GOLDEN PASS

Daniel Dae Kim has built a golden pass after LOST.

In a recent conversation with The Hollywood Reporter, Kim also discusses his preparation for his role in the reboot version Hellboy, and reflected on his moments on the Lost set, as well as his reflections on his final scene as Jin on LOST.  FROM THE INTERVIEW:

Fifteen years ago, you arrived in Hawaii to film Lost's pilot, and it sounds like you haven't left since.

That is correct. If you would've asked me when I was a little kid growing up in Pennsylvania whether or not I would spend the majority of my career in Hawaii, I would've laughed. But, stranger things have happened, and they actually have. I'm here, and it really feels like I found home for me and my family.

Do you still feel Hawaii's laid-back vibe despite living there?

That vibe really does exist, but like any other place, once you're there for more than just a vacation, you learn a lot more about the people and the location that deepens your knowledge base. That can be both positive and negative. It's still an amazing place to live, and the fact that I'm choosing to live here — even though I'm not working here any longer — says everything.

Is it tricky navigating Hollywood from afar? Are you flying back and forth constantly?

Yes. (Laughs.) It's very difficult. I think I've gotten platinum status on two different airlines in the past year. I literally flew 200,000 miles in the last calendar year.

There's a Lost "golden pass" joke that practically writes itself here, but I'll refrain for now.

(Laughs.) Right! But, it's worth it. My family loves it here. My children got to spend their entire childhood here. It's a pretty special place.

When you reflect on Lost, what are some of the smaller memories or in-between moments that surprisingly stick with you, such as Terry O'Quinn playing guitar offscreen?
That's a good question. The first things that pop up are the moments in between takes. Because we were all friends, our time together — between takes — was as special as the time that we were actually shooting. The moments where the guitars would come out, all of our set chairs would be in a circle, so we could all see each other and talk to each other. There were several of us who play guitar and a lot of us who sang. So, spontaneous sing-along sessions would just kind of break out, and certain times we would get so passionate about them that we would delay shooting because we needed to finish a version of "Roxanne" that we were all singing. (Laughs.)

Co-showrunner Carlton Cuse used to talk a lot about how Jin and Sawyer tested at the bottom of cast in the early days of the show. After all you were both antagonists, so you're not supposed to be liked. By the end, your characters were beloved by test audiences. Since you probably didn't know the entirety of Jin's massive arc as of season one, did you lament Jin's reception at first, even though you were fulfilling the role as the writing intended?

Yes. Absolutely, I did. I was very concerned about it. Though I was reassured that the character was going to grow and develop, what I wasn't sure about was how the show would be received. If, for instance, we got four or five episodes on the air and then we got canceled, the entirety of Jin's character would be what you saw at the beginning. To me, that was problematic because it represented a number of stereotypes that I worked so hard to avoid in my career. So, that was my concern. I had a lot of faith in J.J. [Abrams] and Damon [Lindelof] that if the show continued, the character would grow and deepen; they had assured me of that. So, it wasn't a matter of trusting them, it was just a matter of trusting whether or not the show would be successful.

Many fans consider Jin and Sun to be Lost's greatest romance. Their conclusion on the submarine affects me each and every time I see it. Since the show has now been off the air for almost nine years, has your rationalization of Jin's decision to leave his daughter behind changed at all?
 
I can see both sides of that decision, but the thing that I keep coming back to is that he had wronged his wife in many ways. The decision to stay with her was part of his atonement. That's the emotional place where that decision came from. I think there was the rational question of whether or not he would've made it out alive, and I think all of those combined for him to make the choice that he did. To me, it was a very powerful statement about love and making that sacrifice for an ideal and a feeling that is undeniable.

ESCAPE

It was an easy plot magic to have Michael, whose back story was an artist who had to work in construction to get by, to build a raft to escape the island. Of course it really did not make any sense since hanging drywall or nailing trim pieces is not the same as building a seaworthy vessel out of bamboo and tarps. But at least it had some obvious element that made it believable: Michael and his construction experience.

