The Affair Review: 403 (Season 4 Episode 3)

Sometimes an episode theme is hard to figure out, but that’s not the case with The Affair Season 4 Episode 3, “403.” If the show were mildly creative with its titles this one would be called “Privilege.”

The main characters have always reeked of it — but this week the storylines focus on it deliberately. Privilege lessons are on trend in TV because of the current social and political climate, but The Affair does a decent job tackling the issue. You have to dig deeper than the surface to learn the real lessons of these stories, and they also don’t seem to be finished.

Noah’s speech to Anton about taking action against the curriculum sounds good. Noah seems pleased with himself when Anton begins the walk out.

But things get real when the police show up. He absolutely didn’t consider the consequences of a walk out for all of the black and brown students in his school.

When he does get his panic under control, that privilege is the reason he is able to talk with the cops and de-escalate the situation –why he’s not touched by the cops but Janelle is. It’s the reason he is able to step into Janelle’s interview and spin the walk out story.

Anton and Noah’s students are arguably the only ones walking out for a bigger reason than the intense disciplinary practices lately or even just not wanting to be in class. Noah steps in as much to save himself as to save Janelle.

The walk out happens because The Affair is a TV show. For a split second, I’m hoping that Noah would consider not teaching The Wasteland and taking Anton’s suggestion to read James Baldwin, Octavia Butler or Juno Diaz instead.

Noah’s privilege is the reason he’s  mislabeled as the principal on TV, why he seems to get a little preachy with Janelle at the bar. Privilege and a huge ego is the reason he has the audacity to kiss her.

The viewer is supposed to see all of this privilege, I get that. Noah’s going on an interesting journey this season judging from the car ride with Anton and Cole. It’s necessary, and I’m intrigued.

But one speech doesn’t cover up all of the privilege we see in half an episode. So, I’m wondering why he says it at all. He definitely has a vested interest in helping Anton succeed. But Anton being the sole motivation for any of Noah’s “wokeness” is privilege in itself.

I know it’s early in the season, but 10 episodes can go by fast.

Noah’s storyline in particular is already starting to feel slow. He’s privileged; he has an ego; he tends to get fixated on one person at a time.

We know this already. We’re ready for the show to tell us why Anton is that person for Noah this season.

Hopefully it’s not just because he’s having sex with Janelle. That would be boring and well, predictable.

Helen’s storyline is moving faster for sure, but with every step it feels like the earth under her feet might quake and cave in.

Her privilege is also showing this episode, but of course Vic’s cancer diagnosis makes it harder to see. Dismissing Stacey when she is talking about the holocaust feels like it is foreshadowing something.

Whether the event it’s foreshadowing happens this episode or later in the season is unclear, but she definitely over steps in this episode by telling Priya about Vic’s cancer.

His speech exposes Helen’s ignorance about the realities of life in the U.S. for an immigrant, and the hour lays on thick hints that Helen doesn’t even love Vic.

Helen seems to be acting out of genuine fear when she tells Priya about Vic’s cancer. But Priya’s reaction is the scariest moment of the episode.

I get bad kind of chills watching her push Helen’s hand away in the bathroom — and her voice throughout “403” is so formal and soft. She sounds like a spirit guide or a ghost than a mother, even when talking to Vic.

I have to confess, I feel nothing about Vic having cancer. He’s an all right guy, but I can’t even go so far as to say nice. Pressuring your wife to have a baby so immediately after receiving a terminal cancer diagnosis feels weird. Plus, he’s mean about it.

For Helen, all signs are pointing to having a baby back in New York. The “pregnant wife, dead husband” trope has been done so much, I’m hoping Vic lives just so I don’t have to pretend it isn’t boring. But, right now he’s adding very little to the story alive.

If Helen and Vic move to New York, Noah will. But that still gives us no reasonable explanation for Anton being in the car. I’d love to see it from his own perspective in the coming weeks. Watching privileged people oblivious to the depth of their privilege gets old…fast.

What did you think of this episode of The Affair ? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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The Affair  airs Sundays  at 9pm ET/PT on Showtime.

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