The Other Woman (Lost)

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“The Other Woman”
Lost episode
Ben tricks Juliet into a date in his home in the Barracks
Juliet dines with Ben
Episode no. Season 4
Episode 6
Written by Drew Goddard
Christina M. Kim
Directed by Eric Laneuville
Guest stars M.C. Gainey
Brett Cullen
Alan Dale
Andrea Roth
Production no. 406[1]
Original airdate March 6, 2008
Episode chronology
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Lost (season 4)
List of Lost episodes

"The Other Woman" is the sixth episode of the American Broadcasting Company's fourth season of the serial drama television series Lost and seventy-fifth episode overall. It was aired on March 6, 2008 on ABC in the United States and on CTV in Canada.[2] It was written by co-executive producer Drew Goddard and executive story editor Christina M. Kim and directed by occasional Lost director Eric Laneuville.[3] "The Other Woman" was watched by fifteen million Americans and received mixed reviews, with critics from the Los Angeles Times, Entertainment Weekly and BuddyTV deeming it the worst episode of the season.

The narrative begins on December 24, 2004, ninety-four days after the crash of Oceanic Airlines Flight 815. Recent island arrivals Daniel Faraday (played by Jeremy Davies) and Charlotte Lewis (Rebecca Mader) leave the crash survivors' camp without notice for the Dharma Initiative electrical station known as the Tempest. In flashbacks that depict events on the island, Juliet Burke (Elizabeth Mitchell) discovers that Ben Linus (Michael Emerson) thinks that she belongs to him.[4]

Contents

[edit] Plot

Juliet's life on the island is depicted in flashbacks. A week after she arrives in mid-September 2001, she begins to receive therapy with Harper Stanhope (Andrea Roth). Their first discussion is cut short when Ben presents her with a new home in the Barracks. Juliet later has an affair with Harper's husband Goodwin (Brett Cullen). Harper finds out and warns Juliet that Ben will deliver consequences because he has a crush on Juliet. In October 2004, Ben invites Juliet over for what he initially describes as a dinner party, despite it actually being a date. Goodwin is eventually murdered after his infiltration of the tail section survivors is discovered.[5] Ben leads Juliet to Goodwin's impaled corpse, where she accuses him of wanting Goodwin to die, prompting Ben to unveil his true feelings of love for her.[5]

Daniel and Charlotte sneak off during the night to find the Tempest and they are followed by Jack Shephard (Matthew Fox) and Juliet. Juliet is approached by Harper, who tells Juliet that Daniel and Charlotte are going to kill everyone on the island by deploying a lethal gas and that Ben is ordering Juliet to kill Daniel and Charlotte.[5] On the morning of December 25, 2004, Kate comes across Daniel and Charlotte in the jungle on her way back from the Barracks and Charlotte knocks her unconscious. After Jack and Juliet find her, Jack cares for Kate and Juliet takes off alone for the Tempest. Inside the station, Juliet finds Daniel in a hazmat suit typing frantically at a computer terminal and asks him to terminate what he is doing. After a wrestle and a standoff, Daniel and Charlotte covince Juliet that they are not trying to kill anyone; they are trying to save the islanders by rendering the gas inert in case Ben decides to use it again.[6] Jack and Kate arrive and Kate examines the station, while Jack takes the ward outside the Tempest with Juliet. Juliet explains to Jack that there is going to be a war between the freighter crew and Ben and she thinks that Ben will win. She fears for Jack because Ben thinks she is his possession, but Jack shows no worry and kisses her.[5]

In the Barracks, Ben bargains with John Locke (Terry O'Quinn) for his freedom. Ben reveals that the offshore freighter called the Kahana[7] is owned by Charles Widmore (Alan Dale)—the father of Desmond Hume's (Henry Ian Cusick) girlfriend Penny (Sonya Walger)[8]—and that Widmore intends to exploit the island. After handing Locke a file containing information concerning Widmore, Ben tells Locke who his spy on the freighter is. Locke frees Ben from captivity, however, Ben continues to reside in the Barracks.[5]

[edit] Production

Jack and Juliet in the jungle at night while rain pours down
Jack and Juliet in the jungle at night while rain pours down

