♪ Life is but a dream ♪
♪ It's what you make it... ♪
Here we go. Better late than never, right?
You know, I had this whole plan laid out in case you asked me out again.
I was gonna be all sweet and be like,
"Sure, I'd love to."
And then ditch your ass.
Okay, so what happened?
You asked.
From now on...
From now on, let's just ease up.
Let's just see where this thing goes.
I like that.
Great.
Let's do it.
Let's see where this thing goes.
Oh, you got a little schmutz right there...
Lethal engagement mode activated.
Grid, wait, wait.
This is fun. I'm glad we did this.
Grid, Grid, Grid, no, stop. Grid, stop. No, no, no...
Oh, Roni.
What the hell, man?
Sorry to disturb your night terror.
It wasn't a night terror.
Spooky wet dream, then. Whatever.
You seen a videotape?
It was in my room.
No.
Why? What was on it?
The Chief confessing to all the horrific shit he's put me through.
Whoa!
Guess that's the new normal around here. Hmm.
Uh, excuse me.
Did either of you come across a tape?
It's good to be here, with you again, Jane.
Like old times.
It's not like old times.
It can never be like old times.
The stuff that Josh Clay gave me is gone.
Really gone.
Are you experiencing any withdrawal symptoms?
Is being a pathetic piece of shit a withdrawal symptom?
I could see it running out...
when I wasn't obliterated out of my fucking mind.
I thought about what I would do next.
What else could I shoot up or snort to just...
I'm the only one who can be primary and I fucked up.
They're all angry at me.
- You did what you needed. - Fuck what I need.
It's not about me. It's about her.
We could start over.
Why don't we begin with drawing out a new map of the Underground?
Get a proper lay of the land,
and figure out each persona's wants and needs.
Baby Doll.
Oh, my God. Go away! You're a bad man and a liar!
My darling, you are the last person
in the entire world that I would ever want to hurt.
But you're right. I'm bad...
and selfish...
and I'm sorry.
If you'd give me a chance, I'd try and be better.
- I hate you. - Oh, my poor, poor thing.
Everything hurts. My... My face hurts,
and my throat hurts,
and my head feels like bees.
I feel so... I feel so lonely.
And I'm already lonely all the time.
There must be something I can do to make those tears go away.
Baby Doll.
This is Dorothy.
I love your pigtails.
I like yours.
Is this your room?
Oh, my gosh.
Everything is so pretty...
and so fluffy!
- I'm sorry, um... - It's okay.
You can play with him if you like.
- What's his name? - Constable Cork.
And this is Mallory.
Wow.
This is Frank and Ramona. They're married.
Attention, shoppers.
Don't miss our in-store special on fertilizer.
Check out aisle five and stock up today.
Excuse me.
I'm looking for a Mickey Harris.
You found her. How can I help?
Oh, well, actually, I'm here to help you.
This article says the Cloverton Community Players are holding auditions,
and we should contact the director.
Writer-director.
I beg your pardon?
I'm the writer and the director
for the Cloverton Community Players, and this paper's old.
- Auditions were yesterday. - Ah!
Well, Miss Harris, I can see that you're a busy person,
what with your writing and directing and assistant-managing.
I would never dream of wasting your time.
Trust me, this will be more than worth it.
Okay, let's go.
Let's go.
Here?
On aisle three?
I assume you've prepared a monologue.
Of course.
I can't bear it.
They're so young and beautiful.
Why did they ever have to get old?
Mama, I'm here.
I'm grown-up.
Mama.
Just... look at me.
One minute...
- Clean-up on aisle five. - ...like you really saw me.
I'm sorry. Sorry, could we just try again?
- Mickey, price check, aisle six. - That's me, hon.
I think we're good.
Rita '84.
Battle of the Network Stars. Hmm, Jane/Mama Pentecost...
Where the fuck is that dumb, shit-ass fucking tape?
The fuck?
Looking for something?
- What the hell is all this? - Possible upgrades,
brainstorms, I'm not entirely sure yet.
Upgrades? For me?
Like Cyborg type of shit?
Well, it was a thought, yes,
but what Victor Stone has isn't what Cliff Steele needs.
