This Place is Death
Encyclopedia
"This Place Is Death" is the fifth television episode of the fifth season
of ABC
's Lost
. The 91st episode of the show overall, "This Place Is Death" aired on February 11, 2009 on ABC in the United States, being simulcast
on A in Canada. The episode was written by executive producers Edward Kitsis
and Adam Horowitz and directed by Paul Edwards
.
In 2007, Jack Shephard
and Benjamin Linus try to convince Sun-Hwa Kwon to return to the island. At the island, Jin-Soo Kwon
, having survived the freighter explosion
, witnesses the downfall of the science expedition. Meanwhile, John Locke
and the group continue to initiate their plan, but must do it quickly, especially due to the deteriorating health of Charlotte Lewis
.
", the latest time jump which has brought the survivors to 1988, Jin-Soo Kwon
(Daniel Dae Kim) and Danielle Rousseau
's (Melissa Farman
) science team go in search of a radio tower that is broadcasting the Numbers. They are attacked by the smoke monster, which kills Nadine and drags Montand (Marc Menard
) into a tunnel that leads to a temple, severing his arm in the process. Robert Rousseau (Guillaume Dabinpons), Brennan (Bruno Bruni Jr.) and Lacombe follow him into the tunnel and another time jump brings Jin forward two months in time. He first encounters the recently killed bodies of Brennan and Lacombe. He then witnesses Danielle confronting her lover Robert because she believes that the rest of the team became infected while inside the temple. Each of them has a gun pointed at the other. Robert convinces her that they should lower their weapons, then raises his and pulls the trigger. The gun does not fire, as Danielle had removed the firing pin from it (revealed in Solitary
). She shoots him. Danielle also attempts to kill Jin, but another time shift occurs and Jin is reunited with the other survivors: James "Sawyer" Ford (Josh Holloway
), John Locke
(Terry O'Quinn
), Juliet Burke
(Elizabeth Mitchell
), Miles Straume
(Ken Leung
), Charlotte Lewis
(Rebecca Mader
) and Daniel Faraday
(Jeremy Davies
).
The group is on their way to the Dharma Initiative Orchid Station, where Locke believes he can find a way to leave the island in his attempt to bring the Oceanic Six back to the island. Several time jumps occur and Charlotte becomes so ill that she must stay behind, with Daniel choosing to stay with her. She tells Jin to keep his wife away from the island, saying "This place is death." She tells Locke to look for a well, if the Orchid Station is not there. Later, she confesses to Daniel that she grew up on the island and that before she left a man told her never to come back or she would die; she believes Daniel is that man. She dies shortly thereafter. The other survivors arrive at the location of the Orchid and find the well. Jin tells Locke to tell Sun that he died and gives Locke his wedding ring as proof because he does not want Sun or their child
to return to the island. While descending the well, another flash occurs and Locke falls and injures his leg, resulting in a compound fracture. Arriving in the frozen chamber with the wheel that Ben used to move the island in "There's No Place Like Home
", Jack's deceased father, Christian Shephard
(John Terry
), greets Locke and tells him that he meant for Locke to move the island in the first place. Locke then pushes the wheel and leaves the island.
In late 2007, Sun-Hwa Kwon (Yunjin Kim) confronts Benjamin Linus (Michael Emerson
) during his meeting with Kate Austen
(Evangeline Lilly
), Jack Shephard
(Matthew Fox
) and Sayid Jarrah
(Naveen Andrews
). She intends to kill him; however, he reveals to her that Jin is still alive on the island. She reluctantly agrees to go with him and Jack to another location, where he can substantiate his claims. They go to a church, where Ben shows her Jin's wedding ring, which Ben took from Locke as proof that Jin is alive. Desmond Hume
(Henry Ian Cusick
) arrives at the church, in his search for the mother of Daniel Faraday, Eloise Hawking (Fionnula Flanagan). The four go inside the church, where Eloise is disappointed that Ben did not bring the rest of the Oceanic Six.
