Season 3, Episode 9:
Stranger in a Strange Land
In flashbacks, Jack, living in Phuket, meets a woman named Achara. She works as a tattoo artist, claiming that she has a gift to "see who people are" and mark them. Reluctantly, she gives Jack a tattoo, despite him being a foreigner. Afterwards, Jack is beaten up by Achara's brother, and forced to leave Thailand.
On Hydra Island, Juliet is put in Jack's cell for killing Danny. A woman named Isabel, the Others' sheriff, asks Jack about Juliet telling him to kill Ben, but he covers for her, claiming to have lied about this. Jack meets Cindy, Zach and Emma, who have converted to the Others' way of life. Jack agrees to help Ben with an infection from his surgery if he convinces Isabel to spare Juliet. The Others allow her to live, but have her branded. The Others, with Jack in tow, head back to their home on the main Island.
Elsewhere, Sawyer, Kate and Karl row back to the main Island. Sawyer and Kate argue over whether or not to go back for Jack. Sawyer convinces Karl to go back for Alex.
Tropes in this episode include:
- Filler: Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse have openly admitted that this episode was born of a need to pad out the season. The flashbacks were derided for being uninteresting and the present day scenes do little to move the plot forward.
- Holiday in Cambodia: Thailand rather than Cambodia, but the episode still aligns with the trope of a westerner running into trouble while travelling in a South Asian country. Jack runs afoul of some local men after forcing Achara to give him a tattoo.
- Hypocrite: Doubles as a "reason you suck speech". Tom tells Jack they're moving him, which Jack takes to mean that they're going to kill him because they're done with him. When pressed, Jack proceeds to recite a list of their crimes, and the way Tom responds, it's a wonder why Jack didn't rush him and kick him in the crotch.Jack: Oh, I don't know, Tom, the kind of people that would take a pregnant woman, that would hang Charlie from a tree, would drag our people out of the jungle, would kidnap children. That's the kind of people I think you are.Tom: You see this glass house you're living in, Jack? How about I get you some stones?
- No-Holds-Barred Beatdown: Jack is on the receiving end of one from Achara's brother and his friends.
- Pop-Cultural Osmosis Failure: Sawyer compares Karl to Bobby from The Brady Bunch, but Karl has never seen it.
- The Reveal: Cindy, Zach and Emma are all still alive and have joined The Others.
- Shout-Out: While paddling to the island, Sawyer sings "Show me the way to go home."
- Silent Credits: The end of the episode omits the usual percussive sound heard with the title card.
