On the Beach

Peter returns home with the playpen, and Mary is overjoyed but worries that Jennifer might chew on it and poison herself with the paint. Peter musters the courage to speak with Mary about his conversation with the pharmacist. At first, she doesn’t want to talk about it, claiming that they’ll address it when the time comes in September. Peter says he wants to discuss it before he leaves on the cruise. Mary reports a rumor that the radiation might not make it to them, but Peter dismisses the rumor as preposterous. He lays out the debilitating and ultimately fatal symptoms of radiation poisoning and shows her the dummy pills, explaining that she may have to gather courage to ease their suffering in the end. Mary isn’t opposed to the idea of using them on herself, but when he explains she must also use them on the baby, she becomes enraged, accusing him of trying to murder them so he can be with another woman. Peter wishes she would face the truth. Later, Mary apologizes for her outburst.

Peter continues clearing the land for their garden and chops the felled trees for winter firewood. While they wait for the measles to clear, John races his Ferrari, chasing a faster speed each time. He takes a curve too sharply in several instances and nearly dies flipping the car. Having lived inside a laboratory, John enjoys the thrill of racing. He once feared being in the submarine for months on end, but the death-defying car races have cured him of his fears. Dwight and Peter meet with the Navy lieutenant to discuss the final instructions for the cruise. Due to uncertainty about minefields, they will not be exploring California or Panama and instead will prioritize making it to Seattle to investigate the radio transmissions. Lieutenant Sunderstrom is an expert in radio communications in that area and explains they have received 169 transmissions but have only deciphered two words: “WATERS and CONNECT” (141). Lieutenant Sunderstrom acknowledges that the radio must be powered by something, and it could be a survivor. The radio station is on Santa Maria Island near Puget Sound. Since Sunderstrom knows the area, he will investigate the rubber boat. The team spends the remainder of the meeting discussing the scientific plausibility of the Jorgensen effect.

Moira and Dwight meet for lunch, and she surprises him by announcing that she is taking secretarial courses, hoping to find a job by the fall. After lunch, Dwight goes shopping for a fishing rod for Junior. He wants a Pogo stick for his daughter, Helen, but no stores have them. At a jewelry store, he purchases an expensive bracelet for Sharon. Moira’s neighbor tells her about Dwight’s purchases and suggests that he has a mental health condition. She also wonders if the bracelet is for Moira since everyone assumes they are dating. Moira defends his behavior and says he’s likely dating a widow with a child, which explains the Pogo stick. Wanting to help Dwight, Moira finds her old pogo stick at home but realizes it’s too rusty. Moira meets Dwight one last time before he departs and promises to help him find a Pogo stick. He kisses her and says, “Sharon wouldn’t mind me doing this. It’s from both of us” (155).

The Scorpion departs for its mission, and after 25 days submerged, Dwight becomes concerned about his crew’s mental health. They use the periscope to view parts of the California coastline and confirm that part of the Golden Gate Bridge has collapsed. They receive the radio signal, confirm that it is coming from Santa Maria Island, and proceed toward Seattle. Dwight notes that Seattle put up a good fight, which is why it looks basically unchanged, minus the people. Sunderstrom isn’t convinced that the signal is proof of survivors and conjectures that the power could be coming from hydroelectricity. The radiation levels are still too high for any life to survive. After he returns to his quarters, Dwight retrieves the bracelet from his safe and puts it in his pocket. When they reach Edmonds, Dwight allows Yeoman Swain to view his hometown through the periscope. He can see familiar buildings and businesses but no signs of life besides the electricity. Swain jumps ship and swims to shore despite Dwight’s orders to return. John says he will live for a day if he’s lucky, and Dwight says they can’t go onshore to rescue him and risk the safety of the rest of the crew.

The next day, Sunderstrom goes ashore to explore the radio tower. Dwight gives him explicit orders to return to the ship in under two hours and not to bring any radioactive “souvenirs” with him. Sunderstrom sees a decaying body but no signs of life. He locates the transmitter’s power source and sees it won’t be long before it burns out. When he finds the transmitter, he sees that a broken window frame is resting precariously over the transmitter key, and when the wind blows, it sends a message. After sending a message that the Scorpion has arrived and solved the situation, Sunderstrom shuts down the transmitter and cuts the power source. Seeing a copy of the Saturday Evening Post, Sunderstrom ignores Dwight’s orders and picks up the magazine. Just before leaving shore, he notices a group of people having a party but quickly realizes they are corpses. Sunderstrom decontaminates and boards the sub to submit his report to Dwight. The crew spots Yeoman Swain in a fishing boat as they get underway. Dwight calmly greets him, and Swain reports that he found all his family and his girlfriend dead at their homes. He knows that he will die soon but prefers to spend his final days there in his hometown than in Australia. Swain asks Dwight for cyanide, but they don’t have any, so he says his gun will suffice if needed.

Mary and Moira celebrate together upon receiving the good news that the crew made it to Seattle safely. When Mary offers Moira a drink, she says she has mostly given up drinking because she is happy and in love. Mary suggests that she and Dwight get married, but Moira doesn’t think he will marry her because he’s convinced his family will be reunited in September. Moira admits that if Sharon were alive and they weren’t facing the end of the world, she would happily drive a wedge in their marriage to get Dwight. However, with Sharon dead, Moira doesn’t feel right about marrying him. Mary admits to buying hundreds of flower bulbs to plant despite her need to accept the inevitable. She collapses in tears, claiming that Peter told her she might have to “murder” Jennifer. Mary shows a confused Moira the fake cyanide pills and asks her if she will help her when the time comes, and Moira agrees.

After 18 days, the Scorpion surfaces in the Tasman Sea, and the crew is severely depleted. The Scorpion’s reports disprove the Jorgensen effect, finding radiation levels still dangerously high in Alaska, Pearl Harbor, and Honolulu. Dwight intends to travel to Brisbane to check in with his commanding officer but receives word that he died of radiation poisoning. This makes Dwight the commanding officer of the US Naval Forces. They lose radio communication with Brisbane and abandon their plans to go.