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Review – Haven: Harmony (S01E03)

Review – Haven: Harmony (S01E03)

Having last week criticised Audrey Rose for her seemingly embarrassed portrayal of Agent Audrey Parker, I’m pleased to report that she wasn’t as sore-thumb sticky out this week.

And really, with the performance put on by her co-protagonist Lucas Bryant – as Nathan – she would have been foolish to offer up anything less than her best. Bryant is, frankly, wasted on Haven.

Not that I’m saying Haven isn’t worth watching, because it is, but it’s never going to register on the award circuits’ radars. But Bryant should.

Another big feather in Haven’s cap is Eric Balfour who plays the roguish Duke, and like Bryant, he put in a great performance this week that, coupled with Bryant’s, gave Harmony a gravitas that’s been somewhat lacking previously.

However, this week’s plot was yet another ludicrous one – but that’s part of the magic of Haven – in that a man playing music could induce either madness in sane people or sanity in the mad.

Silly? For sure. Unbelievable? Most certainly. But it was actually rather cleverly parlayed.

Bryant’s Nathan was one of the sane turned mad when the man (Ray) played any kind of instrument, and his depiction of the temporary insanity was outstanding. Rocking, drooling, a throaty sinister threat in his every word, a barely contained violence in every move…

If it had been for a movie, he’d be nominated all over the place right about now. It was truly engrossingly scary, and Balfour’s Duke reacted beautifully to it too.

But even though Rose definitely upped her game this week, she still feels rather disconnected from the story. Granted she’s supposed to appear the outsider, but she doesn’t feel involved at all, even in her own subplot about her missing mother.

Maybe she’ll settle in a bit more for episode five, Consumed.

Here’s the blurb…

When Audrey sees an old photo in the local newspaper of a woman who could be her mother, she decides to investigate her family origins. Meanwhile, she and Nathan look into an epidemic that threatens the town's livestock and fields.

And even given Rose’s reticent Parker, I can’t wait to see Consumed!

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by Jo Curtis on Tue, 27 July 10 0 Comments
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