S07.E18: One Way Or Another

[formerlyfreedom]

Determined to capture an escaped vampire named Ambrose, who may be the key to getting Stefan back safely, Damon heads to Memphis with Alaric in tow. However, reluctant to step back into his former vampire hunting ways, Alaric makes his unwillingness to participate clear, while revealing the truth about the past three Damon-less years of his life. Meanwhile, in the psych ward, Bonnie meets a young woman named Virginia, who provides her with some valuable information about why The Armory may be after her. Finally, Enzo takes matters into his own hands when he learns some devastating news from Rayna.

 

 

[formerlyfreedom]

Airing in Canada on 4/14; note if you have not seen the episode, you may be spoiled if you enter!

[PinkRibbons]

I'm very confused -- when did Rayna's connection to her marked ones explicitly break? Is Stefan's life still tied to her life? Does she no longer have the urge to hunt marked vampires that sent Stefan running to keep her away from Caroline and the kids? I mean, did they ever say this on the show or are we supposed to assume that the Phoenix Stone was The Key to everything and all previous problems from her are canceled with it's destruction? (Except for her witch-killing blood, apparently?)

 

So, there's ~something~ locked in The Armory's vault. Hello, next season's Big Bad. Let me guess, this random assortment of idiots will find some kind of reason they have to open the vault even though it will probably about twenty billion times more problems than the one that lead to them releasing it, etc? I have to say I'm kind of hoping for a Damon Doppelganger. Let's hit that trifecta!

[steelyis]

I'm starting to feel Bonnie and Enzo--I'm not a hundred percent there yet, but KG and MM are selling it.

 

Perfect timing, Damon!

 

I'm totally #TeamBonnie, but when she slammed the door in Damon's face... ouch.

[Couver]

I really liked this episode.

 

Damon and Alaric hunting together again was so great to see! I love that Alaric enjoyed it even for just a moment. Their talk at the end was really heartbreaking and I say that was someone who isn't a huge fan of Damon. IS really did a great job with that scene.

 

As someone who hated the idea of Bonnie/Enzo when it became obvious they were going to be a thing I have to say I am kind of feeling it too. KG tends to have chemistry with a ton of her male co-stars which is why it's so tragic Bonnie's love life has been pretty desolate. But the two of them were pretty hot together. And MM is selling Enzo's feelings for Bonnie really well.

 

Glad to see Valerie take the high road. I thought she was a goner there for a second. While I feel the heretics were poorly executed I'm glad a siphoner is still out there just in case.

 

That final scene was all kinds of good, awkward, and sad all rolled into one. I loved it!

 

The writing was also pretty tight in this episode. The snark and one liners were really good.

Edited April 15, 2016 by Couver

[ElectricBoogaloo]

On the one hand, I am tired of everyone blaming Damon for everything sucking. Case in point this week was Alaric saying that the only reason he has been happy for the last three years is because Damon didn't come "barging in and screwing things up." Sorry, Ric, but there are lots of reasons your life sucked the last few years you were in Mystic Falls that had NOTHING to do with Damon. For example, Kai killed Jo, not Damon. And Kai didn't kill Jo because of Damon. Kai killed Jo because he was a crazy Gemini witch who slaughtered most of his family and then stewed in his own crazy in a prison world for 20 years. I totally buy that Alaric has been happy the last three years, but has he ever considered that's because he finally got his ass out of Mystic Falls and away from all the crazy supernatural things that he used to go out of his way to hunt down?

 

Despite my feelings about that, I like that Damon is seeing the repercussions of his actions. In the past, he didn't care about a lot of people so there weren't many people whose feelings he hurt or whose friendship he enjoyed. Opening your heart means opening yourself to being hurt, rejected, etc. and that's exactly what happened with Alaric and Bonnie. He loves them and they both rejected him. I wish that Alaric's kiss off speech had been more about the fact that Damon chose to abandon everyone than "you make everything sucky so go away!" Bonnie slamming the door in his face was predictable but mild considering how betrayed she felt.