Even multimillion dollar racing yachts cannot compete with the harsh nature of the Pacific Ocean. the vast ocean and high rolling waves takes it toll on all shipping, including the large cargo container vessels. The idea of a small amateur raft being able to sail hundreds or thousands of miles to Fiji seems implausible. But at least it fulfilled one critical human element of the story: escape and rescue.

That was the key point to the start of the series. Human beings shipwrecked on an island want to go home. They need to get home. Their lives are not on the island. They would do anything to get home. Building a raft for a dangerous journey across a brutal sea makes sense when the overriding human emotion is to get home. The building of the raft made the most sense in the early story lines.

It also caused one of the first true leadership splits in the group. Michael was in charge of the ship, not Jack. Jack was really not interested in their rescue plan. Michael was motivated to take his son home. But Walt had different ideas. He did not want to live with a stranger (his father). He would rather stay on the island and create a new life since he had nothing to go home to on the mainland.

The building of the raft led to the first true betrayal. The first raft was set a blaze, which led to charges and countercharges amongst the group's alpha males. Sabotage was a volcanic destabliizer for the beach camp. Fingers were pointed at Sawyer, Locke, the Others . . .  but Michael channeled his anger in order to build a second raft. It was the only thing bringing hope to the group.

When the raft set sail, it marked a turning point in the series. The show could have gone in several different directions. First, the comparison of the "good" camp life with food and shelter could have been contrasted by the harsh starvation and terror of being lost at sea for weeks on a raft that was slowly falling a part. Second, the raft could have made it civilization which could have set up the second betrayal - - - Michael and Sawyer not telling their rescuers of the island survivors. Third, and what happened, was the Others taking charge of the castaways lives. This was the flash point for serious bloody conflict between the Others and the 815ers. Why the Others would break the truce in order to kidnap Walt, who was special was unclear, considering Ben would release Walt and his father on the boat for freedom (in exchange for another betrayal, which seems now as the only real currency on the island.)

The raft symbolized freedom, escape and rescue. But in the end, the raft set in motion a series of bloody decisions leading to dozens of senseless deaths, kidnapping and torture of individuals. Walt's kidnapping led to Michael going insane with rage. His rage killed Ana Lucia and Libby. His plan to rescue Walt led to Jack, Sawyer and Kate being captured and tortured. It forever divided the beach camp and the Others as enemies.

THE RAFT

The series could have had a major story arc with the raft. It represented what the pilot episode stressed as the focal point of the show: rescue. The idea that four survivors would had the ability to build a raft, let alone sail it, across the Pacific to find rescue would have upped the ante.

It would have given the audience time and episode space to get a better understanding of an early character that was exiled from the series: Walt.

In the confined space of the raft, Walt could have been the center piece of the story. He really did not want to leave the island, because he really had nothing to go back to. His mother was dead. His adopted father abandoned him. Michael, his biological dad, gave him up when he was a child. Walt was totally alone. But, we were told he was "special."

If he was indeed special, why did Ben let him go so easily after Michael's final betrayal? Did Ben's science stations extract Walt's special qualities like draining a battery?

But the raft portion of the series was very short lived; interrupted quickly by a rescue fishing boat, with the quick twist of kidnapping Walt, shooting Sawyer and destroying the raft. It could have been a real cost saver to kill off three main characters.

But they wound up washed on shore into what some consider a filler arc of the show, the Tailies. Besides Bernard, the other 48 tail section passengers were merely red shirts - - - fodder for grisly deaths to come.

It would have been better to run a half season of raft episodes (or cutaways) than the Tailies and their back stories. The show did not need new characters, but better development of the ones we were told were important clues to unraveling the series.

The tension was there for the taking. Sawyer would have gotten on Michael's nerves. Walt would have looked to rebel against his new father's orders; so Walt would have been drawn to Sawyer's rebel attitude. That would have further inflamed the situation. The odd part of the raft was Jin's presence - - - for he would be the silent provider, fisherman. It also could be comic relief if the only English he learned was from Sawyer's verbal jabs.

It also could been an avenue to smooth over the rough edges of the Sawyer character. He could have communicated his rough childhood to Walt, so he could understand the problems he would face.  It could be an older brother moment.

