Kat with a K

Haven 1.2: "Butterfly"

I continue to love this show beyond all reason. Click the link below to find out why.

A vaguely creepy minister. A troubled orphan. A giant metal ball rolling down the road. Mysterious butterflies. Dreams coming to life, and not in a good way. Fun! This show isn't getting much buzz, but I love love love it for its mix of laconic New Englanders and supernatural elements.

This episode felt rather Buffy-like, and I mean that in a good way. The cocooning in the hotel and the dreams coming to life, specifically, made me feel like I was watching season two or so of Buffy. The weird-stuff-of-the-week format they have going so far is rather refreshing - not everything has to be a years-long mystery. But at the same time, it's implied that the town is a magnet for this sort of thing, possibly because of The Troubles (which do not seem to have anything to do with Irish independence, oddly enough), or The Troubles were just a previous iteration. It's a little unclear. As long as there's some explanation for why Haven attracts this stuff, I'm fine.

More generally, I continue to like the setting of Haven. It really does feel like Maine, even though it's filmed in Canada. They do a good job of playing out the small town connections and history without making it too unlikely or cutesy. Of course Nathan, who grew up there as a policeman's son, would know everyone, and odds are his prom date would show up eventually. Audrey has so far mostly been used as a vehicle to present an outsider's view of the town, so I'm hoping that we get to know more about her, aside from her search for her mother, soon.

I still love Nathan - he's quickly becoming one of my favorite current TV guys - but I definitely felt the lack of Eric Balfour's Duke in this episode. I really liked the interactions between Duke, Nathan, and Audrey in the first episode, so I hope that comes back in future episodes. We're clearly headed toward some sort of triangle in which Duke and Nathan compete for Audrey's affections, and I can't wait.