 

One thing I noticed is that in group therapy, Bonnie said that she found out Damon was back but he hadn't tried to contact her. As Damon pointed out, she didn't leave a forwarding address in his storage unit so how did she think he was going to get in touch with her? And in Damon's defense, he was kind of busy right after he left his storage unit what with all of Stefan's "OMG EMERGENCY! RUN NOW!" I'm not sure how much time has passed since the whole hostage situation at the news station, but it did seem like time was of the essence. That doesn't excuse Damon ignoring Bonnie's plea to stay though. I'm just saying that when you have a 911 situation with your brother and your ex-BFF has gone into hiding, you have a little bit of leeway to track her down. I think she was far more hurt by the fact that he left in the first place.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I just think that unless there is a direct cause and effect between Damon's actions and something crappy happening (and there are plenty of examples of that), there is no need to pull the thread all the way out until you find the point where it's Damon's fault in the chain of events. Otherwise everything that Damon did is Katherine's fault because she turned him and everything that's Katherine's fault is ultimately the fault of Silas, Amara, and Qetsiyah.

[Couver]

I forgot the Lucy Bennett name drop was awesome and welcome. I hope she stays in hiding. As much as I've wanted to see more of her I don't want her sharing the fate of most witches on this show. 

[grandemocha]

 

the whole Sarah Salvatore story gets conveniently swept off the rug, and the actress written off the show.

Now that you mention it, what the hell was the point of introducing Sarah Salvatore on the show and then getting rid of her so quickly? Did Damon ever even find out she was alive? Was it just so the audience yet again felt sorry for him for killing a pregnant woman (and that was his self-proclaimed "worst day ever")? I mean the actress wasn't the most riveting guest character we've ever had on the show, but with a little more development, she could have easily been a new addition. One that would have had connections to BOTH Damon and Stefan.

 

 

I'm totally #TeamBonnie, but when she slammed the door in Damon's face... ouch.

Same. I can't stand Damon but Ian does do a good 'sad' face.

Edited April 15, 2016 by grandemocha

[slayer2]

Glad she slammed the door in his face, Damon needed to feel that. I hate that Alaric was the one that got to say it but I loved everyhing he said, ever since Damon popped back in Stefan's life and killed Lexi while searching for Katherine I noticed his knack for appearing and throwing people's life into chaos for the things he wants and especially with the super disgusting way he treated Valerie in this episode (haaaaate how witches are treated on this show) he needed to feel what Alaric said and I'm glad he did.

Also with respect to finding Bonnie, this is the guy who searched for Katherine for 60years if he wanted to find Bonnie he could have done it. Hell, all he had to do was call Caroline and just ASK her.

Glad to see Bonnie being treated right. I ship Bonenzo because they are both pretty broken people due to their treatment and being always held in last place by everyone else, it seems pretty reasonable they would find some magic and comfort in each other. But if the writers weren't so fucked up in biases they would have seen the potential from season 5, it's a full-on tragedy that someone with KG's beauty, Talent and natural chemistry with so many of the cast, spent years rotting away on one-offs with step-brothers and deus-ex-machina plots.

With that in mind I still ship Bamon way harder, I've been watching it for 7 years and this Bonenzo stuff (while lovely) has only been around for half a season. IS and KG's chemistry is undeniable and I'm just hook, line and sinker whenever they interact. When he showed up stammering and apologizing with flowers in his hand after she had put away his letter someone on Twitter remarked that it was less best friendship and more "The Notebook". There's so many levels to the two of them and I think they showed at least 3 last night. Damon definitely heard everything they were saying. He looked so gobsmacked that he must have heard and realized how truly dumb it was of him to dedicate. I do believe this is one of the first opportunities I've ever had to see Damon Salvatore speechless.

Edited April 15, 2016 by slayer2

[Aeryn13]

I seriously don`t get this Season. When Damon went on his murder-benders or lost it in previous Seasons, everyone pretty much got over it but he hasn`t done anything that was this bad this Season and suddenly the theme is "let the hate flow through you". Why now? It`s jarring.I can`t even see it as belated karma or something because if you don`t punish someone when they are truly bad, why do it when they are actually okay-ish?

 

Alaric`s speech was kind of assy. So Damon and just Damon screwed up his life? It wasn`t that life in Mystic Falls tended to suck for everyone in varying degrees because of the supernatural shenanigans going on? Ridiculous. Ric could have removed himself from that town and that situation at various points but chose not to. And sorry, but Damon was not the root and cause of every single one of those supernatural shenanigans. Some were being set in place way before he even was born. So this ultra-simplistic blaming of Damon just made me shake my head. I serously don`t know why they brought Ric back from the dead and then pulverized his friendship with Damon and frankly made him a super-unlikeable character. 

 

The scene with Bonnie slamming the door in Damon`s face somehow played much better and much more emotional. 

