Audrey Parker on Haven [Female Protagonists on SciFi TV]

Oct 222010

Audrey Parker – An FBI agent who ends up in Haven, Maine on a routine case only to end up staying when she finds an old newspaper clipping with a picture of a woman named Lucy who looks just like her with the heading “Who Killed The Colorado Kid?”. The woman is suspected of being her mother, however, this has not been confirmed, but other evidence shows that maybe Lucy is someone else in relation to Audrey. Audrey grew up an orphan in Ohio. She is a friendly person to most of Haven and tries very hard to help those who are afflicted with “The Troubles”. After a visit of her superior, she quits the FBI and takes Chief Wournos’ job offer in Haven PD. Recently though, evidence has cropped up that shows that she is the woman in the photo, as the arrival of an FBI agent named ‘Audrey Parker’ shows that Audrey may in fact be Lucy.

Haven is a new series very loosely based on Stephen Kings Hardboiled mystery novella The Colorado Kid.

Audrey is an interesting character played by Emily Rose (Jericho, Brothers and Sisters, ER). Much of my interest in the show comes from the dynamic between her and her reliable police partner Nathan and the mysterious and dangerous Duke. It seems like both of them have feelings for her and she for them. A love interest like this alway spices up a series in my opinion.

A similar dynamic exists between her and the city of Haven. Is there a connection between her returning to Haven and that ‘the troubles’ resurfaces? The town is filled with delightfully quirky people. And it rubs off on Audrey.

Audry’s past before she came/returned to Haven is more mysterious but it is clear that her FBI boss is somehow involved in the troubles.

The show started a bit formalistic but got better and better as the season continued and the season finale was surprising and a great buildup for another season even if a slightly longer season where they could have explored the hard packed finale wouldn’t have damaged the show in my opinion.

The team behind Haven is heavily from The Dead Zone team but you hardly notice any influence from there besides the obvious setting in Maine.

I am looking forward to season two and hope we get to know more of the Circle People and which role the Reverent plays in the power struggle that seems to be going on under the surface.

Character: Audrey Parker

Played by: Emily Rose
Series: Haven
Original Network: Syfy 2010
Status: Returning Series, Season 2 premieres summer 2011.

Audrey Parker is a the shrewd and confident FBI agent with a lost past who arrives in the small town of Haven, Maine to solve the murder of a local ex-con. Before long, her natural curiosity lands her in the epicenter of activity in this curious enclave, which turns out to be a longtime refuge for people that are afflicted with a remarkable range of supernatural abilities.

Emily Rose

Holds an M.F.A in Acting from UCLA (Class of 2006).
Graduated from Vanguard University of Southern California with a degree in Theater Arts.
Skilled Equestrian in both English and Western riding. Looking forward to a role where her character rides horses.
Seattle native.
Studied Theatre/Shakespeare at Oxford for a summer.

Videos

Haven 1.07 – Sketchy [TV Review] August 22, 2010
Haven 1.06 – Fur [Review] August 15, 2010
Haven 1.05 – Ball and Chain [Review] August 8, 2010
Haven 1.04 – Consumed (Review) July 31, 2010
Haven 1.03 – Harmony (Review) July 24, 2010
Haven 1.02 – Butterfly (Review) July 20, 2010
Haven – New Series Premieres Friday July 9 July 2, 2010
Haven – New Stephen King based TV Series on SyFy this Summer! March 31 2010

Series Index

Share|

Haven 1.07 – Sketchy [TV Review]

TV Series 1 Response »

Aug 222010

Last Week

Fur was the attack of the stuffed animals, Nathan meets a witch and Audrey is not a summer person any more.

This Week

This episode had some good character development. There seems to be some romantic relationships being formed also, at least one of them without conflict, although the amusement factor is high. I enjoy triangle dramas as much as the other guy but it feels a bit over used on TV at the moment.

There is a scene in the beginning where Nathan is being invited to dinner by Jess and he is totally clueless, that was hilarious but the whole episode has a lot of humor. Audrey teases him relentlessly about it on the case, and she is funny. What makes or breaks a show are the characters and Haven has some good ones.

The plot is a bit more sinister this time around. Someone is using a power that can bend and fold people for their own business. They even threaten the town. There is the usual detective work and the twists surprise and we are kept in suspense until the end. I really enjoyed Audrey and Nathan’s dialogs and how they come up with their theories this episode.

Duke and Nathan continues their bitter but entertaining banter but I thing Audrey might be coming down with a bad-boy crush. But that is okay Duke and Audrey are the most interesting characters so far in the show and the more we get to see them the better in my opinion.

On the trivia side there are some Stephen King references in this episode. The lookout point is named King’s point and the idea for this week’s power comes from The Dark Tower, book seven in the series with the same name, where it is used to defeat the Crimson King. Did you find any more?

