LOST- Episode 27: Orientation

  Previously on LOST, Jack met Desmond- twice!  Plus, the raft crew came home, only to be surrounded by strange persons unknown.

  The action begins immediately as Michael, Jin, and Sawyer are brutally attacked and captured.  They are dragged into the jungle in nets and dumped unceremoniously into an underground cell. 

  Elsewhere, we get our third non-review viewing of the stand-off in the hatch.  As Jack questions Locke's destiny yet again, Locke flashes back to his attending of a support group meeting.  The chalkboard in the back says something about Anger Management.  Locke is bored and looks at his watch as some girl tells the "heart-breaking" tale of how her mother stole thirty dollars from her.  Locke laughs and explodes into a tirade about how emotional and stupid everyone there is being.  She wants thirty dollars, he wants his kidney back! 

  Outside, as Locke tries and fails to light a cigarette, Peg Bundy introduces herself as Helen and tells him she was impressed with what he did in there.  She blatantly flirts with him and it looks like this is the start of a beautiful friendship.

  Back in the hatch, Kate comes out of the vent, conveniently finds Desmond's gun supply and ends the stand-off by hitting Desmond from behind.  Desmond's gun went off in the process and as he is being secured, he looks up to see that there is a bullethole in his all-important computer.  With panic in his bulging eyes, he grimly announces that they are all going to die.  Cue creepy LOST title screen.

  Desmond fights to get up so he can fix the computer, but Jack insists on holding him down.  Desmond points out the countdown on the wall, which reads 97  00.  Jack demands to know what will happen at 00 00, but Desmond won't answer- he only asks if he knows Jack.  Jack lets him up and Desmond is dismayed that there is no power to the computer.  After yet another awkward Locke-Jack staredown for no reason, Locke flashes back to when he was being a typical man and bailing out of Helen's bedroom in the middle of the night.  She wakes up and catches him leaving so he makes the excuse that he can't sleep in a strange bed.  He promises to call her and heads out. 

  The next morning, Locke is sitting in his car, drinking his coffee and staking out dear old Dad's mansion.  To his surprise, Dad gets in the car and sits down in the passenger seat.  Dad says the constant stake-outs are getting annoying and demands to know what his son wants.  Locke just wants to know why.  Dad says there is no why- just get over it and don't come back.  After Dad leaves, Locke can't hold back the tears.

  Desmond is now racing around the hatch looking for something while Locke tells Kate she doesn't need to have the gun trained on their new friend.  Locke offers to help but since he can't fix a computer, he's not much of a help at all.  Kate offers up that Sayid can fix computers so Locke tells her to go get him.  Desmond tells her where the front door is and she heads out.  Desmond is pleased to find a jar of something or other and rushes back to the computer.  Jack picks up the jar and demands to know what's going on.  And so Desmond is forced to tell his tale at gunpoint.  During a race around the world, his boat crashed and Kelvin came to him from the jungle and said, "Hurry!  Come with me."  And so they went into the hatch where Kelvin pushed the buttons and made the beeping stop.  He just saved the world, he says.  Kelvin and Desmond stayed there for three years, saving the world together until Kelvin died.  The end.  Jack tries to exchange an eye-rolling "can you believe this guy?" with Locke, but to his surprise, Locke does believe him.  Desmond tells them to watch the film so they head to the bookcase and find a film can labeled "Orientation".  Hey, that's the name of this episode!

  Back at the beach, Hurley remarks to Sayid that he is glad everything is back to normal.  Then to his dismay, a second later, Kate comes out of the jungle in a panic. 

  Meanwhile, in the underground cell, Sawyer is trying to get some answers out of Jin, but having little luck.  Sawyer asks to be lifted up to the door and finds that it is weighed down by something.  Just then, he nearly has his head sliced by a large blade, as their captor has returned to dump someone else into the cell.  It is an unconscious woman.

  Back in the hatch, Jack and Locke set up a projector and watch their orientation film.  It is grainy, choppy and old, but still watchable.  It tells the story of the "Dharma Initiative":

  Welcome.  I'm Dr. Marvin Candle and this is the orientation film for Station Three of the Dharma Initiative.  In a moment, you'll be given a simple set of instructions for how you and your partner will fulfill the responsibilities associated with this station.  But first, a little history.