How would you feel about regaining more human aspects of your body?
Which human aspects?
I'd like to give you a somatosensory system.
A sense of... touch.
And this psycho shit's your idea for me to become more human?
No. God, no.
That sketch, all of those sketches are just musings.
Bad ideas, excrement that I have to...
pass before I can hopefully lay the golden egg.
Is this just a trick?
Trying to buy some time off from me hating you,
or can you really pull this off?
Because false hope is the last thing I need, Chief.
After everything we've been through,
I think we're past tricks.
But I do need to ask for your patience.
To see this to fruition will take years.
Decades, maybe.
Do you even have decades?
Right. Patience.
What are you up to?
Are you ordering food?
Can I see a menu?
I just made a date to see my son, Paul.
Sounds promising.
We're going to clean out my dead son's house.
Sounds unnerving.
He's trying to get rid of it and move on.
I figured helping him is the least I could do.
When he asked who was calling, I said Larry Trainor.
I didn't know what else to say.
At least you said something.
All thing considered, you're having a far better day than me.
You auditioned.
My mouth opened. Words came out.
But I don't know if I'd call it an audition
any more than I'd call myself an actor.
How about you make that drink to go?
Cliff.
Hi, Cliffie.
How are you, Cliff?
Top shelf.
So are you two running buddies now?
Two little masters of disaster? Nice.
Yes, siree. We're very close friends.
Hey.
Those two are just cuter than shit.
Man, you missed out on a killer tea party.
What?
B-A-B-Y D-O-L-L.
Who's the best? Baby Doll!
Do you want me to make you a song?
I'm really good at it.
D-O-R-Y... No, wait.
D-O-R-O-T-E-E. Dorotee!
Why don't we sit down for a bit?
No, no. The grass is lava.
- I'm tired. - Oh, no, don't be tired.
We'll play something else.
Tag!
Pirate ship. Arr!
Pirate ship?
An infant game for infant girls.
Oh, now you're talking to me.
I thought I told you, I'm not a grown-up.
Quick. You have to spin.
If you don't spin, the world will explode.
I win, I win!
I'm the greatest spinning machine. Whoa!
I feel your vexation, dear one.
Stop it.
Every fruit must ripen.
- Even you. - Stop it!
Who are you talking to?
No one.
Just... a friend.
From inside your head?
I have lots of friends in there.
Can I meet them?
Please, please, please?
- You have to be polite. - I'm always polite.
- Promise? - Uh-huh.
You won't get scared?
No. Why? Are they scary?
No. But he's big and he smells like a wet dog.
He was the first friend I ever made.
He was my mama's friend first.
She said that he knew I was in her belly before she even did.
When Mama was gone,
he followed me to the new world and he kept me safe.
It was just the two of us for a long time.
It's okay. He's nice.
I call him Manny.
Wait, where'd he go?
Bring him back.
I told you to be polite.
I was.
Dorothy!
Come back!
They put stickers on us.
Huh? Oh, yeah. Yeah, I know.
And the puffy ones are hard to get off.
Let me ask you something...
Can you feel stuff?
Like cold stuff, hot stuff, wet stuff, fuzzy stuff.
Tactile sensors. Yeah.
My dad put them in during my first surgery. Why?
Chief thinks he could rebuild my sense of touch.
Congratulations, man.
He also said it would take decades.
Which would be fine if he wasn't dying.
Niles always finds a way.
You know who else always finds a way and isn't dying?
Your dad.
You know how they say the longer you're away from people,
the harder it is to remember what they look like?
Well, I have that but with sensations.
I used to hold my arm out when it was raining, feeling the drops hit my skin.
I remember doing that,
but not the feeling.
Running my hands through my wife's hair.
In my head, I know it felt amazing,
but I don't know at the same time.
It's all floating away from me.
Hey.
Looks like you crashed.
Who are you?
That's my father, Toby.
Dex...
this is Larry Trainor, your grandfather.
Wow.
I'm not sure what to say.
Nice to meet you.
Works for me.
Oh, uh, this is Rita.
- My... dear friend. - Charmed.
We're glad you're here.
So, where should we start?
It's quiet down here without Baby Doll.
