Sunday, April 15, 2007

"One of Us"- Anaylsis

Greetings, Lost fans, Sodfather here. I have the opportunity to write an analysis for this intriguing episode while Brian is out and about, tramping all around Europe. So without any other hoopla, here is my take.

Flashbacks- I believe Lost is at its best when the
flashbacks give as much insight, if not more, to what is going on the Island, and this episode was no exception. I mean look at the wealth of information gained in this episode: we know why for sure why Juliet was on the Island, the extent of Ben/Jacob's influence even in the outside world, the capabilities of the Flame hatch, and Ben is most comfortable in office casual. (okay, the last one we were probably already sure about, but hey he can sport a polo and khakis like no other villain in history.)

The flashbacks of "One of Us" takes place pretty much right where "Not in Portland" left off. However, there are a few things not explained in the small time between the two episodes. For one thing, "Not in Portland" left off with Juliet not quite sure about Alpert and Ethan. And there was something else, she was suspicious that they may have
actually MURDERED her ex-husband! So, how good of smooth talkers are Ethan and Alpert? Evidently pretty damn good ones, as Juliet in this episode was arriving at an airfield and preparing for an airplane trip, and unknown to her, a submarine ride to the Island. So what was discussed that convinced her? Was it some kind of Island influence?

I am not quite for sure, but something seemed to come over when the tranquilizer laced orange juice was introduced. Maybe I have been out of the private sector for too long, but expecting a new recruit to take drugs in order to get to the location of your company doesn't seem very corporate kosher. So, why did she do it? I am guessing from her conversations with Ben, and even Alpert, that some tidbit of information was given to her about saving the babies, saving the world. But there is no real evidence of that at this time.

Something else that was finally talked about was the "history" that Ben and Juliet had. And, can anyone really blame Juliet for having sour grapes when it comes to Ben? Sh
e was told she could leave after a short time on the Island, and when she can't quite pinpoint why the Others gals are dying when they are pregnant, she doesn't really see any reason for her services needed. So Ben devises a plan where Juliet's sister has cancer again, but promises she can go into remission if Juliet will just stay a little longer. So when Juliet concedes and then later Ben takes her to the Flame hatch to see Patchy, shows her the healthy Rachel playing with her young son, we the viewers are left with asking did Ben really have anything to do with it? Did Rachel really have cancer? Is it possible for Ben to cure cancer when he has a tumor? I know some people on the boards swear that the EKG readings that Ben procures are not accurate in determining whether Rachel or not had cancer, and since I am not an expert, I can not say with any certainty one way or another, but I would love to read more info about it.

Something else about the Flame station. When Ben draws Juliet's, and our attention to the date of the paper, he says its today's date. Does that mean that there is a conflict in the funky time line theory? I don't necessary think so. Maybe the Island works in a way where one of the aspects can change when it needs to, either slowing down or speeding up, but they are also in a position to some how have the Island time work on the same wave as the outside world. Which would make alot of sense since the Others send agents like Alpert and Ethan work in the outside world. It wouldn't really work if they were somehow living in two different time lines. Somehow I think it is connected to the once magnetic field around the Island and the need for outsiders to take tranquilizers on the submarine trip to the Island.

And speaking of outsiders...

Back with the Survivors- Juliet found herself in some hot water between a mad Kate, a distrustful Sayid, and an understanding Jack in this episode. When Jack declared Juliet was "under his protection" I about laughed out loud, I mean does Jack really think he could take on Sayid? But once they got to the beach something interesting happened. Sawyer and Sayid, sharing in a distrust for Juliet, bonded and seemed to have a few tricks up their sleeves. If there is going to be any upheaval in Ben and Juliet's one week plan, it is going to be because of those two. If only Vincent was around join the posse, there would be no trouble on that beach.

Also, we saw a very sick Claire. Not that it would matter very much if she had bit the bullet this episode, as I am prone to worry about baby Aron, and since Sun and Charlie seem to be his primary care givers lately, no real trouble done. But of course her sickness was not only a ploy for Juliet to earn the Survivors' trust, but actually an implant that was inserted at some point in the past and only Juliet had the cure that was left by the Others. Most likely I am going to say I think it was Ethan who did it... but at what point did he insert an implant, and for what purpose could they realistically see the need for such a thing? Hopefully the truth will come out eventually, maybe even Claire can find out and go crazy, we haven't really seen that in awhile. I think though, that the focus is going to be put on Sun and her pregnancy, the Others finding out about it, and if she is safe.

