Lost (TV Series) House of the Rising Sun (2004) User Reviews

"You speak English?"

[MaxBorg89 · 8/10 · 23 February 2010]

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

Adam and Eve

[gridoon2024 · 8/10 · 3 May 2009]

"House of the Rising Sun" is, for the most part, a "merely" very good episode, however it contains at least one great scene: Sun's airport dilemma about whether she should walk out on her husband Jin or not. Eventually, her decision is determined by a flower. Wonderfully acted, timed and scored, this is the kind of scene that has always made LOST such a human sci-fi show. This is the first Sun / Jin - centered episode, and like most of their others, it provides an interesting view of a different (non-Western) culture (and language) to that of the vast majority of the show's characters. The other notable aspects of this episode include the still-unresolved mystery of the two skeletons (named "Adam and Eve" by Locke) discovered in the cave near the water spring, and the rather big twist of Sun being able to understand and speak English. Sure, it's not as big as the twist of "Walkabout", but on the other hand, this episode is less dependent on its twist. *** out of 4.

Lost as the love story it always secretly was

[foleyjd · 9/10 · 29 November 2015]

Lost was about lots of things, good and evil, God, bad tattoos but maybe more than any of these things it was about love. House of the Rising Sun is the first episode to shine a light on Lost that reveals that on a certain level Lost was always just a "love story", through Jack and Kate, Charlie and his guitar and in particular through Sun and Jin.

It may not be in my top 5 scenes of Lost but the final Jin/Sun flashback scene at the airport is one that gets me every time. Unlike any other Jin/Sun episode the flashbacks are really just told through the eyes of Sun and throughout the episode the sense of their relationship that we are getting is something quite sour.

Sun almost comes across as a victim of abuse, even if it is not physical it really feels like Jin is neglecting her and that he is being overly possessive. It feels like a marriage that has been severely damaged and one that you are almost routing for Sun to get out of, yet you know she doesn't.

So you're almost anticipating this tragic scene where the constantly undermined wife can't quite go through with leaving her horrible husband, but then he takes out the flower and it all kind of changes. I know it seems as if I'm overstating it, but Lost was a show that always placed huge meaning onto a seemingly insignificant object.

For me Jin taking out the flower is a moment that somewhat subverts what we think of this relationship. It isn't some massive third act twist and it doesn't change all the neglect that we have been shown or at least that we could infer, but it tells us that there is still a lot of love in this relationship even if it is complicated.

Outside of that scene the episode isn't flawless but is still very strong. There is a lot of Kate and Jack in this episode and that can always be a little problematic. In general Evangeline Lilly hasn't really got Kate down yet, but even in later seasons her chemistry with Matthew Fox was always a little bit hit and miss. The writers didn't always help, particularly in these early days, but at the same time I don't detest these scenes and they certainly don't devalue the episode.

The montage at the end of this episode is actually one of the better judged montages that Lost used in its early days. Quite often the issue with these montages is that they are pointless, they have nothing too say and are just there to give the illusion of resolution but the one at the end of this episode is certainly demonstrating the divides within the camp, as well as nicely contrasting the reunion, of sorts, between Jin and Sun at the airport with Jack and Kate being separated.

Overall House of The Rising Sun is just another early classic and one of the most underrated episodes of Lost.

(for more reviews go to donheisenberg.tumblr.com)

Some memorable moments in a script that doesn't gel as well as it could have

[ametaphysicalshark · 19 June 2008]

What struck me most about "House of the Rising Sun" is how many memorable moments there were that I didn't quite place in this episode based simply on memories. I did, of course, remember the Jin and Sun flashback, which is strong on character development but is also problematic in terms of plot, coming off as something lifted out of a soap opera, albeit with better writing. Still, this episode remains a solid enough early offering thanks to the many memorable moments- Locke's interaction with Charlie, the then-unoffensive love triangle being introduced, and especially Adam and Eve.

Adam and Eve is one of the most talked-about points in "Lost" mostly due to the producers suggesting that it was key to the solution of the show in some manner. The speculation on this matter is never-ending but I frankly don't think it's worth discussing at this point, at least until the two are mentioned again.

"House of the Rising Sun" is almost entirely a character episode of "Lost". In this sense it really is very strong- Charlie, Locke, Jack, Kate, Jin, Michael, and Sun all get important character development. One thing that jumped out in this episode is the abysmal direction- it's really, really bad. 'Shaky cam=tension' bad, a complete departure from the general quality of the work on this show.

When it comes down to it, this episode isn't great, mostly because of the flashbacks, but it is enjoyable, with Michael Giacchino introducing "Credit Where Credit is Due", an absolutely stunning piece of music.