When asked about what she learned about her character through "The Other Woman", Elizabeth Mitchell said that Juliet's "mistakes are morally questionable, if not morally wrong. But you do see that behind this is a human being who is struggling to live and have a life that makes sense to her."[9] Mitchell did not think that Juliet was too surprised that Ben has romantic feelings for her, but "it was horrifying under the circumstances" because she had just found out that Goodwin had died. Michael Emerson thought that Ben was childish when he shouted "you're mine!" to Juliet in that scene and Mitchell compared it to "a twelve-year old boy throwing a temper tantrum over … his first love".[10] Mitchell said that "it was emotionally draining shooting this episode" because she was intimidated by Emerson and Matthew Fox's acting skills.[11] A jungle scene with Mitchell and Fox was filmed until 4:00 a.m. on October 27, 2007[12] with industrial sprinklers[13] and Mitchell referred to this as her "most intense experience on the show".[14] "The Other Woman" had commenced filming by October 11[15] and ended on October 30.[16] Before the episode was broadcast, Elizabeth Mitchell said "keep in mind, it is a little bit of a slowdown, but there's some good stuff in there with Ben. He will completely creep you out."[11] Rebecca Mader said that she was "so excited" for the episode because she thinks that it is "even better" than the previous episode,[17] which is widely regarded as one of the best episodes of the series.[18]

The "Tempest", which was named after William Shakespeare's 1610 play of the same name, is apparently alluded to on an unseen layer of the Dharma Swan station's blast door map of the second season.[5] The writers wanted to explain some island history in the fourth season and decided that "The Other Woman" would reveal where the gas that Ben killed the Dharma Initiative came from and that Dharma had stations set up that could protect them from hostile forces and groups on the island, such as the Others. They also enjoy having Goodwin on the show and wanted to bring him back.[19]

"The Other Woman" continues Jack and Juliet's relationship and features the pair's second kiss. Juliet was conceived by the writers as the next possible love interest for Jack after the second season character Ana Lucia Cortez (Michelle Rodriguez).[20][21] Fans had generally hated Ana Lucia so the writers did not pursue the first planned romantic story arc.[22] Mitchell guesses that her character was created because "they needed a bridge between Ben and everyone else, and they needed someone to come in and be a little salt in the oyster of Jack and Kate."[11] She has felt that Juliet did genuinely fall in love with Jack,[23] not knowing whether "her attraction to Jack or her willingness to do anything to get off the island" is more important to her.[11] Juliet forms something of a "love rectangle" with James "Sawyer" Ford (Josh Holloway), Jack and Kate.[24] Mitchell "feel[s] like [Jack and Juliet have] a very grown-up relationship. They seem to really respect and like each other", whereas Sawyer and Kate are like "rambunctious teenagers".[11] The couple was nicknamed "Jacket" and has gained an Internet fandom.[25]

[edit] Reception

Critics felt that Emerson stole the show from Mitchell
Critics felt that Emerson stole the show from Mitchell

"The Other Woman" was watched live or recorded and watched within six hours of broadcast by 13.008 million viewers in the United States,[26] ranking seventh for the week in viewers and achieving a 5.4/13 in the key adults 18–49 demographic.[27] The episode was watched by a total of 14.933 million American viewers, including those who watched within seven days of broadcast; this number went toward the season's average.[28] 1.439 million Canadians watched it, making Lost the eighth highest rated show of the week.[29] In the United Kingdom, 1.1 million people tuned in.[30] The episode brought in 691 000 viewers in Australia and was in the top ten key adults 25–54 and 18–49 demographics for the night,[31] placing it as the twenty-second most watched episode of the night.[32]

A common claim by critics of Entertainment Weekly, IGN,[33] SyFy Portal, AOL's TV Squad[34] and BuddyTV was that the episode was more heavily focused on Ben, instead of Juliet, which was not the writers' intention. Jeff Jensen of Entertainment Weekly adored Emerson's acting and stated that "in the end, this was really a story about Ben and the lengths he will go to protect himself and the Island from his enemies."[35] Dan Compora of SyFy Portal said that "The more I hate Ben, the more I realize that Michael Emerson is just a very fine actor doing his job."[36] Oscar Dahl of BuddyTV called Emerson a "god" and said that "The Other Woman" was "ostensibly a Juliet episode, [but] Ben's presence made a far bigger impression on me".[37]

