3x22 Rant
Warning: there will be a lot of raging. Also, this was not proofread. (I don't know why this changes font halfway through... but just go with it.)
Be grateful I didn't write this last night. I've had a date and a whole night's sleep to let the finale sink in.
Warning: there will be a lot of raging.
Be grateful I didn't write this last night. I've had a date and a whole night's sleep to let the finale sink in.
Am I quitting the show? I don't know. We have a whole summer to come to terms with what happened last night. I also have life happening, a trip to Disneyland, and a family vacation to help distance myself from my irrational emotional attachment to this couple. I think once September rolls around I'll be much more open minded.
I feel like I don't even need to talk about the other parts of the episode because it's the same old song and dance with this season. But I will say that I they totally stole the Tyler/Klaus SL from me. I'm joking, but I briefly wondered if they peruse fanfictions, because I also know of a lot of "if Damon met Elena first" stories. Hmm...
I'll start by saying that the finale pretty much rendered the whole season useless. You could've missed the whole season and just picked up at the finale and not have missed a thing. None of the growth and development that was written this season survived to the finale. Many characters' development didn't even survive to 3x14. *coughELENAcough* And it's not a matter of hating on her character, it's just bad writing, plain and simple. And that's what makes me the most angry, because I know the writers can do better. They've shown us that they can do better.
But enough about the writing because, again, it's the same old song and dance.
My initial emotion after this episode was betrayal. I felt like this season built and built toward somewhat of a Delena ending and the writers laughed in our faces. I didn't need Elena to choose Damon, I didn't need her to tell him she loved him, I didn't need another kiss, I didn't need any of that. All I needed was hope. Hope for something to continue into next season. And for a little while I felt hope. She's going to be a vampire. She's going to remember that she met Damon first, that he told her he loved her in her room that night he helped save her. Her telling Damon "all I can think about is right now" gave me hope. Because as a vampire, what she needs 'now' and what she'll need 'forever' are going to differ. So in that respect, I'm okay she chose Stefan for her 'right now' because what matters is what she needs 'forever'.
But here is where it all falls apart: Julie Plec's interview with E! WHAT THE ACTUAL HELL?! Stefan and Elena will be given a fair shot. Uh... what do you call TWO SEASONS of them being together? If that isn't a fair shot then I don't know what is.
Now the objective part of me realizes that the reason they need a fair shot is because now Elena has feelings for Damon. So her and Stefan need to see if they can be together despite her feelings for Damon, which I imagine isn't going to work out very well. I understand the DE build up was needed so that when she go back to Stefan, she really would have feelings for Damon, thus implementing the real triangle.
I also feel like Stefan isn't going to be able to love Elena the same as a vampire. Just like I don't think Elena will be able to love him the same as a vampire. Their relationship is going to be VERY different now that she's a vampire. And to be honest, I don't think their love will be strong enough. Their love was built on a need for security on Elena's part and built on lies on Stefan's part. As a vampire, Elena will no longer need that security. She'll be strong enough to stand on her own two feet without the danger of being a weak human. She'll be brave enough to face what Damon's love means and how immense it is.
But the irrational, still-angry fangirl part of me feels like they have ruined DE. Like Carina said in her article, "The question, though, will be whether Damon could ever stand to be with Elena as a vampire knowing that when she was a human, he wasn’t enough for her." That's exactly how I feel. This is going to be the biggest hurdle the writers need to jump to get people on board with DE. How are DE supposed to get their own fair shot if all he can think about is the fact that he was, once again, second choice? She only confirmed to him once more that it's always going to be Stefan. How is he supposed to believe her when one day she decides it's not always going to be Stefan anymore. He heard it once from Katherine, and has now had that solidified twice by Elena. For Damon, Elena's love will never be pure. He'll never know what it's like to be the one and only love of Elena's life because he'll always know that even after they grew so close, she still chose Stefan. And THAT is why I feel no hope for DE.
Lastly, I just want to make a comment that after THREE seasons you'd think Stefan would learn that Elena can't be trusted to make her own decisions. Stefan is afraid to say no to her because he doesn't want to give her any ammunition to use against him. When Damon doesn't care if she will hate him as long as she is alive to do so. This has been beaten into the ground already, but I feel like it's worth saying again: if Damon was the one who had come back, Elena would've never died. He would've saved her before Matt, or even both of them. Actually, if Damon was making decisions, Elena would've never even been PUT in the life or death situation on the bridge.Therein lies the biggest difference between Damon and Stefan.
Elena is stubborn and doesn't like being overruled or told what to do. Which I think is also why she chose Stefan. He "lets her make her own decisions". No. He placates her. Damon challenges her and as a stubborn person, she hates that, but in the back of her mind she has to know it'll only make her stronger and be for her good.
Elena is young. She's only eighteen. I can't say that I made good choices at eighteen, even at 22 I mess up. But that phone call ruined the episode and DE for me. I also feel like the flashback to Damon meeting Elena first was just the writers rubbing salt in our wounds. Like not only was Stefan chosen and because he was chosen, she ruined any chance of her and Damon being together, but Elena actually did meet Damon first.
Like I said, in a few days, weeks, a month, after a trip to The Happiest Place on Earth, I might have a more positive outlook on what season 4 and the rest of TVD holds, but for right now...
