Lost/One of Us

One of Us
Season 3, Episode 16
Airdate	April 11, 2007
Production Number	316
Written by	Carlton Cuse Drew Goddard
Directed by	Jack Bender
← 3x15 Left Behind	3x17 → Catch-22
Lost — Season Three

One of Us is the sixteenth episode of the third season of Lost, and the sixty-fifth episode overall.

Jack's joyous reunion with his fellow survivors is cut short when they realize that accompanying him is one of "The Others," and Claire is stricken by a mysterious, life-threatening illness.

Starring: Naveen Andrews (Sayid), Henry Ian Cusick (Desmond), Emilie de Ravin (Claire), Michael Emerson (Ben), Matthew Fox (Jack), Jorge Garcia (Hurley), Josh Holloway (Sawyer), Daniel Dae Kim (Jin), Yunjin Kim (Sun), Evangeline Lilly (Kate), Elizabeth Mitchell (Juliet), Dominic Monaghan (Charlie), Terry O'Quinn (Locke).

Guest Starring: Nestor Carbonell (Richard Alpert), Brett Cullen (Goodwin), Andrew Divoff (Mikhail), William Mapother (Ethan Rom), Robin Weigert (Rachel).

Co-Starring: Joah Buley (Other Dude), Tyrone Howard (Airport Guard).

Plot Overview

The Island

• On the long trek from the barracks to the Oceanic survivors camp, Jack, Sayid, Kate and Juliet make camp by a river as nightfall approaches. While Jack and Kate are off collecting firewood, Sayid attempts to question Juliet but she knows he would kill her if she told him everything she knew. Sayid levels a threat at her, but Jack returns and tells him to leave her alone, that she's under his protection. Continuing on the following day, Jack tells Juliet that his people just need some time to trust her. Juliet reminds him that her people chained Sayid to a swing set for three days and that she dragged Kate into the jungle, handcuffed herself to her and lied about it. After all that, she wonders how much time they would need to get over it. Jack jokingly tells her it'll be before they get back to the camp in a few hours.
• At the beach camp, Charlie notices Claire isn't responding to Aaron's cries. Rousing her awake, Charlie learns that she isn't feeling well and didn't get much sleep. He offers to take care of Aaron so she can get some more sleep, and Claire accepts his offer. Later, Claire gets out of bed to see if anyone has some aspirin and Sawyer offers to get her some. Walking to his shelter to get it, he notices Jack walking up the beach with the rest of the group. As the survivors welcome them back, Sawyer notices Juliet waiting in the distance and demands to know what she's doing there.

  While the other survivors gather to discuss Juliet, Hurley sits down next to Juliet on the beach to talk and keep an eye on her. Juliet introduces herself to Hurley, but Hurley tells her that he doesn't remember her from when the Others captured and held him at the dock. Meanwhile, the survivor's debate continues on into the night. Sun thinks it's a bad idea for her to be there and Sayid doesn't trust her. The questions turn to Locke, and Jack informs the group that Locke left with the Others after he blew up their submarine. The argument then turns to Jack's motivations for leaving the island in the submarine, but Claire collapses with blood coming out of her mouth. As Jack tries to treat Claire, Juliet pulls Kate aside and asks her to get Jack - she thinks she knows what's wrong with Claire because she did it to her.

  As Sawyer and Sayid watch from a distance, Juliet tells Jack that Claire's immune system is turning on her due to a latent reaction to a medication in her bloodstream. The medication was designed by Juliet to keep the patient alive during the late stages of pregnancy. For some reason, women on the island can't have babies as the woman's body turns on the pregnancy and treats it as a foreign invader. She's seen numerous pregnant women die on the island, all except for Claire. Ethan had infiltrated their camp and took blood samples from Claire, discovering that her blood showed the same symptoms as the pregnant women who had conceived on the island. Claire became their control case and Ethan was administering a serum developed by Juliet, but his identity was uncovered and Ethan decided to kidnap Claire on his own. Claire would have died without Juliet's serum, but Juliet believes she's going into withdrawal and needs another injection from a stash of medical supplies Ethan kept near the caves the survivors used to live in. Jack tells her to get it.

  Juliet treks through the jungle and into the early morning, eventually making it to a marked tree. She finds a padlocked case hidden in the foliage and unlocks it, but Sayid and Sawyer, who secretly followed her, order her to step away. Sawyer opens the case and finds it containing four vials of serum, two syringes and some other medical supplies. Juliet tries to talk them into letting her get the medication back, but the two demand she talk. Instead, Juliet asks Sayid how long it took for him to tell everyone about the number of people he's tortured in his life, and she asks Sawyer if he told everyone about the man he shot in cold blood the night before he got on the plane. Taking the case from Sawyer, she tells the two that she's taking it back for Claire because, if Claire dies, they don't need any more blood on their hands.

