The Vampire Diaries

The Vampire Diaries

Episode 12: A View to A Kill

By: Carlos Uribe

The Vampire Diaries is a show about Elena's love triangle with two vampires.

Spoilers Ahoy!

There used to be a time in the Vampire Diaires where every plot twist would catch me off guard and my mouth would hang open. This was a show that could surprise and shock me with each episode without fail. That was back when the show was a rollercoaster as it sped through the plot at a breathtaking pace. It has since slowed down and the plot twists have become less shocking. It's possible that maybe I've just gotten ahead of the show or maybe I've just become used to it. It's very rare when my mouth will be hanging open by what I just saw. There was also a time where every fake death or stabbing would cause me to hold my breath as I tried to figure out if the character had truly died or not. So many characters have pretended to die that it's lost it's effect. This is a show that might have a high body count but it generally leaves the main characters alive. This is used to be a show that I used to watch partly because I had no idea who was going to make it or what would even happen next. That the show was able to do this while delivering amazing character moments every week and I'd have an idea where the show was heading was pretty amazing writing. The Vampire Diaries might very well have a plot that moved along at the speed of a bullet train but it's focus on character and ability to deliver exposition in an entertaining fashion allowed the train to never escape the viewer. So what's happened this season? The show has slowed down, the twists have become less shocking, and the fake deaths have largely lost their impact. It's still a great show but it hasn't been able to recapture that magic from the previous three seasons.

Until now.

I will admit that the show shocked me. With the recent news of the Original spin-off that's being developed, I hadn't really taken the idea that Kol might die seriously. He's played such a prominent role in the series that it seemed like the writers were going to develop him so he could join Klaus in his trip to New Orleans. His death seemed far from my mind when the plan to kill him predictably fell apart. It was a plan with three parts: Rebekah had to be stabbed, Klaus had to be contained, and Bonnie had to weaken Kol so that Jeremy could kill him. The first didn't really work because of Stefan's connection with her seemed to make it unnecessary. It wasn't a failure but rather just a change in the overall plan. The third didn't happen since Bonnie happened to get into a family dispute right when the plan went into motion. Kol was strong and he managed to defeat Elena. He was well on his way of ripping off Jeremy's arms when the tide of the battle turned. Jeremy managed to actually kill Kol and my mouth pretty much dropped. It was such a huge shocking moment. It's not like this was even a fake death but a real one. It caught me off-guard that the writers killed him and it proved that the show still had the sheer audacity it's always had. There has to be something that goes terribly wrong every episode and Klaus watching them kill his brother was one of them. He's not happy but Bonnie is able to arrive in the last minute to magically trap him in the living room. A temporary trap where they have to hurry and find the cure because Klaus is angry. He might have wanted the cure but he didn't want his brother to die for it. This really felt like the old-school Vampire Dairies from it's best season, the second one. I simply loved it.

The character moments in this episode were simply fantastic. The scenes between Stefan and Rebekah were simply great. He always manages to be completely sincere in the words he says to her while planning to backstab her. When Elena asks him to get the dagger from Rebekah so that she won't get angry and kill them all upon Kol's death, Stefan complies by taking her out to a really sweet date. He does get the dagger from her but he refuses to use it on her. He realizes that the real reason Rebekah wants the curse is because she wants love and friendship. She doesn't want to be a vampire anymore but a human. This is why she agrees to help them find the cure rather than seeking retribution for her brother's death. The scenes are simply perfect that show the vulnerability and strength of both characters. While this is happening, Bonnie is being a typical rebellious teenager by refusing to listen to her parents but in a way that fits the character and what she's going through. There is also a pretty great conversation where Klaus tries to figure out how Damon can do so many bad acts but always be forgiven by Elena. Damon's answer is perfect. He's willing to be the bad guy but he always does what is necessary for a reason. Klaus tends to be bad for the sake of it so it's difficult for him to achieve forgiveness.

A View to a Kill is a great episode of the Vampire Diaries that has a lot of great characters but actually moves forward the plot and shockingly kills off Kol. This is honestly the first time that this has really felt like the show went back to the second and third season. The ending where the characters prepare themselves for their search for the cure is pretty exciting. They might only have three days to find it but the hunter's mark is complete, Bonnie is ready for her part, and they have the tombstone and sword. The only thing they have to do now is have Shane guide them towards the tomb so they can retrieve it. As the show states: here we go.

Other Notes:

“Behind Blue Eyes” by the Who describes Damon perfectly.