Contributor: John Keegan
“Eureka” started off the Syfy Christmas special event with a hilariously ridiculous story with barely a hint of darkness. “Warehouse 13” remained a bit closer to its usual mixture of light and dark, though the light certainly prevailed. So it makes a certain amount of sense, especially for fans of “Haven”, to expect them to produce something a bit darker.
Everyone in Haven thinks that it’s Christmas Eve, despite the (relatively) balmy summer weather of July, and since Audrey is the only one who isn’t falling under the same spell, there’s only one answer: someone has a Trouble causing all of it. Oh, and the story starts off with someone being cut in half, followed by an increasing number of residents disappearing without a trace. Without a doubt, it’s a holiday in Haven.
The writers do a capable job of framing the story in a way that new viewers can jump right in without getting too lost. All the main characters and their basic functions within the series are introduced right at the start, and then the story itself spools out in a relatively self-contained fashion. While there’s really no need for this to be “within continuity”, it could fit somewhere in the middle of the second season without causing much of a problem.
The fact that there are people dying and/or in jeopardy doesn’t take away from the fact that this is still one of the more comedic episodes of the series. Duke is in rare form, and even Nathan gets a few fun moments. Audrey pretty much hates Christmas, thanks to having no family to call her own, but since it’s woven into the resolution of the story, it feels right.
“Haven” felt like a bit of a stretch in terms of producing a Christmas episode, given its tone, but it worked a lot better than I could have hoped. I would even say that this episode gave the writers a way to define Vince and Dave’s function in the town in a more direct manner than usual, which was a gift to the audience as well. (Seriously, I somehow never quite caught on to the notion that the Haven Herald was, in essence, a spin-doctoring operation, but it makes perfect sense.) Character exploration and holiday cheer? Definitely a great present for “Haven” fans.
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4
Final Rating: 8/10
