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- TV Series: Haven
- Episode: Ain't No Sunshine
- Starring: Emily Rose, Lucas Bryant, and Eric Balfour
- Written By: Sam Ernst
- Directed By: Ken Girotti
- Network: Syfy
- Series:
Haven: Ain't No Sunshine Review
Darkness Falls By
Rob Vaux
August 29, 2010
Haven Review
© Syfy/Bob Trate
The hooks are the big problem with this show: the gimmick-of-the-week intended to drive each Haven episode towards a satisfying conclusion. The X-Files had its ups and downs, but its hooks remained intriguing at least, and with a charismatic couple of investigators, Haven should be able to provide a modest facsimile of that earlier show’s success. But week after week, it consistently drops the ball: compounded by poor dramatic development, but mainly just lacking that vital spark that piques our interest. You can give us the coolest heroes in the world, but if they don’t have anything interesting to do, we might as well watch paint dry.
“Ain’t No Sunshine” marks yet another chapter in that sorry book, a basically decent notion unable to flower into anything worthwhile. The crux concerns a living shadow murdering townsfolk connected to a local hospital. Parker (Emily Rose) and Wuoros (Luca Bryant) dutifully arrive and ferret out the source, with Wuoros’s love life serving as a subplot to the primary mystery.
As usual, the leads provide the best parts of the episode. Wuoros worries that his inability to feel any sensations on his skin may affect his performance in the bedroom, while Parker counsels him with the right combination of support and big-sister teasing. His would-be girlfriend has little to do here, despite being knee-deep in the larger mystery, but she remains an engaging presence and her gentle approach to his insecurities further endears her to us.
Unfortunately, none of that goodwill touches the central premise. The evil shadow slithers in under the doors and stabs people through the heart, providing strange evidence that leads the detectives all too easily to a supernatural explanation. As usual, Haven unloads a whole passel of new characters on us--all of whom lost someone to the “Dark Man” and all of whom insist that he really exists. Not that Parker and Wuornos have any trouble believing them. Once they determine the cause (and the shadow’s natural vulnerabilities), they need only figure out which character it stems from, and how his extraordinary supernatural powers manifested.
The repetition of this scenario has all but doomed Haven since the start. Director Ken Girotti shows no desire to alter it, relying on the same beats and motions which the remainder of the season has pounded into the ground. Moreover, while he demonstrates a nice touch with the subtler character interactions, he proves absolutely tone deaf in developing the Dark Man’s sense of menace. The shadow goes after Audrey almost as a matter of course, a strike which our heroes avert as nonchalantly as they might order coffee. A single assault on the one regular character results in a mere hospital visit, and while the shadow’s other attacks prove fatal, they occur against characters we have just met and thus have no vested interest in.
The resulting narrative leeches away the tension scene by scene until a perfunctory climax which barely registers at all. Indeed, we hardly realize it has occurred before it passes us by, and Girotti’s half-baked efforts to deliver a twist are all the more frustrating for the potential they show.
There could have been a great story here, or at least an entertaining one. Instead, we get to watch yet another hour fritter itself away, with nothing to show for it but Rose’s pretty smile and a sense of better things slipping through our fingers. I wish I could say I was surprised, but Haven hasn’t shown us anything better all year. The sooner they get on with the season finale, the better off we’ll be.
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Actually, I've found that Haven's creature-of-the-week feels more like the subplot while the character development is what it actually driving this series. And as we go further along it looks like the character portion will win overall.
This is why I despise Mania's reviews. They are never objective, they always compare to something else (in this case the X-Files (which is dead, and is never coming back (thank Dog! since they ripped off Kolchak: The Night Stalker series anyway), so the sooner you come to terms with it the better it will be for everyone)), and then they will flip-flop in the next season (see Warehouse 13 for prime example).
I liked the little nuances of this episode with Audrey trying to prove that she had friends in town, but kept getting everyone's names wrong. Or the very subtle final touch of Audrey's innocent kiss to Nathan's cheek and his reaction that hints at a lot more going on with Audrey being tied to it and the "Troubles". Just like her mother was decades before her. It's called building a story. Unfortunately, Rob is so impatient that he wants everything revealed right now, instead of taking the time to sit back and try to enjoy the ride.