Haven — “Mortality” Recap. Who Is Dr. Charlotte Cross?

Season 5, Episode 10

Air Date: Friday, November 14, 2014 at 7/6c on Syfy

Rating: ★★★★★

[warning] SPOILERS AHEAD [/warning]

“Maybe the supernatural today is just science we don’t yet comprehend.” – Dr. Charlotte Cross

A contagion is spreading through Haven, Maine like wildfire, causing people’s “troubles” to activate. This leads to a chain reaction of more cataclysmic events, including a chemical spill. The race to find out who the source of the contagion is comes to a shocking conclusion, leaving no one safe.

Dwight shows Charlotte his bullet magnet trouble

Dwight (Adam Copeland) breaks the cardinal rule by telling Dr. Charlotte Cross (guest star Laura Mennell) about the troubles in Haven. She is an outsider and shouldn’t be trusted but Dwight seems to think otherwise. Is Dwight blinded by his growing affection for Charlotte?

Nathan believes the delivery guy Kirby (Scott Bailey) might be the source of the contagion. After Kirby turns himself in, he reveals he can see how people will die when he touches them. His trouble has activated and he’s been sick so he can’t be the source. But something happens inside Kirby’s holding cell that shakes Audrey (Emily Rose) to the core.

What does it mean if Audrey is sick? What is her trouble?

Audrey asks Nathan a most perplexing question, one I’ve been pondering as well. “Do you ever wonder if I’m real?” Audrey tells Nathan she thinks she’s like Eve’s (Tammy Isbell) dancing bears. Eve’s bears manifest themselves whenever Eve worries about someone she loves dying. The bears are physically real as we saw in “Morbidity.” Audrey believes she might be like those bears, a creation, a byproduct of Duke (Eric Balfour) separating Audrey from Mara (Emily Rose). Of course, Nathan is definitely biased by his love for Audrey so he tells her their love for each other is what makes her real. But, can their love conquer all, even the troubles? When Audrey gets sick, though, doubt begins to seep in. “If Audrey has the contagion, that means…she’s troubled.” This is a baffling mystery for sure.

Audrey version 1.0 was immune to the troubles and now Audrey version 2.0 is more like negative 1.0. She is susceptible to the troubles and might even be troubled herself. The writers are taking us in a strange new direction but I’m intrigued and happy to go along for the ride.

Do you think Duke is crazy for letting Mara go?

Meanwhile, Duke, after being tasered by Dwight in “Morbidity,” has also gone rogue. Partnering with Mara to find the black goo balls, or “aether” as Mara calls them, has got to be one of the most idiotic ideas I’ve ever heard of…but wait, maybe it could work. If Mara could alter the person causing the contagion, maybe Charlotte would leave Haven. Yeah, I said it out loud and realize immediately it’s a horrible plan. Duke, wake up and smell the troubles… Mara is the one who created the troubles in the first place. That Cheshire cat grin on her face when Duke unchains Mara is a clear sign. I want to shout, “Danger, Duke Crocker, danger, in my best Lost in Space robot voice.”

On the flip-side of things, Vince (Richard Donat) visits the capitol building to seek the help of the Governor of Maine to get the CDC out of Haven. Vince finds Mr. Simon (guest star Conrad Coates), a man he previously helped politically, to ask for a favor. But when Mr. Simon consults the Governor, he learns some disturbing news. The CDC denies having anyone in Haven. So, who is this Dr. Charlotte Cross and what is she doing in Haven?

Wild Hair theory

Who is Dr. Charlotte Cross?

Could Charlotte be the new Audrey Parker? In season one of Haven, FBI Agent Audrey Parker arrived in Haven to investigate a mysterious murder, and now Charlotte, supposedly from from the CDC, is in Haven investigating a mysterious virulent pathogen she sampled from Dave’s (John Dunsworth) biopsy. Is history repeating itself? Remember when Charlotte called someone to put Haven under quarantine? Who was she calling for back up if the CDC supposedly doesn’t have anyone in Haven? I’m waiting for her to call someone again. Perhaps it will be Agent Howard (Maurice Dean Wint) on the other end of the receiver.

After all is said and done, Nathan figures out Haven’s own epidemiologist Pete (Matt Baram) is causing the contagion. When Charlotte begins nosing around Haven and checking up on Pete’s reports, it triggers his trouble – his worst fears come true. For an epidemiologist, nothing is worse than a contagious illness running rampant in the trouble capital of the world.

Interesting Moments

It seems Officer Rebecca Rafferty (Kirsty Hinchcliffe) doesn’t particularly care for the revised version of Audrey. Why else would Rebecca not want to let Audrey through the quarantine blockade? What is up with that?

Kirby tells Audrey he sees her death – she and her “twin” will go at the same time. What? Now that’s some seriously cryptic stuff the writers just threw at us.

Who was Nathan getting information from on the phone while trying to find out whom Kirby came into contact with on his deliveries? The voice doesn’t sound familiar.

Kirk’s (Bernard Robichaud) trouble causes the oxygen in the air to vanish, and everyone, including Audrey and Mara, succumbs to oxygen deprivation. Where is Charlotte; did she fallen victim to this trouble too? Side note: Did I miss something? What happened to Mara’s immunity to the troubles?

Duke and Mara must hide under Audrey’s desk at the precinct when they try to break into the safe to get the aether. Dwight not seeing them or sensing their presence in the room is a bit preposterous considering he was an Army Ranger but for the sake of television, I’ll overlook it. What I can’t ignore is the awkward moment when Duke and Mara realize she is straddling him while he has his hands on her waist under the desk. Yeah, these two getting together is a bad idea but is it wrong that I want to see it happen? Are they the new Bonnie and Clyde?

Overall
“Mortality” is one of the most complex and unnerving episodes so far this season. Mara’s actions against Pete, thus forcing Duke’s hand in ending Pete’s trouble once and for all are chilling. Do you think Mara really wants to “fix” Duke, or does she have a different end game? Is Duke going to be her new William (Colin Ferguson)? The writers are trying to confuse us and frankly, they’re succeeding. I smell red herrings. Do you?

What did you think of “Mortality?” What are your thoughts on the CDC coming to Haven? Leave me a comment below or tweet me @judybopp. I’d love to hear from you!

For more on Haven, go to http://www.syfy.com/haven.

Follow the show on Twitter @Syfy, as well as cast members @EmilyroseLA, @EricBalfour, @TheLucasBryant, @davehaven, and @vincehaven. For Eric Balfour fans – follow @EricBalfourfans.

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Judy Manning

Dream chaser extraordinaire! Judy tends to be a tad sarcastic and kind of goofy! She is an avid admirer of all things supernatural, paranormal, celestial and mystical. She loves to read, write, and watches way too much TV. She enjoys many genres of film and music (and let's be honest, most music from the 80s). She also has a wicked sweet tooth. Cupcakes beware.