The big mystery moves forward in baby steps. Eleanor is sailing up as Audrey’s mentor and is it only I that get a Warehouse 13 vibe when Eleanor agrees to protect the ‘artifacts’? This show has found its footing and I am looking forward to next week’s episode.

Next Week

Haven 1.08 – Ain’t No Sunshine (syfy)

A local ghost story may be more than it seems as patients at a Haven clinic speak of a dark spirit that claims the lives of sick people before their time.

Haven 1.06 – Fur [Review] August 15, 2010
Haven 1.05 – Ball and Chain [Review] August 8, 2010
Haven 1.04 – Consumed (Review) July 31, 2010
Haven 1.03 – Harmony (Review) July 24, 2010
Haven 1.02 – Butterfly (Review) July 20, 2010
Haven – New Series Premieres Friday July 9 July 2, 2010
Haven – New Stephen King based TV Series on SyFy this Summer! March 31 2010

Share|

Haven 1.06 – Fur [Review]

TV Series No Responses »

Aug 152010

Last Week

Nathan went baby crazy while one of the town ladies turned sweet Helena on Fridays and hatched a baby on Sundays killing the father of old age at the same time.

This Week

The animals in Haven seem agitated this week and seek revenge on the members of Haven’s Hunt Club. The first victim is killed in his car by a wolf that has broken the rear window to get in. Nathan makes a werewolf joke since there was a full moon the night of the murder but when his father, who is a member of the club proclaim. “That wolf got to be killed”

Before it teaches other wolves to break into cars? Audrey replies

Audrey really makes an impression in the town this episode taking charge and going places. But I think it is when she picks the right bakery and demonstrate her shooting skills to the club members they realize she isn’t a ‘summer person’ any more. Keeping the secrets might also play a part. Becoming a local is still a decade or two away. I think we all have seen places like that and can relate.

The plot is much more unpredictable now and in the latest episodes which is good. The first ones were following the same pattern. Another man is killed inside his garage by another wolf breaking through the window. And they start to have all kinds of interesting theories and suspects. An animal rights activist who catches Nathan’s interests might be a witch or an ‘animal whisperer’. I was very surprised when they were attacked in the woods by an elk and we see the stuffing come out. Now they are on the track of the real reason. Stuffed animals come alive and seek revenge on their killers. It takes them a while to find the guy doing the stuffing but there is when another surprise twists lands. He is also stuffed. He died of smoke poisoning in a fire and his mother stuffed him. He had been using some rags of cloth from her when doing the stuffing. She sacrifices herself for her son when the whole trophy room at the Club comes to life.

The guy is having this whole am I human thing while his kid play nearby. I would definitely freak out if I found out I was stuffed, it could explain my expanded waist though. Nathan talks him down by showing that he is not alone being different.

Audrey really shines she comes across strong, charming and capable. Nathan is still the silent mysterious one but their chemistry is unmistakable. Duke is not in this episode which is a pity. Haven has clicked for me, I am really looking forward to it every week. The only thing lacking from the show now is some development in big arc promised in the pilot, the mystery behind Audrey’s mom and Haven.

Next Week

Haven 1.07 – Sketchy (Syfy)
A bent and broken body is discovered, kicking off inexplicable events that may be linked to a troubled person who can hurt people from afar.

Haven 1.05 – Ball and Chain [Review] August 8, 2010
Haven 1.04 – Consumed (Review) July 31, 2010
Haven 1.03 – Harmony (Review) July 24, 2010
Haven 1.02 – Butterfly (Review) July 20, 2010
Haven – New Series Premieres Friday July 9 July 2, 2010
Haven – New Stephen King based TV Series on SyFy this Summer! March 31 2010

Share|

Haven 1.05 – Ball and Chain [Review]

TV Series 2 Responses »

Aug 082010

Last Week

Last week stress got the better of one brother eating and everything he consumed went rotten. And don’t forget Audrey dressed local.

This Week

This week something is aging men in Haven. The entertaining old brothers from the local newspaper are back. This time they find an aged body in a small sinking boat. Audrey and Nathan take on the case and soon discover the man aged in a few days. Their coroner is quite an entertaining lady; they meet her at the tennis court when an aged man walks in. He is the man Audrey saw the night before at Dukes with a tourist beauty.

They interview Abby the Harbor Master but Nathan seems more interested in her baby. When I say interested I mean he is baby-happy to the amusement of Audrey. This is when I should have started to be suspicious, since nothing just seems to happen in this show.

It is about this time it starts to click for me and Nathan/Audrey. Teasing, banter and bickering makes good chemistry in my book. The Nathan-Audrey-Duke triangle also keeps it interesting and this time Audrey stand up Duke who then falls prey to the common denominator the beautiful but age inducing Helena. Duke is entertaining the day after as he starts to age and it makes Nathan a little bit softer on him. Do you get the feeling they used to be best friends too?

