The VAMPIRE DIARIES
Season 2

Vampires in love

The Return

Katherine has come back and everyone else is desperate to know why. She is playing a game with them all, using her resemblance to Elena to drive a wedge between Stefan and Damon as well as playing on Damon's latent feelings for her. What her end game is amongst the fall out from the events finished off the first season is not clear, but she is deadly serious about it.

Actually getting through the first season to be renewed and the return of Katherine has really galvanised the show in this opening episode of the first season. Whilst the town reels with the deaths from the finale of the last season, the war between Katherine and just about everyone else is declared. Katherine is a brilliant character, utterly without remorse, and totally ruthless. The way that she plays with Damon's emotions especially is brutally unforgiving.

And talk about brutal, the number of people who get stabbed, suffocated and neck snapped is pretty high for the first show, though just about everyone has ingested vampire blood by this point so pretty much everyone can come back.

With so much plot business to get through, there is no time for the soap operatics that marred the first season and it is to be hoped that this will continue because this is about as good as the show has yet been.

Brave New World

Caroline wakes up in hospital to find that she now has a thirst for blood. As she comes to terms with that, her friends are trying to get the town fair underway and Tyler Lockwood discovers that there is a secret in his family's past.

After the searing season opener, this episode is a serious step down, not least because we have been through the whole 'birth of a new vampire and how confusing it is' in the first season with Vicki Donovan. Caroline does show some potential, though, as a kick ass vampire chick judging from the way she takes Damon down. It is unbelievable, however, that nobody in the whole hospital notices that a bag of blood disappears from a patient's drip.

When the story moves away from Caroline, the focus is lost between too many characters and their individual issues. The Lockwood family curse is clearly a set up for later season plot arc developments, but here it just edges the show back towards its soap opera weaknesses.

Bad Moon Rising

There's a party on the Lockwood estate, but Tyler's uncle wants everyone off the property by the time that the moon comes up. Looking into Isobel's research, Elena, Alaric and Damon discover evidence of werewolves, but it is new vampire Caroline who causes the most damage.

The similarities between THE VAMPIRE DIARIES and the whole TWILIGHT phenomenon deepen with the introduction of the werewolves. Is there anything that the show won't steal from its cinematic forebear? The pace drops dramatically since the majority of the story is about researching old papers and learning how not to drink blood, but as the moon comes up, the wolves come out and Caroline learns what her limitations are things ramp up the pace a little.

It is left to the final scene for real promise of what is to come though.

Memory Lane

As Damon and Alaric try to get information about werewolves out of the Lockwoods, Stefan manages to turn the tables on Katharine. Or has he?

There is absolutely no action at all in this episode, which boils down to two conversations, one over a dinner party in which werewolves are discussed without ever mentioning their names and the other in which Katharine is tortured into explaining why she came back to town.

The extended, soft focus flashbacks are dull and go over old ground that doesn't need to be retrodden, but the dinner party is barely any better since it is mainly a bit of bitching, mainly by Ian Somerhalder. Kudos to Nina Dobrev, though, for making Katharine and much more fun villain than might have been expected from her Elena character.

Kill Or Be Killed

It's Volunteering Day at the local park and everyone is helping out, at least until Tyler's uncle spills the beans about Stefan and Damon to the Sheriff, who immediately takes action. In order to save the Salvatores, Caroline will have to show her mother what she has become.

This looks dangerously like slipping back into the soap opera territory that has blighted the show during the Volunteering Day sequences (how many special events does this town have anyway?), but it picks up as soon as the Sheriff learns the truth about her 'friend' Damon and the action kicks in with a vengeance.

And the episode ends on a twist that, whilst not unexpected, is a good one.

Plan B

Bonnie discovers that Kyle's uncle has been working with Katherine, so Damon kidnaps him to find out why. Stefan goes after the moonstone and ends up in a pool of the vampire equivalent of battery acid.

THE VAMPIRE DIARIES acquires a harder, harsher edge with this episode that sees Damon torturing Kyle's uncle with a red hot poker in unflinching detail. Ian Somerhalder gets to bring out Damon's dark side in a way that the show has shied away from for a long time and it's not for the faintest of hearts.

On top of that there is Stefan's grisly plight, which is a nicely handled surprise, and Caroline having to decide what to do about her mother who is now well enough to have her memories removed. All of which comes before Katherine reveals the titular plan B which shows no signs of mercy.

It's darker, nastier and a whole lot better.

Masquerade

It's time for the Lockwoods' masquerade party and following Katherine's revenge on Jenna, both Stefan and Damon are determined to destroy her once and for all. A plan is devised, but Katherine has always been one step ahead of everyone and when her wounds are also felt by Elena it seems that an impasse has been reached.

The show steps up a couple of gears with this episode in which all of the current storylines come crashing together in one twist-filled story that is tight, exciting, surprising and satisfying all at the same time.