But, I think the biggest question this episode brought up is whether or not Juliet can be trusted at all. I believe she can't be. She is willing to do anything, and I mean ANYTHING to get off the Island. If that means planning to kill Ben in surgery, then that is how it has to be, if that means helping Ben in some unscrupulous plot, then so be it. In a lot of ways she is like Michael in that respect. Nothing really has been shown that will make Juliet seem any different from selling out her new buddies. And that last few minutes certainly did nothing to help her case. And Jack sees her more of an equal and in the end, I do believe it will be Juliet who plays Jack. But this is the type of show that will show a segment like that and then pull the carpet from under us again right after we got up from the last time.

Well, that is it from me for now. Thanks for reading everyone and thanks to Brian for letting us guest bloggers getting on here, may we be good Bens to your Jacob!










26 comments:

Anonymous said...

Nice analysis chum :D

Anonymous said...

Maybe Juliet was just saying yes to Bens plan to get away from him because she knows he won't let her off the island. She may think her odds of getting off the island are better with the losties. Also if Juliet was really bad, there probably would have been a flashback of her and Ben planning how they would con Jack into trusting Juliet when she told Jack to kill Ben during the surgery. I predict she will warn the losties before the "one week" happens. Lastly she is too beautiful to be bad!

Sodfather said...

Well, I guess my anaylsis was pretty hard on Juliet, but I was just going from what was revealed from that episode, I kind of have a feeling too that something will be made good from her, but just on One of Us alone, she is someone who is willing to do anything to get off the island... and it seems she thinks Ben is the ticket off.

Volker K said...

Just a thought of mine: The whole tranquilizer / submarine thing left me wondering: Why did Juliette have to sleep through the travel?

I came up with this answer: Because she didn't arrive at the island by submarine like she's supposed to think! Maybe the submarine is just misdirection - anybody else coming to the same conclusion?

Alec said...

Nice going, Sodfather!

Volker: Yeah, there's a bit of chatter on the message boards about the sub-as-a-prop idea. Mind-blowing, if you ask me.

aproposofnothing said...

I am curious if pregnant Others get sick on the "Other Island" or not.

Anonymous said...

i am convinced that juliet is with ben on this one. jack was correct, in that, juliet WILL do anything to get off the island. betraying jack is no exception. plus, how is jack going to get her off the island? it seems like ben/jacob hold all the cards, so the smart money sticks with his/their plan in order to get off the island. in other words, i can see no benefit for juliet to go along with ben's one week plan, just to escape him. what would be the motivation there? ben could always come back for her, and as far as i know she has no way of getting off the island without ben anyway!

i think that the photos of juliet's sister's cancer were doctored up to make it look as if she had cancer again when really she didn't. if that is the case, then all ben would have to do is show the happy video of j's sister with her son to convince juliet to keep up with her research. no miracle needed on the part of ben/jacob because her sis was never sick to begin with. does anyone follow and/or agree?

BTW, was this episode awesome or what?!!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

My initial reactions to all of this...

1) I immediately thought Ben had been given the cancer in place of Juliet's sister. Kind of a "sacrifice" he made for her with Jacob. A little like Aslan in CS Lewis's tales. - You saw the look on his face when she told him about his tumor!

2) The sleep needed on the trip over was against what we learned they do for new recruits to the DARMA island so my thoughts were to make her believe 'something' about getting there that was not true. SO - the sub theory being a prop fits well in my head. That mixed with what Ben said just after it was blown up confirmed that theory for me!

3) I was afraid of others doing the blog...I should have never worried! Brian did an excellent job choosing and the honor is so big here, it shows in your care of your submition sodfather! I look forward tot he rest from the FOBs!

I just love all this!
Good day to all!

Unknown said...

I said it on the message board, but I'll say it again--I think Juliet's sister really did have cancer. Lost doesn't put much effort into making perfectly accurate medical documents, as we know. I think we're supposed to assume that all the documents that Ben handed to Juliet were proof that her sister did have cancer. I mean, Juliet certainly knows her sister's biology backwards and forwards by now. And if there was any doubt at all as to whether Ben was just lying, don't you think she would have been suspicious? Especially at that early stage.

Anonymous said...

Sod, good job! As for the travel to the Island.. more and more, I flashback to Will and Holly in Land of the Lost.. fall through a little earthquake and you are in a whole new world... that would fall under the "intense" category :)

Stef said...

Great analysis, Sod!

The idea of Sawyer, Sayid and Vincent as the fearsome threesome made me laugh out loud. :-)

Makaha Studios said...

If Juliet is "in" with Ben on the long con that was revealed at the end of the epi, and she and Ben were "in" with Ethan on his long con of Claire...

... Was Ben "in" on Juliet's plan to ask Jack to allow Ben to die in surgery?

... Was Juliet's trial a con? Was Picket's murder part of her plan? Was releasing the sailboat and Carl to the Losties part of her plan?

... What is the meaning of her being marked? Is the mark on her back the same as the one on the tree?

