In "Guns Up!", the starship USS Eleanor Roosevelt, commanded by Captain Chyvonne Quint, is on a mission of peace and justice. The all-female crew, who believe that "if you want to get something done, and done right...GET A WOMAN!!!", are en-route to a fleet assembly point.

The Navigator, Mini, discovers a slave transport ship off their planned course. She reveals to Captain Quint that her sister was taken by slavers during the Dry Sack Rebellion and might be on board the ship5. Despite the deviation, Captain Quint changes course to investigate.

The crew of the USS Eleanor Roosevelt boards the slaver ship, led by Sergeant Metzinger. They quickly seize the ship, free the captives, and impound the crew and captain. Captain Quint questions the slaver ship's commander, a man named Cody, who explains that the women are being sold as slaves by the government of Terra Firma as a form of "rehabilitation" to make a profit. He sees the women as nothing more than cargo, like "grain, guns, [and] girls". The women, who are forced to wear identical hot-pink dresses and have their heads shaved, are "crew-graded" on a scale of one to ten, and their numbers are painted on their bellies.

After rescuing the women, Captain Quint leaves Cody and his crew behind, believing that they cannot fix a "bad system" but can save a few people. The Navigator's sister, Maxi, is found among the freed captives. It is revealed that she lied about being part of the Dry Sack Rebellion and was actually arrested in Terra Firma. The USS Eleanor Roosevelt then resumes its original course at top speed to make up for the lost time. Captain Quint puts the Navigator in charge of the freed women and contacts Commander Cody via radio, warning him to cooperate with the Fleet's investigation to avoid her personal intervention!

Art School Drama

This episode introduces us to Josephine Webster, a 20-year-old American art student in Montreal in the late spring of 1960. As her final year of art college draws to a close, she and her friends are caught up in the cultural and political ferment of the city, coinciding with the upcoming election for the Prime Minister of Quebec. Jean Lesage, running on a platform of "Quiet Revolution," promises to shake up the province's traditional, sleepy nature. Josephine, who is half-Blackfeet, finds herself navigating the tension between the English world and the French Canadian life in Montreal.

In this episode:

• Art and Identity: Josephine struggles with her final bronze sculpture—a figure of her late, full-blood Blackfeet father, depicted as a mighty hunter with a spear. Her instructor, Gerard Fontainbleu, both praises the "primitive art" and questions whether she has found her artistic "voice". Her friend Julie Hathaway moves beyond a "nice" presentation of her bison figures to make a statement by painting them with flags and symbols, seeking "contrast, tension and drama".
• Political Awakening: Josephine and Julie get drawn into the political scene, witnessing the contrast between the conservative Union Nationale protest, led by Josephine's boyfriend, Otto, and the Liberal rally for Jean Lesage. Lesage's powerful speech, arguing that the "status quo" perpetuates poverty for French Canadians and gives control of the economy to outsiders, prompts Josephine and Julie to shed their "Conservative" hats.
• A Love Triangle & Heartbreak: Josephine breaks up with Otto, realizing he's an "ordinary guy" who just wants a "pretty little wife". She turns to Jean-Luc, a French-Canadian philosophy student who both criticizes her need for official art world approval and shows her genuine passion and empathy after her bronze casting goes awry. However, she learns from Louisa St. Ann that Jean-Luc is a notorious flirt.
• The Power Shift: On the day of their graduation showcase, the newly elected Prime Minister Lesage appears and uses Josephine's bronze figure to make a political statement for the press, seeing it as the "man who looks at the English world and says 'Non!'". Lesage makes a proposition, and in the episode's final moments, Josephine, choosing ambition and the pursuit of "the top" with Julie, decides to accept his invitation, stepping through the "open door".

Major Themes

• The Quiet Revolution: The story is set on the cusp of a major political and social shift in Quebec, represented by Jean Lesage's campaign. This political revolution mirrors the personal awakenings of the main characters.
• Personal and Artistic Voice: Josephine and Julie are seeking their own voices—literally, as American and Albertan students in a French-English city, and figuratively, through their art. They grapple with finding meaning beyond institutional approval and convention.
• The English-French Divide: The language barrier and cultural differences in Montreal are constant sources of tension, evident in the characters' political affiliations, arguments, and even the debate over art colors.
• Ambition vs. Convention: Josephine rejects the conventional path of marriage to Otto to pursue a life of artistic and personal ambition with Julie, culminating in her decision to meet the new Prime Minister.

In this short audio drama, "Win a Dinner with Alan Greenspan," a poor man from rural North Carolina named Willie wins a dinner with former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan. Willie seeks to understand why he is poor while others are rich. The story, set in a fancy hotel restaurant in Washington D.C., explores several major themes:

• Socioeconomic Inequality: Willie, who hauls ice at a Perdue chicken plant, questions Greenspan about the reasons behind poverty and wealth. He highlights the stark contrast between his life and that of the rich plant manager, who lives in Norfolk.
• Economic Systems and Opportunity: Greenspan explains that wealth is created when individuals or companies leverage their "hard work and innovation for advantage". He suggests that a person's contribution is valued by the company and that the economy offers opportunities to grow through investments like real estate or small business entrepreneurship.
• Barriers to Social Mobility: Greenspan states that economic data suggests someone born into the lowest economic quartile will likely remain poor throughout their life. Willie expresses frustration with this idea, comparing his financial situation to "police cuffs" that only get tighter.
• Critique of Monetary Policy and Corporate Power: Willie challenges Greenspan's views on "direct payments," arguing they would not de-incentivize work, and questions why the government doesn't help all Americans. He also critiques the chicken company, stating it makes people sick and takes the town's water.
• The American Dream vs. Reality: Greenspan upholds the idea of America as a "beacon" of opportunity for the "best and the brightest". However, Willie's lived experience in Ahoskie, where he sees no one as "economically mobile," starkly contrasts with this optimistic view. The drama concludes with Greenspan's concession that while opportunity exists for "everybody, but sometimes not for you," which Willie sadly agrees with.