[TigerLynx]

I'm fine with Damon getting blamed for what he has done.  I didn't like so many things getting glossed over in the past.  However, I can't get on board with everything being Damon's fault especially since I believe Damon putting himself in time out in a coffin was the most intelligent thing he has done in years.

 

Alaric voluntarily came to MF looking for answers about Isobel.  At different times, Elena and Stefan were the ones calling the shots making the decisions.  All of these people at one time or another have gone along with Damon's plans.  Quite a few of them had plans of their own that backfired.  The everything that's ever happened is all Damon's fault isn't true and it is lazy writing.

 

I don't like the writing, but IS, KG, PW and MD deliver in their performances.  It's to bad the writing isn't as good as the acting.

[grandemocha]

 

Alaric voluntarily came to MF looking for answers about Isobel.  At different times, Elena and Stefan were the ones calling the shots making the decisions.  All of these people at one time or another have gone along with Damon's plans.  Quite a few of them had plans of their own that backfired.  The everything that's ever happened is all Damon's fault isn't true and it is lazy writing.

Yeah, this is very true. Coming from me, a person who can't stand Damon, not everything that went wrong in Alaric's life (for example) was Damon's fault. Like when does the blaming end and personal accountability start? Alaric was an adult way back in Season 1 and nothing was stopping him from skipping town one he learned the truth of what happened to Isobel. He chose to stay and kept getting himself entangled with the MF gang..and developed a bit of a drinking problem to be honest. It's great that Alaric is happy with his children, good for him!, but just move on and stop fixating on the past.

[miss-vanilla]

I can agree to that but that's not the case in Jo's death. There is a direct cause of effect between Damon locking Kai up in 1994 and Kai snapping. Kai came back with the plan to enact vengeance on Damon and Bonnie for his imprisonment. So yeah, Alaric has a right to be pissed at Damon (and Bonnie, but considering she was suffering mentally at the time, she was more of Damon's pawn than his partner in this) for everything that Kai did as a direct result of that. The fact that the show never addresses this doesn't make it less true.

 

Jo died because she was a Gemini. Kai wanted to kill all the Gemini coven for making him an outcast then sealing him in a prison world for 2 decades. This was not Damons fault. Kai took his other revenge out on Damon and Bonnie as a separate issue by putting the sleep curse on Elena. This had nothing to do with Jo, she was a gonna either way because Kai wanted her dead.

 

ETA, did anyone else catch the guy at the Psych ward call Bonnie Miss McCullough? Nice book shout out I thought.

Edited April 16, 2016 by miss-vanilla

[slayer2]

I'm fine with Damon getting blamed for what he has done.  I didn't like so many things getting glossed over in the past.  However, I can't get on board with everything being Damon's fault especially since I believe Damon putting himself in time out in a coffin was the most intelligent thing he has done in years.

 

Alaric voluntarily came to MF looking for answers about Isobel.  At different times, Elena and Stefan were the ones calling the shots making the decisions.  All of these people at one time or another have gone along with Damon's plans.  Quite a few of them had plans of their own that backfired.  The everything that's ever happened is all Damon's fault isn't true and it is lazy writing.

 

I don't like the writing, but IS, KG, PW and MD deliver in their performances.  It's to bad the writing isn't as good as the acting.

 

Don't forget MM, he's nailing it. Can't believe they've been wasting him and KG in the back waving flowers. Unbelievable.

ETA, did anyone else catch the guy at the Psych ward call Bonnie Miss McCullough? Nice book shout out I thought.

 

 

 

 

Yup, I dug it. Some of us are hoping it is leading up to the bathtub scene.

Edited April 16, 2016 by slayer2

[Primetimer]

Damon Salvatore's too old to know how to use the internet, but we found his online dating profile anyway!

Read the story

[LeafontheWind]

Kai only wanted Jo dead after he snapped from his imprisonment with Lily's heretics. After the merge with Luke, he seemed to have let that go. But after Damon threw him into the 1903 prison world, he snapped and went back to being evil. Kai came back ready to hurt everyone because of that single act of betrayal.

But that act of betrayal came from Bonnie, not Damon. Damon went to the 1903 world to get his mother back. Bonnie went so that she could have her closure after what Kai did to her in the other prison world. It may be a matter of interpretation, but I felt that Bonnie only agreed to help Damon get Lily out in exchange for his help with her plan to trap Kai. That is why Bonnie and Kai went off on their own, so she could injure him and ensure that he got left behind. Yes, Damon definitely had a hand in the situation, but the plan itself was Bonnie's.