Patrick Day of the Los Angeles Times called "The Other Woman" "the weakest episode of the new season so far", but pointed out that "even this so-so episode of Lost stood far above anything else being shown on network TV this season". He noted that the "most heartbreaking scene" was Claire Littleton's (Emilie de Ravin) appearance because it highlighted that the character has done little to advance the season's plot.[38] Maureen Ryan of The Chicago Tribune said that "The Other Woman" "seemed somewhat pallid and predictable … several elements … felt like they'd been recycled from previous seasons and story arcs."[39] Tim Goodman of the San Francisco Chronicle wrote that "I really liked this episode, but I liked it less than the [preceding episodes] … it seems that someone took their foot off the gas just a fraction and the reduction in speed was notable.[40] Alan Sepinwall of The Star-Ledger considered the episode to be the second weakest episode of the fourth season after "Eggtown", saying that the flashbacks were redundant and criticizing the Tempest storyline due to a lack of explanation for the station's original purpose.[41] Jeff Jensen of Entertainmet Weekly described "The Other Woman" as "the first truly subpar episode of the season" with a "story [that] was kinda all over the place" that "felt forced". Jensen was not fond of Juliet's love life or Andrea Roth's guest performance because Jensen felt that "she came off as too arch and unreal."[42] Ben Rawson-Jones of Digital Spy said that "the episode came together nicely in the end, with an expected twist and a snog, although for a great part it bordered on tedium. Juliet is a character who simply isn't interesting enough to fully sustain one's attention over a flashback. She's been so peripheral and irrelevant over this season, and it felt like a token gesture to foreground her at last. There was a nice pay off though, with a long awaited smooch between her and Jack."[43] John Kubicek of BuddyTV dubbed "The Other Woman" "the worst episode of Lost season 4 so far" because it "followed the soap opera that is the romantic entanglements of the major players, which is not the reason most people love Lost."[44] Daniel of TMZ graded the episode as a "C+"; however, he wrote that "the Ben/Locke scenes were great and Juliet in a bikini did not disappoint."[45]

Verne Gay of Newsday gave "The Other Woman" a much more positive review, referring to the episode as "yet another brilliant outing by TV's best drama [that] keeps getting better".[46] James Poniewozik of Time wrote "having gotten rid of the deadweight flashbacks, ['The Other Woman'] manages to give us [the audience] one that actually fills us in on a story we want to know more about: what happened to Juliet with the Others. In retrospect, the flashback didn't really reveal much stunning about Juliet and Ben … but what … we didn't [already] know … painted a few more coats of creepy on old Ben."[47] Nikki Stafford of Wizard "enjoyed" the "interesting" episode, although "not nearly as much" as the previous episode. She rejoiced at the return of her "favourite Other" Tom (M.C. Gainey) and wrote that "Locke used to be one of [her] favorite characters, but now he's a tool".[48] Bruce Fretts of TV Guide praised Roth's "suitably creepy" appearance.[49] Kristin Dos Santos of E! thought that the fight scene between Juliet and Charlotte in the Tempest was "awesome" and suggested that Alan Dale receive a "lifetime achievement award for his parade of marvelously malicious patriarchs".[50] Chris Carabott of IGN gave the episode 8/10, describing it as "a good episode of Lost that has all the action, suspense and excitement that this show consistently delivers". Carabott wrote that "seeing how twisted [Ben and Juliet's] 'relationship' really is was fascinating".[33] Dan Compora of SyFy Portal wrote that "this week's episode contributed to what is shaping up to be a pretty solid fourth season. … Fine acting carried the episode despite a few potholes in the plot."[36] Compora also enjoyed the title and the "nice cat fight" in the Tempest between Juliet and Charlotte.[51] Erin Martell of TV Squad was "not impressed with Jack and Juliet's chemistry" and found their kiss "unconvincing". Martell commended Michael Emerson's acting, Ben's one-liners and his "too funny for words" casual greeting to Hurley Reyes (Jorge Garcia) and Sawyer at the end of the episode after he is released from captivity.[34] Jay Glatfelter of The Huffington Post thought that "this was another great episode [that] could have lived up to last week's episode, but there was still a lot of solid character development."[52]