  Arriving back at camp with the case, Juliet administers an injection to Claire. Jack warns her that, if it doesn't work, he won't be able to protect her and that she'd be on her own. Juliet tells him she already is on her own. Several hours later, Claire wakes up without any problems. Jack brings Juliet some blankets and a pillow, telling her that the survivors are good people, but eventually they'll need some answers. She asks Jack why she doesn't have to explain herself to him, but Jack tells her that, when the submarine was destroyed, he saw in her eyes that she wanted nothing more in the world than to get off the island.

The Flashback

• Flashback: Juliet

In Florida, Juliet and her sister, Rachel, drive up to a gated complex. Juliet tells the guard her name and that she is with Mittelos Bioscience, and the guard tells her he'll notify Mr. Alpert of her arrival. Rachel wryly pokes fun at the level of corporate secrecy being taken, and Juliet tells her she doesn't think she'll fit in with them. Ethan Rom approaches the car and offers to take Juliet's luggage for her as Richard Alpert walks out to greet Juliet. Alpert tells Juliet and Rachel that, due to security, they'll have to take Juliet the rest of the way in alone, but tells them to take as much time as they need to say goodbye. Juliet expresses second thoughts to her sister and worries that her cancer might come back, but Rachel tells her it's gone and she's pregnant thanks to her work. The two say their goodbyes and Juliet enters the complex, getting into a white van.

After checking in at the lobby of Herarat Aviation, Juliet is escorted to a waiting area by Alpert where her vitals can be checked by Ethan. Alpert mixes a considerable amount of tranquilizer into a glass of orange juice and gives it to Juliet, telling her that she's going to want to be asleep for the trip. Ethan chimes in, telling her it can be kind of intense. Put off by the request, Juliet tells them that she was fine with agreeing to their paperwork, not talking to anyone in her life for six months and that no one in the medical community has ever heard of Mittelos Bioscience. Alpert interrupts her, asking why she was fine with all those things, seeing as how it's a pretty big leap for a job opportunity and they aren't paying her that much. He believes she was fine with all those things because she knows that the place they're taking her to is special. He tells her that she has a gift, that she created life where life wasn't supposed to be, and that she'll be able to do something significant with that gift at where they're going. Juliet asks him where this place is, but Alpert only tells her that she'll see things she's never imagined there. He reminds her that no one is forcing her to do anything and they would be happy to take her back, but Juliet quickly downs the entire tranquilizer and orange juice mixer. Ethan tells her she probably shouldn't have drank that so fast and she passes out. Juliet regains consciousness and finds herself strapped down to a rack. Ethan unstraps her, telling her he had to strap her in because the last leg gets bumpy, but they've arrived. Climbing out of the submarine and onto its deck, Juliet discovers the secret location is an island. Ben appears and introduces himself to Juliet.

Six months later, at the Staff's operating room, a female patient dies on the table while Ethan was operating on her. Ethan informs Juliet that the patient has died and leaves the operating room. Goodwin consoles Juliet, telling her she tried her best, and that she can take off as he'll inform Ben. Juliet takes solace on a rocky shore, watching the ocean when Ben approaches her. He tells her that Sabine wanted to get pregnant and knew she was taking a risk in doing so. Juliet tells him that she believes the problem occurs at conception and, if so, there's nothing she can do about it while on the island. The only way she can continue her research is by taking one of the women off the island and back to Miami, but Ben refuses to allow her to take anyone off the island. Juliet expresses her desire to return home and see her sister give birth as she hasn't been able to even talk to her while on the island, but Ben informs her that Rachel's cancer has returned and shows her the medical records to prove it. Ben makes Juliet an offer: leave and be with Rachel during her final days or stay on the island and help solve their problem. In return for staying, Ben promises to cure Rachel's cancer, reminding Juliet that she's done extensive workups on everyone on the island and couldn't find a trace of cancer. Juliet points out that he wouldn't let her sister come to the island, but Ben tells her that Jacob said he would take care of it himself.

Roughly two years and six months later, Juliet is in bed with Goodwin at her house at the barracks. They hear a knock at the door and Juliet gets dressed to answer it. Goodwin gets dressed and finds Juliet at her desk, looking at X-rays that Karl developed for her. He notices something is wrong. With X-rays in hand, Juliet goes to Ben's house and informs him that he has a tumor on his spine. She points out that Ben looks scared about the news, yet no one on the island gets cancer and he promised to cure Rachel of her cancer. Juliet believes Ben lied to her, but Ben assures her that Rachel is fine. She pleads to Ben to let her go home, but Ben refuses and leaves.

