When the Moon Hits Your Eye

The Guardian reports on President Boone’s press conference, where he confirms the threat of Lunar One. He announces a cooperative effort between the United States, Russia, China, and the European Union to eliminate or mitigate further lunar debris. The article includes expert commentary from several notable figures, including Dayton Bailey, who jokes that if the moon’s impact becomes inevitable, he will climb the highest place he can and flip it off.

At the University of Oregon, Sal Palacio is working on their history paper when their friend Rosa Miralles bursts in, encouraging Sal to attend a “Flip Off the Moon” party at Hendricks Park. Rosa tries to lighten Sal’s grim mood. Sal, convinced that the moon will kill them, begrudgingly agrees to go.

Dozens of students have already gathered at the park. Gale, the organizer, explains that he created the event in response to Dayton’s quote. At the count of three, the students raise their middle fingers and curse at the moon. Sal and Rosa feel a moment of strange satisfaction—a brief connection through collective, futile defiance against cosmic doom.

At DemocraCheese, Ted notices a group of University of Wisconsin students forming outside. Felix explains that they plan to “flip off” the moon, part of a national trend of spontaneous campus protests. The crowd soon reaches 60 people, chanting, “Fuck the moon.”

Ted asks if Felix wants to join them, but Felix declines. He has dinner plans with Annette and prefers spending time with her. However, the crowd’s mood shifts. Their chants turn into “Fuck the cheese,” and they begin banging on the windows. When someone cracks the display glass, Felix calls 911.

Jack storms out of The Fromagery with a baseball bat to defend the shop. He faces down the crowd and yells that attacking the store will solve nothing and only make the workers’ lives harder. The crowd, startled, disperses just before the police arrive.

The officers arrive to find Jack holding the bat and briefly mistake him for the aggressor. After the situation gets sorted out, Annette and Felix express their love for each other. Jack and Ted step aside to give them space. Ted apologizes for the years-long feud and acknowledges that threatening a mob with a bat was reckless. Jack admits as much but says that he did it to protect his little brother.

Watching Annette and Felix kiss, Ted comments that falling in love at the end of the world does not seem fair. The brothers share a quiet moment of reconciliation, ending their 20-year conflict.

The Washington Post publishes an article about the upcoming solar eclipse. Many organizations have canceled viewing events due to the Lunar One threat, but the White House still plans to host its Eclipse Event.

In Worcester, Massachusetts, Lyle Briggs angrily scolds his friends over Slack for canceling their long-planned eclipse party. He spent a year preparing after they all initially agreed to attend. However, all have canceled recently, except Gunnar from Iceland—though he also ultimately canceled after Icelandair canceled his flight. Lyle’s friends remind him that they face an apocalyptic event. One even suggests rescheduling, but Lyle replies that eclipses do not reschedule.

The friends grow increasingly frustrated as Lyle fixates on the canceled party. Eventually, he reveals why he is angry: He intends to propose to his boyfriend, Austin, during the eclipse in front of their friends.

The friends, aghast, ask whether Austin has any idea. Lyle admits that he never brought it up. They lecture him, emphasizing that public proposals should only happen after prior conversations. Austin enters the Slack thread and explains that while he does want to marry Lyle, he would have said no if surprised in front of others.

Lyle proposes to Austin via Slack anyway. Their friends scold him again. Austin and Lyle leave the chat silently, leaving the rest of the group speculating.

A leaked paper from the Chinese National Space Administration (nicknamed the “Chinese Paper”) confirms the worst: Lunar One will impact Earth in two years and three months.

Dustin Jones receives the news from his friend Cassie Lassen, who invites him to Saturday Night Live (SNL) with VIP tickets. They meet Cassie’s friend Freida, an SNL costume staffer, at 30 Rock. Freida expresses concern that the dress rehearsal had a half-empty audience for the first time in her career. Although she and Cassie had post-show plans, Freida cancels since she needs to check on her mother, who is panicking about the moon.

SNL production staff scramble to fill empty seats with crew members. The show begins but quickly unravels. The first sketches fail. After a second moon-themed sketch, the audience boos. Security escorts out the loudest hecklers.

The next sketch—funny by Cassie’s standards—also falls flat. The “Weekend Update” host responds by flipping off the crowd and telling them to “suck his balls.” Things escalate. The celebrity host and a few cast members attempt to regain control with a sing-along of “Imagine,” but an audience member throws a chair, breaking the host’s nose. The studio descends into a full-blown riot as the band plays “Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting.” Dustin and Cassie escape, dodging thrown fists and furniture.

Pastor James begins his Sunday sermon when Caleb Talbot stumbles in late. Unlike most latecomers, Caleb does not sneak in quietly. He weaves through the pews, loudly searching for his wife, Kady. His behavior makes James suspect that he is drunk.

Caleb interrupts the sermon with boos and shouts. He accuses James’s wife, Abby, of writing the sermon and launches into a rant. Caleb insists that they will all die not in biblical rapture but by cheese, and he demands that James speak from the heart, not from a prewritten sermon.

James responds with an unexpected anecdote. He tells the congregation about his father, a respected man, who died of a stroke while he was on the toilet. James uses the story to stress that no one chooses how they die and that death matters less than how one lives. He says that faith does not promise clarity, only endurance. He tells Caleb that he cannot predict what will happen, but if the world ends, he plans to be with his congregation—and he would gladly welcome Caleb by his side.

Caleb becomes emotional and apologizes. Afterward, Abby praises James for his response. Alone that night, James confesses to God that he lied: He did not deliver that sermon from a place of conviction but from desperation. Everything Caleb said reflected James’s thoughts. He prays for strength, asks for a sign, and vows to continue supporting his congregation, regardless.