1.09 - 'History Repeating' (The Vampire Diaries)
OK, I'm onto the next episode. (YAY!) And let me take this opportunity to thank those of you who are taking the time to respond to these older write-ups. I really appreciate it. :)
Alrighty then, this was another really good episode. Actually, I thought this was one great! There was some wonderful relationship stuff of all kinds (sibling, friend and love) with well-done spooky tension as well. Very nice.
Not so nice? Emily Bennett. OK, so maybe I'm becoming a Damon apologist here, but uhm, am I reading this wrong? Emily made a deal with Damon that Damon (the "bad" brother) has kept for well over a century, protecting Emily's descendents and, poof, just like that Emily breaks their deal... and Damon's the bad guy?
I mean, call me crazy, but that just doesn't seem right. Emily may have issues with Katherine, but if they were this severe than making that deal with Damon was a lie from the get-go. It's clear to me that she never expected the possibility of Damon getting Katherine out to happen so she felt safe in doing so. I dunno, it's just pretty crappy. Obviously she didn't know Damon that well if she didn't think he'd do what he had to do. We don't know him that well yet, but it's pretty clear that when the guy puts his mind to something, he's gonna follow through. (See: "An eternity of misery" for his brother… still playing that card over a century later!)
Oh, Damon… so that is his "diabolical master plan," huh? He planned to bring Katherine back, but it's been foiled by a Bennett. I just can't but help feel for the poor guy. To be planning and planning this for a hundred-plus years and then to have it all destroyed in a flash because a witch broke her promise. Damn, I'm sorry that Bonnie was hurt in the cross-fire of Damon's pain and her ancestor's betrayal, but I really do see why Damon lost it and attacked Emily/Bonnie. I mean, of course, I'm glad that Stefan was there to save her, but yeah, Damon's reaction was understandable when you look at the whole picture.
I know he said he's leaving Mystic Falls now but obviously something is going to get in the way of that. But even if he does leave briefly (maybe we'll see him elsewhere), I imagine that he's not giving up on bringing Katherine back just like that. There must be other witches out there he can have a word with about this, right? Plus, I don't think that the show is just going to drop the whole bringing-Katherine-back idea now that we've found out she's alive!
Yikes! Katherine Pierce-the former love of Damon *and* Stefan Salvatore who looks just like Stefan's current love-is alive! I was NOT expecting that. No siree, Bob! So say Damon does figure out some way to bring her back, what will that do to the brothers and their relationship? Could it be worse? (Yes, yes, I think it could.) Damon seems damn confident that Katherine loved him the best, but as I commented after watching "Lost Girls," Katherine sure seemed more into Stefan than she did Damon. Still, I also pointed out that those were STEFAN's flashbacks, so it was from *his* point of view. On the other hand, Damon didn't know that Katherine was with Stefan on her last night. That means that Stefan was right when he said that Katherine was playing them both. So, even though Stefan's telling of events may not be 100% as they happened, I'm thinking that he actually stayed closer to the truth than Damon would like to believe. In other words, yeah, Katherine was more into him than Damon.
Which brings us to the present: What does that mean for Stefan and Elena? Yes, yes, Stefan is all into her now, but, he kept Katherine's picture all these years! That's a long, long time for someone that you're over. So… feelings might still be there for him. Yeah, the relationship between the brothers could get a lot, lot worse if this is to come to pass. One thing is for sure, we'll find out some answers to what really happened in 1864. Erm, on second thought… maybe. The flashbacks would be from someone's point of view, and who knows if we'll be able to trust whoever that person is. What we do know for sure now (really for sure) is that Damon is going to have to figure some other way of getting Katherine back since Emily done wrecked this avenue. And perhaps he'll find this new way when he's left Mystic Falls.
Speaking of, why is Stefan planning on leaving town as well? I get why Damon is leaving, his whole reason for being there was to bring Katherine back, and with that out of the question right now it makes sense that he'd hit the road. But Stefan leaving doesn't make any sense. After all, wasn't Damon the reason that horrible things were happening?