But the real lost opportunity was to focus on Walt. Since he had the ability to communicate (and kill) birds and possibly other animals, he could have been a magical provider of food on the long voyage. Or he could have contacted the Dharma sharks for assistance. Since at this time we had no idea about Jacob and why visitors were brought to the island, Walt's abilities would have been critical clues into the island's purpose.

There could have been several paths this long raft arc could have taken. One, the raft could have met a horrible fate in the open seas. A storm could have crushed the small vessel. The heat could have boiled the men to madness, conflict and death. Two, the raft could have made it to another island, where a) they could have found native people who (i) greeted them warmly or (ii) captured them for cannibal sacrifices; or b) been rescued by a container ship heading towards America. Then their story of survival would have made the O6 story arc pale in comparison. It could also set off a rich man's war to find the island between Sun's father and Widmore. It would have been an expensive America's Cup race to find the island, which could have brought in the mysterious Eloise to manipulate both sides to her own game of betrayal.

So, the raft island escape was a missed opportunity for deep story development and character spotlights.

THE CHARACTER SUMMATION OF JIN

Jin's character was the outcast among outcasts. He had a language barrier so he could not communicate with his fellow castaways. He was suspicious of everyone around him. He was a traditionalist who wanted his wife, Sun, to obey and follow him. He would have found it acceptable to be on the outer limits of the beach camp, alone with Sun, rather than trying to integrate into the new community. Jin's story is like the story of an immigrant landing in a new country and trying to adapt to a new culture.

The writer's guide described Jin as:

Jin was born into an impoverished family in a fishing village in Southern Korea. After meeting Sun, the spirited daughter of the most powerful auto magnate in the country, ,Jin fell deeply in love. Unfortunately, due to a fierce class system, Sun's father refused to give his permission for the two to marry... unless of course Jin was willing to play ball. The result was a Faustian deal- Jin promising to keep Sun squarely within the strict confines of Korean society in exchange for a high-paying, high-ranking job. While the agreement afforded Jin VIP treatment, it left Sun betrayed. Jin is preoccupied by what he considers a far greater betrayal: his wife's INABILITY TO CONCEIVE. On the island his own inability to communicate with the others is balanced by his knowledge of the ocean  and his knack for capturing marine life for food... but when he realizes he must now rely on his wife, he must choose between attempting to regain her love or fall prey to the dangerous allure of the island's dark influence.

 
Jin's story was always going to be tied to Sun's story. Whether it was going to be a take on modern or traditional marriage, the issues between couples, or stories of lost loves . . . the two would be paired in their actions and events on the island.

Jin's guide story tracks what was shown in LOST (to a degree): born to a poor fishing family, he leaves his family to find fortune (in Sun's back story in college). He falls for Sun, but cannot marry her without making a deal with the devil, Sun's father. He must change his plans and become a company man in order to marry Sun. Jin bows to tradition. As a result, Jin demands what is expected of his subservient wife, children. But Sun cannot conceive, which Jin considers a betrayal to him (since she married him only to get back at her father and not have a true family with him).

So Jin's dilemma parallels the actual story line show in LOST: his conflict that he apparently married Sun for the wrong reasons, and he was caught like a fish in a trap, at the mercy of others like Sun's father or cultural demands upon him. We also see that Jin's skills on the island were quickly dismissed by the other castaways, who did not want to eat "foreign" food. He becomes quickly isolated, but for his marital bond with Sun.

In the guide, that marital bond with Sun would quickly collapse, leaving Jin totally isolated on the island. He would view from a far when Sun takes her English language skills and becomes an active member in the beach camp. Her happiness of being accepted by new people who respect her and her talents, would make Jin angry, depressed and lonely. His only hope for emotional survival would be to regain the trust and love of Sun. He would have to plan to woo her back.

But the writers add an entirely new element in the guide, especially as it relates to Jin (with application to any other person on the island): fall prey to the dangerous allure of the island's dark influence. The idea that the island has a "dark influence" over people is an agent of change that could dramatically affect relationships, bonds or even life and death decisions. The darkness could be the evil  inside all primordial instincts and fears that could be released in the unchecked lawless society that is the island (survival of the fittest). 