The introduction of an enemy that even Katherine feared means that the show can continue on, but the manner in which events play out at the masquerade ball are full of twists and turns and the occasional nonsensical moment (nobody bothers to close the door to the room where Damon and Stefan are trying to kill Katherine).

The death that turns Kyle into a werewolf is a bit too contrived, but small quibbles aside this is about as good as the show has been.

Rose

Elena has been kidnapped by a couple of vampires who want to turn her over to the Originals, the oldest vampire family for sacrifice. Stefan and Damon go to her aid, whilst Bonnie casts dangerously powerful spells to help find her.

If the Originals were Italian then the show would be in danger of lawsuits from the TWILIGHT people. As it is, they are sailing pretty close to the wind with the new plot twists that they are coming up with. The action in the abandoned house as Stefan and Damon face off against a truly powerful vampire is good, but over far too quickly. The rest of the episode is dialogue heavy exposition and far from exciting.

Kyle and Caroline's bonding over their supernatural natures is a heavy going and the attraction between Bonnie and Jeremy is also being pretty laboured. Damon's admission of love to Elena, however, is a surprisingly touching moment.

Katerina

Elena wants answers about her past and the only person who can give them is Katherine, still locked in her tomb. As she spins tales of how she came to be the vampire she is, Original vampire Elijah sets about locating Damon and his new best friend Rose.

Exposition overload. This episode gives the whole backstory to Katherine's birth as a vampire and introduces the new roster of bad vampires that will be the threat for the rest of the season. It's dull and far too much like all the other flashbacks from all the other vampire shows and films that have gone before.

Damon's search for a way to contact the Originals is also not all that exciting, but it does provide the only stand out moment as Elijah takes out a shop window with just a handful of change and provides the twist that the makers would substitute in the hope of making up for not having a real ending.

Sacrifice

Elena persuades Rose to help her contact some of her old friends, but the vampire calls in Damon when it becomes clear that Elena's plan is to sacrifice her life for her friends. Jeremy takes on Bonnie's plan to get the moonstone from Katherine, but all does not go to plan.

There's not a lot of plot here that couldn't be fitted into half the running time (or less), but this is more about the characters and what they are willing to do in order to save each other. It also reveals that Elijah's plans could all come to nothing if someone were to make the ultimate sacrifice for Elena, perhaps hinting at developments later on.

There's more navel gazing than is good for the show, but it is mostly kept at bay as the various plans start to go awry.

By The Light Of The Moon

Tyler faces the night of his first transformation into a werewolf. Damon takes on a woman who is looking for the dead werewolf Mason and gets some information about the werewolf bites. Bonnie makes a miscalculation in her choice of friends and Elijah makes a proposal to Elena that is surprising.

There is very little plot movement in this episode, which chooses instead to concentrate on Tyler's painful and extended transformation into a werewolf. The scene itself isn't going to challenge AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON's title for the best transformation sequence, but the amount of time spent with the character prior to the event, as it starts and in the aftermath is for once justified since it brings depth to the curse of the wolf and the tragedy of those that it affects.

The rest of the running time seems intent on creating twists for future developments with Elijah's visit to Elena, Bonnie's attempt to destroy the moonstone and Rose's suffering the supposedly fatal bite of a werewolf.

The Descent

Rose is slowly deteriorating under the effect of the werewolf bite that was meant for Damon. Jules, who inflicted the bite, explains to Tyler what happened to Mason and Stefan tries to contact Isobel.

There may be other things going on, but this episode is all about Rose dying and how that affects Damon. Elena gets chased around the house a bit, which is repetitive and boring, but the parting of the ways between Damon and the vampire that came to mean something to him is actually quite moving thanks to two nice performances from Ian Somerhalder and Lauren Cohan. She came in as Rose only recently and became one of our favourite characters overnight. We're sorry to see her go.

This episode moves the plot forward not one little bit, but it's all about two characters and as such it's a brave choice for the show.

Daddy Issues

Whilst Elena tries to come to terms with the return of her biological father, Stefan visits Tyler in order to make peace. Jules mistakes this as an act of war and takes Caroline prisoner. A showdown is inevitable.

After the character-heavy last episode, this one is much more plot driven as Caroline is taken and tortured (some graphic and brutal violence there) and the Salvatore boys rip out a few hearts in trying to get her back.

John's return means that there are wheels within wheels and plots within plots being prepared, which at least makes up for the tedious soap opera elements that keep trying to rush in. The script even has to make comment on how ridiculous the relationships around Elena's real parents actually are.

Crying Wolf

The werewolves decide that it is time to take the fight to the vampires. Elena is alone with Stefan up at her family s lake house and Damon has to rely on the aid of another when he is taken by surprise. Tyler learns the truth about the moonstone.

There is a good deal of soap opera interpersonal stuff going on here that takes the show back to the days when it wasn t so good, but things perk up in the second half when the werewolves go on the attack. The discovery of the arsenal at the lakehouse is convenient enough to give Elena lots of weapons to use against her attacker and Tyler s torture of Stefan is a bit harsh, but it s as nothing to the revenge that Elijah takes against those that torture Damon.