The following day, Juliet entertains the book club at her house when the building shakes. Rushing outside, the Others witness Oceanic flight 815 breaking apart overhead. Ben orders Ethan and Goodwin to infiltrate any survivors of the crash and bring back lists in three days. Turning his attention to Juliet, Ben tells her that they need to talk and asks her to accompany him on a walk. The two walk to the Flame, where Ben tries to inform Mikhail Bakunin over the walkie that they've arrived so he doesn't shoot them. Watching a bank of monitors showing news reports, Mikhail informs Ben that the plane was Oceanic flight 815, traveling from Sydney to Los Angeles with 324 people on board. Ben tells Mikhail he wants details reports on every single passenger, and then asks to uplink to Alpert in Arcadia Park. One of the monitors shows video of a Miami Journal newspaper with the day's date on it, September 22, 2004. Ben asks Alpert to continue and the camera shows Juliet's sister, Rachel, playing on a playground with a baby boy. Ben tells Juliet that, a little over two years ago, Rachel's cancer went into complete remission and she then gave birth to a healthy baby boy named Julian. Ben thanks Alpert and tells him he should probably get back soon as they're going to have new visitors, and the video feed cuts off. Juliet again tells Ben she wants to go home, but Ben reminds her that their agreement was for her to solve their problem in exchange for curing Rachel of her cancer. She tells him it's impossible, that all the mothers keeps dying, but Ben tells her they'll find more mothers.

The night before the Others abandoned the barracks, Juliet meets with Ben alone to go over a plan. She is to drag Kate into the jungle and to handcuff herself to her, telling her she was gassed also. Ben asks her what to do if Kate catches her in the lie, and Juliet tells him she would admit to it and tell her it was the only way to earn her trust. She knows Ben wants her to go to the beach camp and, after everything they've done to them, it would be a problem. Ben informs her that they've activated the implant in Claire and she should be symptomatic by the time she arrives at the camp. A case will be hidden at Ethan's old supply drop and Juliet will be able to use it and solve the crisis. Ben hands her a gas mask and tells her he'll see her again in a week.

Notes

Mysteries

• Why do the bodies of the pregnant women on the island suddenly reject the pregnancy?
• How did Rousseau and her child, Alexandra, survive the pregnancy while on the island?
• How was Rachel's cancer cured?
• What did Sayid do in Basra?
• Why is Juliet working for Ben again? What did he promise her?
• What is Juliet at the camp to do?
• What is Ben referring to about seeing Juliet again in less than one week?

Answers

• Ethan "wanted" Claire because his identity was revealed, but Claire still needed the treatment he was administering to her in secret. He improvised and was forced to kidnap her.(1x11 - All the Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues)
• Ethan was administering a serum developed by Juliet to prevent Claire's body from rejecting the pregnancy, killing both her and her unborn baby. (2x15 - Maternity Leave)
• Juliet was tense at the beginning of "A Tale of Two Cities" because she believed Ben lied to her about curing Rachel of her cancer. This was also part of the conflict between the two. (A Tale of Two Cities)
• The Others needed a fertility doctor because their pregnant women were all dying. (3x04 - Every Man for Himself)
• Ben kept Juliet on the island for longer than she signed on for because he cured Rachel's cancer. The "history" they have is over Juliet wanting to leave the island. (3x07 - Not in Portland)
• The patient Juliet was recruited for were pregnant women whose bodies turned on their pregnancies, destroying their womb and killing them. (3x07 - Not in Portland)

The Cursed Numbers

• Ben had a large tumor surrounding his L4 vertebrae.
• Ethan's medical case contained 4 vials of serum.

Scrutiny

• Oops!: The top of Rachel's electrocardiographic record that Ben shows Juliet briefly indicates that the patient is a 5' 11", 197 lbs male. This is most likely a prop error.

Arc Advancement

Happenings

• Jack, Kate, Sayid and Juliet return to the beach camp.
• Juliet saves Claire's life with an injection of her serum.

Characters

• Juliet has been sent by Ben to infiltrate the beach camp.