[edit] References

  1. ^ ABC, (March 7, 2008) "'The Other Woman' Photos". Retrieved on March 9, 2008.
  2. ^ ABC MediaNet, (February 8, 2008) "Weekly Primetime Program Schedule". Retrieved on February 8, 2008.
  3. ^ ABC MediaNet, (February 15, 2008) "Juliet is Paid an Unwelcome Visit by Someone from Her Past and Ordered to Track Down and Stop Charlotte and Faraday from Completing Their Mission". Retrieved on February 15, 2008.
  4. ^ ABC, (March 7, 2008) "'Eggtown': Season 4, Episode 406 Recap". Retrieved on March 9, 2008.
  5. ^ a b c d e f Lindelof, Damon (writer) & Cuse, Carlton (writer) & Laneuville, Eric (director), "The Other Woman". Lost, ABC. Episode 7, season 2. Aired on November 16, 2005.
  6. ^ Goddard, Drew (writer) & Sarnoff, Elizabeth (writer) & Roth, Bobby (director). "The Man Behind the Curtain". Lost, ABC. Episode 20, season 3. Aired on May 9, 2007.
  7. ^ Lindelof, Damon (writer) & Cuse, Carlton (writer) & Bender, Jack (director), "The Constant". Lost, ABC. Episode 5, season 4. Aired on February 28, 2008.
  8. ^ Lindelof, Damon (writer) & Cuse, Carlton (writer) & Bender, Jack (director), "Live Together, Die Alone". Lost, ABC. Episode 23, season 2. Aired on May 24, 2006.
  9. ^ Mitchell, Elizabeth, (April 8, 2008) "New Season Secrets!: By the Fire". Lost: The Official Magazine, Titan Magazines. Issue 16.
  10. ^ Emerson, Michael & Mitchell, Elizabeth, (March 6, 2008) "Official Lost Video Podcast 406", ABC. Retrieved on March 8, 2008.
  11. ^ a b c d e Dos Santos, Kristin, (March 6, 2008) "Lost's Elizabeth Mitchell Opens Up on Juliet, Jack and Her 'Constant'", E!. Retrieved on March 8, 2008.
  12. ^ Perez, Mario, (October 27, 2008) "Elizabeth Mitchell and Matthew Fox Asset Display Photography Information", ABC MediaNet. Retrieved on March 22, 2008.
  13. ^ Tanswell, Adam & Wilkes, Neil, (March 7, 2008) "Elizabeth Mitchell Talks About Life in the Lost Camp", Digital Spy. Retrieved on March 8, 2008.
  14. ^ Mitchell, Elizabeth & Cusick, Henry Ian & Andrews, Naveen & Lilly, Evangeline & Holloway, Josh, (February 10, 2008) "Up Close with the Lost Souls", TV and Satellite Week. Retrieved on March 8, 2008.
  15. ^ Garcia, Jorge, (October 11, 2008) "Fan's Fad…", The Fuselage. Retrieved on March 22, 2008.
  16. ^ Perez, Mario, (October 30, 2008) "Jeremy Davies Asset Display Photography Information", ABC MediaNet. Retrieved on March 22, 2008.
  17. ^ SBK & Cabin Boy, (February 29, 2008) "Lost Interview with Charlotte (Rebecca Mader)", WTKS-FM. Retrieved on March 9, 2008.
  18. ^ Dahl, Oscar, (February 29, 2008) "Unstuck in Time", BuddyTV. Retrieved on March 9, 2008.
  19. ^ Lindelof, Damon & Cuse, Carlton, (March 11, 2008) "Official Lost Audio Podcast", ABC. Retrieved on March 1, 2008.
  20. ^ Mahan, Colin, (July 28, 2006) "Jack's New Lost Love", TV.com. Retrieved on March 9, 2008.
  21. ^ Ausiello, Michael, (May 3, 2006) "Why Did Lost Kill Ana Lucia? Lindelof/Cuse Tell All!", TV Guide. Retrieved on March 9, 2008.
  22. ^ McFarland, Melanie, (November 29, 2005) "Shedding Light on a Lost Villain", Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved on March 9, 2008.
  23. ^ Cairns, Bryan, (February 12, 2008) "Season 4 Arrives!: The Island of Doctor Dharma". Lost (TV series)#Lost: The Official Magazine, Titan Magazines. Issue 15.
  24. ^ Albaniak, Paige, (February 24, 2008) "Ten Reasons Why Lost is Found", The New York Post. Retrieved on March 8, 2008.
  25. ^ Dos Santos, Kristin, (January 14, 2008) "Spoiler Chat: Prison Dish and Lost Scoop!", E!. Retrieved on March 9, 2008.
  26. ^ ABC MediaNet, (March 11, 2008) "Season Program Rankings". Retrieved on March 11, 2008.
  27. ^ ABC MediaNet, (March 11, 2008) "Weekly Primetime Ratings Wrap-Up Report". Retrieved on March 11, 2008.
  28. ^ Gorman, Bill, (March 24, 2008) "Top Time-Shifted Broadcast Shows, March 3–9", TV by the Numbers. Retrieved on March 26, 2008.
