[Recap] Haven: 1×02 “Butterfly”

Here we go. If you read my recap last week, you will not need to watch this week’s Up To Now bit.

Wait, after the opening montage it showed Agent Parker drive off and a gaping crack in the earth starts to chase after her. Did that happen last week and I missed it?

New faces as an older man pulls up to a bar in his car, gets out, and starts yelling at a woman leaving. My impression is that he is a teetotaler and is unhappy that she (who looks quite mousy and “hardworking”) works at a place selling poison. It’s his daughter. I hope he dies first. Dad pulls out some kid and says she needs to spend more time with him. Boy looks a little perplexed.

The bar owner comes out and has words with Dad. Reminds him he was a drinker back in the day. Dad points at him and says, “Otis,” that’s the owner’s name. Otis. “Otis,” Dad says, “watch yourself.” Then he hops into his car and skedaddles.

Cut to a peaceful neighborhood on a peaceful morning. Now there is a giant metal ball rolling down the street. I display a confused expression. No one is around to witness it – it’s too early.

Ok, some early morning joggers and coffee drinkers (gods bless ‘em) are up and see this Giant Ball. It’s a good thing, I’d hate to think something like this would vanish unseen into history. Witnesses display confused expressions. Good, it’s not just me.

Guest what!? The Giant Ball rolls on right down that street and plum into that ol’ bar that Otis owns. Well howdy ‘bout that? /Andy Griffith

The opening credit sequence for this show it totally whacked. It reminds me of the opening credits of that awesome Carnivale show that was on HBO a few years ago. I wish this show was as awesome as that.

Special Agent Audrey Parker power-walks into Chief Wuornos’ office and rudely demands information from the Chief in regard to that photo she found last week (someone that looks like her from 35 years ago). He was the beat cop, it was during a murder investigation. They spar a little verbally and he agrees while putting her off. Extended scene here with the Chief and he’s pretty good. They should use him more. A smartass that doesn’t really care for Parker or the FBI. He’s also Detective Nathan’s father. Who which, by the way, just walked in and somehow got roped into taking Parker with him on the call to the Giant Ball crushed bar.

The ball is from a sculpture up on Green St. Ball. Heh heh. Huh huh. The duo axe Otis if he could have pissed anyone off recently that would want to put a giant ball in his bar and Otis says well hell yeah, Driscoll was in my face last night! Oooh, he lives on Green St.

The Giant Ball weighs three tons. Wow.

Driscoll is the Reverend at a church. Everyone calls him The Rev. Nathan doesn’t like anyone. The Rev is a “self righteous ass.” Actually, he’s a beer hating bastard. Nathan probably doesn’t like him because he can feel pain. That joke never gets old.

Hannah is the name of The Rev’s daughter. The Rev is forcing her to explain why he was at the bar. You can tell that he’s a dominating Dickens-like father. They try to recruit the daughter’s help when The Rev leaves the room. He comes back and Parker goes after The Rev. He shuts her up with a lame-o line.

The duo leaves. Detective Nathan has a history with the Hannah. A high school fling that got to third base. The Rev doesn’t like him because of that. The dialogue between Audrey and Nathan is a little better this week.

Agent Parker is in the shower at her hotel. Roy Orbison noise. She comes out in a towel and finds a butterfly on her bed. She hippie-ishly ushers it out an already open window and curtains. She is a generous woman.

Wait! A noise? A smell? Parker is on alert. Whoa! She ignores her instincts and starts fiddling with her phone. Suddenly her bedclothes start to unravel, braid themselves into thicker cords, and wrap around her! It takes her a very long time to notice this is happening. Gotta trust your instincts, girl.

Oh shit, she’s a mummy! Just before she’s wrapped completely she is able to dial Detective Nathan. The phone drops to the ground and he answers. Her mouth is covered. . . he figures it out though.

Parker is on the warpath. Attacked by an unraveling blanket! She saw a butterfly and The Rev Driscoll collects butterflies. Watson, a hansom!

Mulder & Skully moment. “Yo, dude! A blanket! You still don’t believe?”

