With neighbors like these, locking your doors may not be enough to protect you
While last week’s episode was full of surprises, this week focused more on the embarrassing and nasty after-effects of those revelations. It was an ostrich-night. No one wanted to raise their head and look around them. Instead, they wanted to bury their heads in the sand and act like everything was fine. But nothing was fine. Elena (Nina Dobrev) did not want to address the fact that her birth-mother had chosen to be a vampire. Damon (Ian Somerhalder) continued to deny his total devastation upon discovering Katherine’s rejection. Matt (Zach Roerig) did his best to overlook the fact that his mom was a complete embarrassment. Caroline (Candice Accola) tried ignoring Matt’s obvious residual feelings for Elena. Stefan (Paul Wesley) tried to be the good boyfriend and agreed to pretend for one night that there is no such thing as vampires. And Jeremy (Steven McQueen) was hiding from everyone the fact that he desperately wanted to be something other than what he was. It was a night of make-believe. But this is not the “Wizard of Oz,” as try as they might, just because you want something to be true, does not actually make it true. Everyone was trying to buy into their self-created fantasy of normalcy, but the harsh real-world kept puncturing those delusions. In the end, reality bites – both literally and figuratively in Mystic Falls.
What Worked
It was Matt and Jeremy’s night – and both for very distinctly different reasons. Matt was the hero, not because he fought some big creature of the night, but because he was willing to call his mother (Melinda Clarke) on her neglectful and embarrassing behavior. It was cheer-worthy when he said, “I don’t want to hear it, Mom. Do you know what I was doing tonight, Mom? I was having fun. Trying to forget about all the crap that I have to deal with everyday. Just enjoy a night with my friends. And then, there you are: wasted at the bar where I work by the way to pay the bills that you don’t pay. And then you’re off acting like a freaking kid hooking up with some guy half your age. I’m the kid mom. You’re supposed to be responsible for me.” He was absolutely right. He is a kid and she is supposed to be the one taking care of him. The fact that he is the adult in their mother-son relationship is sad and appalling. Just as heroic was when Matt admitted to Stefan, “[Elena’s] good with you. I wasn’t sure, but she’s happy — and I’m glad.” It takes a bigger man to admit that the woman he once loved has moved on and is truly happy. It was also a nice olive branch when he offered to fix Stefan’s car. Matt then sealed the hero of the night award when he confessed to Caroline, “Tonight wasn’t about me and Elena. I was there because I wanted to be with you.” It was a heart-melting moment. And with those small heroic acts, Matt stepped up and became the man we all knew he could be.
The second hero of the night was Jeremy – albeit, a bit differently, for all on his own Jeremy figured out that there are vampires in Mystic Falls. No one had to tell him, he was simply smart enough to figure it out based on the signs all around him. He was also clever enough to trick one into revealing itself. It was crazy and mesmerizing watching him slice open his own hand and then dangle it tantalizingly in front of Anna (Malese Jow). Then, as she drank his blood, it felt oddly erotic. Yet the look of proud accomplishment on Jeremy’s face spoke volumes – but it was also heart-breaking. For Jeremy thought he had figured out why Vicki (Kayla Ewell) had run away; and all the while we knew that she would not be coming back. So as he told Anna that he thought vampires were “normal and good — just outsiders – misunderstood,” he was not really talking about her. He was referring to Vicki. Only heart-break awaits once he finds out that Vicki is never coming back, and Anna will be just as heart-broken once she realizes that he only wants to be turned to be with Vicki. Watch out for a scorned lover, Jeremy!
It was also nice to see that Caroline continues to refuse to be a victim in this shadowy world of never-ending tragedy. Her speech to Elena about refusing to be the “back-up girl” — Matt’s back-up girlfriend and Elena’s back-up friend – was also worthy of applause; especially her anguished declaration, “You don’t get it!. Why would you? You’re everyone’s first choice?!” On the lighter-side, she even made sure to remind Matt that she cannot overlook Kelly’s bad treatment of her either, by saying, “It’s hard for me to show kindness to people who hate me — I’m not that evolved.” It may have been said light-heartedly and in jest, but there was a lot of truth in that humorous quip.
