Season
1, Episodes 17 and 18- “…In Translation” and “Numbers”
Summary:
Jin
begins work for Mr. Paik and is tasked with intimidating a man who is
displeasing Paik. When a hitman seems about to kill him, Jin instead beats him
up, saving his life, and also visits with his own father. Shannon finds herself caught between Boone and Sayid. The
raft catches fire and blame is placed on Jin since he had a confrontation with
Michael earlier. In order to spare him of humiliation, Sun vouches for him and
reveals she knows English, which causes a further rift between them. Locke gets
Walt to privately admit that he burned the raft, as another starts to get built
with Jin’s help.
After
winning the lottery, Hurley begins experiencing bad luck. He believes the
numbers may be cursed, and tracks them back to his mental institution friend
Leonard and a man named Sam Toomey in Australia. Sam is dead but his wife says
they heard the numbers being broadcast while at a listening post. After seeing
them on Rousseau’s map, Hurley treks into the jungle to ask about them and to
find a battery. She believes they are cursed, to his relief, and he returns
with a battery for the raft. Locke builds a baby crib for Claire.
Review:
“…In Translation” holds a special place
in my heart. I had watched a few episodes of season one in the fall but just
didn’t really keep up with it. This was the first one I watched when I decided
to try and get back on the train. It’s a companion piece to “House of the
Rising Sun”, both in that it shows Jin’s side of the flashbacks and that it
features Jin on the outs with the camp. I prefer this one because we
know these characters a bit better and the stakes are raised. The gold watch
was admittedly useless. The raft is most certainly not. The Sun/Jin/Michael
triangle that heated up back in “House” and has been simmering since then has
suddenly boiled over, only this time Jin is innocent. Luckily Locke is there to
get everyone off the hook. His speech is legendary. It’s a true statement even
if we now know it was Walt who set the fire. Still, it comes after Sun reveals
her secret; probably the perfect timing, narratively. And I LOVE that Jin
decides to help rebuild the raft.
This is the only episode that is solely
Jin-centric (all others are either in tandem with Sun, or part of a
multi-centric), and it works pretty well in explaining his behavior, although
not entirely. The highlight is the appearance of his father, one of the nicest
and most likable characters in the entire show. Seriously, how do you not love
Mr. Kwon? We end the episode with the last musical montage from Hurley’s CD
player, as the batteries run out at the end. Those montages are like relics out
of a different show. You might say this marks the end of Lost as a domestic or
survival drama, since the next few episodes jerk us into the first real roller
coaster ride. No more CD player to make things cozy at the end.
Hurley is the last castaway whose
backstory we get (assuming you count Shannon’s as being part of Boone’s), and
it’s the one that’s the craziest and seemingly most relevant to island happenings.
The numbers really signal a new chapter in the show, being a new
intangible/metaphysical threat that gives the island a supernatural flavor. The
polar bear is just an animal. The Others, although we can’t see them, are still
presumed to be human. The monster is clearly something outside of the normal
world but it’s a physical creature that can be seen and heard and felt. The
numbers are…….an idea; a pervasive idea that cannot be fought, even if you
refuse to say them. They drive people to insanity or suicide, or beckon them to
the island like mythological sirens. For all the craziness in the first 17
episodes, this is the first thing that is truly head-scratching and frustrating
(in a good way). It could have been a real turn-off for viewers. Fortunately,
we are introduced to them through the eyes of Good Ol’ Fun Time Hurley.
The dichotomy of Comic Relief Hurley
having this depressing and death-filled backstory is the perfect little twist,
and unlike most of his comrades, his flashbacks here are actually FUN to watch.
It’s fun to watch the bad luck piling on him, and it turns spooky when we get
the story of Toomey and Leonard hearing the broadcast signal that also drew
Rousseau’s team. The echo of the island is making its way into our flashbacks
now.
Hurley’s journey to Rousseau is the first time he goes on a jungle trek, and although he is trying to find
a battery his real goal is to find some “fricken answers” to the numbers. He’s
trying to prove that he’s not crazy but the only person who agrees that the
numbers are cursed is a woman who, well, seems to be pretty crazy. Knowing what
we know about the numbers and the candidates and the Valenzetti Equation, I
wouldn’t exactly say the numbers are cursed. But if this acknowledgement is a
small victory for him, then we’ll accept it. The final shot of the serial
number on the hatch kind of blew me away when I first saw it, and even if the
numbers become obsolete after a couple seasons it’s still a great way to end
it.
Connecting the Dots:
Based on Juliet’s assessment, “…In
Translation” is when Sun and Jin conceived their child, but given the
circumstances it doesn’t look like either of them are in the mood for
baby-making right now. I suppose you could chalk it up to being a couple days
off and that it actually occurred somewhere around “Outlaws” or “Homecoming”.
Han’s daughter is watching Hurley on TV,
after he won the lottery.
Hurley somehow owns Locke’s box company.
His former douche-of-a-boss, Randy, now works with the box company. That’s some
karma for you.
Ranking:
1.
Pilot, part 1
(9/10)
2.
Numbers (8.5/10)
(Not QUITE as great as I remember but still a fun outing that makes it seem
like the story is gaining traction.)
3.
Solitary (8.5/10)
4.
Outlaws (8/10)
5.
Walkabout (8/10)
6.
Pilot, part 2
(8/10)
7.
White Rabbit
(8/10)
8.
…In Translation
(7.5/10) (A good episode for Jin, with a shift in the status quo of camp life.)
9.
Homecoming
(7.5/10)
10. Raised by Another (7.5/10)
11. Tabula Rasa (7/10)
12. The Moth (7/10)
13. Special (7/10)
14. Hearts and Minds (7/10)
15. All the Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues (6.5/10)
16. Confidence Man (6.5/10)
17. House of the Rising Sun (6/10)
18. Whatever the Case May Be (4.5/10)
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