Mandy Griffiths
A Mandy Moment: Why you should watch The Vampire Diaries
Stars of “The Vampire Diaries” are coming to Australian shores when the Hub Productions presents “Vampire Diaries 2: A Return to Mystic Falls” on the 9th and 10th June, and to celebrate, and convince even more of you to watch this great show, here are my top 10 reasons to watch The Vampire Diaries”.
And for a chance to win a double pass to the Melbourne “Vampire Diaries 2: A Return to Mystic Falls” event head to our competitions page!
1. No one is safe
Vicki was a troubled teenage girl, sister of quarterback Matt, embroiled in a love triangle that involved two main characters, and waitress extraordinaire.
And then this happened.
Seven episodes in and a major character danced around in her underwear to Depeche Mode, turned into a vampire, and then stabbed in the heart in front of her love interest. This show was not going to play by the rules, and it has continued to remind the audience as the seasons progressed that Mystic Falls was not a safe town to live in. So why do people still live there? Well they do throw some damn good town parties every week. And the entire population is incredibly good looking. I’d stay for that.
2. Katherine wasn’t in the tomb
The tomb of vampires that bad boy Damon (Ian Somerhalder) had spent 150 years waiting to open was the big arc of Season One, as it contained the love of his life and vampire sire, Katherine (Nina Dobrev). Everything he had done in his vampire life had led to the moment where he could be with her once more. Except…Katherine wasn’t in the tomb. The season was only halfway over and Damon learnt not only that he had spent 150 years trying to save someone who had already saved herself; she had known the whole time where he was and had been avoiding him. Honestly, didn’t see that one coming. Harsh.
3. Katherine
Before we met Katherine, the doppelganger of Elena (also Nina Dobrev) and original love of the brothers Salvatore, I had found the character of Elena, well, rather dull. She was nice and empathetic and beautiful, women wanted to be her and men wanted to be with her. Yeah, dull. Seeing Katherine in flashbacks, and eventually in the flesh brought to life the single best character in “The Vampire Diaries”. She was a bitch, cunning, self-preserving, but above all, fun. Not convinced? She enters the show by stealing Elena’s clothes, making out with Damon, cutting off Uncle John’s fingers and then stabbing him in the chest. All in under two minutes flat. So how does that make Elena’s character more interesting? Well, it doesn’t, but it sure made me like Nina Dobrev as an actress a lot more.
4. Bros before hoes
A love triangle central to the show where the relationship between the two men is as interesting as the one to their high school object of interest? No way (“The Vampire Diaries” continues the great tradition in vampire lore that it’s not at all creepy for 150 year old dudes to be lusting after someone who can’t even vote yet). The brothers had a complex relationship dating all the way back to the introduction of Katherine, but their standoffs and underlying support of each other can often be the highlight of the show. Damon, as the charming, wise cracking, Depeche Mode dancing bad boy is of course a favourite to win Elena’s heart, but kudos to the writers and Paul Wesley for making the “good guy” Stefan a well-rounded and interesting character in his own right. The season three descent into evilness by an otherwise stand up character is always fun to watch as well.
5. Caroline
How do you turn a fun but somewhat irrelevant self-involved cheerleader into one of the best characters on TV? Turn her into a vampire, give her some meaty action, romantic angst and torture scenes and let Candice Accola shine. Caroline, or Vampire Barbie as we affectionately call her (and by ‘we’, I mean Damon), can make you laugh in one second and cry in the next. She also has chemistry with pretty much anyone on screen, and has had me single handedly cheering for her to have a relationship with Elena’s ex-boyfriend Matt (Zach Roerig), his werewolf best friend Tyler (Michael Trevino), Elena’s current boyfriend Stefan, and – this is quite the accomplishment – the series’ big bad villain Klaus (Joseph Morgan).
6. Elena doesn’t want to become a vampire
Anything that distinguishes “The Vampire Diaries” from “Twilight” is a good thing in my book, and none more so than the fact that Elena doesn’t want to become a vampire . She’s not concerned with ageing AND feels like there’s more to life than just having a boyfriend? Elena, you just became interesting. “I’m 17 years old, how am I supposed to know any of this yet? My future? Our lives together? Those were things I was supposed to do things as they came along…I don’t want to be a vampire, Stefan. I never wanted to be one,” she explains. Word.
7.Katherine – because she’s so awesome it’s worth mentioning twice
Two words: This. Scene.
8. Klaus
Damon nailed the bad boy thing in Season One, Katherine was a delicious nemesis in Season Two, where do you go from there? Can a character that had been built up for so long without being seen really deliver on screen? Surely that will be a disappointment? Incorrect. Klaus is menacing, clever, dealing with abandonment issues, likes to draw horses, and has a tendency to use soccer balls to break into houses when he has a tantrum. Not to mention, pretty hot. Klaus, you can definitely stay.
9. The Originals
Along with Klaus came a whole new vampire family with their own rich history. While some haven’t enjoyed the introduction and time dedicated to fleshing these characters out, personally I think the Originals, particularly Klaus, Rebecca (Claire Holt) and Elijah (Daniel Gilles) have elevated the show to create an enriched mythological universe, and allowed our heroes to have worth adversaries. Or allies. Depending which day it is. Another thing I love – when the good guys and the bad guys team up to take down a third enemy. Never gets old.
10. The female friendships
Elena, Caroline, and Bonnie (Kat Graham) were just your typical group of amazingly good looking high school BFFs until one’s parents were killed in a car accident and she started dating a vampire, one discovered she was a witch, and one died and became an actual vampire. Oh yeah, and then another one died and became a vampire. And through this their characters make up one of the only shows currently on television to actively demonstrate supportive female friendships. Leslie (Amy Poehler) and Ann (Rashida Jones) in “Parks and Recreations” is another pair of awesome girlfriends, but it really is quite disturbing how little positive female friendships are portrayed on screen (“Gossip Girl” I’m looking at you). Go TVD.
For more information about “Vampire Diaries 2: A Return to Mystic Falls” go to http://www.thehubproductions.com/Events/Vampire-Diaries-2-A-Return-to-Mystic-Falls/
