

Separation commencing in three, two, one.

Separation comple...

Still attached.

It didn't separate.

Star City, we have another faulty umbilical bolt.

They're dragging the service module behind them.

- Hull is at critical temperature. - Be calm. Be calm.

We didn't send them to the moon just to lose them now.

The atmosphere will burn through that cable.

If it doesn't, they won't be the only ones needing state funerals.

Don't be ridiculous.

The state would never pay for our funerals.

- Give me the comms. - Sir.

My Eagles, you have my word,

that capsule is made from the finest titanium

the Soviet Union ever produced.

It will hold until the cord breaks.

Star City, attitude corrected.

Hull temperature dropping.

Luna 16, can you confirm your trajectory?

Coming in much steeper than planned.

Where does that put them?

300… No.

450 kilometers off course.

The central Siberian plateau near Lake Baikal.

Recovery team, do you have those coordinates?

Let's get some air.

Who knows how long it will take them to reach us?

I'll get the signal flare from the emergency kit.

- Valya. - What is it?

Get the gun. Get the gun.

Don't move.

Welcome home, comrade.

May I introduce Deputy Chairman Tarasov.

Sit.

Do you recognize this woman?

- No. - Really?

She's Anastasia Belikova,

the first woman on the moon.

Unlike you, she knows how to behave in the best interests of the state.

The name Anastasia Belikova…

no longer belongs to you, comrade.

I… I don't… I don't know what to say.

An inhibition you did not have on the moon.

When Colonel Raskova suggested you fill the spot on the mission left

by your predecessor, she assured me you would understand your position.

Yes, I did. I do.

Yet, here I am, deep in Siberia in the back of a truck.

If something like this were to happen again...

It won't, Colonel Raskova.

I swear.

Good.

Well, now that that's settled.

From here you will go to Ulan-Ude airfield where you will fly to Star City

to prepare for a parade through Red Square.

After a brief tour of our homeland,

we plan to send you to Paris

to celebrate your historic achievement with the world press,

and as a symbol of Soviet moral superiority.

But there is, however, one issue we must resolve.

You cannot be the exemplar of Soviet womanhood

as a single woman.

But I am a single woman.

Which is why you will be getting married at the conclusion of the trip.

Married?

Is that necessary?

Are you saying you are unwilling to cooperate?

No.

No, no.

I-I don't know… I…

- My father, I will have to speak with... - Your father will be notified.

We've already made all the arrangements.

It will be a… a beautiful Soviet wedding.

Congratulations.

May I ask who I am supposed to marry?

- Are you kidding me? - She's young,

she's not terrible looking,

and she happens to be the most famous woman on the planet.

- Doesn't mean I want to marry her. - Every bachelor in the Soviet Union

would give his last ruble to be in your shoes.

Well, then ask one of them.

It's not as if you have anyone else waiting for you, is it?

It might be good for you to settle down.

The Central Committee want her to marry a cosmonaut.

And like it or not, you're the only one who happens to be a bachelor.

She's not my type.

I mean, she… She's strange. She's...

Sasha. You're a good pilot,

but there's a reason you haven't been assigned a mission yet.

Yeah, I know why.

You can't blame all your problems on the religion

your grandparents practiced 50 years ago.

- Then why haven't I gone up? - Because everything's a joke to you,

Sasha. You need to prove how serious you are about this program.

What? By marrying that automaton?

I mean, who is the one pulling a joke here?

Sasha, do you think I wanna spend my days

playing matchmaker with the pressures I'm under?

Do you think this is how I wanna spend my time?

I learned long ago that in order to get what you want in this world

you have to make sacrifices.

- Are you prepared to do that? - Yes.

Now is not the time to be pushing back against orders, believe me.

Follow me.

Colonel Raskova?

Shut the door.

Has there been a development in Berlin?

Do you think it's wise to read the files on my desk?

I'm so sorry, Colonel. I don't know…

I don't know what I was thinking.

The Stasi have apprehended a man they believe to be an American courier.

The one who carried the lunar base plans?

I speak German, if that's at all helpful.

You're very confusing to me, Irina Vasilievna.

You are clearly ambitious, creative,

willing to do whatever you must to achieve your aims.

Someone like that could be very useful to the service, very useful to me.

I'm happy to be of service however I can, Colonel.

But only to a point.

Continue your surveillance of Valya and Tanya Mironov

when they accompany Comrade Belikova on her tour to Paris.

And monitor our new lovebirds.

Make sure Belikova sticks to protocol.

She's proven to be unreliable.

And you must be vigilant.

Once we leave Star City, we will be vulnerable to foreign interference.

I understand.

Forgive me, but thank you, Chief Designer.

For what, my child?

You're the one pouring me tea.

Yes, but you showed the world what Soviet women are made of.

She's right, comrade.

You made Soviet women the envy of the world,

and now all our wives won't shut up about it.

General Secretary Brezhnev knows that your singular vision

is what has enabled us to stay ahead of the Americans, yet again.

So we brought you here today because he wants to keep that progress going.

Well, that's music to my ears.

I brought you all copies of my proposals for projects beyond the lunar mission

which will still be one phase of our operations, but we must think bigger.

We must keep pushing forward

if we truly want to achieve victory over the Americans.

Now, sending a Soviet cosmonaut... Thank you...

to our closest neighboring planets,

- to Venus... - Comrade, if I may,

perhaps some of this may have been possible

before the Americans stole your plans for Zvezda.

The lunar base has become Comrade Brezhnev's top priority.

This…

would be a mistake.

With respect.

But Comrade Brezhnev's wishes are very clear.

He will not allow the Americans to beat us to a lunar base using our own design.

What are you asking of me?

We want you to move the launch of Zvezda up.

Can it be ready for the Paratrooper's Day celebrations?

That's in a few months.

We are more than a year away

from completing the re-design for the lunar base.

Not to mention the fact

that we are yet to find if there's even water on the lunar surface.

Whatever you need to get the job done. Money, resources, man power.

You name it, you'll have it.

- This is… - Just not time.

Forgive me, comrade, but this is absurd.

It's absurd.

I wanna beat the Americans as much as any man

around this table, but a launch this early?

You would be sending these men and women to their deaths.

Well, we have ultimate faith in your ability

to deliver this for the General Secretary.

You are

our most valuable resource.

Now, what are the latest plans for Comrade Belikova's tour?

Chief Designer?

Comrade Belikova.

Do you have a moment?

It seems I do, yes.

I was…

hoping I could volunteer myself for the crew of Luna 17.

You liked it up there, I take it?

It was the best moment of my life.

We are all very proud of you.

But for now you must focus on the mission in front of you.

Are you prepared for your tour?