Review - Harper's Island: Whap

Harper’s Island was surprisingly engrossing . . .

. . . I had promised myself that I wouldn’t get involved in another television show but I DVR’d this on the off chance that it would be better than I expected. And it was!
This really reminded me of another show that I loved during the early 90’s – Twin Peaks. Now don’t get me wrong here, this is no Twin Peaks but the elements are kind of similar. You’ve got the beautiful Northwestern setting. Harper’s Island is set in an island off the coast of Seattle; you’ve got some really odd character’s that are hard to figure out (you’ve also got some characters that are a bit cliché, but that kind of adds to the appeal for me); and there are secrets on Harper’s Island that seem to permeate all that come in contact with them.
In the first episode titled Whap, you start to meet all the players. They are all coming together for the wedding of Henry Dunn (Christopher Gorham – of Medical Investigations fame . . . that was driving hubby and I crazy during the show) and Trish Wellington (Katie Cassidy). Henry is the local yokel and Trish is the town princess with the rich daddy (Richard Burgi – of Desperate Housewives fame). There is the typical cast of characters . . . the lunkheaded party boy friends of the groom; the richy-rich girlfriends of the privileged bride to be but there are also some other fun ingredients that make up this recipe for murder and mayhem.
Abby Mills (Elaine Cassidy), the old friend of Henry Dunn who left Harper’s Island after the tragic murder of her mother by the madman John Wakefield and Kelly Seaver (Anna Mae Routledge) who didn’t leave the island when the same thing happened to her mom. It’s hard to say who ended up less screwed up at the end of the day. And who could forget Uncle Marty (Harry Hamlin) – who was put on this earth to protect people like Henry from people like daddy dearest, Thomas Wellington. JD Dunn (Dean Chekvala), the brother of Henry and nephew of Marty, is also one strange dude – tattooed and dark hearted; he leaves a lot for you to wonder about him.
So we start off on the ferry boat to Harper’s Island. At the last minute a few guests make their way onto the boat – first Uncle Marty complete with a Mariachi band and then sad little Abby Mills who took quite some time to make the journey from the cab. Perhaps she was having second thoughts? You should always listen to that inner voice that tells you something might not be that great an idea. As the big boat takes off, our bride to be seems to be upset that Cousin Ben hasn’t made it for the boat ride. Little does she know that Cousin Ben was with us all along . . . although, I kinda doubt we’ll be seeing him again - at least not feeling too lively?
As we make our way to the island we hear Chloe Carter (Cameron Richardson) telling the story of John Wakefield the famed mass murderer. She even tells those who will listen about Abby’s connection to the island. Once we reach the island Abby decides to visit the Tree of Woe where several victims of Wakefield, including her own mother, were strung up after being stabbed, burned and disemboweled. Not sure why she thought this was a great idea but luckily for her, Henry figures as much and walks her back to the hotel.
So I have to admit that one of the things I really like about the show is the kill scenes. They are pretty imaginative and gruesome for late night Broadcast TV – even if it is in the 10 o’clock hour. This first episode of Harper’s Island definitely left me wanting more. If you haven’t watched already, I would recommend you start now. Luckily I had episode 2, Crackle, on my DVR! More on that to come . . .

Directed by
Jon Turteltaub

Writing credits
Ari Schlossberg (written by)

Episode Cast (in credits order)
Elaine Cassidy ... Abby Mills
Christopher Gorham ... Henry W. Dunn
Katie Cassidy ... Patricia E. 'Trish' Wellington
Cameron Richardson ... Chloe Carter
Adam Campbell ... Cal Vandeusen
Jim Beaver ... Sheriff Charlie Mills
Richard Burgi ... Thomas Wellington
Christopher Sullivan ... Matt Barr (as Christopher 'Sully' Sullivan)
C.J. Thomason ... Jimmy Mance
Victor Webster ... Hunter Jennings
Dean Chekvala ... J.D. Dunn (as Dean Cechvala)
Matt Barr ... Christopher 'Sully' Sullivan
Harry Hamlin ... Marty Dunn
Gina Holden ... Shea Allen
David Lewis ... Richard Allen
Cassandra Sawtell ... Madison Allen
Claudette Mink ... Katherine Wellington
Brandon Jay McLaren ... Danny Brooks
Sean Rogerson ... Joel Booth
Chris Gauthier ... Malcolm Ross
Amber Borycki ... Beth Barrington
Sarah Smyth ... Lucy Daramour
Ben Cotton ... Shane Pierce
Anna Mae Routledge ... Kelly Seaver
Ali Liebert ... Nikki Bolton
Beverley Elliott ... Maggie Krell
Tom Pickett ... Cab Driver
Paul Stanley ... Old Albert