Episode Title: Sins of the Fathers
Series: Haven
Episode No.: 2.12
Genre: supernatural, thriller, horror, mystery

Haven 2.12 Sins of the Fathers

 

Nathan and Audrey, still reeling from the Teagues revealing what they know of her true past earlier in the morning, investigate an apparent murder in which the murderer claims it was an accident as he was there at the behest of a dead man to protect said dead man’s wife. What makes it even more interesting are the neighbors who claim to have seen the dead man leaving the house shortly after the shooting, giving some credence to the murderer’s words. Duke, meanwhile, is visited by his father’s ghost who realizes he needs to convince Duke to carry on with his work of ridding the Troubled of their afflictions—forever.

 

Audrey and Nathan quickly decide it has to be someone troubled bringing the dead back and soon join up with Duke, who tells them what he’s learned about his own Trouble. While Nathan spends some time with the Chief, Duke and Audrey go in search of their prime suspect, Kyle, only to be sidetracked by the strange markings around town and the disappearances of people from the homes so marked. Duke leaves with the Rev to protect Audrey, leaving Nathan and Audrey to eventually follow Kyle’s wife in the hopes of finding him. They find not only the man but a number of Driscoll’s followers and the Troubled they kidnapped for Duke to “cure”.

 

Captured, they are brought to the others with Nathan suspicious of Duke being with the Rev and his men, but Duke insists he won’t kill anyone. The Rev and Simon try to convince Duke to use his ability to save Kyle, who is horrified he is one of the cursed. Kyle runs himself on Duke’s blade in order to save his unborn child from getting his affliction. As Kyle dies, the Rev and Simon encourage Duke to continue his work with Simon boasting no one could stop his son while Garland counters that he has a son too (implying Nathan would stop Duke) and encourages Nathan to take care of Audrey. After the ghosts finally depart Audrey quickly get a gun and places the kidnappers under arrest.

 

As things seem to be winding down, Audrey is nervously preparing for her dinner date with Nathan. Believing Nathan is early she opens the door only to be tasered by some mysterious assailant. Nathan arrives later to find her apartment tossed and Audrey missing. His only clue is a familiar item: Duke’s whistle. Nathan angrily storms onto the Cape Rouge demanding to know where Duke took Audrey. Duke is confused and tries to reason with Nathan only to have a scuffle ensue, in which Duke notices Nathan now bears the tattoo of the man who is supposed to kill him. Nathan tells Duke he’s not waiting for an answer any longer and the scene cuts away to the exterior of the Rouge with a single gunshot going off.

 

 

Information/Commentary

 

• So people in Haven don’t even blink an eye at ghosts telling them to do something? Not even a little? These are the people that are worried about the Troubled?
• Vengeful ghosts.
• Audrey and Duke have an uncomfortable moment, but sweet that Duke insists on trying to reassure Audrey he has no intention of carrying on his old man’s job.
• Busted, Dave! And so is your cup.
• The ring! Is that the same ring Nathan found in his Dad’s remains?
• Audrey – Lucy – Sara - ??
• Vince intends to help Audrey. But how?
• So the Teagues have no idea who “Agent Howard” was? Some how not buying that with those two shifty old fellas. Garland may have kept “Howard” a secret from his buds but I doubt it.
• Tahmoh Penikett! Not!Helo. Not!Ballard. Awesome. (Fandom’s actors crossing over. BSGxDollhousexHaven)
• I can’t help but snicker at the sudden jump in conversation from the crime to Nathan asking Audrey out for dinner. I guess when it’s death by ghost you can take your time figuring it out.
• Nathan is so adorable. And a complete dork in the dinner or breakfast bit.
• So Duke’s affliction: kill a Troubled person and their trouble disappears from the entire family forever.
• “Zombies are trendy.”
• Audrey and Nathan figuring out their relationship: double the adorability.
• So Duke is responsible for setting off Nathan’s affliction two years ago. (If the series is still set in 2010 then 2008 is when Nathan’s affliction came back, otherwise 2009. Just noting this for continuity purposes.)
• Another person killed by brother of a rape victim who committed suicide.
• Ah, so vengeful ghost Arlo wanted revenge on wife and wife’s lover for cheating on him and giving him the heart attack that took his life.
• In an effort to get Duke to carry on with their family’s work Simon tells Duke what really happened at camping trip some 26 years earlier that killed a number of children in the third grade class and how Simon could have stopped it.
• The Rev! How much you want to bet the anti-Trouble bigot/gravedigger guy, Kyle Hopkins, is the one bringing the dead back.
• Stephen McHattie. ‘Nuff said.
• Audrey can’t see the ghosts but apparently everyone else can. So does that mean everyone in Haven has a little bit of trouble since they can see the ghosts?
• Everyone coming back buried by same guy.
• Amused at Audrey and Nathan eyeing each other as they work at the computer. Two socially awkward fools in love.
• Duke buried the chest at his father’s grave, which had been moved the previous year to the Eastside Cemetery.
• The Chief!
• Wait, if Kyle Hopkins is bringing the dead back like I think then how is the Chief back?
• Brilliant acting on Nicholas Campbell’s part to indicate how his spirit has pulled itself together after his physical body was blown apart.
• Garland was buried at Goose Hill.
• Garland doesn’t want Nathan to love Audrey. Nathan basically tells his dad it’s too late for that.
• Duke ditches Audrey to protect her from the Rev.
• Laughed at Audrey saying she’s get the info out of Nathan later. It just sounded like something a couple would say to one another.
• Red X for people to be kidnapped?
• “She’s my friend.”
• The look Nathan and Duke share after Kyle impales himself on the knife and activates Duke’s gift is intense.
• Bromance stare down!
• So Lucy (or someone with her—say Howard?) killed Simon sometime after Simon found the real Lucy and Sara killed Duke’s grandfather.
• Love the arguing between the Rev, Simon, and Garland.
• Kyle is dead and the ghosts dissipate.
• I get that Kyle is religious and thinks he’s cursed by God but if his affliction is bringing back the ghosts of the dead then why not simply, y’know, not be a gravedigger instead of committing suicide.
• So these wusses that follow the Rev outnumber and outgun Nathan and Audrey and are all ready to murder dozens of people while the Rev’s ghost is around but instantly surrender once he’s gone. Seems like an easy enough affliction to control.
• Looks like a lot of people in Haven are going to jail today: kidnapping, several conspiracy charges (murder, arson, et al).
• Vince had Garland unburied, but why? Vince’s words about them needing Garland gets creepy if they mean there is some way to reassemble the Chief and bring him back to life.
• Audrey is different this time around according to Vince. Interesting.
• Wow, Audrey’s going all out for her dinner date with Nathan.
• Holycats! Somebody just tazed Audrey. (See I knew they had to throw a bump into the whole Nathan-Audrey relationship.)
• Duke looks so weighed down by the world there.
• Nathan got the tattoo! And it looks fresh. I so called it! (Side note: Had a bet with a friend on this one. Pay up friend o’ mine!)
• It’s not a real Bromance spat without the guns.
• Duke freaking at the tattoo on Nathan’s arm.
• Nate, now is not the time to nurture your inner psycho.
• Gunshot. But from whom?

