Contributor: John Keegan
Written by Gabrielle Stanton
Directed by Rob Lieberman
One of the things that the “Haven” panel at New York Comic-Con clarified was the drive behind this season. For whatever reason (and much against the typical network request), Syfy asked the producers and writers of “Haven” to make the third season a bit more serialized than past seasons. It definitely explains the structure of the season up to this point, and might also explain why it feels like the balance between episodic and serialized elements hasn’t quite been struck.
It’s pushing the series closer to the early “Supernatural” model, where the episodic elements are designed to explore or reveal elements of the season arc or the psychology of a given character at that moment in the story. “Haven” has done this well already, so it’s a question of pushing more of the latter without losing sight of the former. This episode seemed to do a good job of presenting a good mystery in terms of the Troubled individual and the effect on Team Audrey.
Duke is not reacting well to being asked to kill in the previous episode, and Nathan is worried that Duke might have liked it a little too much. I’m still not entirely sold on this notion that Nathan would ignore Duke’s previous growth as a semi-trusted teammate based on “destiny” alone, but this episode is making a better case of it. Nathan, after all, seems very attuned to the idea of destiny at the moment.
What is interesting is that Duke makes a concerted effort not only to prove his intentions to Audrey and Nathan, but also to control his volatile ability and channel it for the benefit of one of the Troubled. It’s not simply a matter of rejecting his “destined” role, but actively working in contradiction to it. No one can say that Duke isn’t trying!
Nathan is trying to, but in the opposite sense. He’s looking for The Guard, and that is unlikely to end well, since any secret enforcement organization for the Troubled is hardly going to cast favor on friendly relations with Duke. What I found a bit odd was the secretive nature of the Guard. While it was never called by that name, didn’t we hear about them last season? Nathan even alluded to this. It feels like there is a bit of a disconnect, or perhaps a retroactive tweaking of The Guard’s nature.
Meanwhile, the addition of Mr. Bowen to the police force gave Vince and Dave an excuse to delve into his history, and the writers an excuse to reveal more about the Teagues. It’s all a fancy way to deliver exposition, but it is done fairly well and works within the context of the characters. The Teagues have always seemed to know more than they should about the history and nature of Haven, and their vast control over the town and its resources is an intriguing detail.
There was also the not-insignificant matter of Audrey’s memories, suggesting that there will be future flashbacks to her earlier incarnations. This should not only provide a possible means of answering big questions about the Colorado Kid, but also the long-term history of Haven and Audrey’s connections to the Troubles. It might even be setting up the means of exploring the genesis of the Troubles as a whole.
This is clearly more of a transitional episode, as the writers continue to work on the pacing and balance of the season, moving characters into slightly different positions on the board. Unlike the previous episode, however, the central mystery was a bit stronger, and all of the characters had their moments to shine.
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4
Final Score: 8/10