[slayer2]

The plan was Damon's, Bonnie was going to give him her blood and tell him to get out. She already agreed to give her blood, she asked him if he would leave her alone if she acquiesced to the blood but he insisted she come along and said "Stick with me Bonnie Bennett I might just have the answer to all your prayers."

Edited April 16, 2016 by slayer2

[GaT]

This show has become a chore to watch.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Inside the episode:

[slayer2]

I'm going to be honest, I'm kind of falling a little in love with Rayna Cruz here. Leslie Ann Huff is incredible.

 

Also, re: above: At this point I find Plec's ability to zero in on the most boring aspects of the show with laser focus to be truly uncanny. I mean, no talk of Bonnie and the fact that we are finally getting answers as to why the lead female character is in a MENTAL INSTITUTION. No talk of her reunion with Damon with whom she left off quite acrimoniously, no talk of why Enzo and Bonnie are suddenly joined at the hip when she was playing Darth Vader with his hand three episodes ago, but wait....let's spend 2minutes rambling on about yet another boring body switch storyline with the ONLY cast member that doesn't know how to differentiate his voice, cadence and body language even after a 6 year masterclass with Nina Dobrev. Like....the fuck? She's gonna tank this show, it's like the CW doesn't give a shit, between Arrow, the 100 and this shit it's like the folks at the top spend their days baked like a Mrs. Fields cookie.

Edited April 16, 2016 by slayer2

[miss-vanilla]

Kai only wanted Jo dead after he snapped from his imprisonment with Lily's heretics. After the merge with Luke, he seemed to have let that go. But after Damon threw him into the 1903 prison world, he snapped and went back to being evil. Kai came back ready to hurt everyone because of that single act of betrayal. 

 

It doesn't make sense to me that Kai would want to kill his coven because of what Damon and Bonnie did to him. The more likely reason is that Jo was pregnant with Gemini twins, who were a threat to his leadership if they were born. The coven couldn't kill Kai because he was their leader and they would die too, but twins would have changed that. 

Edited April 16, 2016 by miss-vanilla

[miss-vanilla]

This one had some fun stuff, and was for the most part more reminiscent of the old TVD where plot points are wrapped up quickly.

I enjoyed the majority of the dialogue, in was snappy, funny and spread out among a few of the characters

 

Alaric "Your Barbie dream phone is ringing"

 

The we hate Damon stuff is just hyperbolic now, and I've started to just tune it out since it just spoils an otherwise decent episode, and I don't feel like repeating stuff I've said every week for the last  5 or six weeks. The writers are determined to continue this plot  like a juggernaut down a single lane country road, knocking down everything in it's path to get to the required destination which is Damon sacrificing something else at the end of the season as the final act in his "12 step redemption tour" (thanks Alaric).

 

Not sure how to take Bonnies "therapy" sessions. Is she acting? I don't think so, I think she fell in love with Damon some time ago which is why she was so crushed when he left her. KG, does "hurt" so very well. The problem is Damon loves Elena, he probably always will, I wonder how this will all play out next season?

For her sake, I hope she is over it, unrequited love is a bitch- ask Damon he is an expert.

 

The save Stefan#7,464578 story was actually very entertaining. WE got some Dalaric banter, sassy Damon, sarcastic Ambrose, lots of blood, magic and action.

The Stefan and Val break up was a bit contrived, but since I didn't really care that much in the first place it didn't bother me too much, however I guess that means the door is now open for more Steroline angst- shucks. Does anyone really care about this story?

 

The sealed with a 'Bennett witch spell' vault, because we haven't seen this story play out at least 20 times before.

 

Overall not bad, but somehow I'm not excited for the last few episodes like I usually am.

[miss-vanilla]

Basically Kai snapped. Which we're actually told in the episode, when he made that creepy video for Bonnie to watch, and later by Lily in s7. How does it even make sense that Kai was threatened by Jo's twins? There's an episode where he told her she was pregnant, then wished her a happy life. If he was so worried about her pregnancy why didn't he just snap her neck with magic the moment he found out? Jo wasn't interested in their coven, or bringing her children into the coven. Didn't she even tell Alaric that she was afraid that the coven will try to take the twins from her by force?

Taken to the all seasons thread.

[Bort]

Glad to see Valerie take the high road. I thought she was a goner there for a second. While I feel the heretics were poorly executed I'm glad a siphoner is still out there just in case.