The concept of the characters having an opportunity to "change" themselves and live out their dreams because the plane crash has given them a second chance is a prime motivation to action, but if the island has its own, involuntarily, sway over character actions (dark influence) that could have been a devilish monkey-wrench in any decision making process. For example, crime without punishment. Some may consider this as a vague reference to the smoke monster's ability to shape shift, read memories, and create ghosts on the island to manipulate the feelings and actions of the candidates. That could be a fair assessment of a dark influence, but it would seem that the writers' premise would be that the island itself harbors something that would trigger dark thoughts in any human (i.e. sort of more like the vague "infection" story arc). 

Of course, the motivation of Jin to have a traditional family after being spurned by Sun could have led to the ultimate emotional double cross - -  Jin fathering a child on the island with another woman. Would have Sun felt betrayed by Jin's actions? Would she have had an emotional melt down if Jin found happiness and her new independence was not all that it was cracked up to be? That would have created a more layered story line between these two characters than the one ultimately shown in the series.

In the series, Sun and Jin are not really main characters. They are secondary people whose job is to help more important characters do specific tasks. For example, Jin became Sawyer's deputy. Sun began a gardener and nurse to Jack. Their story lines act more as filler than as key moments in island events. Again, the producers and writers made a conscious decision early on in the series to down play the Jin-Sun story.

THE CHARACTER SUMMATION OF SUN

The 9th main character in the LOST writer's guide was Sun. She played out as a rebellious rich girl who wanted to get away from her overbearing father. She did so by marrying a man beneath her status in life and a bold rejection to tradition. The Sun-Jin relationship was a double fish-out-of-water story. Sun and Jin were isolated from the main castaways due to the language barrier. Jin was out of his element when he married Sun, and tried to place tradition back on to her.

The writer's guide described Sun:

The daughter of a wealthy South Korean auto parts magnate, Sun went to college and fell in love with free-spirited fellow student Jin. After their marriage, Jin changed, eventually becoming harsh and distant as he relegated Sun to give up her own aspirations in favor of a more traditional life in other words, a glorified servant). This forced Sun to devise an "exit strategy"- For the past two years she has secretly been LEARNING ENGLISH. planning to ditch Jin in Los Angeles to stay with a cousin, Sun's skills with Eastem Medicine may just be her ticket to a new life. The plane crash has shattered Sun's plan, but not her resolve. Now freed of the cultural and familial chains which have kept her passive, Sun's evolution as an independent woman has officially begun.

The Sun-Jin island story was supposed to be able a "love conquers all" type tale. Even if they were not going to fit into the main group, they would always have each other. And that is all they needed in order to survive or be happy. In some ways, this story was actually adopted better by the Bernard and Rose story line.

The guide did tell of Sun's unhappy marriage, and her plan to leave Jin for a new life in America (even though the complex legal immigration issues were never resolved in any story; you just can't show up and stay in U.S.). 

But her back story changed significantly. First, Sun went to college and fell in love with another free spirit in Jin. In the series, Jin's back story was much harsher: the bastard son of a lowly poor fisherman, Jin had no education - - - he left to the city to become a laborer, a door man, seeking a better life. He was not a free spirit, but a traditionalist. Second, in the guide Sun has her own aspirations in medicine, but in the actual story, we are given no life goal motivation for Sun other than being the heiress to a large fortune, and being rebellious against her father. Her relationship with Jin was more as a stab at her father than actual love. Third, it would seem that Sun "independence" on the island would have strained her relationship with Jin, and her English betray him to further isolation away from the group and her. 

The guide places Sun in the role of the modern woman bucking tradition to follow her own path. It is not a love story but one of personal growth over the expectations of others. Her ideas of Eastern Medicine would conflict with Jack's Western approach, so there could have been conflict in the group on who was going to be the healer. Or, it would have led to another form of frustration, since Jack was a doctor and Sun was a foreigner, her skills would be dismissed out of hand by many castaways. This would have lead to further loneliness in Sun's character, which was a main theme of the series.

