"One of Us"^[1] is the sixteenth episode of the third season of Lost. It was aired on April 11, 2007, making it the 63rd episode of the series. The episode was written by Carlton Cuse and Drew Goddard and directed by Jack Bender. Main character John Locke didn't appear in this episode.

The character of Dr. Juliet Burke is featured in the episode's flashbacks.^[2] In flashbacks, the episode reveals mostly how Juliet got on the island and why she went to the island in the first place. While on the island, Kate, Sayid, Juliet, and Jack, trek back to the beach camp, and Claire is struck by a mysterious illness. Andrew Divoff, William Mapother and Nestor Carbonell reprised there recurring roles as Mikhail Bakunin, Ethan Rom and Richard Alpert.

Plot

On the Island

Kate, Sayid, Juliet, and Jack trek back to the beach camp. As they stop for the night Jack explains to Kate the deal he made with Ben. Sayid attempts to interrogate Juliet, but Jack intervenes and defends her. At the beach camp, Charlie hears Aaron crying and wakes up Claire. Claire says she is not feeling well, so Charlie offers to take care of Aaron. Sawyer sees Jack, Kate, and Sayid returning. Though happy about their return he expresses his displeasure at seeing Juliet. Hurley engages Juliet in casual conversation. Juliet guesses that Hurley was sent to keep an eye on her. He tells her the last Other who came over, Ethan, was killed and buried nearby.

That night, Jack tells everyone that he trusts Juliet and that should be enough, but Sayid disagrees. Jack continues to explain that Locke blew up the submarine that he was to be taken home by. Claire suddenly collapses with blood gushing from her face. Juliet takes Jack and Kate aside and tells them she knows what's wrong with Claire because she did it to her.

At the camp, Juliet explains that Claire's immune system has turned against her due to a latent reaction to medication in her bloodstream. The medication was designed by Juliet to keep Claire alive during her pregnancy. She was brought to the island to find out why women couldn't have children. The mother's body treats the pregnancy as a foreign invader and the immune system attacks; every pregnant woman on the island has died. Claire was the first to survive even though she showed some of the symptoms. Juliet explains that Ethan kept a stash of the serum at a nearby drop point.

Juliet goes out into the jungle and retrieves the serum (it is hidden under a tree with a symbol on it). Sayid and Sawyer have followed her, and they want answers. Juliet tells them there isn't time. Realizing they are not going to budge, she stands up to them and says she finds it interesting that they are the camp's moral police, considering their violent pasts. She takes the serum back to the beach and gives it to Jack. He warns her that if anything happens to Claire, he will not be able to protect her against the will of the survivors any longer and she would be alone, to which Juliet states that she already is.

At the camp, Claire wakes up. She is feeling and looking much better. Juliet is now on the path to being trusted by the survivors. Jack brings her supplies to set up her tent area and tells her eventually everyone will need answers. Juliet asks why Jack trusts her and does not ask for answers. He says because when the submarine exploded, he saw in her eyes that she wanted to get off this island more than anything. That makes her "one of us."

Flashbacks

In flashbacks, Juliet arrives at an airport with her sister. Richard Alpert and Ethan Rom are there to escort her the rest of the way. Juliet says good-bye to her sister, Rachel, promising to be back before her baby is born. In the airport terminal, Alpert pours sedative into a glass of orange juice and gives it to Juliet to drink, explaining that the trip is very intense. Juliet is wary of drinking the juice, even though she is okay with the other weird circumstances surrounding the trip. Alpert interrupts and tells her the place she is going is very special and that she has a gift with which she is supposed to do something significant. Juliet drinks the orange juice and passes out. She wakes up in a submarine with her arms, waist, and bare feet strapped down for safety. She then moves out onto a dock, where she meets Ben.

Sometime later, Juliet is in surgery with Ethan and Goodwin as the pregnant patient, Sabine, dies. Goodwin comforts her and later she meets with Ben. She explains her theory that the problems with pregnant women happen at conception. She wants to test this theory by having a woman conceive off the island, but Ben refuses to let anyone off the island. When Juliet tells him that nothing else can be done and asks to go home and be with her sister, Ben informs Juliet that her sister's cancer has come back. He offers her a choice: either Juliet can go home and be with her sister as she dies or she can stay and he will have Jacob cure her sister's cancer.

Later, Juliet is in bed after sleeping with Goodwin. She is given x-rays of Ben's back and determines that Ben has a tumor. She confronts Ben in his home and accuses him of lying about Rachel, asking, "If you can cure cancer, Ben, then why do you have it?" He denies lying to her and refuses to let her go home. The next day, immediately after Flight 815 crashes, Ben tells Juliet he has something to show her. They travel to Flame Station to see Mikhail. Ben first tells Mikhail that he wants information on all of the passengers of the plane, then asks him to bring up a live feed. On the screen a newspaper is shown with the current date (September 22, 2004 -- the date of the crash) followed by a shot of Rachel playing with her child, named Julian, on a playground. Ben explains that her cancer is in complete remission.

The final flashback shows Juliet and Ben discussing their plans immediately before the events of Left Behind. Ben tells her to handcuff herself to Kate and say she was left behind. She is also told that Claire's "implant" has been "activated" and that this will make Claire ill. Juliet is to use drugs left at the drop point to cure her and earn the trust of the survivors. He gives her a gas mask and leaves.

While setting up her shelter, Juliet looks around the camp and ties a final double knot as Jack smiles at her.

Production

The episode was originally to be called "The Truth about Lying" and was to be Charlie-Centric. ^[3]

Reception

In the U.S., the episode was viewed by 12.09 million viewers ^[4], the episode had the fourth lowest ratings of the third season episodes, the only episodes with lower ratings are, "Left Behind", "Exposé" and "D.O.C.". ^[4] Also, the episode was watched by 5.2 million viewers between 18 and 49.^[4] In the United Kingdom, the episode attracted 1.09 million viewers, and was the second most watched program of the week on the non-terrestrial channels, beaten only by Live FA Cup Football. ^[5] On IGN the episode was given a 8.7 out of 10.0, by reviewer Chris Carabott, who commented ""One of Us" is yet another solid effort from long-time Lost director Jack Bender who deserves credit for bringing us some of the best episodes the series has to offer. Bender has helmed "Walkabout," "Man of Science, Man of Faith" and this season's best "The Man from Tallahassee" just to name a few". ^[6]

BuddyTV Senior Writer Jon Lachonis commented: I am telling you right now, without reservation, that “One of us” is perhaps the most perfect episode of LOST ever produced, bar none. For those of you who were upset with how inelegantly Expose squandered its flashback opportunities, prepare for a huge apology from the producers. For those LOST fans who stuck around knowing that the show would obtain that mythical level of greatness that seemed to come so natural, here is your pay-off. ^[7] In this same review, he complimented Elizabeth Mitchell on her portrayal. ^[7] The episode scored a 9.5 "superb" rating on Tv.com. ^[8] Elizabeth Mitchell later submitted this episode for consideration on her behalf in the category of "Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series" at the 2007 Emmy Awards.^[9]

References

External Links

• "One of Us" at IMDb
• Template:Tv.com episode
• "One of Us" at Lostpedia
• "One of Us" on Lost, an external wiki

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