 

With the news that the actress was cast in Supernatural, I was sure Valerie was toast, especially since so few tertiary characters ever make it off this show alive. To be honest, I can't even think of one. Valerie may be the first. 

[TigerLynx]

The vault was sealed by a Bennett witch, the Armory wants Bonnie because Lucy is nowhere to be found, and there are hardly any Bennett witches left?  Except Klaus threatened the dead Bennett witches into giving him his coffins back by threatening to kill their descendants because a thousand witches have thousands of descendants.  Writers try paying attention to the history you wrote.

[slayer2]

The vault was sealed by a Bennett witch, the Armory wants Bonnie because Lucy is nowhere to be found, and there are hardly any Bennett witches left? Except Klaus threatened the dead Bennett witches into giving him his coffins back by threatening to kill their descendants because a thousand witches have thousands of descendants. Writers try paying attention to the history you wrote.

I'm glad they aren't, they'd just kill them anyway. A colleague of mine posted something on Twitter about colatteral damage on TV and film and how it's getting worse and not particularly fun to see. I have to agree and TVD is the worst for this.

There were so many dead bodies in this episode and I spent a great deal of time worrying that the cab driver wasn't compelled by Damon to go about his normal life and just ended up stuck there in limbo for eternity, Enzo could and should have made it time specific so the guy could get on with his life and Rayna the hunter doesn't seem at all careful with the human lives she's charged with protecting. It's gets harder and harder for me to root for the protagonists ir antagonists of shows when they prove time and again that they don't give a shit about the lives around them.

Edited April 16, 2016 by slayer2

[Racj82]

Just wanted to throw in my two cents that Enzo still sucks, Bonnie deserves better, I don't buy their romance and I'm not sure I ever will. Enzo can still die any day now.

[roses]

I actually don't mind Bonnie/Enzo I do think KG and MM have nice chemistry my issue is that I don't understand why the writers waited until the end of the season to focus on them. Also their scenes made me think about Bonnie's past dating history, when was the last time Bonnie even had a love interest? Was it Jeremy?

Edited April 17, 2016 by roses

[slayer2]

I actually don't mind Bonnie/Enzo I do think KG and MM have nice chemistry my issue is that I don't understand why the writers waited until the end of the season to focus on them. Also their scenes made me think about Bonnie's past dating history, when was the last time Bonnie even had a love interest? Was it Jeremy?

This. I mean really, talk about wasting characters. I just watched Enzo's weird suicide/ripping his own heart out/ life on the other side bullshit last night. We couldn't get Bonenzo in favour of that shit? There's no real argument that MM can't handle his shit, he's doing better than PW IMO but this storyline should have happened sooner. Instead of Bonnie following ungrateful douchebags who wished death on her, through Europe she could have been getting some from a dude who would actually put her first for once. I mean come on writers!

[MrsMommy]

Okay not sure if any of you will know the answer or have a guess but here it goes... If Bonnie has been taking pills that makes her non magical and die, there is no cure for the pills.. then why would the armory want her she can't use magic?

[slayer2]

Okay not sure if any of you will know the answer or have a guess but here it goes... If Bonnie has been taking pills that makes her non magical and die, there is no cure for the pills.. then why would the armory want her she can't use magic?

 

She can still use her magic when the pills aren't in her system as far as I know, it's just that it's poisoning her slowly. The magic repressing effects of the pills should disappear once she stops ingesting them but the toxins remain as far as I understand it.

Edited April 17, 2016 by slayer2

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I think the other thing is that the Armory has been looking for Bonnie for a while but Alex didn't realize until a few episodes ago that Enzo had been giving the pills to Bonnie.

 

Of course that really begs the question about poorly they're monitoring their inventory supply. The pills are made from Rayna's blood which means there is a finite number of pills (as opposed to millions of pills sitting around the Armory) so you'd think they would keep track of how many they have, but Enzo stole enough for Bonnie to have one pill a day. How long did Bonnie say it had been since she checked herself into that place?

[grandemocha]

Sorry guys, I've been watching the show sporadically, but if Enzo is the one who is giving Bonnie these no-magic pills made from Rayna's blood that are slowly killing her..then why is anyone rooting for her and Enzo to be in a relationship? If he's poisoning her, then fuck him, no?

[grandemocha]

 

He didn't know they were poisonous to witches. He just knew that they blocked locator spells and he was giving her the pills to keep her safe.