The writer's guide begins to shape the lower main characters as having personal "plans" to change their situation in life. In Sun's case, it was not divorce her husband but to ditch him in LA. She would start a new life on her own in a new, strange country, with little means of support except for a cousin. Like many plans, including Locke's, it is more based in fantasy than the practical specifics of reality. The guide does express Sun's emotional state by stating her culture and family were "chains" holding her back from becoming true self. 

In LOST, Sun had bouts of independence, but in the end she reverted to a sentimental character of being Jin's loving wife which was not contemplated in the original writer's guide.

A KEY

How immortal beings such as Jacob or the smoke monster (MIB/Flocke) could have become moral (an apparent requirement in order to "leave" the island existence) is unknown.

But here is a new theory I thought may explain it. It merges a couple of given facts such as the Numbers and Jacob's authority over the island.

MIB was locked on the island's time and space. It could not escape. Jacob was the island guardian, which also could be called a jailor. Jailor's have the keys to the prisoner's cells. Jacob could be considered a jailor to MIB.

The importance of Jacob's numbering system should not be underestimated. It went through the entire series. It was the ultimate clue. Yes, it represented the candidates, but it had to represent more than that because there were more than one hundred prior candidates who did not achieve what either Jacob or MIB desired: escape. One would hope that the candidate numbers would have more meaning than just being numbers.

The numbered candidates could symbolically represent parts of a lock's tumblers, the pieces of metal that move when the proper key is inserted to open the mechanism. Now, if Jacob numbers his candidates, it is either Jacob or the island automatically sets the island's "locking mechanism." The island itself was described as a Magic Box. Magic Boxes would need to be secured from devious people. When the candidates arrive at the island, it is their destiny to "open" the lock in order for Jacob and/or MIB to escape.

The random order of the candidates selection to become island keys came from Jacob scouting them as children, then coming to them with his touch (marking them as elements of the island key). Once they arrived on the island, the game was to determine the order of the candidates in order to unlock the island. It would seem neither Jacob or MIB could control the order of the key, because they were frustrated by the lack of results over the centuries of people being brought to the island.

The only logical progression for the key cuts would be the order of when each candidate died. We know the order from the beginning: Locke (which could be considered a clue for this theory), then Sayid (even after reanimation), Jin, Jack, then most likely Sawyer (if the Ajira plane did not have enough fuel to get home) and then Hurley (who would have become immortal when he accepted the island guardianship).

One might realize a flaw in the theory which is that Jacob and MIB "died" (i.e. escaped) before Hurley would have died. But they could have been trapped like Michael as a whisper, a spirit attached to the island, until Hurley died which would release all the lost and trapped souls into the after life.

BROTHERS

The closest bond a person will ever have in their life is with their spouse or significant other. The next closest bond is between brothers.

“ A brother may not be a friend, but a friend will always be a brother. ”
— Benjamin Franklin

But what is a brother? The word is defined as follows:

1.a man or boy in relation to other sons and daughters of his parents.
   
2. a male associate or fellow member of an organization: fraternity brothers.
   
3. (also brothaor bruthah ) informal  for a black man (slang)
4. a fellow human being.

5. a thing that resembles or is connected to another thing;
6. Christian Church a (male) fellow Christian.

7. a member of a religious order or congregation of men
8. used to express annoyance or surprise.

The main male characters were not related to each other by blood. Their only connection was living through a traumatic event on par with soldiers on a battle field.

The did not voluntarily join a club like fraternity brothers, who swear an allegiance to each other.   There time together was marked by disputes, leadership struggles and fights.

The one thing that connected them together was the fact that they were on some immortal and potentially crazy man’s “list of candidates.”  They had nothing in common, except a medical background of Jack and Bernard.

None of them had outspoken Christian values or grouped people in a congregation based upon those principles. In fact, most of the main male characters were generally annoyed by the personalities, traits and opinions of their fellow castaways.

So the only true connection between Jack, Sayid, Sawyer, and Locke were the survival of a plane crash and the mutual struggles on the island. Yes, they were fellow human beings but one contained a monster (Sayid's violent tendencies) and one became a monster (Locke).

Were Jack and Sayid close friends? No. They were colleagues who often agreed on strategy to survive. But Sayid was always looking to cover his own back first.

