Haven: The Complete Fourth Season

Details: By Loron Hays; 09 September 2014

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Haven: The Complete Fourth Season - Blu-ray Review

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What began as one confident FBI Agent’s routine assignment inside an idyllic seaside town in Maine has now turned into a mission to recover her identity. Audrey Parker (Emily Rose) is not Audrey Parker. Or is she? Part Twin Peaks and part The X-Files, Haven: The Complete Fourth Season begins to show its hand as it, apparently, winds down (or is it up?) to its final 26 episodes this year on Syfy. In spite of its growing fanbase, Haven – in its 13-episode fourth season – was a bit of a letdown.

Six months have passed since the parting of ways in the third season’s closer. Duke (Erik Balfour) has been released from the Barn and finds himself in Boston. While the vortex has only had him for less than 10 seconds, the actual time has been much longer. Haven has moved on and now Nathan (Lucas Bryant) is on the run and Dwight (Adam Copeland) has taken over as Sheriff. Audrey; however, is still in the mystical Barn and believes she is a barmaid named Lexie DeWitt.

Haven is finally free of The Troubles (or so it seems) but, when Duke roams the country and finally gets the gang back together, the peace is shattered. A mysterious stranger, William (Colin Ferguson), and his bizarre (yet dangerous) connection to Audrey is about to shatter what we know to be true about everything.

Exactly what do we know? The writers seem to tear down all preconceived notions about Haven this season. Wherever you thought they were headed goes completely outside of your best guess. The established mythos and mystery of the show becomes extraterrestrial. The writers – primarily Gabrielle Stanton and Speed Weed – have taken Steven King’s property and twisted it into an unpredictable web of supernatural mumbo jumbo as well. There always was an air of uncertainty about Haven’s direction but here, in its fourth season, the writers finally commit to what they’ve previously only hinted at.

It’s not all that satisfying, though. There are too many unanswered questions about William and his connection to Audrey. There are also little mysteries that had the show in gear and earth-bound this season. At least Haven goes confidently in the direction the writers have chosen but it is at the character’s expense. Short-term characters are written off before they have a chance. Wade Crocker anyone? Even William as the big bad baddie is a bit of a weak link.

Haven isn’t beyond recovery. We need its humanity rescued by a healthy season of character writing. Duke got a good treatment this season. How about the rest? We need a better overall conclusion – especially if Season Five is to be its final run – than to be kicked in the balls and left for dead.

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Haven: The Complete Fourth Season - Blu-ray Review

Blu-ray Details:

Available on Blu-ray - August 26, 2014
Screen Formats: 1.78:1
Subtitles: English
Audio: English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Discs: 50GB Blu-ray Disc; Four-disc set (4 BDs)
Region Encoding: A

Presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Entertainment One with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer, Haven: The Complete Fourth Season has a generally good, sharp appearance a great deal of the time. Aerial establishing shots of Nova Scotia and other exterior shots are some of the sharpest and most appealing sequences every put on blu-ray. I imagine this is great for Canada’s tourist business. Digital grain does have a tendency to crop up in dark sequences and while an overall filtered disposition pulls the visual flow down in some places, the transfer shouldn’t disappoint its fans. Accurate flesh tones and contrasted textures look smart throughout the presentation. Colors pop well and crush is at a minimum. The lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix that kisses each episode is pretty substantial for a weekly television broadcast and the tracks are loaded with nice surround sound.

Supplements:

Commentary:

There are a total of 6 wonderfully informative writers commentaries gracing various episodes. The commentaries tend to be on the chatty side, but also include a smattering of information about character backgrounds and the direction the writers are taking the show.

Special Features:

There are over two and half hours of special features included along with an exclusive 16-page comic book thrown in as well. Kicking off the extras we get thirteen “Inside Haven” Featurettes, one for each episode, which gives a great behind-the-scenes look into the show. There are Panel Highlights from various conventions including San Diego Comic-Con, Nerd HQ and New York Comic Con. There are also three interviews with the Cast talking about this season.