  29. ^ BBM Canada, (March 13, 2008) "Top Programs: Total Canada (English)". Retrieved on March 14, 2008.
  30. ^ Holmwood, Leigh, (March 10, 2008) "ITV1 Hits 9.6m Sunday Peak", The Guardian. Retrieved on March 9, 2008.
  31. ^ Seven Network, (March 14, 2008) "Daily Ratings Report". Retrieved on March 14, 2008.
  32. ^ Dale, David, (March 14, 2008) "The Who We Are Update: A Nightmare for Seven, a Dream for Nine", The Sun-Herald. Retrieved on March 14, 2008.
  33. ^ a b Carabott, Chris, (March 7, 2008) "Ben's Dating Guide for Megalomaniacs", IGN. Retrieved on March 7, 2008.
  34. ^ a b Martell, Erin, (March 7, 2008) "'The Other Woman'", TV Squad. Retrieved on March 8, 2008.
  35. ^ Jensen, Jeff, (March 6, 2008) "The Loves of Juliet", Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved on March 8, 2008.
  36. ^ a b Compora, Dan, (March 7, 2008) "Lost Review", SyFy Portal. Retrieved on May 21, 2008.
  37. ^ Dahl, Oscar, (March 8, 2008) "Every Episode is a Ben Episode", BuddyTV. Retrieved on March 8, 2008.
  38. ^ Day, Patrick, (March 7, 2008) "We've Been Here Before", Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on March 7, 2008.
  39. ^ Ryan, Maureen, (March 19, 2008) "Lost is Back to Being an Unmissable Addiction", The Chicago Tribune. Retrieved on June 7, 2008.
  40. ^ Goodman, Tim, (March 7, 2008) "Lost: The Spoiled Bastard", San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved on May 21, 2008.
  41. ^ Sepinwall, Alan, (March 6, 2008) "Goodwin Some, Lose Some", The Star-Ledger. Retrieved on March 7, 2008.
  42. ^ Jensen, Jeff, (March 6, 2008) "Never Ben Kissed", Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved on March 7, 2008.
  43. ^ Rawson-Jones, Ben, (March 9, 2008) "S04E06: 'The Other Woman'", Digital Spy. Retrieved on May 21, 2008.
  44. ^ Kubicek, John, (March 7, 2008) "Lost Easter Eggs: 'The Other Woman'", BuddyTV. Retrieved on March 8, 2008.
  45. ^ Daniel, (March 7, 2008) "Another Woman", TMZ. Retrieved on March 15, 2008.
  46. ^ Gay, Verne, (March 7, 2008) "Juliet (and Her Romeo)", Newsday. Retrieved on March 7, 2008.
  47. ^ Poniewozik, James, (March 7, 2008) "Lostwatch: Prospero's Books", Time. Retrieved on May 21, 2008.
  48. ^ Stafford, Nikki, (March 7, 2008) "What Light Through Yonder Window Breaks? It is the East, and Juliet is the Sun! And She is MINE, All MINE", Wizard. Retrieved on March 9, 2008.
  49. ^ Fretts, Bruce, (March 6, 2008) "Cheers: Lost & Laws to the Rescue", TV Guide. Retrieved on March 7, 2008.
  50. ^ Dos Santos, Kristin & Godwin, Jennifer, (March 7, 2008) "'It's Very Stressful Being an Other'", E!. Retrieved on March 7, 2008.
  51. ^ Compora, Dan, (March 7, 2008) "'The Other Woman'", SyFy Portal. Retrieved on May 21, 2008.
  52. ^ Glatfelter, Jay, (March 7, 2008) "On Lost: 'The Other Woman'", The Huffington Post. Retrieved on May 21, 2008.
v • d • e
Lost
Production DVD releases • Episode list • Music • Season 1 • Season 2 • Season 3 • Season 4
Main characters Ana Lucia • Ben • Boone • Charlie • Charlotte • Claire • Daniel • Desmond • Hurley • Jack • Jin • Juliet
Kate • Libby • Locke • Michael • Miles • Mr. Eko • Nikki • Paulo • Sawyer • Sayid • Shannon • Sun • Walt
Supporting characters Alex • Bernard • Christian • Ethan • Rose • Rousseau • Tom
Groups Dharma Initiative • Hanso Foundation • Oceanic Airlines • The Others
Miscellaneous Awards • Find 815 • Lost Experience • Lost: Missing Pieces • Lost: Via Domus • Mythology
Lost Season 4
"The Beginning of the End" · "Confirmed Dead" · "The Economist" · "Eggtown" · "The Constant" · "The Other Woman" · "Ji Yeon" · "Meet Kevin Johnson" · "The Shape of Things to Come" · "Something Nice Back Home" · "Cabin Fever" · "There's No Place Like Home: Part 1" · "There's No Place Like Home: Parts 2 and 3"