Then, still playing the white-hat hero, Stefan continued to defend Damon’s outrageous conduct by defensively saying, “He waited 145 years only to find out that Katherine could care less. That’s got to hurt, right?” But even Elena was not ready to forgive and forget as she sarcastically retorted, “And it couldn’t happen to a nicer guy!” So, not only is Elena showing strength of character by not readily forgiving Damon, she is also determined to live her life on her own terms, “I can’t live every minute afraid that someone’s gonna come after me. I won’t. That’s not living.” It was perhaps naïve to believe she could have one perfect “vampire-free” night, but it is admirable that she tried.
Also, after last week’s glaring faux pas when Harper (Sterling Sulieman) tossed the cell phone into the woods, it was nice to see Anna was schooling the other escapee vamps on modern technology, like operating a television remote, using a cell phone for texting and what ATM cards are used for. For clearly, it is not enough to dress like everyone else, these vamps need to know a lot more about our modern world to truly blend in and not arouse suspicion.
I also appreciated the subtle glances that Anna gave the new-revived vampire family and how she clearly resented them and the strangle-hold leash/power they seem to have over her. Perhaps she too, like Damon, is simply not physically strong enough to defy them because she is a newer vampire and thus must do their biding? Particularly after witnessing the brutal encounter between Pearl (Kelly Hu) and Damon. It was simply shocking and horrifying that she could gouge his eyes with her bare hands. It was further ominous when Damon asked, “What exactly are you trying to achieve?” and Pearl calmly declared, “Mystic Falls is our home. They took that from us — our land, our home — it’s time we rebuild.” Imagine a world where the vampires ran everything. It should send shivers up your spine as such a vision is terrifying. Kudos to Damon for not falling for the dangling carrot Pearl offered – as if she could hand Katherine over on a silver platter.
She so enticingly told him, “As a reward, I’m willing to give you what you want most — Katherine — I know how she thinks, her patterns, I know where to find her.” And as tempted as Damon may have been, he simply said, “I no longer have any desire to see Katherine ever again and there is no way in hell I’m going to play the role of your little minion.” Damon may not always be a hero, but it is cool to see that he is not willing to play lackey to a very evil woman. It also simply sounded too good to be true and Damon saw through that. Who is to say that Katherine is truly that fond of Pearl? Undoubtedly there is more than meets the eye in Katherine’s relationship with Pearl as well, for she left Pearl to rot in the tomb for 145 years without trying to rescue her. And Pearl surely must be harboring some resentment over that abandonment and betrayal as well. Katherine bought her way to freedom and left Pearl to fend for herself – and then never came back. After watching Pearl strike terror into the baddest bad-ass vamps, I would hazard to say that Pearl is not going to greet Katherine with completely welcome, open arms. I mean, did you see how coldly she stabbed Frederick (Stephen Martines) with that wooden spoon after he came crawling back after his failed attack on the Salvatore Brothers? And she did not look exactly broken up over the loss of Bethanne (Jeni Perillo).
A few fun quotes from the episode included when Frederick failed to mesmerize Jenna and wistfully said, “Vervain — making it seriously hard to find something to eat in this town.” And who did not roar with laughter over Caroline’s comment, “This is much better than watching Damon visit cougar-town”? It was so dead-on.
Equally fun and spine-chilling was when Stefan said, “I remember them from 1864. They were in the tomb,” and Damon ruefully replied, “Yeah, about that. . .” And on that note, we can feel it in our bones: something wicked this way comes . . .
What Didn’t Work
After last week’s major reveal that Isobel was Elena’s mother, it seemed anti-climatic for that storyline to be dropped so completely this week. Similarly, it felt deflating that Alaric was not around to keep Jenna out of harm’s way both at the bar as she partied with Kelly and Damon, and later as she nearly became Frederick’s dinner before dashing into a waiting cab. For surely Alaric would still be around to protect his new lady love, especially since he knows what vile creatures are lurking in the dark.
Giving Credit Where Credit Is Due
‘There Goes the Neighborhood’ was written by Bryan Oh and Andrew Chambers and directed by Kevin Bray. ‘The Vampire Diaries’ stars Paul Wesley, Nina Dobrev, Ian Somerhalder, Steven R. McQueen, Candice Accola, Katerina Graham, Michael Trevino, Zach Roerig, Sara Canning, Matt Davis. ‘The Vampire Diaries’ airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. on the CW.
The TV Watchtower 
