House of the Rising Sun is not a typical Lost episode, in that it doesn't deal much with the plot's ongoing mysteries, but instead chooses to focus on the characters, most notably the ones featured in the flashbacks.
This time, the honor is granted to Korean couple Jin (Daniel Dae Kim) and Sun (Yunjin Kim), who have kept largely to themselves due to their inability to speak English. When Jin suddenly attacks Michael, he finds himself chained until the others can figure out why he did it. Cue flashbacks, which shed some light on the couple's pre-crash situation and reveal that Sun can in fact speak English, a fact she has chosen to keep secret for the time being. Back on the island, Jack suggests moving the camp to a cave in the jungle, but some of the survivors disagree, preferring to stay on the beach in case help shows up on the horizon.
Although interesting and filled with good character bits, including an exchange between Charlie and Locke regarding the former's drug addiction, the sixth episode of Lost does qualify as slightly sub-par compared to previous achievements, due to the choice of "primary" characters for the flashbacks: whereas Jack has father issues, Kate a criminal record and Locke a pretty big secret, Jin and Sun come off as rather conventional, although the twist about Sun's linguistic abilities is a welcome one. Additional revelations will probably spice things up, but in terms of establishing the characters this episode doesn't quite live up to expectations. Then again, with so much going on, an occasional weak spot can easily be tolerated.
7,5/10
This time, the honor is granted to Korean couple Jin (Daniel Dae Kim) and Sun (Yunjin Kim), who have kept largely to themselves due to their inability to speak English. When Jin suddenly attacks Michael, he finds himself chained until the others can figure out why he did it. Cue flashbacks, which shed some light on the couple's pre-crash situation and reveal that Sun can in fact speak English, a fact she has chosen to keep secret for the time being. Back on the island, Jack suggests moving the camp to a cave in the jungle, but some of the survivors disagree, preferring to stay on the beach in case help shows up on the horizon.
Although interesting and filled with good character bits, including an exchange between Charlie and Locke regarding the former's drug addiction, the sixth episode of Lost does qualify as slightly sub-par compared to previous achievements, due to the choice of "primary" characters for the flashbacks: whereas Jack has father issues, Kate a criminal record and Locke a pretty big secret, Jin and Sun come off as rather conventional, although the twist about Sun's linguistic abilities is a welcome one. Additional revelations will probably spice things up, but in terms of establishing the characters this episode doesn't quite live up to expectations. Then again, with so much going on, an occasional weak spot can easily be tolerated.
7,5/10