HOLLYWOOD – I have been an avid fan of “The Vampire Diaries” since hearing about the vampire series back in 2009. Rarely does a show hook me at the very end of its first season to force me to go back and watch every episode leading up to that point. This twisted tale about Mystic Falls, vampires, humans, witches and werewolves did just that.
Lately, I haven’t been the biggest supporter of the series and for good reason. I feel the series is a bit lost. Season one was a must-see, season two delivered some heart-tugging moments, season three delivered a gut-wrenching finale fans couldn’t believe and season four, by far the best EVER. Season five not so much.
I’ll tell you why. For starters, the writers have done an exceptional job at crafting the primary players Elena (Nina Dobrev), Stefan (Paul Wesley) and Damon (Ian Somerhalder). These are all characters that as much as we love them, we can hate them at the same time; they are the core of the series. Even the supporting players on the show are well-rounded and play pivotal arcs for narrative push.
At the same time, the series has become overwhelmed with too many characters. Those who have perished or who were believed to have perished have come back to the series; it’s almost an overload of too many characters at this point. I hate to say this, but some of the characters on the series have to bite the dust and not come back. When Aunt Jenna died in season two, it was an epic heartbreak for audiences. The same can be said for the demise of Alaric, he returned in spirit from time to time, but that was it.
Two of the biggest deaths happened in season four. Not once did anyone expect Jeremy (Stephen R. McQueen) who literally faced death more times than one could count, to finally bite the dust at the hands of the evil Katherine Pierce (Nina Dobrev). Nor did we expect Bonnie (Kat Graham) to bite the dust in her attempt to bring Jeremy back from the dead, but it happened. When Jeremy was brought back from the dead fans rejoiced, the same for Bonnie, but where does that leave the rest of the characters. If they did will they come back from the dead as well?
The overload of characters is not my biggest concern this season it’s the lack of a threatening villain. The series spent nearly three seasons with the focus on Klaus (Joseph Morgan) which was stretched a bit too much in my opinion. Finally, in season four we were introduced to Silas who proved to be a terrifying adversary for all of the residents of Mystic Falls. Unfortunately, in the first few episodes of the season Silas was out, so was his vengeful ex, not to mention the introduction of another Elena doppelganger. Yes, one doppelganger is a great twist, but 40 not so much.
A series of the supernatural realm always excels when a vicious villain with motive and at times no motive is an equal adversary to our protagonists, we haven’t had that at all this season. Yeah, Katherine is a great villain, but she outwore her welcome, and I think the writers got the hint towards the end of season four. Elena giving her that ‘cure’ should have been the end of Katherine, but the powers that be made sure that was not the case. To make matters worse, it was a complete dance for the better half of season five. Now that Katherine is GONE, fingers crossed the series might be getting its groove back to the fascinating, cooler room talk, that the show used to be in the past.
I haven’t given up on “The Vampire Diaries” it’s a show, that has plenty more story to tell, but I will admit some bad thoughts have crossed my mind, where the writers could potentially knock of a main character. Yeah, the audience would be in uproar, but at the same time it could produce some juicy narrative that fans have been eagerly longing for this season.
