Harper's Island finale
Sooo, maybe I'm dense, but the killer was a total surprise to me. It makes perfect sense in hindsight though - who's going to suspect the groom? Why would he want to sabotage his own wedding? Yeah, he did kind of have a familial resemblence to Abby, and yeah, he did seem more concerned about her than his own fiance, but I shrugged that off. Guess I should have listened to those instincts...
Christopher Gorham was amazing here. He played it understated and with chilling perfection. It would be interesting, now that I know who it is, to go back and see if I can spot the clues pointing towards him. It's funny - in both the roles I've seen him in, he's played a guy named Henry, and yet the characters could not be more different. He certainly has range. I'm just in awe.
As for Trish...well, I knew it was over for her as soon as she put on the wedding dress. I mean, it makes for a great visual - the bride-who-never-was, killed by her lover while in his arms? Katie Cassidy rocked that scene. I was impressed. She has improved a lot since Supernatural. And again I mourn Supernatural ever having to get a second Ruby.
I'm kind of glad the show spared the kid, though, because I don't know how they would have offed her, exactly. Maybe Henry or Wakefield had been planning to do it when she was in the tunnel, but Abby found her first. What was all that about then, anyway? It was more than just a game. Maybe it was a distraction, a way to get everyone looking for her so that Henry could move about undetected. I don't know.
And how come they didn't discover the boat house sooner? I guess that would've been too easy, if they could all just escape in a rowboat. I'm a little surprised Henry didn't discover it first and cut off the radio's connection; he seemed pretty good at doing that with everything else (one has to assume he was the one who cut the power to the Candlewick, etc.).
And here's where I find the motive completely ridiculous. Henry killed (or helped kill), his family and friends all because of some throwaway comment Abby made when they were kids? You have got to be kidding me. Maybe if we had a little more back story and a chance to see why he turned into what he became, I would have bought it, but no. You don't just run into a crazy guy in the woods and realize with one look that he's your dad and you guys should go on a killing spree together. It's preposterous. All that build up for such a random ending. Plus, I didn't see the need to involve any of the others at all. Isn't there some other way Henry could have lured Abby to the island? Why pretend to be in love with someone else just so you can have a wedding on the island, on the off chance that Abby might attend? It just does not make sense!
Not to mention that having Henry be responsible for so many elaborate set-ups reeks a little of “Beaver-ism” (Veronica Mars people, you'll know what that means). Even with Wakefield's help, it's not really plausible that he could have pulled it all off without a hitch.
Besides that, why did Abby have to pay for her mother's mistakes? What was the reasoning behind that?
Those issues aside, though, it's more the plotting and pacing of the story that I have a problem with than the characters themselves. Henry is very convincing at being a concerned friend one moment, to turning on Sully and literally stabbing him in the back before the guy even knew what hit him (Sully, NOOO!). When Abby woke up in her underwear, I really thought for a moment that she had been raped or something. I mean, if they were already going the pseudo-incest route, I could see it happening. Henry's glee at revealing his plans to her and his confusion when Abby didn't love the idea was well-played. It never occurred to Henry that the life he had been so busy trying to build for them was not one that she would have wanted. Again, had we known a little bit more about what makes him tick, I could have felt a little more sympathy about his death, but I was just kind of relieved that it was over at that point.
Probably the scene I enjoyed the most in the series though, was Chloe deciding not to become another victim and just letting go of the bridge and falling. If she couldn't be with Cal in life, then she would be with him in death. There is something beautifully sad and poetic about that, almost Romeo and Juliet-like.
Anyway, I'm rambling, but in conclusion: I'm not going to say don't watch it, because it is entertaining in spots. But there are parts that drag and parts that feel like they tried to cram everything in, as well as some pretty big plot holes and an overall lack of direction. But the Canadian scenery is pretty and the performances are good, and that was pretty much all I needed. So it just is what it is, and if you go in with low expectations, then you won't be disappointed. :)