7/10

The Past of the Koreans Sun and Jin Kwon

[claudio_carvalho · 8/10 · 8 April 2006]

When Jin Kwon attacks and beats Michael Dawson, the survivors defend Michael and arrest Jin with a handcuff. Dr. Jack Shephard, Kate Austen and Charlie Pace go to the water source to bring water for the other survivors, and Jack tries to convince the survivors to move to the caves nearby the source of water. The group splits in two, with part staying at the beach expecting to find some rescue – ship or plane. Meanwhile John Locke finds out that Charlie is addicted and takes his drugs.

This episode discloses the love story of Sun and Jin Kwon and the dark past of Jin. The communication between the Korean couple and the group improves when Sun reveals to Michael that she can speak English, but Jin does not know. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "House of the Rising Sun"

Note: On 18 March 2013, I saw this episode again.

Quality may have fallen rather than risen, but still a well done episode

[TheLittleSongbird · 8/10 · 1 December 2017]

When 'Lost' was in its prime, it was must-watch television. Remember first watching it, found it remarkably easy to get into, was hooked from the start and was on Season 3 by the end of one week. The general consensus is that the final season is a disappointment and cannot disagree.

"House of the Rising Sun" is not one of my favourite 'Lost' episodes. It doesn't even make it as one of my favourites of Season 1, and doesn't come close to the brilliance of "Pilot" and "Walkabout". The writing could have tightened a little at times in the more flashback-oriented scenes and been less soapy and the photography lacks the show's usual taut stylishness and focus. Even though "House of the Rising Sun" is not 'Lost' on top form, it's still very good and well-done with some interest points.

Jin and Sun may not have been the most interesting 'Lost' characters up to this episode, but every show has to start somewhere in developing a character and "House of the Rising Sun" generally does a good job with their back-story. Can totally understand the apparent initial reservations about how the characters, the story and Koreans would be perceived, but the story and the language barrier twist are handled with great care and delicacy and that was appreciated.

It's not just Jin and Sun that "House of the Rising Sun" focuses on. Loved the humour and tension between the survivors and the interaction between Locke and Charlie. Particularly good here are the touching airport scene and the introduction of Adam and Eve. The end montage agreed is one of the better ones of the early seasons.

Apart from the photography, "House of the Rising Sun" looks pleasing in the ever beautiful and mysterious setting. The chilling main theme is intact but the episode does contain one of the show's best individual scores, the understated mournful quality fits beautifully and evokes great poignancy. Most of the writing is smart and thought-provoking with the odd stumble with the flashbacks.

The acting is still fine, Yunjin Kim's Sun is a deeply felt character showcase.

In conclusion, very well done but not among the best episodes of 'Lost'. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Shape of the Show Becomes All Too Clear

[borowiecsminus · 8/10 · 28 June 2016]

In this episode, the viewer makes a very disappointing revelation about the show "Lost." One realizes that yes, in fact, from here on, they will be revealing the backstory of one character per episode until they are done with characters, and then the plot can truly start.

While at this point in the series, I'm extremely disappointed with the show as a whole, it's not fair to base the episode off that.

The cleverly named episode is one of the most interesting up to that point in the series' run. It's no "Walkabout," but it is certainly better than "White Rabbit." The acting, as usual, is mediocre to be nice, but it's made up for by the subtle directing work and skilled writing flashback techniques.

And one thing I will say for the show, like "Breaking Bad" and others of its kind, it seems like every little detail is carefully planned out before they even started to write the story, and for that, I applaud them.

Sad episode.

[TheFirst01 · 9/10 · 11 November 2019]

A troubled past gets in the way of Jin in the present, and Sun is in need of help in the midst of all this.

The One Where Jin Beats Up Michael...

[taylorkingston · 6/10 · 9 October 2015]

I enjoyed this episode. It was a little hard for me to get really into, but only because a lot of the scenes from before the plane crash had Korean subtitles, and I hate reading. If I watch TV I don't want to have to read :)

In this episode, Jin attacks, and beats up Michael, and then gets put in the "time out corner". No, seriously, he gets locked to a part of the plane, so he won't hurt anyone else. We discover that Sun can actually speak English, and that Jin attacked Michael because he was wearing a watch that Jin was looking after. How could Michael have known that?

Overall, I give this episode a 6 out of 10, which in my ratings book is: Good.

Better but still not perfect...

[sergiocebolleroscg · 8/10 · 10 April 2020]

Of course this episode is way better than 'White Rabbit', but it still lacks the quality of the pilot or Walkabout. As 'White Rabbit' doesn't, 'House Of The Rising Sun' shows that the story can continue and tell the backstories of the characters at the same time.

The problem is that some flashbacks are unnecessary, and boring. How much time do they spend looking at each other? And, of course, other question I have to ask: Where are the supernatural mysteries?

The caves of Adam and Eve

[gedikreverdi · 8 November 2021]

They found a couple of dead bodies in the caves where they found fresh water and named them Adam and Eve. They cuffed the Korean man because he lunged at Michael but they don't know why. The Korean man was a waiter and his wife was a rich young woman. He's apparently killing people for her rich husband. Some moved to the caves and the rest stayed on the beach. Charlie is an addict and Locke found his guitar.