, who plays Charlotte, found out that her character would die when she was negotiating contracts in June 2008. When Mader originally started on the show in August 2007, she was only supposed to do eight episodes, but due to the writers strike, she ended up doing twenty. Mader said: "I was on the show a lot longer than I thought I was going to be. A lot of it has to do with the writers strike. Less episodes in season four meant back stories were compromised for the new people. I think that's why my character carried into season five." When she found out about her character's death she was "disappointed". "When I got to the end of season four and found out Charlotte had been born on the island, that was huge. So when I found out I was leaving, I was disappointed. Like all things, it's for the best," she said. Mader then reprised her role as Charlotte in the season six episodes "Recon
" and "The End
."
IGN
's Chris Carabott felt Charlotte's death could have been explored further, but as there was so much happening in the episode not enough time was made for her death. Alan Sepinwall of The Star-Ledger
noted it was Jeremy Davies portrayal of Faraday's grief that made him care about her death. Cynthia Littleton from Variety
said this was one of the few times Charlotte did not annoy her, as she acts as a translator for Jin, "finally do[ing] something worthwhile".
Lost (season 5)
The fifth season of the American serial drama television series Lost commenced airing on the ABC network in the United States and on A in Canada in January 2009, and concluded with a two-hour season finale on May 13, 2009...
of ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
's Lost
Lost (TV series)
Lost is an American television series that originally aired on ABC from September 22, 2004 to May 23, 2010, consisting of six seasons. Lost is a drama series that follows the survivors of the crash of a commercial passenger jet flying between Sydney and Los Angeles, on a mysterious tropical island...
. The 91st episode of the show overall, "This Place Is Death" aired on February 11, 2009 on ABC in the United States, being simulcast
Simulcast
Simulcast, shorthand for "simultaneous broadcast", refers to programs or events broadcast across more than one medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at the same time. For example, Absolute Radio is simulcast on both AM and on satellite radio, and the BBC's Prom concerts are often...
on A in Canada. The episode was written by executive producers Edward Kitsis
Edward Kitsis
Edward Lawrence Kitsis, also sometimes credited as Eddy Kitsis, is an American screenwriter and producer, best known for his work on the popular American television series, Lost and Once Upon a Time.-Life and career:...
and Adam Horowitz and directed by Paul Edwards
Paul Edwards (cinematographer)
Paul A. Edwards is an American cinematographer, camera operator and television director. He has worked as a camera operator and cinematographer on various mainstream films and has also directed several episodes of many series, including Lost and Fringe.- Cinematographer :* The Master * Eye of the...
.
In 2007, Jack Shephard
Jack Shephard
Dr. Jack Shephard is a fictional character and protagonist of the ABC television series Lost played by Matthew Fox. Lost follows the journey of the survivors of Oceanic Airlines flight 815 on a mysterious island and their attempts to survive and escape, slowly uncovering more of the much broader...
and Benjamin Linus try to convince Sun-Hwa Kwon to return to the island. At the island, Jin-Soo Kwon
Jin-Soo Kwon
Jin-Soo Kwon, better known as "Jin," is a fictional character on the ABC television series Lost played by Daniel Dae Kim.- Prior to the crash :...
, having survived the freighter explosion
There's No Place Like Home
"There's No Place Like Home, Parts 1, 2 & 3" is the season finale of the American Broadcasting Company's fourth season of the serial drama television series Lost, consisting of the 12th through 14th episodes. They are also the 84th through 86th episodes of the show overall...
, witnesses the downfall of the science expedition. Meanwhile, John Locke
John Locke (Lost)
John Locke is a fictional character played by Terry O'Quinn on the ABC television series Lost. He is named after English philosopher John Locke...
and the group continue to initiate their plan, but must do it quickly, especially due to the deteriorating health of Charlotte Lewis
Charlotte Lewis (Lost)
Dr. Charlotte Staples Lewis is a fictional character on the American Broadcasting Company television series Lost, played by Rebecca Mader. Charlotte is introduced in the second episode of season four and is a cultural anthropologist on a mission to the island where Oceanic Flight 815 crashed...
.
