D.O.C. (Lost episode)

Plot

A newly married Sun is visited by a woman who claims to know that Jin was born to a prostitute and demands 100,000 dollars to keep the secret. Sun tries to get Jin to discuss his past, but his evasive and contradictory responses lead her to visit Jin's father, whom she believed dead. Mr. Kwon confirms the identity of Jin's mother as a sex worker who gave up the baby after birth and asks Sun to keep the secret. Sun asks her wealthy father for the money; he agrees but declares he will involve Jin in his illegal business as compensation.

Sun meets the blackmailer, reveals she knows the woman is Jin's mother, gives her the money, and threatens her with her family's criminal connections to make her leave permanently. On the island, Sun is wary of Jack, fearing he may have allied with the Others and that they intend to take her baby as they did with Claire's. Juliet confronts Sun, revealing herself as the Others' fertility doctor, and explains that pregnant women on the island die before their last trimester.

Juliet wants to determine the baby's date of conception, claiming Sun has a better chance if the child was conceived before the plane crash. At the Others' medical station, Sun admits to infidelity prior to the flight and worries the baby may not be Jin's. Juliet confirms the baby was conceived on the island; Sun cries but says she is happy and thanks Juliet. After Sun leaves, Juliet records a message for Ben, informing him of Sun's condition and stating she will take samples from other women.

Production

Frederick E.O. Toye directed his first and only episode of Lost with "D.O.C.", which was written by Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz, their ninth collaboration for the series. Beach scenes at the survivors' camp were shot at Oahu's Papa'iloa Beach, while island scenes were filmed at the Waialua Mauka Ranches. The fishing dock of Jin's father was filmed at the same Hawaii location where the submarine was docked: the fish pond at the Molii Gardens on the Kualoa Ranch.

Reception

Chris Carabott of IGN rated the episode 8.5 out of 10, praising Yunjin Kim's "poignant performance" but criticizing the flashbacks for stunting the pacing and feeling out of place with island events. In 2019, Josh Wigler of The Hollywood Reporter ranked the episode 96th in a series-wide ranking, calling it an otherwise average episode elevated by Kim's moving performance during Sun's first sight of her unborn child. Andrew Dignan of Slant Magazine praised the episode, noting that the intersection of flashbacks and present developments complement one another and lend thematic weight to scenes both on and off the island.