"The Other Woman": The Real Bad Guys, and Other Thoughts

"The Other Woman" was a solid episode. The previous four episodes kicked so much tail that it's easy to say tonight's installment was disappointing, but it had its moments. It just didn't have enough of them to compete with a masterstroke of episodic television like "The Constant."

Juliet was the star of the show, and the writers took their flashback-reversal game to new heights: she's playing in the sand so she's on the island! Wait, it's a tiny sandbox on a coffee table. And she's telling this woman she's famous so she must have gotten off the island! Wait, she's saying that because she just got on the island. Yep, it was all island-set flashbacks tonight.

The story of the flashbacks themselves merely fleshed out events we already knew about: turns out good old Goodwin was actually having an affair with Juliet, and Ben sent him to be the Tail Section mole because he wanted Juliet all to himself. It was certainly interesting, but the way they thematically connected it to present island time was to simply say that Ben is ruthless. That was the moral of the story: Ben is ruthless. We already knew that.

Still, it re-raised some important questions about who the good guys and bad guys really are. As Ben told Michael in the Season 2 finale, Ben and the Others have always considered themselves good guys. When it was discovered that Naomi was lying about working for Penny, and the Freighter Folks weren't actually there to rescue them - instead, they were there to find Ben - that set up a dynamic that said: Freighter: Bad, Others and Ben: Good.

But really, who's to say? Ben's tendency to be manipulative and murderous might certainly get the better of him, whatever "greater good" he's long since convinced himself that he's doing. And some of the dialogue during the flashbacks was downright chilling: Juliet et al. were very casually talking about raids, murders, and the kidnapping of children. (I sincerely hope that the writers don't end up just giving the Others a pass for their actions during the first two seasons.)

Along with the appearance of Goodwin's wife, it was a subtle reminder that the rest of the Others, along with the kidnapped survivors of the Tail Section like Cindy and the two kids, are still hanging out on the island somewhere. (And as a whole, they don't want Ben back as their leader, but apparently he still has enough influence to compel Goodwin's wife to give the message to Juliet.) It'd be nice to see Richard Alpert again...

Back to the good guy/bad guy thing. In a rare moment of candor (or was he lying his butt off?), Ben revealed who was behind the freighter: Charles Widmore, Penny's father.

That would explain why Naomi knew who Penny was, but it would also imply that Charles and Penny were working without knowledge of the other, or even at odds with each other. Or, like I just mentioned, the whole thing might be bogus, part of Ben's master plan for...something.

I guess it was just too vague. The video was cool and all, but it didn't reveal anything, and I just don't trust Ben enough to get too invested in the implications of Widmore financing the freighter.

And as for Ben's "man on the boat"...they're really laying that on thick, aren't they? I'm kind of surprised they're turning it into such a "big surprise," because it's painfully obvious at this point.

Only now do I realize I haven't really even mentioned the "main" plot of the episode - Dan and Charlotte heading off to neutralize the gas that had the potential to kill everyone on the island. (The same stuff that Ben used for the Purge.) Frankly, nothing of consequence happened, except the following: (A) I realized Kate is a massive idiot for letting herself get knocked out by Charlotte; (B) Charlotte officially became my least favorite member of the Freighter Four; and (C) Jack and Juliet kiss. About a week, in Lost time, after Jack told Kate he loves her. Not very nice, Jack, not very nice at all.

Oh, and it was Christmas. Remember? Last week's episode was December 24th, and this week's was the day after. So, uh, Merry Christmas.

TAGS: Goodwin, Juliet, Season4, The Other Woman
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