Plot
On the island, following the events of the previous episode, "The Little PrinceThe Little Prince (Lost)
"The Little Prince" is the fourth television episode of the fifth season of ABC's Lost. The 90th episode of the show overall, "The Little Prince" aired on February 4, 2009 on ABC in the United States, being simulcast on A in Canada. The episode was written by producer Brian K...
", the latest time jump which has brought the survivors to 1988, Jin-Soo Kwon
Jin-Soo Kwon
Jin-Soo Kwon, better known as "Jin," is a fictional character on the ABC television series Lost played by Daniel Dae Kim.- Prior to the crash :...
(Daniel Dae Kim) and Danielle Rousseau
Danielle Rousseau
Danielle Rousseau is a fictional character on the ABC drama television series Lost, which chronicles the lives of over forty people after their plane crashes on a remote island somewhere in the South Pacific. Croatian actress Mira Furlan plays the scientist who shipwrecks on the island sixteen...
's (Melissa Farman
Melissa Farman
Melissa Farman is an American actress who has had roles in Cold Case, an HBO biopic of Temple Grandin, and most notably in Lost as a young Danielle Rousseau...
) science team go in search of a radio tower that is broadcasting the Numbers. They are attacked by the smoke monster, which kills Nadine and drags Montand (Marc Menard
Marc Menard
Marc Menard is a Canadian actor. He starred as Michael Krieger on the MyNetworkTV serial Watch Over Me. His previous acting credits include All My Children, House and the film John Tucker Must Die.-Filmography:...
) into a tunnel that leads to a temple, severing his arm in the process. Robert Rousseau (Guillaume Dabinpons), Brennan (Bruno Bruni Jr.) and Lacombe follow him into the tunnel and another time jump brings Jin forward two months in time. He first encounters the recently killed bodies of Brennan and Lacombe. He then witnesses Danielle confronting her lover Robert because she believes that the rest of the team became infected while inside the temple. Each of them has a gun pointed at the other. Robert convinces her that they should lower their weapons, then raises his and pulls the trigger. The gun does not fire, as Danielle had removed the firing pin from it (revealed in Solitary
Solitary (Lost)
"Solitary" is the ninth episode of the first season of Lost. The episode was directed by Greg Yaitanes and written by David Fury. It first aired on November 17, 2004 on ABC. The character of Sayid Jarrah is featured in the episode's flashbacks.-Flashbacks:Sayid is torturing a prisoner who will not...
). She shoots him. Danielle also attempts to kill Jin, but another time shift occurs and Jin is reunited with the other survivors: James "Sawyer" Ford (Josh Holloway
Josh Holloway
Joshua Lee "Josh" Holloway is an American actor and model from Free Home, Georgia. He is best known for his role as James "Sawyer" Ford on the American television show Lost.-Early life:...
), John Locke
John Locke (Lost)
John Locke is a fictional character played by Terry O'Quinn on the ABC television series Lost. He is named after English philosopher John Locke...
(Terry O'Quinn
Terry O'Quinn
Terry O'Quinn is an American actor, most famous for playing John Locke on the TV series Lost. He made his debut in a 1980 television movie called F.D.R.: The Last Year. Since then, O'Quinn has had minor supporting roles in films and TV movies such as Young Guns, All the Right Moves, Silver Bullet,...
), Juliet Burke
Juliet Burke
Dr. Juliet Burke is a fictional character on the ABC television series Lost played by Elizabeth Mitchell. Her character was introduced in the third season premiere.- Prior to arrival on the island :...
(Elizabeth Mitchell
Elizabeth Mitchell
Elizabeth Mitchell , is an American actress/modelwho is known for her roles as Dr. Juliet Burke on ABC's TV series Lost and as FBI agent Erica Evans on V. She has starred in such films as The Santa Clause 2, The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause, and Gia.-Early life:Mitchell was born Elizabeth...
), Miles Straume
Miles Straume
Miles Straume is a fictional character played by Ken Leung on the ABC television series Lost. Miles is introduced early in the fourth season as a hotheaded and sarcastic medium as a crew member aboard the freighter called the Kahana that is offshore the island where most of Lost takes place...