They chase after Abby since she seems to know something about Helena (she has been asking around in the harbor). But Abbey is Helena which Audrey discovers when she recognizes outfits in Abbey’s closet. The nanny lead them to the lighthouse where Abbey is about to give birth to a third baby, Duke’s baby. We learn the fathers age during the two day pregnancy and they die when Abby holds the baby for the first time. That is just Haven weird.

Audrey first tries to give the baby to Duke hoping it would reverse the effects but he only gets worse. In the end the bureau find an adoption for the kid since Duke would die if he or Abby ever held the kid again. Eighteen years from now a stunning beauty walks into Duke’s bar, is my thought about that.

We learn that Helena works much like lycanthropy. Abby have no control over her so what do they do. Lock her up? No the nanny takes her to the lighthouse every Friday and chains her up. Hope no male decide to hike out to the lighthouse on a Friday night in the future.

Duke gets pretty emotional when Audrey tells him he has a daughter but he clams up when Nathan arrives.

I would say this is one of the best episodes so far. The plot was not as formulaic as earlier episodes and kept me in suspense. But they really need to get some kind of series arch, world building or whatever going because the only people we meet are the ones involved in the case. Though this time there were some like Nora the bartender that was a distraction from the real perpetrator, I just wonder if we ever see her again?

Things of notice this week

The old newspaper guys know something about Audrey’s mother they are not letting on.
The thing between Duke and Nathan probably has something to do with a girl they grew up with. (theory)

Next Week

Haven 1.06 – Fur (Syfy)
In Haven, even the animals have something to hide. “This is no ordinary wolf attack”

Haven 1.04 – Consumed (Review) July 31, 2010
Haven 1.03 – Harmony (Review) July 24, 2010
Haven 1.02 – Butterfly (Review) July 20, 2010
Haven – New Series Premieres Friday July 9 July 2, 2010
Haven – New Stephen King based TV Series on SyFy this Summer! March 31 2010

Share|

Haven 1.04 – Consumed (Review)

TV Series No Responses »

Jul 312010

Last Week

Shenanigans at the Freddy would be short for riot at the local mental hospital by the staff while the patients get sane. Audrey and Nathan discover the secret behind it and helps the perpetrator escape with his wife to the sea where his music can’t harm anyone else.

This Week

So Duke takes a Spanish baby on the sea after some entertaining verbal sparring with agent Parker. But he does recommend her to go to Haven’s Farmer’s Market which is promptly attacked by rotten fruits and vegetables. Audrey is intrigued and calls Nathan in. The peculiar thing is that is only some of the carts that have been affected.

The rotting plague continues to strike around town while they try to find the common denominator. The ice cream maker had a rather spectacular case when the milk fermented inside his cows and killed them. The entire high school team comes down with a case of acid burn. All the vendors supply the same restaurant, Bill and Jeff’s Second Chance Bistro. Jeff arrived back in town lately after years cooking all over the world. I immediately thought so we are supposed to suspect it is Jeff doing this when it is in reality Bill or Bill’s wife? They ought to change the formula.

There is no surprise that Duke delivers stuff to that restaurant to. Meg is Bill’s wife hm, it is either Bill or Meg. Jeff has an assistant that might be a runner up to. A&N visit Jeff making some bird dish and then when they leave the place birds fall out of the sky and Audrey says “I have seen this movie, it doesn’t end well”.

All point at Meg but that is just a sign it’s not her. Time to place another distraction. Seems like their competition Lobster Pop is interested in the location. Their guy John Roberts has Jeff on speed dial.

Audrey goes shopping in preparation for the grand reopening of Jeff and Bill’s restaurant Second Chances. Two old somewhat amusing guys helping Audrey help her with fashion advise. The grand opening goes well until Bill learns about Jeff contacts with Lobster Pop. One taste of the Salmon and the whole diner rots in seconds. The brothers has a fallout and Jeff declares he is going back to work for an ex girlfriend ditching Catherina.

But Jeff shows up with the dead salmon in the sea the next day. He visited Duke that night so they talk to him. All of a sudden there is a knife involved and a rather cute story that Duke tells about Second Chances. But of course it is not Duke, even A&N figure it out eventually that it is Bill that caused the rot. But to my surprise Jeff was murdered by Catherina slipping him sesame oil which caused an allergic reaction that knocked him off.

All is happy in the end, Bill gets to be a wood worker and Duke gets the restaurant deed.

Audrey put on some delightful local attire at the end you should not miss.

Haven is getting there but I miss the bigger picture, when is the next clue going to drop? It will take forever if there is a clue every second episode.