They go talk to Hannah and her foster son who was exploited by The Rev at the beginning. Hannah was basically forced to foster the boy by The Rev after his parents tragically died. She loves him now, though. The Rev has a weird temper, the son tells Nathan. The son hides in his room a lot, but The Rev “is cool like that,” otherwise.

Later. Nathan and Parker walking… by the church. The Rev jumps out like the Big Bad Wolf at Red Riding Hood. THOU SHANT NOT DRINK BEER! He gives it to them real horrorshow. More about talking to his daughter while she was doing God’s work. It looked like she was putting canned vegetables away to me.

A butterfly shows up and OH MY GOD THEY DRAW DOWN ON THE BUTTERFLY. The fact that The Rev subsequently gets dragged into the street by an invisible force pulling his necklace does not seem half as weird in comparison.

Full on crazy now as the rev gets dragged until he is sprawled across the hood of a car. Then a car down the street starts by invisible force and begins its trek to squash The Rev in a head-on collision. The duo pull him out in time and flop over to the grass to avoid the hit. Car’s empty, yo. How’s Nathan going to continue wearing that Skully Cap?

Relief all around.

Ok, since The Rev was attacked they figure he’s not responsible for calling the Giant Ball and Blanket Monster. But what about Hannah? Hmm… they go to to explore the possibility. Nathan is displeased because of the whole High School Thing. Let it go man.

Otis thinks Hannah was stealing from the bar. He was about to fire her. Nathan doesn’t believe it. You know, high school? Parker does believe it. Especially when she finds out that Hannah had a secret bank account a few towns over with 57k squirreled away.

They go to The Rev’s house and he is off the wagon. Hm, he’s surprisingly not more sympathetic now. Audrey drops the bomb that they think Hannah is rolling balls and smashing cars. The Rev gets a bit upset at the accusation.

Apparently The Lord cast Nathan out. Nathan retaliates by calling The Rev a drunk. Hannah is not there. They leave.

The Rev told them she was at the junior high science fair with her son. Her son looks way older than jr. high. Anyway, the duo head up there. Cut to the science fair and a touching foster mom – foster son moment.

The duo arrive and confront Hannah with the 57k. Hannah reveals that she is an undercover auditor for a bank. Otis is a bad dude and skims money. Hannah breaks it down that she does this undercover gig from time to time and saved that 57k the hard way – she earned it. She excuses herself, has to go help her son with his butterfly science project.

“Whoa what?!” Me, Parker, and Nathan say. They go to try to find the kid around the school, Bobby is his name, and see a butterfly floating out the boy’s locker room. There is also a sudden flood of water forcing itself underneath all the doors. And now an electrical wire is down. It’s funny, this show shows some creepy things but there is never a feeling of menace.

Wire. Water. Wire. Water. Doors all locked. They climb on top of a bench as the shocking water closes in. They bust out a panel of glass on the locked door and reach through to pull the fire alarm.

Kid was in the boy’s locker room taking a nap on the ass bench. Sick. The fire alarm wakes him up. He sits up and pulls his ipod phones out of his ears. Back to Nathan and Parker – the water recedes and wire stops sparking.

Does the boy do this when he sleeps? Or when he listens to Devil Music?

Ok, I’m back. I know you didn’t know I went anywhere, but I did. Laid down for a second, ate a piece of cold pizza. Got some coffee, too. Ready to go.

Bobby’s coach tells the duo that he’s a good boy. So quiet. He could not possibly be a psychopathic… uh phychotelapathic? Bobby just likes to catch his Zs in the locker room says the coach. Damn, Nathan and Parker don’t quite drawn down this time, but they are sus pish us. A boy that likes to sleep in the boy’s locker room? Jerry Falwell must be notified.

The Rev, Bobby, and Hannah’s house is a wreck. They find The Rev passed out in the mess. The boy and his ma never made it back. There are, however, some clues in Bobby’s room:

• Some toy that looks like one of those orbiting planet models painted gold. The center piece is a small Giant Ball.
• A few toy magnets.
• A National Geographic or something that shows an insect in a cocoon.
• A painting of lightning striking water.

Get it? Balls, necklace being pull as if by a magnet, Blanket Cocoon Monster, and wire-water in the hallway. All these things in Bobby’s room? They’re the things he sees before he goes to sleep  (whew, Devil Music is off the hook. Probably.) He’s a supernatural subconscious sleep stalker, son!