"Everywhere I've been pain and death follow. Damon follows me," right? I mean, that's what Stefan keeps saying. So if Damon leaves, doesn't that mean that Stefan can stay? He can stay in town and pretend to be some human boy living out some teenage romance with Elena now. Well, when he decides they can get back together. Of course, she'll then decide they can't be together. But then, no wait, they can, but by that time, he'll have decided, that no, she was right before, they can't. Then she'll decide he's right and they can't. But then he'll be back to thinking they can... oh, Lord, these two give me whiplash. Any tolerance for them and their teenage romance because of the sweetness therein is fast, fast fading away. Make up your freaking minds! Ugh! But... hmm, now that I think about it, maybe Elena thinks that this is how relationships are supposed to work: Vague, uncertain, etc. I mean, if you judge Matt's attitude in this one towards Caroline.
At first when Matt was all 'Hey-ing' Caroline, I was agreeing with Caroline's little rant to him at the end, but Matt's, "We've been saying 'hey,'" all of our lives made me reconsider. I thought he had a point, but then I reconsidered that consideration. Matt stayed with her in her bedroom, in *her bed* the other night and that is certainly different than what they have done all of their lives so it does make things different! So, I'm team!Caroline. Not cool, Matt! Then came his little speech to her, and I did not like it. I mean, I guess he gets points for honesty for telling her that he doesn't actually like her. However, it just didn't work for me-and I've been pretty 'Yay, Matt!' so far. *sigh* Of course, it work did for low-self-esteem girl Caroline. Oh, my poor, Caroline, you deserve better.
At least she made up with Bonnie, though, and they were able to have an honest, fun girl's night together with Elena… before it went whack-a-doo! But, the first part was good! I LOVED that Caroline told Elena and Bonnie that they always have conversations in front of her that she's not a part of it. She may not stand up for herself with the boys (Damon, Matt), but at least in one area of her life-and these are more important relationships!-she is doing so. I also liked that Elena was all conciliatory and denying it, trying to be a peacemaker because that feels in character for her. And then at the other end, you had Bonnie-who has already shown herself to be pretty straight-forward-putting it out there, that yeah, they absolutely do that very thing to Caroline.
Then it got even better because it wasn't Bonnie just being straight-up, she also explained why, because, they are friends. I could describe it all, but really, the whole exchange was great:
Caroline: What is going on? Why am I not a part of this conversation? You guys do this to me all the time.
Elena: That's not true.
Bonnie: Ye,s it is. I can't talk to you. You don't listen.
Caroline: That's not true.
Bonnie: I'm a witch.
Caroline: And don't we all know it?
Bonnie: See? That's what I'm talking about. I'm trying to tell you something. You don't even hear it.
Caroline: I listen. When do I not listen?
And, of course, Caroline proved a bit of that by the episode's end. Lord knows she tried, though, but she did bail on Bonnie when the going got rough. Girl just bailed. (I can't completely blame her, though. It was freaky.) But ooh, that rough bit! Seriously, the whole section was just really awesome. The Ouija board with Caroline judging how Bonnie called out to Emily ("Really? 'Emily, you there?' That's all you got? Come on." LOL!), to the rising candle's flame, then the windows banging open, the lights going out, the necklace disappearing, doors slamming and then the possession of Bonnie Bennett. So, so cool. Especially that whole bit there with Bonnie being possessed by her ancestor; it was so awesome. Bonnie was so still with the image of Emily in the mirror, and then there she went walking past the other two and out the door so unlike her teenage self. Ooh, and favorite part was Bonnie talking with Emily's speech patterns. Again, so cool.
Of course it didn't end so cool. You know, what with the Damon attacking Emily in her descendant's body and all. *sigh* Poor Bonnie. Hey, but at least she knows Elena's supernatural truth now (and in the very next episode after Bonnie told her about being a witch)! I'm glad that Elena told Bonnie the truth. It is good that she can have someone to talk to about this new crazy in her life. (As she told Stefan in the last episode). Maybe Bonnie can help her figure out some of Stefan's half-lies. Oh wait, he just saved her life, she'll see him with a bright, white halo too and ignore his caginess. Stefan, Stefan, Stefan.
OK, I'll cut his caginess some slack this time around because (a) he did save Bonnie's life (yay!), and because I adored all of his scenes with his brother. Honestly, at this point Damon and Stefan's relationship is my favorite. It's so complicated and so well-acted, and Ian Somerhalder and Paul Wesley have incredible sibling chemistry. I just loved, loved, loved the brothers bonding. Wah! Why can't it be real?! No wait-wasn't it though in a way? Yes, Stefan and Damon were playing each other, but they knew that they were playing each other. Because of that, YES!, there was still something real in what was going on. We know based on the flashbacks in "Lost Girls" that Damon and Stefan did very much love one another openly at one time, and since both are incapable of killing the other (despite avowals to torture/stop the other), I do not think it's gone away.
