The Vampire Diaries – We Have History Together

By: Luke Joseph

Who Lives, Who Dies, Who Goes Onto Tell Their Story?

“Hi, I’m Damon and I have anger issues.” What’s more comical than one vampire at therapy class? How about two? It seems that this is one method that Stefan and Damon (Paul Wesley and Ian Somerhalder) are using to collect their victims and send to Cade (Wolé Parks). While Damon confesses this to the group no one bats an eye because they’ve all been compelled. The road trip between brothers isn’t helping their brotherly bond, considering they both already seem annoyed with each other as Stefan takes over the meeting. “Who would you say is the worst in this group,” he questions as his eyes focus onto the leader of the group additionally presenting him with the question of if he had to choose between one of the girls and himself who would he choose to live. “Yes, I would want her to die instead of me,” he’s quick to answer without hesitation thanks to the compulsion. Once again the question is asked only this time every one of the group members is included but it doesn’t change anything, “I want to live. I don’t care about any of them.” The poor fool thinks he’s answered correctly by choosing himself. What he doesn’t realize is he just ended his own life and Damon confirms that speculation as he kills him right on the spot. So one victim right? Worst of the worst dies and everyone else gets to leave and forget this night, right? Wrong, because Stefan has killed them all and already Damon is slightly worried considering Stefan doesn’t have a good track record with control. “I’m doing it right this time; heads will remain intact,” the biggest joke of the century. Really? Are we honestly supposed to believe that Stefan finally can control himself? Giving his track record of falling off the wagon pretty much every season I’m prepared for him to slip up and rip up.

That Teacher No One Likes

Caroline (Candice King) is experiencing a blast from the past as she finds herself walking the halls of Mystic Falls High School after being assigned by her boss to do a story on Founders Day from the alumni angle. The second that she enters the classroom she begins asking away as one of the students boasts about this teacher who comes off with as a Super Teacher. Apparently, all the students love this teacher. So, who is she? We hear, “Good morning everyone,” and the teacher turns out to be none other than the sea witch herself, Sybil (Nathalie Kelley), strolling into the classroom looking smug as ever. I prefer the heart ripped from her chest and dead look way better than this one. It looks like Sybil is mind controlling the students because she has a hidden agenda and that consists of Caroline listening to a history lesson (oh god, no we did this before with the Siren Sisters) and help finding a bell. Summed up, Sybil is on the hunt for a bell and if Caroline doesn’t deliver those A+ students of Sybil’s are going to die. Definitely not grounds for “Teacher of the Year” material. So, what’s the meaning behind the bell? We don’t know yet, but Matt (Zach Roerig) dropped off Seline’s (Kristen Gutoskie) box with Alaric’s (Matt Davis) intern Dorian (Demetrius Bridges) who is quick to update Matt on the tuning fork. Apparently, this fork was forged in the fired that put an end to Cade and as of now it’s in Paris with Enzo (Michael Malarkey) and Bonnie (Kat Graham). Dorian also tells Matt that back in 1790 a man named Harvey was pals with the sirens and recently they had discovered his remains surprise, surprise linking him to Mystic Falls. The real shock? Harvey’s descendant is Peter Maxwell (Joel Gretsch), sorry Matt.

So, Matt might not be a fan of his father, but he proves to be useful seeing as once upon a time the Maxwell family made church bells. It seems that with the combination of the tuning fork and the bell it might be powerful enough to bring down the sirens. Please, please let this be true. Meanwhile, now out of the class, Sybil takes them on a field trip where one hundred witches were burned at the stake in 1790. Since she loves to hear herself speak, she explains that the witches were killed for giving magical help to a town’s metal smith in order to create the bell. Peter was the last of the Maxwell clan to hold the bell before tossing it off Wickery Bridge in 1992. Since the bell is no longer in the river she demands that Caroline find the bell or the students are going to take on the role of the witches as they get burned alive. Yeah, still not Teacher of the Year let alone month material. The good thing? Sheriff Forbes after the Gilbert accident had kept the bell in storage, but after her dying it was boxed away in Caroline’s garage. So all is well? Nope, because it seems Seline figured it out before her sister and now it’s in her hands causing Sybil to pitch a fit. Thankfully, with father and son working together, Matt and Peter are able to save the kids before Sybil can make shish-kabobs out of them. Proving to be more annoying as ever, she gets into Caroline’s mind wondering how she can be engaged to a Ripper and put her girls at risk. “By the time I marry Stefan he will be the man I have always loved,” she argues. As much of a pain in the butt Sybil is, she spills the truth tea about how Stefan has fallen off the wagon multiple times and does Caroline really want to risk having her kids have a Ripper as their stepdad?

