2.3 Orientation

The largest of the ‘Others’ singlehandedly bashes Sawyer, Michael, and Jin, and they are carried off into the jungle and dumped into a pit trap. They ignore Michael’s questions about ‘his boy’.

In flashback, Locke bursts out in anger at a therapy session when the stories of others don’t match up to his story of the kidney that was stolen by his father. After the session ends, the coordinator flirts a little with Locke.

Jack will not lower his gun until Desmond tells him where Kate is. Kate has dropped out of the vents into a room loaded with guns. She creeps up on Desmond and knocks him down, but an errant shot hits the computer console. Jack holds Desmond down while Desmond pleads with him to let him fix the console and enter the code before the countdown reaches zero and they all die. Jack lets him up and Desmond tries to fix the computer.

In flashback, Locke gets up to leave Helen after making love. He returns to his father’s house, where his father comes outside to talk to him. Locke asks him ‘why’, and his father says there is no ‘why’ – he just got conned.

Kate goes to get Sayid to fix the computer. Desmond tells his story: he was sailing around the world when his boat crashed on the reef. Someone named ‘Kelvin’ took him down into the hatch and told him when they enter the code, they are saving the world. Kelvin died, and now Desmond is alone. Jack doesn’t believe the story; of course, Locke does. Desmond tells them to watch a film that was stored in the bookcase.

Hurley is just mentioning to Sayid that things are returning to normal, when Kate emerges from the jungle, breathless and sweaty, and says that she needs Sayid’s help.

Sawyer and Michael question Jin about Walt and the Others. Jin was blindfolded and has little information. Sawyer tries to get out, but is almost stabbed by the big black Other, who then dumps an injured, unconscious girl into the pit.

Jack and Locke discuss what’s going on and what went on, with much distrust, and then watch the film. The film is choppy but the gist is that what started as a innocent science project was disrupted by an ‘incident’, and now the code must be entered when prompted.

In flashback, Locke is having dinner with the therapist. She got him a six month anniversary present – a key to her house. But she also says that she followed him and saw him at his father’s house. Locke is upset, but understands why Helen did what she did. She asks him never to go to that house again, and Locke agrees.

Jack has no interest in watching the film again.

The girl wakes up, scared. She was also on the flight – it was the woman who was flirting with Jack. She (Ana-Lucia) was in the back of the plane and landed in water. She has been finding for herself since the crash.

Desmond’s attempt to fix the computer shorts the power in the station. He grabs some food and flees in terror. Jack also leaves, but for a different reason – he does not believe. Locke stays, scared and alone.

In flashback, Locke watches Helen sleep, but he cannot. He returns to his father’s old house. Helen shows up, throws his keys over the gate, and tells him he must choose between her and his father. Pushed into a corner, Locke goes with Helen.

Sayid, Kate and Hurley show up. Sayid sends Hurley and Kate to find the breaker, and Hurley gets distracted by the food storeroom.

Ana-Lucia deftly takes Sawyer’s gun and is lifted out by ‘Shaft’. She is a member of the Others.

Jack tracks and catches Desmond and trains a gun on him. Desmond gives him the code, but Jack doesn’t care. Jack is going a bit mad when faced with the illogic of the situation. He confides to Desmond that he married the woman he saved, but is not married to her anymore.

Kate finds the breaker, Sayid fixes the computer, and despite Hurley’s warnings, Locke enters the number. The last digit is wrong, but Jack shows up just in time to correct it. With 2 minutes and 14 seconds to go, Jack and Locke argue about who will press the button. Locke refuses, saying it is a two person job. He needs Jack to press it. Jack, for his part, will not press it, as this would be an admission that he believes in it. With a couple of seconds to go, Jack presses the button.

Comments

When Desmond says goodbye to Jack at the stadium, he says, "See you in another life." This lends some creedence to my theory that the island inhanbitants are in the afterlife.

Ana-Lucia looks very good – the antithesis of ‘disheveled’ - considering she has been on her own for 40 days. Of course, the guys should have been more suspicious of her, as she is one of the Others.

The Others merely seem to be a separate group of plane survivors, and each group is highly suspicious of each other.

Now the survivors must worship and believe in the power of the counter. Do they dare risk not entering the code? Who wants to be responsible for the destruction of the world?

Memorable Moments

• Jack’s impassioned speech to Desmond about fantasy and reality

Quotable Quotes

"We’re gonna need to watch that again."
- Locke to Jack, after watching the film

Sawyer: We’re about to be the best thing that ever happened to you.
Ana-Lucia: How’s that?
Sawyer: The next time Shaft opens the cage, [pulls gun] gonna get a surprising little Howdy Doody.

Jack: You really think this is happening?
Desmond: Why wouldn’t it be?
Jack: It says ‘Quarantine’ on the inside of the hatch – to keep you down here- to keep you scared. We’ve been up there for over 40 days and no one’s gotten sick! You think this is the only part of it that’s true? Did you ever think that maybe they put you down here to push a button every hundred minutes just to see if you would! That all of this - the computer, the button – is just a mind game – an experiment!
Desmond: Every single day.