Joshua Jackson stars in "The Affair"

The memory is a tricky thing -- not everyone perceives an event the same way. Be it a car accident or a simple encounter at the grocery store, one story can have any number of sides to it. Explore the lives of those affected by an extramarital relationship and examine it from multiple perspectives in a new episode of "The Affair," airing Sunday, Aug. 5, on Showtime.

"The Affair" premiered in 2014 to glowing reviews and numerous accolades. The Showtime original was praised for its unique concept and its captivating look at truth and desire. Since its first broadcast, the award-winning series has continuously demonstrated Newton's third law of motion: for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. An extramarital relationship does not simply impact the two illicit parties, or even their partners, but so many more people.

Over the course of three and a half seasons, many additional characters have been absorbed into the orbit of the show's four main players: Noah (Dominic West, "The Wire") and Helen Solloway (Maura Tierney, "ER"), and Alison (Ruth Wilson, "Luther") and Cole Lockhart (Joshua Jackson, "Fringe"). Like a black hole, the quartet pulls in anything -- or in this case, anyone -- that comes near it.

In the first season, we're introduced to Noah, a struggling writer and New York City public school teacher, his wife, Helen, and their four children. Seemingly perfect on the outside, the family is in fact far from it. Noah resents the family's dependence on his wealthy father-in-law, and the feeling of inadequacy and failure to provide is only exacerbated by the constant belittling that he suffers at the hands of his in-laws.

After finding success early on in his career by publishing a novel, Noah has now become frustrated with his life, and one can hardly blame him. With overbearing in-laws, an unsatisfying job and the failure to live up to expectations, it's no surprise that he'd want to shake things up and break free from the doldrums of everyday life.

During a family vacation in the resort town of Montauk, New York, the would-be novelist is in full midlife crisis mode. A chance meeting with local waitress Alison, who is desperately trying to piece her life and marriage back together, is the beginning of the titular affair and the disintegration of two marriages. Ultimately, this encounter kicks off a series of events that no one could have predicted.

The story of this steamy summer fling is told from Noah's and Alison's perspectives. Naturally, the two viewpoints differ wildly from one another.

In the second season, we're given a window into their spouses' perspectives on the dissolution of their marriages and the struggle to move forward. To add yet another angle, there's a three-year time jump between seasons 2 and 3, which offers a fresh narrative from Noah's new love interest, Juliette Le Gall (Irène Jacob, "Eternity," 2016).  

Ruth Wilson in "The Affair"

After three seasons on the East Coast, it was time for a change. This season, Noah is struggling to adjust to his new life in Los Angeles. He moved to the City of Angels to be closer to his kids, but he now finds himself clashing with his ex-wife more than ever.  

The current season explores the concept of moving along, according to series co-creator Sarah Treem. This go around, we find Noah, Helen, Alison and Cole drifting further and further apart from where they all began. Each of them is now involved with new people, but whether they can truly leave the past behind is the real challenge.

Treem talked at length about the new season earlier this year at the ATX Television Festival in Austin, Texas, and how the four will deal with new beginnings, tragic ends and the ever-elusive possibility of forgiveness.

Not unlike the Solloways, who are having a challenging time in La La Land, Alison is also having trouble with her attempt at a fresh start. Things aren't going according to plan, and matters only worsen when she is faced by a couple from her past who threaten to expose her origins.

Alison is not only having trouble in the present but also in the future. In a flashforward, Cole and Noah are desperately searching for their former lover who has gone missing, leaving much to wrap up in the final episodes of the season.

The end is near and our time with these characters is nearly over, not just for the current season but for the series as a whole -- Treem has indicated that the fifth season would be the show's last. We're quickly approaching the last leg of Noah, Helen, Alison and Cole's journey, but there's no shortage of loose ends to take care of before we get there -- not the least of which are the events leading up to Alison's disappearance and whether Noah will survive Los Angeles.

Tune in to a new episode of "The Affair," airing Sunday, Aug. 5, on Showtime to find out more about the lives of those affected by an extramarital relationship.