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Tonight’s episode was basically a disappointment. Early reviews called this episode “a game changer” and “one of the best ever.” I’m wondering if PaleyFest attendees, who hyped this episode up after last weekend’s TVD panel, saw the same episode as the rest of us.
1912 was a year of bad hair, the end of an estrangement between Damon and Stefan, and the start of another string of murders similar to what’s happening in present day MysticFalls. Seeing relatives with the names of Forbes, Gilbert, and Lockwood is always fun and exciting, but not that exciting. Other than the reveal of the 1912 serial killer – hello, Samantha Gilbert – and Stefan’s first official ripper experience, nothing happened in the flashbacks that were important.
Not that many good things happened in the present day storylines either. Yes, Damon reaffirmed his love for his brother because Stefan is the only thing he has left. We already knew this. It’s just that sometimes Damon has a hard time showing love. Alaric and Elena agreed to protect and look out for another, which if you’re like me, brought up all kinds of weird shipper feelings. Elena and Matt hid in a closet, which if you’re like me, also spawned shipper feelings. Can these two please hang out together more?
This episode lacked the usual OMFG moments that leave me gasping and wide-eyed. The most surprising thing was when Matt and Elena opened the closet door to find Meredith Fell standing in front of them, but that’s only because Torrey Devitto plays such a good crazy person that I expected her to shoot them or something. Unfortunately, nothing like that happened.
In fact, what did happen, like most things in the episode, was a major WTF. Instead of listing everything that was wrong, boring, or annoying about this episode, I thought I’d condense it.
Without further adieu, here are my Top 5 WTF moments from “1912.” Agree or disagree? Let me know below.
5. Bonnie’s Mother’s Transitioning Off-Screen
What I like about this show is that things happen onscreen – the important conversations, the crazy action, and the emotional stuff that tears at viewers’ heartstrings. Bonnie is devastated that her estranged mother, who has come back into her life, is now a vampire. Bonnie hates vampires and everything they’re bloodsucking craziness stands for. This should be happening onscreen. Just like conversations about how she’s feeling and how she’s handling everything should be as well. This isn’t the first time that this show has missed an important onscreen beat, but it doesn’t happen very often, which makes it especially upsetting.
4. Matt and Elena Are Kind of Awesome Together
This isn’t too much of a bad thing, except that my often torn between shipping Elena and Stefan or Elena and Damon heart is suddenly screaming for these two to get together. These two have a deep history that’s just now starting to be played off of. He’s really supporting her right now when no one else can – partly because everyone is pissed off at her and partly because she is pissed off at everyone. Basically, he’s the trophy prize. Maybe that’s my real WTF here. Doesn’t Matt deserve better than just being second best because everyone else in Elena’s life doesn’t want to deal with her? Or because she can’t deal with Stefan and Damon because she loves them both and can’t make a definite choice between them?
Matt was her first love and she was so screwed up after her parents died that she broke up with and fell in love with a vampire because vampires never die. Like whoa, Elena. You really need to 1) See a therapist, 2) Stop falling in love with vampires, and 3) Probably give Matt another try.
3. Meredith Fell Isn’t Crazy
Maybe I’m typecasting Torrey Devitto, who plays the most fabulously amazing crazy women on TV, but nothing about her character makes sense. First, where in the hell did Meredith come from? She just strolled into the counsel’s fundraiser for theWickeryBridgeand then people started dying. How can they not be connected at all? How does she know about the ring? How did she get Samantha Gilbert’s journal? How did she figure out it was Alaric’s ring causing him problems? Jeremy has one, too. And again, where did she freaking come from? She’s suddenly this amazing, heroic, helpful doctor that wants to save everyone with vampire blood and keeps Alaric from killing people because of his psychotic episodes being brought on by his broken ring. Seriously? I need so many answers.
2. Sage
What we know: she’s a vampire that likes to beat up men who don’t have paranormal powers. She was obsessed with one of Rebekah’s brothers. She taught Damon that women could be used for pleasure as well as blood – color me unimpressed.
I understand the necessity of introducing new characters on a series. The problem lies with its execution. Vampire Diaries can’t just pull one out every now and then when there are characters on canvas who are hundreds of years old. Damon and Stefan have a lot of people in their pasts. Why did they automatically think of Sage out of the clear freaking blue when they were talking about the murders? What made that connection? They know a lot of people, a lot of bad people, and she’s the first one they go for. I felt like it was a stretch, and borderline convoluted plot point. Not to mention that she was boring and trying way too hard. When you’re bringing a new lady into the mix among characters like Elena, Katherine, Caroline, Bonnie, and Rebekah, they have to make an entrance. Sage failed tremendously.
1. Alaric Is The Serial Killer
I wish I was joking about this one. Not just because I love Alaric, but because this is so far out of left field. Sure, they set it up with Alaric having ring problems and him dying so many damn times – at least we know there was a reason for this, but to be going crazy because of a Gilbert ring in the same way that Samantha Gilbert did and to kill people? WTF, writers. WTF. This is not a game changer. This does not make me OMFG until I’m left in the fetal position. This leaves me WTFing until I’m rocking back and forth in the corner, completely at a loss for what I’ve just seen.
All of this has to get better. All of this has to make sense. I can’t handle having such mixed feelings about a show I normally adore every single second of. That said, I am already looking forward to next week and hoping that reappearances of Klaus and Caroline somehow help. And better yet, that Bonnie works some of her witchy mojo and this show gets right back on track.
I just think something regarding it should be shown, if not the actual transition, the problems they’re having with it and her mother’s adjustment to it. Bonnie is an important character and what happens to her matters. We saw Caroline go through it with her father and his struggle to handle it and what ultimately happened there. Bonnie’s mother has just come into her life and wanted to work on things with them and look at where it got her – I think there’s a bit of story to be told here instead of her mom just popping back up as a vampire that has settled into this newfound life. But I’m well aware that when it comes to Bonnie fans either love her or don’t want her around at all, so I get it. :)
About #5…why on EARTH would we want to see Bonnie’s mom transition? I’d rather watch paint dry. This episode may not have been the most exciting but any episode with no “Bobbie” gets extra points in my book!