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MarkWickman

Dr. Mark Wickman (aka Dr. Marvin Candle) in the Pearl Orientation Video.

The Pearl Orientation Video seems to be The Pearl's counterpart to the Swan Orientation Film. Unlike the film found in The Swan, the movie is on a Sony U-matic video tape, rather than a spool of film.

The video talks about the duties of The Pearl. It is station Five of Six of the Dharma Initiative, and is a monitoring station. The other stations have hidden cameras installed in them, and for three weeks, the inhabitants of The Pearl will monitor the staff of the other stations and make records in notebooks for eight hour shifts. When a notebook is filled, it is to be placed in a capsule, which is then placed into a pneumatic tube where it is sent directly to 'us'.

At the end of each eight hour shift, the Pearl staff are to make their way to the Pala Ferry for transport back to the barracks. However, this part of the orientation video is slightly garbled, and this information may change on further review.

The Film shows the feed from the "button" station being monitored in the Top Left monitor and the Swan feed in the Top Right, therefore it does not appear that the Swan is the one being monitored, neither therefore do the numbers on the printout apply to the Swan.

Transcript

Scenesfrompearlfilm
Pearlorientation1

5 of 6 - Orientation

Pearlorientation2

Station 5 - The Pearl

items in italics represent comments
items in bold represent on-screen items, not spoken text
* denotes a pop or possible splice in the film
(?) denotes interpreted garbled speech (it may be incorrect)

The Dharma Initiative

5 of 6 Orientation

screen transition fade

Dharma Logo showing The Pearl
Orientation - Station 5 - The Pearl

screen transition to show a man in a turtleneck sweater and jacket

Hello. I am Dr. Mark Wickman and this is your orientation film for station 5 of the *Dharma* Initiative.
Station 5 or, The Pearl, is a monitoring station where the activities of participants in Dharma Initiative projects can be observed and recorded; not only for posterity but for the ongoing refinement of the initiative as a whole.

As Karen DeGroot herself has written "Careful observation is the only key to true and complete awareness".

Your tour of duty in the Pearl will last three weeks and during this time, you and your partner will observe a psychological experiment in progress.

Your duty is to observe team members in another station on the island. These team members are not aware that they are under surveillance or that they are subjects of an experiment.

Working in eight hour shifts you and your partner will record everything you observe in the notebooks we provided. What is the nature of the experiment, you might ask. What do these subjects believe they are accomplishing as they struggle to fulfill their tasks? You, as the observer, don't need to know. All you need to know is that the subjects believe that their job is of the utmost importance. Remember, everything that occurs, no matter how minute or seemingly unimportant must be recorded.

Each time a notebook is filled with the fruits of your diligent observation, roll it up and insert it into one of the containers provided. Then, simply place the container in the pneumatic tube and - presto! It will be transported directly to us.

At the end of your eight hour shift proceed to the Pala Ferry which will take you back to the barracks to prepare for your next * (?) ... on behalf of the DeGroots, Alvar Hanso, and all of us here at the Dharma Initiative - thank you. Namaste and good luck.

screen transition fade

© The Hanso Foundation
1980 All Rights Reserved.

Notes

  • Marvin Candle makes an appearance, though he uses the name Mark Wickman
  • On the upper left monitor behind Dr. Wickman, there can be seen two men apparantly working inside another station on the island. Perhaps Desmond and Kelvin?
  • He appears younger than he did on the Swan Orientation Film.
  • The video is copyright 1980.
  • The tape of the Orientation Video was on a format from Sony called U-MATIC
  • There is a video camera watching this area as well.

Theories

  • The arm: In Swan Orientation Film, Marvin Candle/Mark Wickman had a prosthetic arm which he didn't have in the Pearl Orientation Video.
    • He doesn't have a fake arm. It might be a hoax to create fear of an incident within the viewers.
    • It is possible that Marvin Candle and Mark Wickman are twins or clones.
    • He lost his arm before the filming of the Swan Orientation Film.
    • Both films are dated 1980, the Pearl Orientation Video was recorded in the Pearl (on the island), the Swan Orientation Film was filmed somewhere else (possibly of the island) so maybe he was ‘healed’ by the island like Locke and Rose.
    • Since the Swan orientation film was made at a laboratory (judging by the obvious fire door "Exit" sign in the background), and the Pearl orientation is done inside the facility itself, we can assume Marvin/Mark spent some time on the Island in the intervening time, which could possbibly explain the healing of the arm and younger appearance.
    • He might also be related to or be Montand. Rousseau claims that Montand lost his arm in the Dark Territory. Rousseau says that "Montand lost his arm" shortly after the arrival of her research team. This was sixteen years ago, which would put Montand / Candle / Wickman on the island in 1980, the date of both the Orientation video and film for stations three and five.
  • In the video, it is claimed that The Pearl station functions as a monitor for the experiments in other stations. This could be -
    • factual - there is no function of "the button"
    • formerly factual - it was an experiment, but after The Incident is no longer just an experiment
    • false - The Pearl itself is also an experiment, and they don't want the subjects to know it, hence the video camera in the station, and the admonition to record all details, "no matter how minute"; also the numbers in The Swan may actually be significant.
  • If the video is factual, the fake arm in the Swan Orientation Film might be a method of inciting fear of The Incident.
  • The 1980 copyright date may be a false date
  • Marvin Candle was himself a subject of the Life Extension Project and not only gets younger, but had his arm cloned and reimplanted.
  • The garbled static in the tape may be a result of: 1) the tape's age, 2) the tape's overuse, 3) electromagnetic damage related to DHARMA projects, 4) an intentionally removed splice of missing tape
  • The names Marvin Candle, Mark Wickman and The Flame station could all somehow be related in subject. Perhaps Dr. Candle/Wickman can be found at The Flame.

External links

Pearl Orientation Video - YouTube.com

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