The Vampire Diaries Review: Relatives and Enemies

There’s a lot of failure going around on this week’s The Vampire Diaries, and parental figures are being tossed around left and right as Klaus finally makes his play to break his curse to become vampi-were. How do you kill a half vampire/ half werewolf? Heck, I don’t even know what to call him.

We pick up this week with Caroline and Matt hiding out from werewolf Tyler who is chomping at the bit to try to tear them both to pieces. While Caroline tries to calm down her werewolf former bestie, Matt takes a different route and pulls out a shotgun to pop a cap in the charging beast momentarily slowing him down. Now, while an errant bullet doesn’t kill Tyler, it does allow for Matt and Caroline to gain some cover and hide out in the house where Matt prepares for the upcoming siege. As they’re waiting for Tyler to arrive, Matt confesses to Caroline that he’s known all along that she is a vampire and also that he’s been acting as a spy for her mother who knows as well. Caroline is stunned by this news and asks Matt how her mother feels. Caroline knows that her mother hates vampires and Matt tells her that she “always has, always will.”

Back in the Bonnie/Jeremy hide out love nest, the two look for a way to keep Elena from turning into a vampire, what with Damon force-feeding her his blood and Klaus preparing her as a human sacrifice, Elena’s life appears pretty much forfeit. While combing through his ancestor’s journals Jeremy finds a spell that just may offer some hope. He tells his plan to Alaric, Stefan, and Klaus who have just arrived, but these three come bearing bad news: Jenna’s been taken.

As you may know, in order for Klaus to unleash his inner wolf he needs to sacrifice a vampire, a wolf, and Elena. His original plan was to use Tyler and Caroline, but after Damon threw a wrench in that plan he decided to make do with Jules, Tyler’s guardian wolf, and Aunt Jenna, the as-of-now worthless secondary character who they kept stringing along for this very moment. Don’t get me wrong, Aunt Jenna’s cool and all, but it seems her involvement in the show to date is mostly to satisfy the child enforcement rules that these kids have a semi-conscious and totally clueless adult to tag along. I’m hoping that Jenna will finally get her moment this time, but why mess with tradition.

In an open field somewhere in the woods, Klaus has new vampire Jenna, Elena, and werewolf Jules (Michaela McManus) in their own separate circle of Hell. Seriously they’re each in a ring of fire, conjured up by Klaus’ witch who has also put a spell on Jules to slow down her transformation sending her body in spasms of agony as her wolf tries to break free. Jules doesn’t last too long as Klaus rips her heart out and then drains its blood out into a burning fire. In the back draft of this brutality, Jenna and Elena take the time for a little heart-to-heart in which Jenna admits that back in the beginning, when she was first called to take care of Elena and her little bro, she was at first hesitant; but she would have missed out on a lot, so she also apologizes to Elena saying, “I failed you.”

Speaking of dying relationships, back at the house Matt and Caroline are finally joined by a naked Tyler in human form. Before you get too excited, Caro covers him up with Tyler’s jacket and the two bring him in to sleep it off. In the quiet that follows Matt tells Caro that his life is already screwed up enough without adding her issues into it. So, he’s officially out. Caro cries on Tyler’s shoulder, and she settles beside him under the cover while he consoles her. Which begs the question: Is he still naked under there? I totally understand that Caro loves Matt, sure. But of the two, I would have to say Caro/Tyler is a much better pairing and I look to this development with anticipation.

Damon’s been around this week, contemplating his impending death from the werewolf bite from Tyler. For the most part he sits at home reflective; drinking and punching stuff until Father John comes in. Damon tells John (David Anders) about feeding Elena his blood and also that she is now in Klaus’s hands. John gets upset and tells Damon that he will do anything to keep Elena from becoming a vampire. John joins up in Bonnie’s hide-out hut just in time to perform the spell which as it turns out will allow a parent’s spirit to connect with that of their child’s. What this means is that Klaus won’t be able to kill Elena because her spirit is linked to John’s, but the fine print on that little contract is that when Elena’s spirit returns to her body John dies. Only John and Jeremy know this last little fact and John is still willing to go through with the ceremony, he asks Jeremy to give Elena a letter along with his ring once he dies.

So, the plan to kill Klaus is on. Bonnie will appear and use her power on Klaus, and Elijah will show up to finish him off. Stefan worries about this plan, because much as Damon infuriates him he could never actually kill his brother. Elijah reassures Stefan that he has more reason than most to want Klaus dead. It seems his brother’s tortures start at home, Klaus has tracked down and killed every member of their family and scattered their remains never to be found. Elijah wants revenge; “I won’t fail you” he says.

Back at the fairgrounds, or wherever the heck they are, Stefan offers Klaus a trade: let Jenna go and Stefan will be the sacrifice. It’s almost laughable how easily Klaus knocks Stefan out promising to save him for later. And then like that Jenna launches herself at Klaus, but he quickly takes care of her as well, in a much more fatal manner he stakes her dead. In the end, Klaus grabs Elena and feeds from her; the thunder rolls, the lightning strikes and she’s ‘dead’ as well starting the Klaus moon man transformation. Before he gets too high on the power Bonnie and Elijah come out attacking and it’s down to Elijah to make the death move. Elijah seems perfectly willing to do so, until Klaus tells him that he knows where the bodies of their family are and promises to take Elijah to them. And that’s a wrap, no matter that Bonnie and Damon promise death on his head Elijah takes off with Klaus. But hey, at least he said sorry.

In the aftermath, the spell does work to bring Elena back and it claims John. On the day of Jenna’s funeral, Jeremy gives Elena John’s note in which John confesses that he has failed Elena as a parent. In the letter, John says that he hopes that Elena will do better with her child for whom he has left the ring. Reeling over their losses Elena and Jeremy hug, they still have each other. Damon continues his understandably moody temperament and when Stefan says they all need to be there for Elena, Damon lets him know that he might not be. Finally he shows Stefan the werewolf bite that continues to spread poison through his system leaving his arm an ugly blue mess. Stefan promises Damon that he will find a way to cure him, but the only promise Damon wants is for Stefan to not tell Elena. And with that he walks away.

Next week on the season finale of Vampire Diaries all eyes are on Damon as he spirals out of control. No one wants Damon to die, but can they really save him?

Season 2, Episode 21: “The  Sun Also Rises” (original airdate May 5, 2011.)

The Vampire Diaries airs Thursdays at 8/7c on The CW.

Photos courtesy of Bob Mahoney and The CW.