Oh, she's just running and singing up-top,
like she's always wanted.
I know you don't like anything
and you're not wild about the attachments we're making here,
but it's Baby Doll's job to spin around in circles
and laugh till her sides hurt
and have real, genuine fun making friends.
If we didn't need that... No, if the girl didn't need that,
Baby Doll wouldn't exist.
Kids fight, Jane.
And when that happens, whose side do you think
Dorothy's own fucking father's gonna choose?
Do you think Baby Doll can handle that?
Dorothy!
I'm sorry, Baby Doll.
She was so tired from such a fun day with you, she fell asleep in my room,
and she really does need her rest.
Maybe you'd like to take a little nap, too.
- I'm not tired, I wanna play. - Oh.
Oh, you know, I adore you, Baby Doll,
but I really think I'm getting
a little old and creaky for play.
Fine.
I certainly hope everyone's being polite
and good to the new friends we've made.
I'd be very disappointed if someone decided to be a sour little girl.
You want me to install Cyborg technology in you?
- That's the pitch. - -I can tell you're a man
who likes a challenge.
What's a bigger challenge than this guy?
You told him it was a good idea.
I told him nobody gets anything if they don't ask.
Come on. Just imagine digging through the mess Niles made,
then building a better me and then shoving it in Niles's face.
Man, you do not break your stride.
My tech is cutting-edge.
Niles's tech isn't even tech.
It's spare parts. They're incompatible.
Like trying to connect an iPhone to a telegraph.
But if anyone could connect those two, it's you!
I mean, just look at what you've done with Vic.
- You're a genius. - Look, Dad...
I'm sorry for what has happened to you.
I truly am. But what I did for Victor...
was surgery. What Niles did to you?
Manslaughter at best.
He's a criminal.
If I help him do anything to you,
that would make me an accessory.
I cannot do that.
What the fu...
Hey, buddy.
What do you got there?
You know, I know somebody that resembles this.
Does it hurt?
Sometimes. But not right now.
Right now I feel pretty good.
Hey, Toby.
Tell your dad to spark up the grill.
Your old gramps is getting a little hungry.
Congratulations, Paul.
Your family's...
perfect.
You wouldn't say that if you were at Thanksgiving.
Here, let me show you what to do with that.
Three piles here. We got, uh, sell, keep and throw away
Wife's idea. She got it from some TV show about a Japanese condo or something.
If it doesn't "spark joy," it must go.
Roger that.
A lot of Mom's stuff.
- She lived here for a while. - She did?
I must have been hard for her with Gary's conspiracy theories.
Actually, she was the one who got him into all that stuff.
What?
Sheryl?
Wow. I had no idea.
How could you? You weren't here.
There is a cute, absolutely mint pencil skirt in the "keep" pile.
Perhaps it could wind up in the "Give to Rita" pile.
It was my wife's.
Then never mind.
I don't know if this was the best idea.
No, it's good that you're here.
Good for you and Paul to say what you want to say, yell what you want to yell.
Hey, nobody said anything about yelling.
And why not? This is an opportunity, Larry.
For you to air your dirty laundry.
Express your love, get to know one another.
Real catharsis.
I wish that I could've done that with my mother.
I'm gonna get you. I gonna get you.
- Get him, get him. - Oh, no.
Got him.
I'm proud of you, Larry.
Geez, and I thought I hated the Chief.
Your old man makes me look like a piker.
Man, they got history.
What are we doing here? Shouldn't we be headed home?
- I used to patrol this area. - Okay...
Wait, is that what this is?
- Are we patrolling? - No.
'Cause I've been thinking about this.
We both know I got a lot of anger in me, right?
What if the best way for me to manage it
is to blow a hot load of rage all over some bad guys?
- Bust some perps with you! - What?
Don't judge. Not till you hear our super-team name...
Steele and Stone.
I'm Cliff Steele, you're Vic Stone.
Wait, hold on.
So you think I'm here to fight crime? With you?
I think you're thinking about it
and I think you're thinking it sounds pretty fucking cool.
No.
No. There's this woman.
Roni. That's her place.
We were seeing each other.
I'm so glad you feel comfortable sharing this.