And that is because they are family and they do love each other still, even if they are both doing their damndest to deny it. You know they do. It's so obvious. Regardless of Katherine, of their history, of Lexi, of whatever has gone down throughout the century plus, they love each other. It is so there even as they so completely have convinced themselves and each other that they don't. Silly boys.
OK, moving on to randoms-
- So how did that freaking necklace wind up back in Bonnie's purse? Things that make you go hmm… Is it because, as Grams told her, since the necklace chose her, it is her witch's talisman therefore it will always find its way back to her? It could be.
- Me likey the new history teacher. You're cute, and you're obviously way better than Tanner, even if your name is kinda odd: Alaric Saltzman. OK, then. Another plus about him, he arranged a meeting with Jeremy and reached out to him, instead of just taking Tanner's ridiculously awful Jeremy/Jackass (Tanner, you SUCK!) file to heart. He threw it out instead… right in front of Jeremy to show him how little regard he had for Tanner's opinion. You go, Alaric Saltzman! (Really, what a name!)
- Speaking of Alaric Saltzman… aww, him and Jenna flirting. Aww-erm, but… hmm, new history teacher has an interesting ring. This could be not good for Aunt Jenna. First Logan, now this? Eek! Are we looking at another vampire? It sure looks like it, sure seems like yet another daywalker just like the Salvatore brothers. Oh, Jenna.
- Oh, yeah, LOGAN!!!!????!?! Logan Fell is a FREAKING VAMPIRE NOW?!?!?!? What the WHAT?!?!?!?
- Backing back up to Katherine will she/won't she thoughts… if she does, does that mean that Nina Dobrev will be playing two roles then? That would be a workload, but we'll see what the show will do. It could explain why they decided to go the flashback route in order to introduce that idea and see if she could pull it off. Now, personally I wasn't majorly impressed with her Katherine, but she did a good-ish job. And it could have been that with so few scenes, she just didn't have a handle on the character yet, because I do like her Elena a lot and that has plenty to do with her acting choices. It certainly would be interesting to see.
So, this was such a spooky, scary, intense episode. Sooooo good! I also loved how this one was so predominantly friendship/family based. This show is so very much better than I ever could have imagined it being.
Alrighty then, this was another really good episode. Actually, I thought this was one great! There was some wonderful relationship stuff of all kinds (sibling, friend and love) with well-done spooky tension as well. Very nice.
Not so nice? Emily Bennett. OK, so maybe I'm becoming a Damon apologist here, but uhm, am I reading this wrong? Emily made a deal with Damon that Damon (the "bad" brother) has kept for well over a century, protecting Emily's descendents and, poof, just like that Emily breaks their deal... and Damon's the bad guy?
I mean, call me crazy, but that just doesn't seem right. Emily may have issues with Katherine, but if they were this severe than making that deal with Damon was a lie from the get-go. It's clear to me that she never expected the possibility of Damon getting Katherine out to happen so she felt safe in doing so. I dunno, it's just pretty crappy. Obviously she didn't know Damon that well if she didn't think he'd do what he had to do. We don't know him that well yet, but it's pretty clear that when the guy puts his mind to something, he's gonna follow through. (See: "An eternity of misery" for his brother… still playing that card over a century later!)
Oh, Damon… so that is his "diabolical master plan," huh? He planned to bring Katherine back, but it's been foiled by a Bennett. I just can't but help feel for the poor guy. To be planning and planning this for a hundred-plus years and then to have it all destroyed in a flash because a witch broke her promise. Damn, I'm sorry that Bonnie was hurt in the cross-fire of Damon's pain and her ancestor's betrayal, but I really do see why Damon lost it and attacked Emily/Bonnie. I mean, of course, I'm glad that Stefan was there to save her, but yeah, Damon's reaction was understandable when you look at the whole picture.
I know he said he's leaving Mystic Falls now but obviously something is going to get in the way of that. But even if he does leave briefly (maybe we'll see him elsewhere), I imagine that he's not giving up on bringing Katherine back just like that. There must be other witches out there he can have a word with about this, right? Plus, I don't think that the show is just going to drop the whole bringing-Katherine-back idea now that we've found out she's alive!
