Contributor: John Keegan
Written by Jonathan Abrahams
Directed by Lee Rose
“Haven” delivered a surprising sophomore season that took all the potential of the first season and started paying it off. Layers of mystery began to peel back, and by the end of the season arc, the series was gearing up to take things to the next level. But even accounting for some of the strange directions indicated by the second season finale, I was taken aback by some of the implications of this season premiere.
Things start off relatively normal, at least by “Haven” standards. Audrey is missing, having been abducted on the verge of a love connection with Nathan, while a fight between Nathan and Duke has led to a gunshot. Of course, it’s not what it seems, no one is actually shot, and their fight is disrupted by a sudden magnetic incident that signals yet another Troubled soul. Nathan and Duke have to set aside their differences long enough to find Audrey and stop the latest threat.
What is readily apparent is that the alliance between Audrey, Nathan, and Duke, which was put forward as rather important in the second season, is all but gone. Audrey still may need the two men in her life as trusted allies, but Duke’s ability (and family legacy) put them all at odds. It’s actually hard to see Nathan and Duke, who seemed to be coming to some understanding last season, even more at each other’s throats than they were in the series premiere.
The big confusion comes in the form of Wesley, who is the Troubled individual in question, who apparently believes that the Troubles are the result of periodic alien interventions. The arrival of a “mothership” seems to prove his point. It wasn’t until the second time through the episode that I fully understood the idea: Wesley’s obsession was making his magnetic ability express itself in manifestation of “alien visitations”. Having him essentially take himself out by beaming up to the ship, and thus ostensibly to his death, fed into the philosophical battle between Nathan and Duke.
But as confusing as the whole “alien” thing was, Audrey’s discoveries while dealing with her abduction and then investigating it afterward really tossed things up in the air. Audrey’s abduction wasn’t so simple as her being tied up in the basement; she was also apparently talking to a woman who would have been long dead at the time. And her abductor apparently had a connection to the Colorado Kid.
It’s quite possible that Audrey’s abductor was somehow mimicking Rosalyn’s voice, perhaps trying to draw information out of Audrey. For that matter, we know there’s a group of Troubled who serve as semi-vigilantes to combat the inclination of mundanes to set them on fire; could this be something they sanctioned, to try to figure out who or what Audrey really is? But Vince and Dave are aware of the tattooed gang, and they seemed to be equally concerned that Audrey’s abductor was a new player in town.
Things got even stranger with the revelation that the Colorado Kid might be alive (regardless of how convinced Vince and Dave might be), and that Audrey/Lucy left a message for herself. The identity of “The Hunter” ought to be interesting, especially if it relates in some way to Audrey’s abductor.
In a lot of ways, this season premiere created a lot more mysteries than it might have resolved, and opened wide a mythology that had already shown signs of being vast in scope. I might be worried if I wasn’t aware of the amount of detail the producers had to map out to get Stephen King to approve the series in the first place. They know what they are doing, and at this point, I look forward to the journey!
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4
Final Score: 8/10
