‘Hawaii Five-0’ season 7: Daniel Dae Kim breaks down Chin’s decision
We’ve certainly seen a number of different powerful moments over time on “Hawaii Five-0,” but even with that being said, we’re still willing to wager the one at the center of this past episode was one of the most powerful we’ve seen. Basically, we saw Chin make a decision that could change or even cost him his life, given that he decided to let himself be captured if it meant that Sara, who was previously abducted in the episode, could go free. It was an enormous sacrifice, but one he felt was worthy of being taken given his own guilt that he felt over being a responsible party in what happened.
In speaking further about Chin’s perceived guilt and the reasoning behind his actions, Daniel Dae Kim (who was tremendous in this episode) had the following to say in a new interview with TV Guide:
“I think one of the themes that [executive producer] Peter [Lenkov] has been exploring this season is the toll that our jobs take on our lives, as members of Five-0. The decision that Chin makes to sacrifice himself is I think a really interesting one, because I think it speaks to that theme, and that maybe there’s a feeling of resignation that this is his destiny, in some way. Living the life that he lives, choosing the profession that he has – in the way I was playing it, there was a little bit of a feeling that, one way or another, it was going to end like this. He is a result or a product of the choices he’s made. And so, in order for him to, quote unquote, get out of the game, this was the solution. This was an acceptable solution.”
As for whether or not this situation will be permanent, “Hawaii Five-0” returns to CBS in January with some new episodes, and we cannot imagine that this is a story that the series will wait on resolving for very long. If they did, odds are that some parties of the internet out there would explode. On the other side of this, we do hope that Chin gets custody of Sara and the two continue to build a life and a future together.
If you missed it, head over to the link here to check out our full review for this past “Hawaii Five-0” episode! We’ll have some other news on the show throughout the holiday hiatus, so be on the lookout for more of that.