There's been this unspoken bet between all of us
about whether or not you have a shlong.
We were seeing each other
and then I...
I kind of just freaked out.
Took off.
Man, I just... I can't stop thinking about her.
Ah. Patch-up job. What's the plan?
Sandwiches?
I mean, we were supposed to go for subs when I stood her up.
So I figured I'd get these as a kind of gesture, you know.
- Better late than never, right? - Smooth...
as a sandpaper strap-on.
Hey, yo, man, what's up? Hey, that's wasteful.
Look, I know I may not look it anymore,
but I used to be good at getting the ladies
and even better at getting them to forgive me.
All right. So what's your plan?
You're gonna go in there. You're gonna knock on her door.
And then you will say, "I'm stupid.
I fucked up. I'm sorry."
What? That's it?
Bro, it's verbal Astroglide.
Steele and Stone forever.
What do you want?
I'm stupid, I fucked up and I'm sorry.
- It's okay. I get it. - You do?
It's not like I expected you to stick around after I gave you those files.
So that was some sort of test?
Does it mean anything that I came back?
- Can I help you? - I got it.
You can slice the bread.
- Three cheeses? - Cheddar, blue, Brie.
- Meats? - Ham and turkey.
No sausage?
Don't push it.
What are you making?
Well, hello, there.
It's the magical disappearing Dorothy.
You hungry?
You want a kitchen-sink sandwich?
What's a kitchen-sink sandwich?
It happens to be Jane's favorite.
But it could be your favorite, too.
Go on.
♪ Are you ready now ♪
♪ To get on down... ♪
Mmm! You're looking fine, pretty baby!
You ready to get stuck, bitch?
Not tonight, motherfucker.
Time to take out the trash.
Booyah!
Nice work, rookie.
Next time, you can hide in the garbage and I'll wear the wig.
Please. We know who's prettiest.
Steele and Stone. A Morilar Production.
♪ Steele and Stone ♪
♪ Gettin' it done ♪
♪ Steele and Stone Trouble's on the run ♪
Huh? Oh! Oh, shit.
Uh...
Oh, shit!
Uh...
Hey, get the fuck away from the car.
- What the fuck? - That's my line, asshole.
Whoo! Steele, baby!
What the... Wait. Come on. Not now. Damn it!
No!
Holy shit!
I'm sorry! Oh, shit!
I'm sorry! I'm...
Holy shit! I'm sorry! Shit!
I'm sorry!
It wasn't me, it was my dumb-ass arm. I'm sorry.
Hmm.
Would it have killed her to let me start my monologue over?
I'm sorry.
Hey, bud, you like char on your dog? Yeah?
Oh, who am I kidding, I could've started 1,000 times and I still would've collapsed.
Wanted it too badly.
To prove to Mother that I could land a role on my own and when I want something,
that's when that tumor of a thought bursts into my mind.
You, uh... You close with your mom?
God, no.
That witch died ages ago.
But she haunts me.
The things she did, they haunt me.
Yeah. Uh...
Oops, I, uh, forgot the ketchup.
Excuse me.
Your father seems nice enough, and I'm sure he means well.
But don't ever let him crush your spirit and step on your dreams.
Excuse me.
Hello. This is she...
I see.
I can.
Yes. Thank you.
That was Mickey Harris.
The writer-director for the Cloverton Community Players.
It seems several of the cast shared a tainted didgeridoo while on vacation
and have come down with mono.
They need me.
I'm in the play.
Do you hear that, Mother?
I did it!
What are you thinking right now?
If you want to leave or not.
It's okay. You can go.
Is this some kind of test?
'Cause I don't wanna do that no more.
Those files I gave you were a warning,
- about who I am. - Who you were.
So you made some bad choices. Everyone does.
It's easy to make bad choices when all you have are bad options.
There are only a few ways to get out of here.
That's getting mixed in some bullshit on the street,
stumbling over a pot of gold and going to college, or...
the military.
There's nothing wrong with the military.
Out of the three, I guess not.
Is that how you got these?
That's where it started.
An IED outside of Baghdad.
It was fucked-up.
Next thing I know, I'm in the hospital
thinking about coming back here.
