I, along with a lot of others, am still in denial about Jin's supposed death. There was just absolutely no certain closure. Closure could still be on the horizon somewhere early in season 5 but who knows. There has to be something to "put him to rest" in our minds. They didn't even really show him dying which considering the way Lost is pretty much leaves everything open. It could go either way but I think they'll let us know within the first few episodes, I have faith in the writers.
The reason I think Jin might possibly actually be dead is that I'm expecting season 5 to be the chopping block season where the real "meat" of Lost is just pounded to hell. I think that season 5 will sort of be like Lost's "The Two Towers" where everything goes from bad to worse, where things get even darker than they were in the previous season. Things will probably become very desperate and urgent both on and off island. It'll be like a series of horrible things setting up season 6 and the redemption and the victory and people finding themselves and all that. I mean, from what we know of the new season it's most likely going to be centered around the Dharma Initiative and they're kind of like the original big bad gang of the island, they have the potential of being much much worse than the Others or the Freighter people. Then season 6 is left open to get down to the real deep mythology like Jacob and the Smoke Monster and the original island natives and the Black Rockers.
Any thoughts on this?

I think Jin is alive. It would make the Sun storyline a lot more poignant if she is operating on the assumption that he is dead and he really is not. Especially if she is betraying the other O6 for the sake of her misplaced revenge.

As for Dharma, from the first Lost ARG we know that Dharma was started by Alvar Hanso for a very altruistic purpose - to prevent the end of humanity. I'm not sure how this will be reconciled with them being the big bad. We also know that once the other guy took over he corrupted it, but I suspect the original Dharma period coincided with Hanso's leadership.

It may be a case of everyone thinking they are doing good, even the bad guys, which seems pretty in line with how Lost has done things so far. No one has been shown to have purely evil motivations, Keamy is the closest thing to a "bad guy" but in an interview Kevy Kev said that there were some other things motivating him at home. I assume this was cut from what we eventually saw. It was implied that he had family or something he was protecting.

(Spoiler Possibility)

Over at Doc Arzt's site they have the season 5 poster. Jin is not pictures as one of the ones on the island - I think I hear tapps playing in the background.

The Official S5 promo at 00:12 pretty much confirms that Jin is dead - with text "Died for" and visual of Jin running to helicopter. That to me is as strong a clue as you usually get from Lost creators.

I believe Jin will return in similar form (whatever state of existence you call it) as Christian Shepherd. Maybe he will appear to Sun off island. Maybe a physical reunion may eventuate if the island has gone back in time.

Which reminds me of a thought I've had - do you think that Sun's father made sure they were on 815 because he knew that they were going to runaway so he'd send them somewhere they couldn't get return from?

I'm not so sure Jin is dead, either, though the promo is captivating. I could see them leaving us wondering for several episodes in to the new season, but then he'll probably be revealed to be alive. Which does add the kicker to Sun's vendetta. And I think the producers will give us some happy endings - Desmond and Penny have already reunited so that leaves Jin and Sun as the couple we're invested in.

And anyway: I have felt so bad for Jin the entire show. He really has a hard time of things. What really always stood out to me was Jin's isolation, with the whole language barrier. That really set him apart from the group. Quite tragic.
So I think Jin deserves his happy ending.

So basically, under the new "new" management, nothing is any different than under the old "new" management--hardly any new content, just links to other sites, and very few follow-up posts. Why did I bother getting my hopes up? I honestly thought the new blood might be able to fix this site.

Considering that they left Jin's status so up-in-the-air, I'd be very surprised to see any mention of him in the promotional materials, even if he were still alive.

While the story could go in so many different ways, it's interesting to note that Sun has taken the diametric opposite attitude that Rose took; Sun seems absolutely, unquestionably certain that her husband is dead. And that attitude may significantly shape her actions in the story.

Now **if** it turns out that Jin is alive, then news of that fact, at the right time, would amount to a very convenient turning point in Sun's story. If, as there's at least a little suggestion, the various members of the O6 seem to be aligning themselves into opposing camps, the news that Jin is alive might be the needed kick to move Sun back into the fold...

Gwoss: the promotions are not made by the Lost team, they don't have any control over what is shown or said in the promos, the network does all that. Damon and Carlton have mentioned before that they get kind of erked about the promotions because they either give too much away or they mislead, and I totally agree with them. I'd rather not know right now what I do from the promos.