Yikes! Katherine Pierce-the former love of Damon *and* Stefan Salvatore who looks just like Stefan's current love-is alive! I was NOT expecting that. No siree, Bob! So say Damon does figure out some way to bring her back, what will that do to the brothers and their relationship? Could it be worse? (Yes, yes, I think it could.) Damon seems damn confident that Katherine loved him the best, but as I commented after watching "Lost Girls," Katherine sure seemed more into Stefan than she did Damon. Still, I also pointed out that those were STEFAN's flashbacks, so it was from *his* point of view. On the other hand, Damon didn't know that Katherine was with Stefan on her last night. That means that Stefan was right when he said that Katherine was playing them both. So, even though Stefan's telling of events may not be 100% as they happened, I'm thinking that he actually stayed closer to the truth than Damon would like to believe. In other words, yeah, Katherine was more into him than Damon.
Which brings us to the present: What does that mean for Stefan and Elena? Yes, yes, Stefan is all into her now, but, he kept Katherine's picture all these years! That's a long, long time for someone that you're over. So… feelings might still be there for him. Yeah, the relationship between the brothers could get a lot, lot worse if this is to come to pass. One thing is for sure, we'll find out some answers to what really happened in 1864. Erm, on second thought… maybe. The flashbacks would be from someone's point of view, and who knows if we'll be able to trust whoever that person is. What we do know for sure now (really for sure) is that Damon is going to have to figure some other way of getting Katherine back since Emily done wrecked this avenue. And perhaps he'll find this new way when he's left Mystic Falls.
Speaking of, why is Stefan planning on leaving town as well? I get why Damon is leaving, his whole reason for being there was to bring Katherine back, and with that out of the question right now it makes sense that he'd hit the road. But Stefan leaving doesn't make any sense. After all, wasn't Damon the reason that horrible things were happening?
"Everywhere I've been pain and death follow. Damon follows me," right? I mean, that's what Stefan keeps saying. So if Damon leaves, doesn't that mean that Stefan can stay? He can stay in town and pretend to be some human boy living out some teenage romance with Elena now. Well, when he decides they can get back together. Of course, she'll then decide they can't be together. But then, no wait, they can, but by that time, he'll have decided, that no, she was right before, they can't. Then she'll decide he's right and they can't. But then he'll be back to thinking they can... oh, Lord, these two give me whiplash. Any tolerance for them and their teenage romance because of the sweetness therein is fast, fast fading away. Make up your freaking minds! Ugh! But... hmm, now that I think about it, maybe Elena thinks that this is how relationships are supposed to work: Vague, uncertain, etc. I mean, if you judge Matt's attitude in this one towards Caroline.
At first when Matt was all 'Hey-ing' Caroline, I was agreeing with Caroline's little rant to him at the end, but Matt's, "We've been saying 'hey,'" all of our lives made me reconsider. I thought he had a point, but then I reconsidered that consideration. Matt stayed with her in her bedroom, in *her bed* the other night and that is certainly different than what they have done all of their lives so it does make things different! So, I'm team!Caroline. Not cool, Matt! Then came his little speech to her, and I did not like it. I mean, I guess he gets points for honesty for telling her that he doesn't actually like her. However, it just didn't work for me-and I've been pretty 'Yay, Matt!' so far. *sigh* Of course, it work did for low-self-esteem girl Caroline. Oh, my poor, Caroline, you deserve better.
At least she made up with Bonnie, though, and they were able to have an honest, fun girl's night together with Elena… before it went whack-a-doo! But, the first part was good! I LOVED that Caroline told Elena and Bonnie that they always have conversations in front of her that she's not a part of it. She may not stand up for herself with the boys (Damon, Matt), but at least in one area of her life-and these are more important relationships!-she is doing so. I also liked that Elena was all conciliatory and denying it, trying to be a peacemaker because that feels in character for her. And then at the other end, you had Bonnie-who has already shown herself to be pretty straight-forward-putting it out there, that yeah, they absolutely do that very thing to Caroline.
Then it got even better because it wasn't Bonnie just being straight-up, she also explained why, because, they are friends. I could describe it all, but really, the whole exchange was great:
Caroline: What is going on? Why am I not a part of this conversation? You guys do this to me all the time.
Elena: That's not true.
Bonnie: Ye,s it is. I can't talk to you. You don't listen.
Caroline: That's not true.
Bonnie: I'm a witch.
Caroline: And don't we all know it?
Bonnie: See? That's what I'm talking about. I'm trying to tell you something. You don't even hear it.