Is There a Doctor in the House?

Being a servant to the devil your job is never done so once again Damon and Stefan set out to find a new victim. The two sit outside a cafe searching for their next victim and so far anyone that Stefan suggests Damon denies because he wants more of a challenge. This in turn causes Stefan to set his sights on a young female doctor who has a striking resemblance to one Elena Gilbert (Nina Dobrev). It seems fans aren’t the only ones who pick up on this because the moment Damon’s attention is on her he reflexively reaches into his jacket pocket to touch the necklace (Elena’s necklace) that he has been holding onto. Stefan already wants to jump at the chance of her being their next target, but Damon seems less enthused causing Stefan to inject Damon with vervain, taking on the role of the concerned and asking if there’s a doctor in the house. Enter Dr. Tara (Alexandra Chando).

When Damon finally comes to he finds Stefan perched in the hospital chair eating jello and looking as smug as ever. At the car Stefan had stated Tara was driven because of something dark from her past and it turns out her parents had been killed by a drunk driver. Wanting to make things interesting, because having vervain in the IV bags isn’t enough, Stefan makes Tara believe that Damon is the drunk driver. Damon though still believes that there are people out there who can’t be corrupted, (you mean like Elena?) but Stefan isn’t buying it and he knows sooner or later he’ll when the bet because Tara will snap. “I took an oath to help people.” She’s trying, you have to give her credit. She’s trying, but Stefan isn’t playing fair and he’s opening up new wounds playing the “what if” game. Just when you’re ready to cheer for Tara for kicking Stefan out, she ends up closing the blinds and injecting Damon with something that eventually kills him. But we all know he’s not dead, Tara, unfortunately, that’s a whole other story. Meanwhile, Stefan has been sitting outside listening in so goes through his brother’s jacket and finds Elena’s necklace. He now realizes the reason why Damon is holding back as he looks upon the necklace in pure disgust.

Remember the show “Punk’d” where people would have pranks pulled on them, but they at the time were unaware of it? Well, that’s exactly what Tara is greeted to when Stefan confronts her in the parking lot as Damon makes reappearance. Even after what she pulled, Damon still finds he is trying to convince Stefan to let her go. But Stefan has another test and this time it’s designed for Damon. Once again, as if on autopilot after looking at Tara, Damon’s hand reaches into his coat pocket to find his anchor only it’s not there. In fact, Stefan’s grubby hands are holding it. “I found this in your pocket. You’ve been carrying this around for weeks,” he accuses, but Damon tries to play it off. Sadly, Stefan isn’t falling for it. “Why do you think I picked Tara over here? Does she remind you of someone?” Let’s see she resembles Elena especially from the side profile, she’s an orphan and has an interest in medicine. “She reminds you of Elena,” he points out and also notes “So does this necklace. It triggers your conscious. It’s holding you back, Damon.” Later, Stefan (being the pain in the a-s that he is) requests that Damon showcase to him that the past is behind him. Frustrated and wanting his brother to shut the hell up, he snatches the necklace, rolls down the car window and tosses the necklace out. Good enough? Nope. Now Stefan wants Damon to deal with the doctor and deal with her he does as he drains her dry.   

Every Road Leads Back to You

Though Damon leads Stefan to believe he didn’t care for the necklace he actually does, very much. So much that he embedded that spot into his brain and later finds himself there again searching for it on the side of the road. In the closing scene of the episode Damon chats with an inmate doing community service confessing to him the importance of the necklace by saying, “Honestly, I don’t even know why I want it. Whenever I have it I just feel better.” Better as in the better man Damon?  While Damon shifts through the grass trying to recover the necklace he goes onto talk about Stefan and how the second he slips off the wagon all bets are off. Ironically enough, as Damon is trying to spot a needle in a haystack, Stefan is back at the hospital looking tempted as ever to treat himself to a snack and by snack that actually translates to an entire buffet of doctors, nurses, etc.