It s not enough to save the episode from being too dull, but it reminds us what the show is capable of.

Dinner Party

Damon now has the weapon to kill Elijah, but Johnathan hasn't told him all its secrets whilst Stefan tells Elena some more about his early days as a vampire.

If ever there was a story of two halves then this is it. The fun and games at the dinner party where everyone is playing off against everyone else even when they are supposed to be on the same side are very entertaining and a good reminder of how much fun this show can be when it's really on song, but it is dragged down by the tedious flashbacks to the Damon and Stefan's past that are only there to illustrate some heavy-handed moral about not giving up.

As for the twist in the last minute or so. Well, that was totally predictable.

House Guest

The newly-freed Katherine is playing mind games with just about everyone, but the desperate witches make a play to bring Elijah back, a play that ends tragically and leads to a fiery revenge.

Apart from the hideously overdone moral about love only surviving if people are honest with each other (I mean gag already), this turns into one of the more action-packed and successful of the episodes. From the moment that the witches launch their attempt to resurrect Elijah there is no telling which way the storyline is going to turn next and who is going to end up dead as a result.

Katherine's mind games are tedious and repetitive (someone would surely have killed her by now) and the way that the vengeful witch is dealt with will come as a surprise to no-one, but it won't matter as this effortlessly entertains.

Know Thy Enemy

Isobel returns to Elena's life, but her main interest lies in the plans that she and Katharine can now make in the name of Klaus.

There are more twists and turns in this episode than a whole nest of vipers in a rock and roll dance competition, which has the upshot of making this one of the most entertaining episodes of the show yeg. It can be no surprise that this comes about with the return of Isobel who has been one of the best value supporting characters in the show to date.

The soap opera elements are kept at bay by the vampire shenanigans and the groundwork is laid for some more fun in later episodes. Things are looking up for fans of the diaries.

The Last Dance

There's a 60s dance happening at the school and the Klaus-possessed Alaric is due to chaperone. It's time for Bonnie to attack, even though it might kill her.

Centering around the central story of Klaus taking on Bonnie, this is one of the stronger episodes. There is more than a hint of Angel's torture of BUFFY in the messages sent to Elena by her new nemesis and the final twist in Bonnie's story is predictable enough, but the face off itself is a great sequence and the last moment's development also promises an interesting future.

Klaus

The recently reanimated Elijah tells Elena the truth about his brother Klaus and the curse that is on him whilst Klaus himself takes Alaric's body on a visit to kill Jenna.

It's info dump time as Elijah explains the background to the plot that will be the last few episodes of this season. This means more soft focus flashbacks and a lot of talking. Damon becomes even more tortured than ever, but it's hard to believe that he would come apart at the seams quite so dramatically just because his brother pushes him and Elena comes up with a plan that he doesn't like.

And Klaus's real face is finally revealed. It belongs to Joseph Morgan who has supernatural history from the first season on HEX. Sadly, he proves to be remarkably unthreatening and the character will have his work cut out to overcome that.

The Last Day

The plan to kill Klaus is all in place until Damon feeds Elena vampire blood so that when she dies as part of the ritual she will be reborn as a vampire. The race is on to find a way to make Klaus delay the ritual, but Klaus always seems to be one step ahead.

The end is coming soon and it is very nicely set up by this episode that mixes the character moments with desperate action. Elena has one day left as a human being and needs to come to terms with that, but Damon isn't about to come to terms with anything.

As events unfold there are twists all the way, allowing the heroes to get ahead just before Klaus pulls the rug from under them and then serving up a couple of cliffhangers that are good enough to require us all to come back to find out what happens.

The Sun Also Rises

Klaus has Elena and has made Jenna a vampire so that she can be sacrificed in the curse-breaking ceremony. Damon and Stefan have a desperate plan to finally kill him. People are going to die.

All of the show's plotlines come together on the night the curse is broken and combine to create the finest episode that the show has yet produced. Whilst it takes an unconscionable amount of time for the good guys to take any action (they don't seem to have any sense of urgency at all), once they do the plot races away to its tense and surprising finale.

Death is inevitable and for once the show doesn't shy away from it. People die and they are not all minor characters of little interest. The scene is set for the season finale, but it is hard to see how it will top this rollercoaster ride.

As I Lay Dying

In order to save Damon from the werewolf bite that is slowly killing him, Damon goes to Klaus, who apparently has the cure. Meanwhile, Jeremy is shot and only Bonnie can save him.

It's the season finale and after last week's searing instalment this is wall to wall disappointment. It's less of a ending than a set up for the next season. Stefan going to the dark side (again) is a decent enough cliffhanger and Jeremy seeing the spirits of the dead is another, but nothing that is a patch on what went on in the last episode.

THE VAMPIRE DIARIES improved greatly in its second season, certainly enough for a third to be not far away, but it would have been nice for it to go out on a bang and not this whimper.