One of the most unique adaptations of the works of Stephen King, Haven is a Showcase Original series about a somewhat psychic female FBI agent and some strange shenanigans in small-town Maine. Loosely based on the horror master’s 2005 unsolved-crime novella The Colorado Kid, the show cooks up a secondary level of mysteries — an entire town’s worth — around King’s original story.

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When we viewers last saw FBI agent Audrey Parker, we quite possibly became, collectively, the second-last people to see her alive. Same goes for police sheriff Nathan Wuornos and noble smuggler Duke Crocker. The official final episode of Season two, “Sins of the Fathers,” ended with Audrey being attacked by person(s) unknown, and Nathan and Duke caught in a crossfire of their own. Despite being the show’s central characters, any of them could quite easily suffer a nasty fate when Season three starts next year: When Haven unleashes violence on its characters, it rarely shows restraint. (Seriously, what is that town’s bodycount since Parker’s arrival? According to real-life statistics, most fatal accidents occur in the home. Well, if my home was in Haven, I’d move.)

On Sunday, the unofficial final episode of Season two goes to air. “Silent Night” offers no answers as to the outcome of “Sins of the Fathers,” in terms of either the local troubled/non-troubled civil war, or the personal situations of Audrey, Nathan and Duke. Instead, it spins a self-contained, super-satisfying tale — my enthusiasm is most sincere: it’s my favourite episode of both series — set at an unspecified time during Season two. There is some specification, mind you: It’s a Haven Christmas story. Without snow.

We’re long used to Haven’s refusal to play by traditional rules, so it’s no shocker when “Silent Night” shows us the town preparing for the ho-ho-holiday during what is clearly any one of the three seasons that is not winter. Yes, there’s a reason, and of course no one will tell Audrey until late in the game — but being strung along with her is always half the fun for viewers.

Why did I so enjoy “Silent Night”? Partly, but only partly, because the usual trappings are in place: the fun/punny script, the strong core-trio character interaction, and the well-conceived ‘trouble of the week’ with a clever twist and a satisfying resolution. The basic, non-spoiler plot point is that Haven’s citizens are disappearing, sometimes one by one, sometimes in massive swaths; the hitch is that the town’s collective memory of these people also gets erased — Audrey being the sole exception. (I considered titling this blog post “Haven yourself a Mori little Christmas,” as in, memento mori.) To the points above: A particular highlight moment comes when Audrey suspects that Nathan might have disappeared, and asks Duke if he “knows who Nathan is.” Duke’s answer is a puzzled “No,” qualified by an observation that Nathan is an introvert. It’s yet another well-played tension-reliever that also enriches the relations of Haven’s characters.

But what really elevated the episode for me was that it involves two horror homages, the first of them fine, the second absolutely brilliant. They are both satisfying because they play up expectations and then skitter those expectations sideways. To the former: The episode begins, as usual, with a spectacular supernatural death. Viewers will immediately suspect the horror homage point; suffice to say it involves a woman, the water, and the year 1975.

The second homage, though: an absolute doozie. Canny viewers might, might be able to figure it out during the first homage. A second clue is beyond-subtly dropped in a Haven gift shop. Me, I never figured it out until it hit Audrey smack in the face around the episode’s halfway mark. The only clue I’ll give you here is that it’s a Stephen King homage. I’ve read most of the horror master’s works and, like Audrey, I did not see this one coming.

But here’s where it gets even better: Haven tips its hat to its ‘host,’ and then does its own thing with King’s idea, completely separate, and completely cool.

The episode ends, appropriately, with the song “Blue Christmas” being played on the fade out. ‘Appropriately’ because, this one was so good, I didn’t want it to end.

Tell us in the Comments if/when you figured it out. also, let us know which are your favourite Haven episodes. See you in 2012 for thirteen official episodes of Season three!