Were Jack and Sawyer close friends? No. They were rivals for materials on the island after the crash (medical supplies, weapons, food). They were rivals for Kate's affection. They never truly got along. Sawyer did not stay to help Jack fight MIB.

Were Jack and Locke friends? No. They never met eye to eye on their view point of science verus faith to explain the unnatural elements of the island. Locke was too trusting, and Jack was too stubborn in his personal views. They never truly got along.

Were Jack and Jin friends? No. They could not communicate because of a language barrier. Jin favored isolation away from Jack's main group. There was some respect for their skills, but Jin never fought for Jack's vision of the means to survive on the island.

So none of the major male relationships have any hard element of brotherhood, a strong bond through thick and thin, the best of time or the worst of times. 


So the brotherhood angle of the LOST saga again falls on the realationship between Jacob and MIB. A relationship founded upon a kidnapping by a crazy woman, no father figure, parent constraints and child rebellion, and finally murder. Jacob and MIB's home was not the island but it was their living hell. Their crazy mother who killed their real mother raised them in secrecy of their true past. They lived in isolated place under rules that granted them a form of immortality under the pains of imprisonment.

One cannot say that Jacob and his brother were actual friends. They merely tolerated each other growing up as children. They did not have other humans to develop social skills or gain knowledge outside their adoptive mother's rules. When MIB broke away from his mother's dictatorship as a young adult to live with the survivors of the shipwreck, his one goal was to get away from the island. Jacob did the opposite. He stayed with Crazy Mother and broke the one family tie he had on the island.

CHARACTER OF JIN

He was the last candidate, and the least candidate. Jin-Soo Kwon was a man who chased his dreams but compromised his principles along the way.

Jin was born on November 27, 1974 to a poor fisherman and a prostitute. He grew up with his father in a single parent household because his father told him his mother had died when he was an infant.

Jin served in the national Army. After his service, he abandoned his village life to pursue a better life in Seoul. But since he had no connections or extraordinary skills, he landed entry level jobs as a kitchen helper, waiter then doorman. People would discriminate against his background of being from a poor fishing village. Yet, Jin normally took the slurs and continued to do his job until his manager refused service to a poor boy.

He met Sun Paik while working at her father's hotel. It was a fateful flirtation, since Jin was never in her social or political circles. However, as luck would have it, Sun was in the process of rebelling against her father's strict control over her life. As a result, she got involved with Jin as a means of escaping her father's control. But that soon changed when Jin's pride in a husband taking care of his wife took a back seat and submitted himself to work for Sun's father. Sun's father treated Jin as a lowly hired hand, making him do his dirty work. But in order to keep Sun in her customary lifestyle, Jin put up with this form of abuse. He had wanted to become wealthy. He wanted a beautiful wife. He wanted to live far away from his village. He found those things, but at a terrible personal price.

At their wedding, both Sun and Jin were touched by a stranger, Jacob. Sun thought that he had must have been a customer of her father's business. Jin lied to Sun about his parents, claiming that they were dead. But later, Sun would find out about his peasant father and his mother when she tried to blackmail her.

In order to keep his honor, Jin tried to conceive a child with Sun. However, the doctor told them that Sun was infertile. Jin was outraged by the fact, thinking that Sun had conned him into a barren marriage. But later, the doctor secretly told Sun that he lied; Jin was infertile. He lied because he feared Mr. Paik's wrath.

Jin's marriage soon took a sour turn. Sun was hoping to have a strong, independent husband who would have stood up to her father. Instead, she got a meek yes-man. Sun had hoped Jin would have enough backbone to escape with her, but he did not. This caused marital strife between them. This drove Sun into the arms of her English tutor, Lee. Sun had planned to flee her life in Korea. Mr. Paik learned of the inappropriate behavior, and told Jin to go to him and kill him over the statement that Lee was "stealing from him." But Jin did not have the instinct to kill him, just badly beating him up with a warning. However, when Jin was leaving the hotel, Lee's body plunged from the upper floors. (We can assume that Paik was watching Jin and made certain of Lee's demise.)

