LOST episode 4.01- "The Beginning of the End"

I amped up the volume, turned out the lights, and pulled my futon up as close to my t.v. as possible without straining my eyes. Finally, after 8 of the longest months of my life, LOST has returned. It felt like hugging a good friend I haven't seen in a while. Granted, a very mysterious, confusing friend who doesn't tell me WHAT'S GOING ON. Oh well, I'm just so grateful to have it back that I welcome the lack of understanding.

What happened in this episode: Hurley did a cannonball into the ocean and was very happy. Then Desmond came back and told him that Charlie died. Then it was sad... Jack still thinks he knows everything and wants to find the freighter people (I think from here on out I'll call them "Freighties." Losties, Tailies, and Freighties. And Others-ies...). Kate is still under her being-infatuated-with-Jack-because-he-said-he-loved-me spell. She helped make sure those people could find them when she went after Naomi and let her use the satellite phone. Desmond, Sayid, Bernard, Sawyer, Juliet and Hurley leave the beach to find the rest of the survivors and warn them about the whole "Not Penny's Boat" message. Hurley is really upset and gets separated from the group. He hears the whispers, sees a cabin, and sees JACK'S DAD in a rocking chair. Everyone meets up next to the fuselage of the plane (note the parallelism to the pilot episode when Jack, Kate, and Charlie went to the fuselage to retrieve the transceiver). Locke finds the group. Jack tries to shoot Locke, but there are no bullets. Everyone splits up into 2 groups: Team Locke and Team Jack. Locke will lead his team (Sawyer, Hurley, Claire, random people) to The Barracks where the Others used to live because it has some security. Jack will lead his team (Kate, Desmond, Rose & Bernard, random people) to meet the incoming Freighties and probable doom.

Flash-forwards find Hurley in a mental hospital again. Creepy man asks him if they are still alive. Charlie comes to him and tells him that they need him. Jack, pre-beard & depression, comes to visit him. Jack sucks at basketball. Hurley says that they did the wrong thing and that "it" wants them back. Jack says they'll never go back. Jack, as usual, is probably wrong.

Who I thought was the most awesome in this episode: Locke. I lost faith in Locke, just as he lost faith in the island, so I hope he'll forgive me. I trust him again, even though I don't know why he does things like blow up submarines. He survived a bullet to the stomach. If that's not hardcore/badass/worthy of trust, I don't know what is.
NOTE: In my heart, Sawyer wins this award all the time. But that's not fair to everybody else. So I am going to try to give props to all the characters when they deserve it.