(Ken Leung
Ken Leung
Kenneth "Ken" Leung is an American actor best known for his role as Miles Straume in the ABC television series Lost and roles in such films as Shanghai Kiss, Rush Hour, X-Men: The Last Stand, and Saw.-Early life:...
), Charlotte Lewis
Charlotte Lewis (Lost)
Dr. Charlotte Staples Lewis is a fictional character on the American Broadcasting Company television series Lost, played by Rebecca Mader. Charlotte is introduced in the second episode of season four and is a cultural anthropologist on a mission to the island where Oceanic Flight 815 crashed...
(Rebecca Mader
Rebecca Mader
Rebecca Leigh Mader is an English actress. She is known for her roles as Morgan Gordon on All My Children and Charlotte Lewis on Lost.-Career:...
) and Daniel Faraday
Daniel Faraday
Dr. Daniel Faraday, often referred to as Dan or simply by his surname, Faraday, is a fictional character on the ABC television series Lost played by Jeremy Davies. Faraday is introduced in the season four premiere as a physicist, suffering from memory loss, and is part of the team aboard the ...
(Jeremy Davies
Jeremy Davies
Father Jeremy Davies , an English Roman Catholic priest whose parish is based around Old Hall Green, is a former doctor and also a leading exorcist....
).
The group is on their way to the Dharma Initiative Orchid Station, where Locke believes he can find a way to leave the island in his attempt to bring the Oceanic Six back to the island. Several time jumps occur and Charlotte becomes so ill that she must stay behind, with Daniel choosing to stay with her. She tells Jin to keep his wife away from the island, saying "This place is death." She tells Locke to look for a well, if the Orchid Station is not there. Later, she confesses to Daniel that she grew up on the island and that before she left a man told her never to come back or she would die; she believes Daniel is that man. She dies shortly thereafter. The other survivors arrive at the location of the Orchid and find the well. Jin tells Locke to tell Sun that he died and gives Locke his wedding ring as proof because he does not want Sun or their child
Ji Yeon
"Ji Yeon" is the seventh episode of the American Broadcasting Company's fourth season of Lost and 79th episode overall. The episode was written by co-executive producers Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz, and directed by regular Lost editor Stephen Semel. It was first aired in the United States and...
to return to the island. While descending the well, another flash occurs and Locke falls and injures his leg, resulting in a compound fracture. Arriving in the frozen chamber with the wheel that Ben used to move the island in "There's No Place Like Home
There's No Place Like Home
"There's No Place Like Home, Parts 1, 2 & 3" is the season finale of the American Broadcasting Company's fourth season of the serial drama television series Lost, consisting of the 12th through 14th episodes. They are also the 84th through 86th episodes of the show overall...
", Jack's deceased father, Christian Shephard
Christian Shephard
Dr. Christian Shephard is a fictional character on the ABC television series Lost played by John Terry. He is the father of lead characters Jack Shephard , who becomes the de facto leader of the survivors of Oceanic 815 after it crashes on an island, and Claire Littleton , another of the survivors...
(John Terry
John Terry (actor)
John Terry is an American film, television, and stage actor.-Early life:Terry was born in Florida, where he attended Vero Beach High School. He was also educated at the prestigious Loomis Chaffee prep school in Windsor, Connecticut, and began a career building original custom log homes in North...
), greets Locke and tells him that he meant for Locke to move the island in the first place. Locke then pushes the wheel and leaves the island.
In late 2007, Sun-Hwa Kwon (Yunjin Kim) confronts Benjamin Linus (Michael Emerson
Michael Emerson
Michael Emerson is an American actor who is perhaps best known for his roles as Benjamin Linus on Lost and fictional serial killer William Hinks in The Practice.-Early life:...
) during his meeting with Kate Austen
Kate Austen
Katherine Anne "Kate" Austen is a fictional character on the ABC television series Lost, played by Canadian actress Evangeline Lilly. She is the de facto female lead...
(Evangeline Lilly
Evangeline Lilly
Evangeline Lilly is a Canadian actress, best known for her role as Kate Austen in the ABC drama, Lost.-Early life:...