So when Quorum approached me...
- You know them? - I know they're into some scandalous shit.
Yeah, well, they gave me a different option.
I could go back home and try to figure out my life,
or I could work quiet missions for them.
But quiet missions for Quorum,
they require something more than human.
They gave you enhancements.
And when I fucked up big enough, they took them away.
Some of it was my fault.
A lot of it was my fault.
Worse than anything in those files I sent you.
Power is one hell of a drug.
Someone once told me...
not to judge someone by the worst things they've done.
That's assuming the worst is behind them.
Hey.
You're not a bad person, Roni.
I don't wanna be.
Can I help?
Uh, there's a box over here for you.
A couple of days after the crash,
a few guys from your unit cleaned out your locker.
I thought you might want it if, you know, you came back.
Gary never cried so hard as he did over how much you hated that thing.
You should've seen the look on his face when...
he saw that you'd kept it anyway.
He nailed it.
I was just too much of an asshole to see it then.
This was John's.
My ground crew chief.
He was also my lover.
I'm gay.
I wish I could have admitted that to your mother.
She always knew, but...
I wish I'd just given her that. A way out.
But I was selfish... and I was scared.
Thank you. Uh...
Thank you, for telling me.
Mom never mentioned it.
I guess it's my turn to be honest.
When they told us you'd finally died from your injuries, she...
There were days of her just...
sprawled out on the bedroom floor crying...
Oh, Paul. I had no...
No, she tried to move on. I mean...
We bounced around. Guys came and went.
Then one nut, Wayne, he showed up.
Filled her head with a lot of crackpot nonsense.
Said you weren't really dead.
Said it was a big government cover-up.
I left Gary behind to get sucked into her world
and went out to follow in your footsteps
thinking I was paying tribute to my hero father.
I kept telling myself, "You just survive."
Survive the tours,
survive watching my mother drive herself to the grave,
survive Gary taking his own life.
And I was standing there...
By his casket...
And, God damn, if I didn't feel a sense of peace.
And there you were.
I had no idea I was carrying so much of it.
The anger. The hatred.
That's when I realized I didn't survive.
No one survives Larry Trainor.
Larry!
Capt. Trainor!
What's going on?
I needed some answers after Gary's funeral,
so I did some digging all the way to the Department of Defense.
I'm sending you back where you belong.
I'm not going anywhere.
Negative Spirit, release.
- What the hell is that? - Dad, what's going on?
Toby, get in the house.
No!
Are you hurt? Are you all right?
I'm fine.
- Dad! - Dex!
Dex!
Dex. Dex.
- What have you done? - Larry.
What have you done?
Oh, my God. Paul...
You're a curse on this family.
Larry, we have to go.
Paul...
- I'm so sorry. - Dad...
Baby Doll?
I'm sorry, I don't feel like playing right now.
To be honest, Baby Doll,
I think I might be a little bit too big for some of your games.
Your dad is a bad man.
What?
He hurt me.
He hurt everyone in this house and that's why everyone hates him.
That's not true.
It is. He's bad.
Worse than bad. He's evil.
You're just hurt.
And sometimes hurt feelings make us say bad things.
Things that aren't true.
I'm not lying.
I was being mean.
I shouldn't have said I was too big for games.
- Why don't we play one, before bed. - You're just...
You're the seeker, I'm the hider.
Ready or not, here I come!
Dorothy.
Dorothy?
Boo!
Ow!
That's what you get, you lying little baby.
What are you doing? Stop!
- Baby Doll, let me out. - No!
I'll tell on you. I'll tell Papa...
And I'll turn on the fire so you won't tell.
No, no, no. Stop. Stop it!
No! Stop, stop, stop!
Stop!
Manny!
Our friend is dead.
Manny!
Make a wish.
Dorothy, I'm sorry.
Make a wish.
He's coming! Don't let him get me!
Baby Doll.
Get back.
Let's get out of here.
I'm sorry! I'm sorry!
It's okay. It's okay. Everything's gonna be okay. Come, come.
Get out of here. This isn't your job.
Hammerhead, no!
Come at us, you fucking fuck!
I'm sorry! I'm sorry!
I didn't mean to!