Dr. Carlton urges Oscar to bring Steve to the hospital as soon as possible so that they can address the problem before it becomes irreversible.

Sure enough, during flight, the spasms occur and Steve crushes the lever, sending the plane plummeting to the ground in the mountains of Utah.

On a peaceful country road, a car gets a flat tire just as Steve emerges from the bushes. The driver is psychologist Angie Walker (Sharon Farrell). She asks Steve his name and the place he came from, but he can't recall either one. He complains of blurred vision and wonders how he got to Broken Fork, a quiet little town of few inhabitants. With no wallet and personal ID, Angie suggests taking him to the sheriff's office.

Steve offers to fix her flat tire but unaware of his true strength, he breaks the wrench and blames it on the rust.

On the way, they make a brief stop at a grocery store where the owner, Horace Milsner (Robert Donner), threatens them to leave empty-handed. Angie decides to go elsewhere to avoid trouble but Steve won't hear of it. He grabs Milsner by the arm and hurls him against a shelf and leaves with the duly paid groceries.

Meanwhile, the Army has organized a search party to locate Steve's plane. Oscar is informed of its exact position in the center of Utah and there are no sign of any survivor.

Bits by bits, Steve begins to recall his past but fears he might be remembering the bad and not the good.

Deputy Sheriff Corley Weems (Troy Melton) drops by with Horace who recently brought trump-up charges against Steve for theft and bodily harm. Steve proves he hasn't stolen the groceries by showing the receipt and pleads self-defence in the second accusation. Angie vouches for his story, saying Horace provoked him to violence.

Oscar and Dr. Carlton arrive on the scene of the crash and notice the crushed lever and conclude to the spasm theory. An Air Force Major (Eric Mason) says they combed the entire area and still no sign of Steve. He believes he ejected minutes before the crash and is somewhere around these parts.

Instead of going to the sheriff like Angie promised, Steve suggests that they go on the usual picnic with the boarders. On the way, they are stopped by Horace and two of his men who warn them to get out of town for good. They intend to teach Steve a lesson he'll never forget but they are the ones being tossed about by the bionic man who overtakes them all by himself. Jodie, who had followed the pack, treats her friend Thurmond of coward for not helping Steve.

Angie is amazed by Steve's incredible strength and he's even more troubled by it.

Steve complains of sharp pains in his shoulder. Angie believes he might have been hurt in the fight. When Steve looks down at his right arm, he is horrified by what he sees. He panics, breaking a chair in the process, saying that a human being is incapable of such feats. Angry, he grabs his mechanical arm with his left hand and cuts himself. Angie smiles and reassures him that machines don't bleed and that he was probably fitted with an artificial limb.

When Angie is finally free to drive Steve to the sheriff's office, Horace and his gang show up at the home, threatening them with weapons. They kidnap Steve to have him killed, but he manages to escape his captors and sprints back to Angie's place to free the others from being driven out of town.

Dr. Carlton repairs Steve's arm temporarily until he can get to the lab for a full overhaul.

Outside, Steve pleads with the town people to cease the hatred and welcome Angie's boarders as able citizens and not lunatics. Jodie makes the first step towards peace by shaking hands with Thurmond.