Caroline: I listen. When do I not listen?
And, of course, Caroline proved a bit of that by the episode's end. Lord knows she tried, though, but she did bail on Bonnie when the going got rough. Girl just bailed. (I can't completely blame her, though. It was freaky.) But ooh, that rough bit! Seriously, the whole section was just really awesome. The Ouija board with Caroline judging how Bonnie called out to Emily ("Really? 'Emily, you there?' That's all you got? Come on." LOL!), to the rising candle's flame, then the windows banging open, the lights going out, the necklace disappearing, doors slamming and then the possession of Bonnie Bennett. So, so cool. Especially that whole bit there with Bonnie being possessed by her ancestor; it was so awesome. Bonnie was so still with the image of Emily in the mirror, and then there she went walking past the other two and out the door so unlike her teenage self. Ooh, and favorite part was Bonnie talking with Emily's speech patterns. Again, so cool.
Of course it didn't end so cool. You know, what with the Damon attacking Emily in her descendant's body and all. *sigh* Poor Bonnie. Hey, but at least she knows Elena's supernatural truth now (and in the very next episode after Bonnie told her about being a witch)! I'm glad that Elena told Bonnie the truth. It is good that she can have someone to talk to about this new crazy in her life. (As she told Stefan in the last episode). Maybe Bonnie can help her figure out some of Stefan's half-lies. Oh wait, he just saved her life, she'll see him with a bright, white halo too and ignore his caginess. Stefan, Stefan, Stefan.
OK, I'll cut his caginess some slack this time around because (a) he did save Bonnie's life (yay!), and because I adored all of his scenes with his brother. Honestly, at this point Damon and Stefan's relationship is my favorite. It's so complicated and so well-acted, and Ian Somerhalder and Paul Wesley have incredible sibling chemistry. I just loved, loved, loved the brothers bonding. Wah! Why can't it be real?! No wait-wasn't it though in a way? Yes, Stefan and Damon were playing each other, but they knew that they were playing each other. Because of that, YES!, there was still something real in what was going on. We know based on the flashbacks in "Lost Girls" that Damon and Stefan did very much love one another openly at one time, and since both are incapable of killing the other (despite avowals to torture/stop the other), I do not think it's gone away.
And that is because they are family and they do love each other still, even if they are both doing their damndest to deny it. You know they do. It's so obvious. Regardless of Katherine, of their history, of Lexi, of whatever has gone down throughout the century plus, they love each other. It is so there even as they so completely have convinced themselves and each other that they don't. Silly boys.
OK, moving on to randoms-
- So how did that freaking necklace wind up back in Bonnie's purse? Things that make you go hmm… Is it because, as Grams told her, since the necklace chose her, it is her witch's talisman therefore it will always find its way back to her? It could be.
- Me likey the new history teacher. You're cute, and you're obviously way better than Tanner, even if your name is kinda odd: Alaric Saltzman. OK, then. Another plus about him, he arranged a meeting with Jeremy and reached out to him, instead of just taking Tanner's ridiculously awful Jeremy/Jackass (Tanner, you SUCK!) file to heart. He threw it out instead… right in front of Jeremy to show him how little regard he had for Tanner's opinion. You go, Alaric Saltzman! (Really, what a name!)
- Speaking of Alaric Saltzman… aww, him and Jenna flirting. Aww-erm, but… hmm, new history teacher has an interesting ring. This could be not good for Aunt Jenna. First Logan, now this? Eek! Are we looking at another vampire? It sure looks like it, sure seems like yet another daywalker just like the Salvatore brothers. Oh, Jenna.
- Oh, yeah, LOGAN!!!!????!?! Logan Fell is a FREAKING VAMPIRE NOW?!?!?!? What the WHAT?!?!?!?
- Backing back up to Katherine will she/won't she thoughts… if she does, does that mean that Nina Dobrev will be playing two roles then? That would be a workload, but we'll see what the show will do. It could explain why they decided to go the flashback route in order to introduce that idea and see if she could pull it off. Now, personally I wasn't majorly impressed with her Katherine, but she did a good-ish job. And it could have been that with so few scenes, she just didn't have a handle on the character yet, because I do like her Elena a lot and that has plenty to do with her acting choices. It certainly would be interesting to see.
So, this was such a spooky, scary, intense episode. Sooooo good! I also loved how this one was so predominantly friendship/family based. This show is so very much better than I ever could have imagined it being.