Friday, February 22, 2008

2.1 Man of Science, Man of Faith

In what looks like an apartment, a man wakes up, programs a computer, does his exercises, has his breakfast. We do not see his face. An alarm sounds, he gets weapons ready and he checks for intruders using a mirror. We follow the mirror up to see Jack and Locke looking down the shaft.

Jack tells Locke that they are done for the day, that they can’t lower 40 people down the hole using a harness (the ladder is broken). Locke initially agrees, but keeps questioning Jack.

Flashback: Jack and other doctors are treating a woman and a man, victims of a car crash. As the man does, Jack saves the wowan (his future wife).

It’s night and the caves, and Charlie assures everyone that no one is coming to attack them. He believes that Danielle is crazy.

Shannon has lost Vincent. She grabs a torch and heads out to find him. Sayid jumps up to join her.

Back at the hatch, Locke is still obsessed with exploring, but he might feel differently after Kate discovers the word ‘Quarantine’ written on the inside of the hatch door.

Sayid and Shannon find Vincent, but he runs away. Shannon gets separated from Sayid and falls down, and hears the whispering of the Others. Shannon sees a dripping wet Walt whispering something unintelligible. Sayid finds her and Walt disappears.

Kate and Locke discuss whether Locke is crazy, and what Jack thinks of him.

Hurley tells Jack the full story of the numbers: how he used the numbers to win the lottery, how the numbers cursed him, and how he saw the numbers on the side of the hatch. Jacks’ reaction? They’re just numbers to him.

In flashback, Jack tells the crash victim that she will probably never have feelings in her legs again.

Shannon tells the group that she saw Walt and heard whispers. As panic ensues, Jack and gang return. Jack tells of the hatch that Locke found. Talk again turns to the Others, with an argument between Shannon and Charlie on whether they exist. Jack takes control and tells everyone to calm down – lookouts with guns will be posted at all entrances, and everyone will live to see the sunrise in three hours. He even makes a personal promise that they will be safe. But his speech is punctuated by Locke, who comes in, grabs a roll of heavy cable, and says he is going down the hatch – now.

A little later, as Jack stands watch, Kate comes by to praise him for his leadership – but then drops the bombshell that she is also going to the hatch. She says this is to ensure that if Locke is hurt, she can help him.

In flashback, Jack meets the injured woman’s fiancee (she was to be married in a few months. His main priorities are finding out if she will be able to make love and go to the bathroom by herself. In the operating room, the woman confides to Jack that she knows she will never dance again. Jack promises to fix her.

Kate joins Locke at the hatch. Locke asks her to go down first, as she is lighter and thinner. Kate agrees. Near the bottom, she sees a faint light going on and off, and asks Locke to stop. The shaft is then flooded with bright light, and Locke’s calls to Kate are unanswered.

Jack changes his mind and leaves the caves to go to the hatch. He finds the cable but no Locke or Kate. Jack descends the hatch.

In flashback, Jack is running up and down the sides of a steep stadium (a tour d’estad), along with another man, when he hurts his ankle. He talks to the man about Sarah, his patient. Jack says he promised to fix the woman but failed. His friend tells him to believe in miracles, and to ‘lift it up’ (referring to Jack’s unjured ankle.

At the bottom of the hatch, Jack finds the mirroe placed there by the sentry to spy on people coming down. There is a high-powered flashlight, metal structures, and mystery. Jack gets his gun ready. He find graffiti, paint, and a key. A lens photographs him, bright lights shine, and pop music plays ‘Make Your Own Kind of Music’. He is in a control room in front of a large computer, and a console with a blinking cursor. As he is about to press a button, Locke appears and tells him not to. Jack points his gun at Locke, and someone, off-camera, also points a gun at Locke.

In flashback, Jack has been bedside, waiting for Sarah to gain consciousness. He tells her, while crying that he was unable to repair her spine. She asks if he’s joking…because she can wiggle her toes. He performs some tests on her, all positive, as they laugh and cry together.

The man training the gun on Locke steps aside to reveal it is Desmond, the man who was giving advice to Jack at the stadium.

Comments

Did Desmond perform the ‘miracle’ that allowed Sarah to walk again? He was around at that time, and he seems to be manipulating things now.

Starting with the last couple of episodes of season one, Lost started to feel more like a scripted show, rather than natural drama between the characters. Perhaps this is because some of the events are being scripted by someone (it certainly seems to be heading down this path), but I still fear that this approach is going to be less compelling and successful than was the interaction and politics among the survivors. Along the same vein, the first season was so good that it is going to be a hard act to follow.

Nits

Desmond seemed surprised that someone is coming down the shaft. Wouldn’t the sound of the explosion when the hatch was blown a few hours ago have been an early warning that someone might be coming down soon?

Memorable Moments

  • The discovery of the underground control center

Quotable Quotes

Hurley: You should go ahead, man, don’t want Locke makin’ time with your girl. Joke, dude.
Jack: Not really in the mood, Hurley.
Hurley: Really? Wow, usually you’re like Mr Ha Ha.

Hurley: What's that thing where doctors make you feel better just by talking to you?
Jack: Bedside manner?
Hurley: Yeah, that. Yours sucks, dude.

"Lower your gun, or I’ll blow his damned head off, brother!"
- Desmond

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