Ah, thank you, that explains it. I'm a little confused as to how any pills can be poisonous to just witches specifically..unless there's like trace amounts of cyanide or hemlock in them or something, but I'll roll with it.

Edited April 17, 2016 by grandemocha

[slayer2]

Ah, thank you, that explains it. I'm a little confused as to how any pills can be poisonous to just witches specifically..unless there's like trace amounts of cyanide or hemlock in them or something, but I'll roll with it.

 

Well it's Rayna's blood and she's impervious to witches so yada yada genetics, something something blood that doesn't mix then yada yada dead witches I guess.

Edited April 17, 2016 by slayer2

[immortalfrieza]

He didn't know they were poisonous to witches. He just knew that they blocked locator spells and he was giving her the pills to keep her safe. 

Which is even more nonsensical. Witches on both shows are blocking locator spells left and right as though doing that was on the first page of the junior spellbook each witch gets handed out in Witchcraft 101 class. Bonnie is dying from something that was completely unnecessary in the first place.

 

 

I'm glad they aren't, they'd just kill them anyway. A colleague of mine posted something on Twitter about colatteral damage on TV and film and how it's getting worse and not particularly fun to see. I have to agree and TVD is the worst for this.

There were so many dead bodies in this episode and I spent a great deal of time worrying that the cab driver wasn't compelled by Damon to go about his normal life and just ended up stuck there in limbo for eternity, Enzo could and should have made it time specific so the guy could get on with his life and Rayna the hunter doesn't seem at all careful with the human lives she's charged with protecting. It's gets harder and harder for me to root for the protagonists ir antagonists of shows when they prove time and again that they don't give a shit about the lives around them.

Yeah, the writers have gone so far down the "the good guys are flawed" route that the "good guys" have lost any reason to actually call them that. In fact, everybody on this show are a bunch of evil unrepentant dicks and the only difference between them anymore is that the Mystic Falls gang thinks they're the good guys and we're still supposed to root for them the bad guys know better and we're supposed to hate them. This episode is just one of MANY where they do things that if anyone else were to do the writers would want us to consider them the villains.

 

What sickens me about this three years later storyline and this episode in particular is how EVERYBODY is acting like Damon abandoned them by desiccating in a coffin until Elena woke up. Damon gave very VERY good reasons for doing that, namely he was going to keep screwing up and doing awful crap that everybody else would have to clean up after if he didn't one day snap and kill Bonnie and he was SPARING THEM THAT, not to mention that simply being AROUND him tends to cause trouble. Hell, everybody except Bonnie even outright stated that their lives were better off without Damon around. We get something similar with Stephan "abandoning" Caroline even though the reality is he left both to protect her from being collateral damage of the Huntress, to save his own life, and to look for a way he could get that mark off him so he could go back to Caroline. Not "abandoning" more like "forced to leave" in both cases.

Edited April 17, 2016 by immortalfrieza

[Hiddenpick]

Does it seem as if this TVD season is an endless mess on an endless loop fraught with aimless, feckless, order less, purposeless pursuits? There was a time when the notion that TVD's season was about to come to a close fueled me with both heartache and excitement. Uh-huh. Were there moments within the run of the series that thrilled me and filled me up with that can't-wait-don't-hate-gotta-date-won't-be-late-TVD-is-first-rate feeling? Wasn't there?

 

Hop aboard the midnight train to Dallas, y'all, no...to Tennessee, no...to Virginia...no,no... to Asheville. This southern train has taken us on a roller coaster ride and I just have to wonder what happened to MFMF? It's a town that Matt, the Barney Fife of MF, fought for. So did Stefan, Damon, Caroline...the whole gang. Why isn't anything happening there anymore? To think I used to complain about all the parties that took place there. The Heretics came--and went. Julian came--and went. The town was an 'anchor' of sorts. All roads led to MF, it was common ground..almost consecrated ground. It was that place where 'home grown' characters would come into contact with each other. In fact the town could be considered an important 'character' within the series---The Boarding house, the Mansion, the sheriff's office, the town square, the Grill, the Gilberts, the Bennets. I cared about those places and the people who lived and worked in them. I have no sense of cohesiveness now.  As it is, everyone is scattered, communicating mostly by cell phones, which is as exciting as a box of hair. I'm sure this slight is ten percent of my discontent at this point.

