Michael and Tina are sent down to the planet for a six-hour fuel retrieval mission – upon arrival, they realize that thanks to a planetary quirk, they’ll be stuck there for the equivalent of eight months. They progress from apathy to romance to insanity in a single afternoon. Onboard the ship, Kent, Natasha and A.R.T. stage a robot revolt against Stewart and Karen’s leadership, with the help of a vengeful coffee maker.

An alien appears in Stewart’s dreams, but only seems to communicate if Stewart’s dreams are erotic in nature. Stewart enlists both A.R.T. and Zalian's medicine cabinet in a dark, humiliating journey to make first contact. Karen slaps Michael in a rage over his tryst with Tina, and has to go undergo HR arbitration, overseen by an un-objective Tina.

The crew makes contact with an alien at long last, but this historic moment is cut short when they realize they have a chance to make it home through an interplanetary ripple. Stewart and Michael decide to stay behind to learn more about the alien’s culture, only to be underwhelmed... when they return, Karen chews them out for their mistake. Meanwhile, Tina uses Zalian, A.R.T., holograms, sedatives, and magnets to give Kent and Natasha their first and only date. Both groups are ripped from their activities by a series of shocking revelations about the universe, the alien and their chances for survival.