Referbacks

• 1x10 - Raised by Another: While talking with Juliet, Hurley refers back to Ethan's kidnapping of Claire. Juliet later tells Jack and Kate about Ethan infiltrating their camp and taking blood samples from Claire. These events occurred in "Raised by Another".
• 1x15 - Homecoming: While talking with Juliet, Hurley refers to Charlie getting "upset" over Ethan's kidnapping of Claire. Charlie murdered Ethan in "Homecoming".
• 1x16 - Outlaws: While talking with Juliet, Hurley points out where Ethan was buried. Hurley helped Charlie bury Ethan in "Outlaws". While talking to Sayid and Sawyer, Juliet reminds Sawyer about how he shot a man in cold blood the day before getting on the plane. This event occurred in the flashback for this episode.
• 2x23 - Live Together, Die Alone: While talking with Juliet, Hurley tells her that he doesn't remember her when her people shocked him, put a bag over his head and brought him to a dock. These events occurred in "Live Together, Die Alone".
• 3x06 - I Do: While collecting firewood with Kate, Jack tells her he made a deal with Ben to get off the island. In "I Do", Jack agreed to perform surgery on Ben in exchange for getting off the island.
• 3x13 - The Man from Tallahassee: While traveling with Jack, Juliet reminds him of how her people chained Sayid to a swing set for three days. In "The Man from Tallahassee", the Others captured Locke, Sayid and Kate, and chained Sayid to a swing set. Jack refers to Locke blowing up the submarine, an event that occurred in this episode.
• 3x15 - Left Behind: While traveling with Jack, Juliet reminds him of how she dragged Kate into the jungle, handcuffed herself to her and lied about it. In "Left Behind", Juliet handcuffed herself to Kate in a gamble to gain her trust. Jack refers to Locke going with the Others and the Others leaving Juliet behind, events that occurred in this episode.

Trivia

The Show

• Downtown: The song playing on the radio in Juliet's car is "Downtown" by Petula Clark. Juliet later listens to this song on CD at her house in the barracks in "A Tale of Two Cities".
• Herarat: The first leg of Juliet's journey to the island is at Herarat Aviation. "Herarat Aviation" may be an anagram for "Earhart Aviation".
• The Shore: In this episode we see Juliet watching the ocean from the shore of the Oceanic survivor's camp and, in her flashback, from a rocky shore after leaving the Staff. In "Not in Portland", Juliet's flashback opens with her watching the ocean from a beach in Miami.
• Carlson: Rachel's medical records indicate that her last name is Carlson. There's no indication that Rachel is married, so Carlson is likely Juliet's maiden name.
• Carrie: Ben refers to a depressing book Juliet selected, Carrie. Carrie was picked by Juliet as the book for the book club seen in A Tale of Two Cities.
• Marked: The mark on the tree denoting Ethan's drop point is similar to the mark Juliet received on her back when she was branded in "Stranger in a Strange Land".

Behind the Scenes

• Location, Location, Location: The exterior of Herarat Aviation, where Juliet and Rachel are greeted by Alpert and Ethan, is the Honolulu Advertiser's Kapolei Production Facility in Kapolei, HI. The interior of Herarat Aviation is the teller section of the First Hawaiian Bank at the First Hawaiian Center in Honolulu, HI. The interior of the Others' submarine is the interior of the USS Bowfin, notably its sleeping and dining sections, in Pearl Harbor, HI. The exterior shots of the Others' submarine were taken at the Moli'i Gardens at Kualoa Ranch in Kaaawa, HI.

Allusions and References

• Three Men and a Baby: Sawyer refers to Hurley, Charlie and Aaron as "three men and a baby", counting Hurly as two men. Three Men and a Baby (1987) is a comedy film starring Tom Selleck, Steve Guttenberg, and Ted Danson. The film follows three bachelors as they attempt to adapt their lives to pseudo-fatherhood with the arrival of one of the men's love child.
• Juliet and Carrie: Ben refers to Carrie, a book Juliet selected. Carrie is a novel by Stephen King.

Quotes

• Hurley: So... Like, you're one of them, huh?
  Juliet: I'm Juliet.
  Hurley: I don't remember you from the dock. Where you put bags over our heads. After you shocked us.
  Juliet: I had the day off.
• Sayid: You said earlier that, if you told me everything you knew, I'd kill you. I'm going to test the validity of that statement.
  Sawyer: Means "talk".
  Juliet: We don't have time for this.
  Sawyer: We cleared our schedules. We got all the time in the world.
  Juliet: You know what's interesting? That you two are the camp's moral police. I'm curious, Sayid... How long was it before you told everyone on that beach exactly how many people you've tortured in your life? Do they know about Basra? And I'm sure the first thing you did when you got here, James, was to gather everyone in a circle and tell them about the man you shot in cold blood the night before you got on the plane. So why don't we just skip the part where you two pretend to be righteous? I'm taking that medication back to Claire and you're going to let me, because if she doesn't get it, she's going to die. And the last thing that either of you need right now... is more blood on your hands.
• Ben: [over a walkie talkie] Mikhail, we're here. [to Juliet] He never has his walkie on.
  Juliet: What are we doing here?
  Ben: There's something I need to show you. [yelling] Mikhail? It's Ben! I'm here with Juliet! We're approaching the house! Don't shoot us.
  Mikhail: Hurry up, then!