... Is the vaccine that Charlie found in the air drop the same as the injection that Juliet gave to pregnant women on the island (and her sister back in Miami)?

Unknown said...

If the charts Ben showed Juliet really mattered Juliet would have noticed, she is a doctor of sorts. At any rate, she has to have dealt with seeing records of her sister's cancer previously. So if the props show useless info, its just that- a prop error.

Anonymous said...

Sodfather, well done! Good thought: the comparison between Juliet and Michael. She really reminds me of him... although I don´t think she will end up like him, that would be too easy!

Alec said...

For those who haven't wandered over to the new, Brian-sanctioned (TM) forums, here's a link for you. Come on over and say hi...

http://facethewoods.com/lost/

Anonymous said...

Does anyone see any signifigance to have shown Juliette and Goodwin having an affair? I suggest Juliette may be unknowingly pregnant with Goodwin's child. Thoughts?

Eric said...

I think everyone is overthinking Juliet's drugging. The obvious reason is so that she has no idea where the island is located or how to get there (or away from there).

As for the date on the paper, what is the issue with it? That particular portion of the flashback took place on the day of the crash, which was September 22, 2004. I assume the video from Alpert was live.

James said...

Hey Sod, just wanted to agree with everyone else and say you did a great job with the blog this week. Also, NO question that Ben lied about Juliet's sister's cancer remission.

Anonymous said...

Two matters; both related to details folks may be getting hung up on --

1. The MRI or whatever medical record Juliette is shown by Ben convinces Juliette that her sister has cancer. Any flaws some of you may believe exist on the prop may be a prop error and nothing more. Why let a prop error get in the way of enjoying the show?

2. Juliette taking the drug was given to her for two reasons; to make the trip bearable and insure she is unaware or clueless as to where the Island is located. Why Juliette would drink a sirum for a new job was sufficiently explained in scene with Albert applying presure to Juliette's desire to break new ground in fertility research. These guys are shown to be masters at manipulating people!

On another note, I wonder if we'll ever learn how Juliette became so adapt at self defense and how her personality hardend or transformed from the gal we saw in Miami to present day of her becoming a devious manipulator herself and a cold blooded killer.

Anonymous said...

Concerning the drugging, they told her it helped her to deal with.... some aspect of the trip that is always difficult. So it's not just to keep her clueless.

Anonymous said...

Great job filling in, Sod! I know that it is difficult to organize your thoughts and theories and put them out there for other people to read and understand....That's why I didn't volunteer. LoL!

I am really buying in to the submarine as a prop idea. Granted, I DO think that it's a real submarine. They have used it to carry out missions around the island (killing Scott...I think it was Scott...then sneaking up to the sailboat in The Glass Ballerina) I don't think that they use the Sub to come and go from the island, though. I mean, why would Juliet need to be tranquilized? I think that there is some other method of getting to and from the island. I just don't have an idea as to what that is quite yet.

And what is up with the Jacob character?? I mean seriously....Juliet was a newcomer to the island. I'm sure that she didn't believe in Jacob while living in Miami. Yet, she seems to fully believe in his powers now that she's on the island. Ben said something like, "Jacob said that he will take care of it. Unless of course you don't have faith in him." After he said that, Juliet gave up the argument and seemed to believe what Ben was saying. My question is: how did Ben get Juliet to believe in "Jacob"? Was she brainwashed like Crazy Karl? Or was she shown something...something like the evidence to his power? Did she actually see Jacob?

Anonymous said...

Great analysis, Sod!

The idea of Juliette potentially being pregnant by Goodwine is very intriguing! Wouldn't that be another great curveball?

Anonymous said...

You guys are ALL brilliant! I'm not sure you're as brilliant as the writers, but kudos regardless! All these theories are just feeding my lost, crack addiction further, and I can't wait for my next fix! Lost and Crack seem to be intertwined: They both leave you excited for the next round, make you feel guilty while you're doing them, and then give you one last rush before you "pass out" and have to wait for a week! I'm super intrigued by the Juliet is preggers, as well! Anyone loan me 5 dollars for next weeks episode? I'll wash your winshield with a newspaper!

Anonymous said...

Hey Matt, scary how well you got the crack to lost comparison down! True, but scary to think of it that way...

I got ya $5 for the next...my windshield is just fine though. HA HA!

My two cents on the other "sanctioned" forums...I have this one down pat and it is all i can keep up with...no offenxe meant to anyone, but I will not join over there dicussions...sorry. I am a BRIAN fan as much as Lost, and can not leave even if he is gone!

Anonymous said...

you did a great job, just wanted to let you know :D

Anonymous said...

Dumb question, but given that the Others are so adept at manipulation, and honestly thrive on it, why have they taken in all of the 'good' losties and left the con artists (who would easily adapt to their culture)?