), Jack Shephard
Jack Shephard
Dr. Jack Shephard is a fictional character and protagonist of the ABC television series Lost played by Matthew Fox. Lost follows the journey of the survivors of Oceanic Airlines flight 815 on a mysterious island and their attempts to survive and escape, slowly uncovering more of the much broader...
(Matthew Fox
Matthew Fox (actor)
Matthew Chandler Fox is an American actor. He is mostly known for his role as Charlie Salinger on Party of Five, and for portraying Jack Shephard on the supernatural drama television series Lost.- Early life :...
) and Sayid Jarrah
Sayid Jarrah
Sayid Hassan Jarrah is a character from the ABC show Lost portrayed by Naveen Andrews.-Season 1:Sayid fixes the transceiver recovered from the cockpit, and leads a group into the jungle in order to send out a distress signal. Instead, he picks up a looping message . He tries to locate the...
(Naveen Andrews
Naveen Andrews
Naveen William Sidney Andrews is a British American actor. He is best known for portraying Kip in the movie The English Patient and Sayid Jarrah on the American television series Lost.-Early life:...
). She intends to kill him; however, he reveals to her that Jin is still alive on the island. She reluctantly agrees to go with him and Jack to another location, where he can substantiate his claims. They go to a church, where Ben shows her Jin's wedding ring, which Ben took from Locke as proof that Jin is alive. Desmond Hume
Desmond Hume
Desmond David Hume is a fictional character on the ABC television series Lost portrayed by Henry Ian Cusick. Desmond's name is a tribute to David Hume, the famous empiricist author and philosopher. Desmond was not a passenger of Flight 815. He had been stranded on the island three years prior to...
(Henry Ian Cusick
Henry Ian Cusick
Henry Ian Cusick is a Scottish-Peruvian actor of stage, television, and film. He is well-known for his role as Desmond Hume on the United States television series Lost, for which he received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination....
) arrives at the church, in his search for the mother of Daniel Faraday, Eloise Hawking (Fionnula Flanagan). The four go inside the church, where Eloise is disappointed that Ben did not bring the rest of the Oceanic Six.
Production
Rebecca MaderRebecca Mader
Rebecca Leigh Mader is an English actress. She is known for her roles as Morgan Gordon on All My Children and Charlotte Lewis on Lost.-Career:...
, who plays Charlotte, found out that her character would die when she was negotiating contracts in June 2008. When Mader originally started on the show in August 2007, she was only supposed to do eight episodes, but due to the writers strike, she ended up doing twenty. Mader said: "I was on the show a lot longer than I thought I was going to be. A lot of it has to do with the writers strike. Less episodes in season four meant back stories were compromised for the new people. I think that's why my character carried into season five." When she found out about her character's death she was "disappointed". "When I got to the end of season four and found out Charlotte had been born on the island, that was huge. So when I found out I was leaving, I was disappointed. Like all things, it's for the best," she said. Mader then reprised her role as Charlotte in the season six episodes "Recon
Recon (Lost)
"Recon" is the eighth television episode of the American Broadcasting Company's sixth season of the serial drama television series Lost and 111th episode overall. The episode is written by executive producer Elizabeth Sarnoff and newcomer Jim Galasso and directed by Jack Bender...
" and "The End
The End (Lost)
"The End" is the series finale of the ABC television series Lost, consisting of the 17th and 18th episodes of season 6. It is also the 120th and 121st episodes overall...
."
Reception
The episode gained 11.862 million American viewers and 415,000 Australian viewers.IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
's Chris Carabott felt Charlotte's death could have been explored further, but as there was so much happening in the episode not enough time was made for her death. Alan Sepinwall of The Star-Ledger
The Star-Ledger
The Star-Ledger is the largest circulated newspaper in the U.S. state of New Jersey and is based in Newark. It is a sister paper to The Jersey Journal of Jersey City, The Times of Trenton and the Staten Island Advance, all of which are owned by Advance Publications.The Newark Star-Ledgers daily...
noted it was Jeremy Davies portrayal of Faraday's grief that made him care about her death. Cynthia Littleton from Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
said this was one of the few times Charlotte did not annoy her, as she acts as a translator for Jin, "finally do[ing] something worthwhile".