Jin went to see his father. He told him that if Jin loved his wife, then that is all that mattered. Jin took this simple wisdom with him. On a business trip to Sydney and LA, the couple plotted to disappear together in America. Sun did not trust Jin to follow through with the plan. She once thought of escaping by herself. At the Sydney airport, Paik's agent threatened Jin that he should not try to escape. Jin returned to the gate just as Sun was about to leave him, but they boarded Flight 815 together.

CHARACTER TRAITS

Jin grew up in a work centric self-sufficient environment. He was used to hard work and hard conditions. He also was trained to follow orders and to honor his principles. He had useful island skills of sailing, fishing, construction and hand-to-hand combat/military expertise.  His biggest downfall was his own pride. He would hate himself every time he swallowed it on the road to try to find a better life. It would be the deep rooted seed of his anger outbursts. His frustration with the inability to control his own destiny clouded Jin's judgment at times.

JIN'S JOURNEY

Though people are confused, Jin was the last candidate since in traditional Korean culture, a married woman would keep her own name (Sun Paik). Jacob's list for #42 Kwon clearly met Jin. And that would make sense, since Jacob often disregarded mothers and surrogate mothers from being a candidate. He was probably a final candidate because he would honor his commitment, and he would protect others as part of his honor code.

Jin's journey was a poor boy's fantasy. A lowly fisherman goes to the large city and changes his life. He meets his dream girl. He gets a well paying job. He finds a new family life. But in a twist, the dream comes a part due to the corruption by those in power over him. He finds the ruling class to be ruthless, unkind, violent, self-centered and unprincipled (which includes Sun). He has a hard time trying to justify his principles with that of Paik's norms and demands. And when the final aspect of his manhood his taken away from him (the ability to have children in his marriage), he snaps. He is trapped in a life he wanted but now cannot stand.

Jin's life takes the most roller coaster highs and lows. He never leaves the island. He repeats the jealousy and controlling behavior with Sun that broke a part his marriage. He is blown up (and presumptively killed) when the freighter blew up just as his marriage was rekindled with the prospect of rescue. He is thrown into the flashback Dharma world to become a minor player. When Sun returns to the island, he again vows to rescue her. He has seen the first picture of his daughter, so he believes that he has a traditional life waiting for him off the island. Just as rescue on the submarine is apparent, a C4 bomb is found on board, planted by MIB to kill all the candidates. When the bomb explodes, it unbelievably traps Sun behind equipment and pipes. As the submarine sinks, Sun pleads with him to save himself. But he stays behind with her as the compartment floods to the ceiling. (Some viewers thought that this was romantic, but it was still a suicide. And other people remarked that Jin never thought about his daughter back home - - - that she would have no parents if he stayed and died on the sub.)

SIDEWAYS JIN

In the fantasy world, Jin is having a secret affair with Sun. They are found out by Keamy during the business trip to LA. Keamy was hired by Mr. Paik to kill Jin for his behavior (mirrors that of tutor Lee's affair with Sun). The assassin's fee was taken by airport security, so Sun went to the bank to get more money while Jin was beat up by Keamy. When Sun found her secret account closed by her father, she knew Keamy would be upset. In the kitchen, Sayid was brought to pay for his brother's failure to pay, but Sayid killed them and fled. When Patchy came back with Sun and found the carnage, Jin fought him. In the fight, a stray bullet hit Sun in the abdomen. She tells Jin she is pregnant. She is rushed to the hospital, and once they see Juliet and the picture of their baby, both Jin and Sun awaken  - - - and begin to speak fluent English.

Jin did not have a strong personality. He played the role of a gray collar character (half blue collar, half white collar man). Since he was a quiet role player because of the language barrier, he was the weakest of the candidates. In fact, he may never have realized that he was a candidate. His sole motivation at the end was to be with Sun, forever.

He did try to meld with the group, especially after his estrangement with Sun. During the Desmond camping trip to the cable in Season 3, Jin told a ghost story in Korea which still managed to scare Hurley: "And the girl turned to the man who saved her and said , 'Thank God. I was afraid you were the Hook Man.' And the man looked at the girl with a smile and said, 'Don't worry, little girl. My hook is....STILL IN YOUR FATHER'S HEAD!'"