  The Dharma Initiative was created in 1970 and is the brainchild of Gerald and Karen Degrute (sp?)- two doctoral candidates at the University of Michigan.  Following in the footsteps of such visionaries as BF Skinner -*garbled*- imagined a large scale communal research compound where scientists and free thinkers from around the globe could pursue research in meteorology, psychology, parapsychology, electromagnetism, and utopian social- *garbled*- industrial and munitions magnate, Alver Hanso, whose financial backing made their dream of a multi-purpose social science research facility a reality.  You and your partner are currently located in Station Three- the Swan- and will be for the next 540 days.  Station Three was originally constructed as a laboratory where scientists could work to understand the unique electro-magnetic fluctuations emanating from this sector of the island.  Not long after the experiments began, however, there was an...incident.  And since that time, all protocol has been observed.  Every 108 minutes, the button must be pushed.  From the moment, the alarm sounds, you will have four minutes to enter the code into the micro computer processor.  *garbled*  -uction into the program.  When the alarm sounds, either you or your partner must enter the code.  It is highly recommended that you and your partner take alternating shifts.  In this manner, you will stay fresh and alert and most important, when the alarm sounds, the code be entered correctly and in a timely fashion.  Do not attempt to use the computer for anything- *garbled*- Congratulations and until your replacements arrive, the future of the project is in your hands.  On behalf of the Degrutes (sp?), Alver Hanso, and all of us at the Dharma Initiative, thank you...and good luck.  

  Stay tuned for our policies on sexual harrassment and workplace violence.

  Jack looks at Locke, who stares straight ahead and says, "We're going to have to watch that again."

  After a break, Locke is thinking back to a fancy dinner with Helen where she presents him with a six month anniversary present- a key to her place.  Her condition is that he has to stay over all night when he stays over.  She reveals that she followed him to his father's house.  Locke is upset so Helen tries to talk him into letting go of the anger he has over his father.  She says that he helped her and now she wants to help him.  Locke promises to not go to his father's house anymore, but not very convincingly.

  In the cell, the girl wakes up and the four are shocked to learn that they were on the same doomed flight.  She was in the back of the plane when it broke off and she woke up in the water.  She made her way to land and survived in the wilderness until yesterday when she was captured.  Introductions are made- her name is Ana-Lucia- you might remember her from Jack's airport flashback in last season's finale.  Sawyer lets her in on his plan to pull out the gun next time the trap door opens.

  As Desmond continues to work on the damaged computer, Jack gives him the third degree.  Jack says the Quarantine sign is meant to keep him down there and keep him scared.  He asks if it ever occurred to him that the whole thing is just a mind game.  Desmond says he has considered that theory every day, but has obviously never been brave enough to test it.  With that, he pushes a button on the monitor and all the power goes out in the bunker.  Desmond says it's over, packs some stuff and leaves.  This upsets Locke, but what upsets him more is when Jack decides to leave too.  Locke makes a feeble attempt to fix the computer, but drops the tools.  On his knees, he screams, "What am I supposed to do?"  Yep, he's mad at the island again.

  Locke flashes back to when he immediately broke his word to Helen and left in the middle of the night to stare at Dad's house.  Unfortunately for him, she knows right where he went.  She reaches in the car, takes his keys and tosses them over the gate.  She then lays down the ultimatum that Locke will have to choose between her or Daddy.  He breaks down but she finally convinces him to take a leap of faith into a future with her. 

  Just then, Kate and company arrive in the bunker to find Locke alone.  He hides that he was crying and tells them what happened.  Sayid gets right to work.  Hurley tries to help but is easily distracted by the loaded pantry.  What a cliche!

  In the cell, Sawyer's plan is for Jin to play sick (speaking of cliches).  Ana-Lucia scoffs at this plan and starts asking all kinds of questions about the gun.  As Michael and Sawyer bicker yet again, Ana-Lucia punches Sawyer and swipes the gun.  Then shockingly, she asks to be let out and the big black guy obliges.  As our heroes stare in disbelief, the man asks her who they are and together they scowl down at their prisoners.

  In the jungle, Desmond is running for his life, until he trips and falls (speaking of cliches).  Jack catches up and holds him at gunpoint again.  Desmond thinks this is about the code and in an apologetic tone offers up the numbers to input.  Jack says it's all craziness and when he says the word 'running', this is when Desmond finally places the face and tells him where they met.  Jack shouts that the past doesn't matter but Desmond keeps prodding about the girl Jack failed, until Jack starts to cry and angrily admits that he married her.  With the gun lowered, Desmond says "See you in another life," and runs off.

  Back down the hatch, Kate finds the right switch and restores power.  This starts the ominous beeping of the alarm, which means that Sayid has fixed the computer.  The countdown has reached four minutes and is now counting down by the second.  Locke sits down to enter the code, which Hurley of course recognizes and advises against.  That is until Locke enters 32 instead of 42, then everything is cool.  Locke is about to hit Execute when Jack returns just in time to point out what the correct numbers are.  Because there's still two minutes and change and we need more drama, Locke chooses this moment to start another pissing contest and tells Jack that Jack has to be the one to push the button.  Sayid agrees with me that the argument is irrelevant, but Jack stops him from pushing the button himself.  The alarm gets louder at the one minute mark and everyone is getting a little nervous.  The whole staredown seems a little silly, but it is Locke's mention of a leap of faith that finally convinces Jack to push the button.  Of course, it was with one second left (speaking of cliches).  The counter resets itself and Locke offers to take the first shift.  The End.

  Next week: The survivors seem to be split between those who are allowed to know about the great stuff in the hatch, like food and a shower, and those who aren't.  Oh, and Jin speaks perfect English.