Writers: Andrew Kreisberg and Brian Young
Grade: A
This episode really began to delve into the show’s mythology (the amulet, more info on the vervain) and the history of the town (the Founder’s Ball, the vampire council). They also covered a lot of history between the characters: Gilbert family history, the Salvatore brothers’ history, Jenna’s history with Logan Fell, Caroline’s relationship with her mother and the whereabouts of her father, Tyler’s relationship with his parents, etc. I was annoyed that Matt wasn’t in the episode, because surely they could have included something about his relationship with Vicki, but I know the episode was crammed full as it was.
I’m over this Jeremy/Vicki/Tyler triangle. First of all, while Jeremy is likable despite his smartassery and sullenness, and Vicki isn’t entirely unlikable, Tyler’s apparent sincerity in this episode came out of nowhere. I know the writers were trying to give everyone a bit more depth, so they were hoping that revealing Tyler’s troubled relationship with his snooty parents might soften viewers up to him, but he’s acted like an unrepentant douche up until this point. It was too little, too late. Second of all, Jeremy and Tyler fighting over Vicki is Teutonic, to borrow an adjective from Buffy. And to borrow another one, it’s carbon-dated. I hope that Vicki sleeping with Jeremy at least means she made her final choice.
Caroline broke my heart. I felt bad enough when she asked Damon in that vulnerable, childlike tone if he was going to kill her and just accepted his nonchalant “Mm hmm,” but then he told her to shut up at the party, and he tried to kill her! It’s doubly awful because while I know that she’s under his thrall to an extent, she’s damaged enough that I think she might tolerate his abuse even without the mind whammy. When she broke down in front of Elena at the end, I was a little misty-eyed and wanted to give the girl a hug. At least Elena had the moral backbone to stand up for her and call Damon on his abuse. I may think she’s a bit of a wet blanket at times, but I can’t fault her for trying to defend her friend.
Finally, I know I’m not the biggest fan of Elena and Stefan’s epic love, but I thought their conflict in this episode felt very organic. It wasn’t the predictable dynamic of manipulative Damon turning gullible Elena against Stefan, but rather that Damon and Bonnie somewhat inadvertently helped Elena realize that she knew very little about Stefan. No matter what Damon’s intentions were, a real relationship still requires a bit more personal sharing than what Elena had gotten out of Stefan so far. I respect Elena for holding her ground on that point, and for not just looking into Stefan’s big sincere puppy eyes and magically “knowing” she should trust him when he asked her to. She’s right, trust is earned.
Definitely the best episode so far.
Miscellaneous Stuff
-I love the way Damon and Stefan inflict physical harm on one another so carelessly. The way Damon kept slapping Stefan in the pilot was funny because it was annoying and immature, the sort of thing siblings do to one another as children. The mutual stabbing in this episode is much more violent but no less amusing.
-Damon made a football pun in reference to Stefan joining the team and Tanner’s murder, and since there was no other mention of football, I have to assume that the football program is on hold due to Tanner’s death.
-There’s a bit of a dark in-joke to Damon’s comment about liking Anne Rice, because in that series, Louie spikes Lestat’s “drink” in a way that’s very similar to Stefan spiking Caroline with vervain.
-Did not give a rat’s ass about Jenna’s reconciliation with Logan, although at least there was a larger plot-related point to it.
-We didn’t get any background on Bonnie’s family, but her witchy powers took a huge leap forward.
Quotes
Caroline: “How come you don’t sparkle?”
Damon: “Because I live in the real world where vampires burn in the sun.”
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