 Jin's story hook was that he was a decent man trying to fit into an unfamiliar circumstances. Unless he could find a way to get out of Mr. Paik's iron grip, he would never be a happy man. His final solution was to die together with Sun, even though that is in conflict with his traditional family values and role of being a father.

As with the other characters, Jin's sins and criminal behavior while working for Paik were never punished. His on-island rap sheet was similar:  He assaulted Michael on the island over his watch. He assaulted Eko. He beat up Patchy when he was captured while searching for Naomi. He killed two Others in the beach camp ambush. These may have been petty as compared to other main characters, but it shows that Jin's personality did not grow or develop during his island adventure. There was no enlightened moment where he vowed to discard any evil means to success. He never changed as a person.

Why Jin winds up in the church is also a subject of reflection. Jin's closest relationship was with Sun. Jin's closest "friend" on the island would have been Sawyer during the Dharma flash back era. But as a couple, Jin and Sun did not share any bonds with the other participants. They were never close with the other married couple on the island, Rose and Bernard. They were never particularly fond of Locke or Sawyer. They even grew weary of Jack when he began to trust people like Juliet. The Jin-Sun character was not a major puzzle piece in the series final reveal. They had little in common with the other church participants. The sideways arc showed no true interaction with the other islanders.

So what was Jin's reward for leaving his village to the unknown big city? He got caught up in class discrimination. When he broke that barrier, he turned into a person he used to hate. He married a wealthy woman who hated being controlled by her father. He accepted control by her father which alienated his wife. His life was spurious and devoid of hope. He was compromised and on the verge of total personal failure. Then he got a second chance on the island, in isolation with his wife to rekindle their relationship. But even that had its rocky moments. In some respects, Jin never gave up on his dream. And his dream met its conclusion when he died holding hands with his wife, Sun.

S6E10 HEAD INJURIES

There is an emerging pattern developing in the last few episodes. I was bothered by Jack's slow healing forehead injury. Then we have the Jin bump in the same place. Claire was blown up in a barracks house. Sayid was brain dead in the temple. Now we have Sun running into a tree branch and having an injury in the same place (frontal lobe). I am beginning to wonder if these head injuries are connected to the manipulation of the characters by either Jacob or MIB.

The executive functions of the frontal lobes involve the ability to recognize future consequences resulting from current actions, to choose between good and bad actions (or better and best), override and suppress unacceptable social responses, and determine similarities and differences between things or events. Therefore, it is involved in higher mental functions.

The frontal lobes also play an important part in retaining longer term memories which are not task-based. These are often memories associated with emotions derived from input from the brain's limbic system. The frontal lobe modifies those emotions to generally fit socially acceptable norms.

It is clear that Flocke (MIB) does want to people not to recognize what he is up to, to mask a person's choices between what is good and what is bad, with the emphasis on unleashing socially unacceptable responses. This may be a loophole: Jacob or MIB cannot make anyone do something against their free will, but MIB may put characters in a position not to know any better.

S6E6 JUMPS

What is up with the fact that Flocke is teleporting around the Island? First he was with Sawyer in a hard to get to cave, then within the same lighted afternoon, he shows up at Claire's camp (alone). Where is Sawyer? Still in the cave? Did Flocke just leave him in a whoosh of teleporting smoke?
Is Sawyer still alive?

The same goes with Jin. He told Claire that he could get her into the temple, but she had to bring him along to get through the secret passage. But when Claire shows up at the temple, which was supposed to be in lock down - - - and the Others were aware that Claire was killing them at every chance - - -, she calmly walks through the front door. Huh? That means Jin did not come with Claire and Flocke to the temple. Is Jin still alive? (That was Sun's question.)

If we try to figure out what is happening with the missing members of 815 (from the missing parts of scenes), using the stated rule that MIB could not kill a candidate, that would mean Sawyer, Jin and Kate would still be alive. But we have seen Sayid die, and become infected by non-MIB means. If Claire killed dangling Kate in the pit, then Kate at the very least is "infected" like Sayid heading down the path towards total darkness. If Claire could kill Kate, then it is possible she could have killed Jin, too, instead of dragging him along to the temple. Flocke would have had no use for a cripple.