So, here's the thing...
I actually found this particular episode of The Vampire Diaries quite interesting, though some people might disagree. There are a lot of things that watching these shows have taught me over the years.
I'm trying to group certain scenes and characters together as I go along. Hopefully, it wouldn't be very confusing.
Now I'm sure we all remember this, the scene of utter rejoice throughout the fandom - the porch scene - which I think is synonymous with any elevator scene between Derek and Meredith in GA (threw that one in there for any Grey's Anatomy fans):
I recall not feeling at all surprised that this happened, and I mentioned to eolivet that I'm still sceptical about Elena's feelings simply because of the Stefan factor which still plays a huge role in all of this - well, it does to me anyway. I'm sure many people expected her not to talk about what happened with him, or try to forget it. But she didn't. In fact, it left her feeling very conflicted. In the beginning of 3x11, we see two parallels - ridiculously smug Damon, and miserable Elena. Honestly, I tend to forget that she's recently turned 18! In her head, she's still trying to figure things out, and at the end of the episode, her confession (here comes that subtlety again) surprised me.
"A girl that had a normal life, then fell in love with vampires."
Ah, pluralities, I love them. A quiet confession to an old friend while she prepares to let go to all she's been holding onto. All of it speaks of something very significant - especially after this episode and her encounter with Stefan. I wonder what else she's letting go, other than the girl whose parents went off a bridge and drowned.
Isn't it funny how this is similar to the Damon/Katherine/Stefan triangle? She loved both of them as well. It's a recurring theme in this series, a girl coming between two brothers - we saw it with Klaus and Elijah, and perhaps earlier than that. All of these girls seem to have Petrova blood running through her veins.
Speaking of dearest Klaus, there's something about him that bothered me in this episode.
I'm struggling to understand this - he's so charming that he could fool anyone, but still there's something about it that could be genuine, and emphasises the loneliness of his existence. It made me think of his relationship with his siblings, especially his younger sister. As he sits perched at the edge of Caroline's bed, looking down on her wrapped up in a blanket - it looks like he's trying to fill the role of the big brother. The reason why this bothered me is because it doesn't fit him, unless I've been deluded for the past year or so. *shrugs*
Another interesting finding that has popped up surrounds this new character, Meredith Fell.
Yep. I don't trust her at all. Her name doesn't settle right with me. Never mind her first name, but the second one - I knew when I heard it last week, it sounded familiar. Then the light bulb shone brightly as realisation dawned upon me - she's a descendent of one of the founders - see Fell's Church (the place where all the vampires were allegedly burnt in 1864). I have no doubt that her role in this will be sinister, and Alaric unfortunately is falling for her 'charms'. I felt a chill when I saw the name of the mausoleum Elena took Caroline for her birthday. It reminded me of that brief moment when the camera zoomed in on the name of the place Mikael was entombed - people went to look up the significance of the name too.
Morale of this story is: never take these sort of things for granted. There is a reason for everything. In this instance, there's the art of foreshadowing. Which leads me to this:
Is it too convenient that he happens to show up with a stake through his heart after arguing with the good doctor the night before? After all, she did tell Alaric that she 'lost a patient'. So, has Ric bitten off a bit more than he could chew? And as for that image, is she trying to send a message to anyone?
What do you think?