 

 

Sins of the Fathers is a brilliant capstone to an amazing season with the mysteries and secrets swirling around Duke, Nathan, and Audrey coming to a head in a rather dramatic manner. The three deal with the manipulations and machinations (and the fallout as a result) of the Teagues, the Rev, Simon, and Garland in varying degrees. Duke is in a quandary over his affliction requiring him to kill people in order to save others, a dilemma that is brilliantly not resolved in the episode. Nathan and Audrey’s own quandary is more personal as they grow closer and stumble their way through the budding relationship together, with the interesting reveal at the end of Nathan marking himself via the tattoo as one of the Troubled protectors.

 

So fans got a lot of questions answered, and in true Haven style had a whole boat load more questions arise.

 

 

The Troubled

 

I found it interesting that in this episode that apparently everyone, save Audrey, could see the ghosts that had been brought back by the troubled gravedigger. Now the fact that so many could see the assorted apparitions it makes me wonder if everyone in Haven is troubled in varying degrees given Audrey is not generally affected by the afflictions of others. That would prove to be an interesting twist about the town itself: the entire community being troubled but unaware of the fact.

 

Duke and Nathan

 

Obviously Duke and Nathan have been friends off and on since childhood with numerous blowouts between the two. I understand Nathan’s particular extreme dislike and distrust of Duke better now after discovering what triggered Nathan’s affliction. Obviously part of Nathan now blames Duke for his affliction’s return on top of the betrayal of someone Nathan was genuinely making an effort to reconcile with. That too tells me that at some point in their younger years Nathan considered Duke a close friend, so much so that Nathan was willing to try and rekindle that friendship. Instead he was betrayed on what was obviously a deep level and that betrayal is not something that can be forgiven easily.

 

Nathan, Max, Garland, and the Tattoo

 

I find it interesting that I now need to reassess my initial preconceptions of Max Hansen and any of the others that bear the maze tattoo over this season. It seems that Max Hansen, while no paragon of virtue or even a lawful decent person, was despite his murderous nature (or perhaps because of it) a defender of the Troubled in Haven. His comments about getting to church and having friends in town can now be taken with a totally different aspect: he was potentially letting everyone know he was back and intended to protect his family (Nathan) and the Troubled from harm. This of course would blow the roof off of Garland and the Teagues efforts to keep the Troubles low key and hidden as well as dampen the spirits of some of the Rev’s followers. So now we have Nathan in the unique position of following the paths of both his fathers: as a cop and as a protector of the Troubled. That could be an interesting tight rope to see Nathan walk, but one I think he could do well.

 

Audrey

 

We learn quite a bit more about the past lives of Audrey and the fact that she dates back quite some time. The Teagues have known her as three different people: Audrey, Lucy Ripley (brown haired), and Sara (the redhead) and beyond even that. Interestingly it seems that it was Sara that Dave feared, but why? Given comments by both brothers, Audrey is significantly different than both Lucy and Sara, enough so that Vince is willing to break with his brother in order to help her this time around. What is this difference?

 

 

Rating: 9.0/10.0