It is deduced, somehow, that Bobby doesn’t want to hurt anyone and is trying to stay awake. He could also be scared of Freddy Krueger or not trying to stay awake at all. I have no idea how they figured this out. I probably missed something while typing. I hope. Anyway, that means that he knows that he hurts people when he sleeps so they need to find Bobby and Hannah.

For the one hundred and thirty-second time we are back at The Rev’s house where Hannah and Bobby are not, but where The Rev is. He tells them about Bobby’s dead family’s cabin in Miller’s Crust – I think that’s what he said – he thinks they might have gone there if they were going to the mattresses or if he threw them out.

Some more The Rev and Nathan bickering. He thinks Bobby is not one of God’s children. Snore.

At the cabin Bobby and his mom are talking…

In the car Parker and Nathan are talking about his history with The Rev. There must be something else besides the three-bagger with Hannah, Nathan’s just not spilling the goods.

Back at the cabin Bobby has apparently spilled the goods about his supernatural subconscious sleepwalker status and Hannah is incredulous. She is explaining to her son why he must sleep and things will look better when he is rested. Bobby is like, “Looks, woman, I just said-” but he decides not to go there.

Frantic cell phone calling from Agent Parker to Hannah. This is how Parker created Storm last week. Parker is bumped to voice mail. Which is too bad because Parker is leaving a message that says, if Bobby sleeps, someone is gonna DIE! Except more polite.

A butterfly lands on the steering wheel of  Detective Nathan’s truck. Once again guns are not drawn. Restraint. See? They learn.

More butterflies appear and the truck goes all Christine. Agent Parker decides that Bobby must be able to see them and so starts to talk to him as he dreams, and the truck speeds up more and more.

“You can save us this time Bobby. I know you can.” Parker says that.

Bobby sits up, still asleep at the cabin, but calm. He was freaking out as he dreamed. He materializes in the back seat of the truck where the duo are speeding to their sure death.

Bobby sees his dad and mom instead of Audrey and Nathan. He’s telling his dad – Nathan,”don’t play with the radio while you drive.” I have a feeling this is how Bobby’s mom and dad met their terrible death. Just a hunch. Nathan can hear Bobby though so responds, “Ok, Bobby. I am not playing with the radio.”

Instead of dying like Bobby’s parents, Parker and Nathan scrape a guardrail. No harm, no foul.

Now everyone is happy. It’s later and Nathan and Hannah talk about the High School Thing. She’s sad she didn’t rebel against her father. Nathan is thinking about rounding third. Parker talks to the foster kid Bobby. They have a lot in common. Parker comes from no family that she knows of and Bobby’s family was killed in a fiery car crash.

Things get even better as Audrey reveals that she has some prescription drugs that will eliminate night terrors and therefore end Bobby’s problem. Lazy and cowardly writing here. X-Files would have that kid locked away at a government institution, show his face through a padded cell door window, and zoom out really fast with creepy music playing.

Aww, The Rev is a little miffed because his daughter and foster grandson are not of God.

But now The Rev is looking out the window and likes what he sees from those two. Why are we at The Rev’s house again anyway? Was this Discount Shooting At the House Set Week?

Ok, the weekly mystery is over and now on to the End of the Show Clue that Reveals Another Piece of the Larger Puzzle Concerning the Picture (ES CRAP, LPCP). The chief has an evidence box from the murder investigation that is referred to in the picture of the woman that looks like Audrey. The box is opened and… it’s empty. You couldn’t tell when carrying it? Just a regular file box.

Is the Chief blocking Audrey’s investigation? Wait, what? He just offered her a job with the Haven P.D. He said she is his kind of girl with her Mulder cap and all.

She’ll think about it. No ES CRAP, LPCP clue this week. Tease.

Parker and Nathan in a sunny park, having a moment. Nathan talks a lot about the pains of growing up unable to feel pain. He also thinks Audrey should take the job on the force. I think he is giving some thought to home plate these days.

Nathan’s childhood drama and the mysterious picture seem to be related. It is hinted at that Parker will take the job with the local P.D. The duo must like each other (in that way) because they agree on a pancake breakfast.

Fade to black.