 

Damon (everybody's punching bag this week) Salvatore, appeared doggedly determined to do the 'right' thing by his brother. I gotta say the 'honest' but hurtful remarks thrown at Damon was kinda overkill...and I'm not a great fan of this character. The opposing features given to him from one week to the next is dizzying. He's good, no he's bad. He's selfish, no he's kind. He's egotistical and thoughtless, no he's thoughtful and loving. We revisited  his "I had to remove myself to protect the people I love' yammering said this time to Al. The act seemed selfish to some selfless to others--including Damon. I didn't think it was necessary to hide to protect his loved ones, because the danger didn't go with Damon in his coffin.  I have had no use for Alaric in any of his 'lifetimes', so his sanctimonious attitude regarding both Damon and Stefan was grating. He hates Stefan because he broke Caroline's heart? But he was BFF with the guy who slept with his wife?

 

Stefan's short lived body jump was silly. I found it was without substance or merit. I believe the purpose of the exercise was ye olde plot-ery intended to showcase the urgency of the situation that would then evolve into a bonding moment for the brothers and further Damon's redemption. It wasn't that I didn't enjoy Damon and Stefan's talk, I did. But they could have, dunno, gone fishing and had the same convo. Less dramatic to be sure but absolutely effective.
But here's my conundrum, apart from Stefan and Damon, (loosely), which relationships Should I feel something for and crave that their story be something to smile about. Valerie is gone (quite classy departure I must say). Should I be rooting for Alaric and Caroline ( I actually do since I abhor Steroline). Should I be rooting for Enzo and Bonnie? Bonnie and Damon (I was a huge fan, now I'm a trepidatious one)

 

Meanwhile, dishonorable mention to Rayna. Is she gonna die soon, please?  Her character has become superlative.

Hooray for Bonnie's appearance, even though she's trotted out at odd times doing odd things. The Bennett witches are supposedly the strongest witches..like..eva---except I have seen action to the contrary, more often than not. Seems every witch in creation is more powerful than her. I love the material Kat has been given this season...let's put it this way, I like what Kat has done with the shit she been given. Meanwhile, Bonnie, you in trouble gurl.

 

"This sense of disappointment must be what it feels like to have you folks as writers"..damn straight.
 

[Terrafamilia]

 As someone pointed out on another forum, the Armory had a couple Heretics in their possession so they could have had one siphon the magic out of the special Bennett witch sealed vault leaving an ordinary sealed vault. Assuming they really wanted it open, like now.

[ByTor]

The Stefan and Val break up was a bit contrived, but since I didn't really care that much in the first place it didn't bother me too much

It was contrived and it made no sense at all. "You were willing to die to save me because you don't love me as much as I love you." Huh?

[slayer2]

It was contrived and it made no sense at all. "You were willing to die to save me because you don't love me as much as I love you." Huh?

I was just thankful a woman got to walk out of a CW show instead of leaving in a body bag.

[ByTor]

I'm not a fan of Valerie the character, but I'll miss her pretty hair :)

[miss-vanilla]

So,  "previously on the car and phone diaries"

 

Remember when TVD actually had sets, and people actually had scenes with each other.

[slayer2]

I'm not a fan of Valerie the character, but I'll miss her pretty hair :)

Lol, I hadn't noticed her hair but I did like that Irish sounding lilt she had in that last scene. Although I hear say the actress is Australian.

[Tara Ariano]

In case you missed it, here's the Previously.TV post on the episode!

 

The Ultimate Bad Boy Of The Vampire Diaries Seeks Drinking Buddy, Cuddles
Damon Salvatore's too old to know how to use the internet, but we found his online dating profile anyway!

[Argenta]

So,  "previously on the car and phone diaries"

 

Remember when TVD actually had sets, and people actually had scenes with each other.

Yeah the characters are all kind of scattered at the moment, aren't they?

I too was confounded at Valerie's 'logic' in concluding that Stefan didn't really love her because he wouldn't allow her to sacrifice herself for him. Whuh?!?!

My other issue had to do with Valerie encouraging Stefan to go and 'make things right with Caroline.' Again, what?! Caroline is engaged and the de facto mother of two young children. For Stefan to try to win her back would be to break up that family and would be a monstrously selfish act. And hasn't poor Alaric lost enough wives/partners already?

Because Caroline and Alaric's relationship is based partly on pragmatism and circumstance, as opposed to Epic Passion doesn't make it less legitimate or strong.

I sincerely hope that Stefan doesn't act on Valerie's suggestion. I will think a lot less of him if he does.