"Haven" Season 4 finale - "The Lighthouse"

This season of Haven has provided viewers with a journey entirely unlike that of previous seasons. Now that the season finale has aired, let's take a look back on what has transpired. Thankfully, the love triangle between Nathan, Audrey, and Duke was squashed. With the arrival of Jennifer Mason, Duke finally had a love interest of his own. This is a welcome addition to the already strong character development he has undergone over the show's four seasons. Waiting to provide him with a true opportunity for romance was a wise decision, given the fact that he started off as a loveable scallywag often wrapped up in questionable schemes as a means of supplementing his income.

At the start of Season 4, Nathan was torn up from having lost both Audrey and Duke. He traded one struggle for another. First, he had to get Audrey back and psychologically prepare himself to allow her to kill him. When she returned as Lexi, he had to cope with her not having her old memories. Once she revealed that she was indeed Audrey (and had only been pretending to be Lexi to protect him), the season's "Big Bad" was revealed in the form of William, a mysterious man from Audrey's past lives.

Haven viewers finally learned more about Audrey's origins. Her first life was as a woman named Mara, who created the Troubles alongside William. As punishment for these crimes, she found herself placed in the barn and forced to continually live new lives in which she would help the Troubled. Though the finale showed the gang seemingly defeating William, the inevitable cliffhanger came in the form of Audrey being overtaken by her first persona: Mara. Mara says that Duke's death is inevitable, and indeed his future seems dim given that his eyes are bleeding (or perhaps he's crying blood a la Mads Mikkelsen in Casino Royale), and then demands that they assist her in recovering William from the vortex Nathan had just thrown in him in.

So for a fifth season of Haven, what is that we might expect or at least hope to see? Given how hard of a time Duke has been having, we can only hope that we can get more of the humour and cheek that made viewers fall so hard for him to being with. (Also, that ponytail needs to go). Duke has often been the greatest source of joy and laughter on Haven, and though the abundance of angst in this season was well-executed, there's no reason why they can't bring some of that fun back. Nathan has evolved from a man isolated by his inability to connect with others into one with the strongest of hearts that beats for those closest to him, especially Audrey. With the seemingly never-ending obstacles that pop up just in time to hinder his ability to have happiness with Audrey, we shall be left hoping that he will be able to get his happy domestic life with her that he has already professed a desire for. In regards to Audrey, hopefully she will be able to reconcile with her past misdeeds and get back to being able to help The Troubled alongside Nathan, Duke, and the others.

Haven airs on Syfy. If you have yet to being watching this show, now's as good a time as any to catch up. Each season is only 13 episodes instead of the excessive 20+ numbers typical of many American cable programs.