I was looking forward to this show when I first heard about it as it has the same team behind it as 'The Dead Zone', a show that, not great, was very enjoyable until the final season flubbed everything up.  Like 'Zone', Haven is based on a Stephen King story ("The Colorado Kid").  The problem from the start is that the synopsis hovers a little too close to SyFy's popular 'Eureka'.

The story follows FBI Agent Audrey Parker (Emily Rose from 'Brothers and Sisters').  Parker is kind of like Mulder and Skully rolled into one.  She has a strong belief in the supernatural though we don't find out exactly why in this opening episode, which is odd as the main reason that this show doesn't work is that it focuses too heavily on character development instead of getting to the real meat & potatoes that everyone wants.  Parker is sent to the town of Haven to investigate the murder of an ex-con that has been on the FBI's radar.  The death turns out to be in the supernatural veign and the town is a haven (get it?) for those with a range of unexplainable powers.

The show starts off vaguely amusing, though numbingly slow.  Eric Balfour jumps into the cast about 20 minutes in as a local boy that catches the eye (and saves the life) of Parker.  Balfour has charisma and his character is one of the few that works.  The one thing that DOES set this show apart form it's SyFy movie and series counterparts is the fact that the acting is actually decent and, for once, they know their limitations with special effects and don't go overboard.

If it seems that I haven't really given you a plot device it is because one isn't really full revealed.  Agent Parker is sent to investigate this one case which is concluded at the end of the episode but there is no reasoning given of why she will stick around.  The show has the potential of working now that the character development is seemingly out of the way but, if the premiere episode is any sign, this one is dead in the water.