I am huge fan of ABC’s “Lost”. I was hooked from day one and long before I realized that the two Asian characters were not only recurring, but also main characters. It was a bonus. I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately because the last episode really focused on their characters.

Daniel Dae Kim, who plays Jin, and Yunjin Kim, who plays Sun, are a regular part of the weird group of people stuck on the mysterious island. But best of all, they are Korean and they play a Korean couple on the screen.

"A versatile actor who moves regularly between stage and screen, Daniel Dae Kim continues to build his career with his role as Jin on Lost. Among his numerous accomplishments, he has recurred on television's 24 as CTU agent Tom Baker, ER as social worker Ken Sung and attorney Gavin Park on Angel, as well as guest starring in many other popular programs, including CSI and Seinfeld." - http://abc.go.com/primetime/lost/cast/78280.html

(As I tend to be a huge fan of the shows with odd themes and weird people, I was pretty excited when I realized that Daniel Dae Kim had also starred in “Angel”.)

(Yunjin Kim) "Her Korean feature film credits include starring roles in Ardor, Yesterday, Iron Palm, Ginko Bed 2, Journal of June and the Japanese film, Rush, as well as roles in the television weekend dramas With Love and Wedding Dress, and the miniseries Hunch and Beautiful Vacation. She recently guest hosted on ABC's The View." - http://abc.go.com/primetime/lost/cast/78281.html

So, what is my point in this post? In the past, Asian characters have often played minor characters or supporting characters in a show. Lately, it seems like they are playing a bigger and bigger role in what we see. I’m really pleased. It means that Asians, and Korean-American’s in particular, are breaking into all types of careers (and in this case, a career that is fairly hard to break into). This kind of exposure, as long as it’s done right, can only increase people’s awareness of other races.

Not to mention, on “Lost”, you get some intriguing glimpses at Korean society and the language.

If you do not want to respond on this site, please feel free to e-mail me at adoptkoreablog@adoptionmail.com.