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butterflyI'm not going to kill myself trying to get these done before the new episodes start airing again. I'll definitely have S1 all finished up, but I'll probably need to be slowing down and only doing one extra per week as classwork starts kicking in, I think, so I'll be doing the S2 episodes a bit less quickly.
1x16 - There Goes the Neighborhood
This episode, we open at the vampire house being run by Pearl. Ah, Pearl. She's a strong character and a strong mother, but I don't think she was ready to be 'the leader'. Katherine had been the obvious leader in the flashback episodes (we see Pearl giving her advice, but it's clear that Katherine has final say) and Katherine is high-grade crazy-scary that you don't cross. Pearl is a little more laid-back. And what she meant as a warning (at the end of this episode), was taken as a challenge instead.
Anna comes down the stairs and goes through the house, where the vampires are getting introduced to the twenty-first century. They're getting new clothes - Anna has to show a pair of male vampires how to use the remote control. For her, she's been able to adjust to technology as it was introduced, piece by piece, and it's just part of the world as she knows it. For all of them, it's a sudden sharp change.
When Anna comes into the living room, Frederick is feeding on Miss Gibbons' wrist. Anna seems a little disturbed. It's interesting, because we know that Anna has hunted (she taught Ben how to hunt). But it's entirely possible that she's never done the 'compelled blood source on tap' thing, because she does look a little squicked. Miss Gibbons offers Anna a taste and she declines. Anna thinks that it might be good for Miss Gibbons to lie down and get some rest, and Frederick compels her to say that she's fine. Or I wonder if there's history there that we never got to hear. It could be that Anna never really trusted him.
Over at Matt's place, Matt is not having a great morning. Last night, his mom brought a guy home and it was apparently pretty loud. Kelly tells him to stop judging her so much, so Matt drops it and moves on to telling her about a bartending position open at the Grill (right, because Stefan set Ben on fire). She promises to check it out, but thinks that Roberta might still be pissed off at Kelly from the last time she worked there. Matt is a little surprised that she's agreeing to check out the position - he wasn't sure if she was planning on staying. She mentions the back rent; he's well-aware of that and it's not the only bill that they're behind on. This is maybe something that's better in small towns where you know everyone - I expect that Matt, with the absentee mom and the druggie (and now missing) sister, has been getting a break from people on the bills because they know what a rough time he's having.
Caroline knocks at the door. Kelly scoffs and Matt warns her to back off and he invites Caroline in. Caroline says a sweet hello and is mostly ignored by Kelly. How can she be so mean to our lovely Caroline? Caroline is made of sunshine and rainbows and anyone who doesn't see that fails at life. Caroline is awesome.
Stefan and Elena are talking about Damon (at school, the one place Damon rarely goes. Wise!).
"Damon hasn't said a word to me. Every time I try to talk to him, he shuts me down."
"Do you think he's still trying to find Katherine?"
"I don't know. He waited a hundred and forty-five years only to find out that Katherine could not care less. And it's gotta hurt, right?"
"And it couldn't have happened to a nicer guy."
"You've every reason to be upset with him. Have you thought any more about what you're going to do?"
"About what, Isobel? My vampire birth-mother who's related to my vampire ancestor Katherine who screwed over your vampire brother? Nah, haven't thought about it at all."
"I'm sorry I brought it up."
"It would just be nice if we could go through a day without dealing with any of it. No vampire mother, no vampire brother."
"No vampires at all?"
"No vampires but you. I just want to get us back to normal stuff like school and homework. And... here's a thought - fun."
"Ooo, that sounds good to me. When do we start?"
Ha. It's like everything that's most frustrating about the Stefan/Elena relationship that doesn't involve stalking or Stefan lying to her. They are denial-enablers for each other. They enable each other's denial of the world that they live in. This is incredibly dangerous. Having fun is great and fantastic - but you can't shut out the world that you live in while you're having fun.
I think this is something that people who like Stefan/Elena enjoy about the relationship? I'm guessing, but I think I've read that people like that it's 'normal', so I think scenes like this read completely differently to people who interact with the show in that way. To me, these scenes feel like a game of playing pretend, rather than a real, honest relationship. I mean, it's cute, but shallow.
Caroline gets a little snarky with Matt about his mom and he steps in to defend her. And then Matt is distracted from the potential fight by the goodbye kiss that Elena is laying on Stefan. And when Caroline goes for her own goodbye kiss with Matt, he ducks her. You know, I'd forgotten about these moments somehow. The groundwork kinda is laid for how Matt doesn't really try hard enough to understand Caroline's point of view after her S2 near-death experience and why it's relatively easy for her to get him to break up with her.
Pearl teaches Harper about Anna's cell phone, not quite getting what texting is (it's not about avoiding talking, Mama Pearl!) but doing pretty well for someone who was in a hole for a hundred and forty-five years. They accidentally hit a button that brings up a voicemail from Jeremy and Anna races into the room to retrieve her phone. Anna says that the message was from Jeremy Gilbert (and her face when she says Jeremy's name is ten kinds of precious) and Harper asks "is that your boyfriend?" Aw. Pearl is immediately dismissive of the idea, though. She asks Anna how she looks and she's not displeased to be out of the century that requires corsets. Anna and Pearl head out, armed with car keys and an ATM card (which Anna will explain on the way).
Frederick stops them on the way out the door and it's clear that, in his eyes, Pearl doesn't have the right to be The Leader now that Katherine isn't around. Harper backs Pearl up and I bet there's some backstory there, too (that we will never know).
Caroline is over with Elena and Stefan at the lockers, trying to arrange a double-date. Elena isn't sure about the idea, but Stefan thinks that it sounds like a lot of fun and he 'subtly' reminds Elena of the desires that she had expressed only a few minutes ago, so she agrees.
At the Salvatore place, Damon realizes that there's someone else around and he wanders around until he finds Pearl and Anna.
D: "Ever hear of knocking?"
P: "An invitation wasn't necessary. I'm surprised that no living person resides here. Is it just you and your brother?"
A: "Yeah, how do you keep out unwelcome vampires?"
D: "Kill them."
Damon tries to choke Pearl, but she's gotten her strength back since the last time they saw each other and bests him easily, being older and thus stronger.
(oh, ha! The cushions on the Salvatore couch are embroidered! One of them reads: "If you can't say anything good about someone, sit right here by me - Alice Roosevelt". How perfect is that?)
It's uncomfortable seeing Damon so easily beat up. Up until this point in the show, Damon has been the resident Big Gun (Lexi's BF got the better of him, but it took a bit more work, as it did when Stefan managed to lock him up). From here on out, it's not so easy for him to get the upper hand, though he's damn determined, wily, and has an increasing number of people that he can count on for back-up.
Jeremy is chatting online, trying to figure out how to become a vampire. Oh, Jeremy. Man, I'm glad that Damon shocks you out of this annoying death/vampire wish of yours. Okay, maybe the broken neck was extreme, but it's not like anything else was working. He's so much better in S2, that's all I'm saying.
Pearl is catching Damon up on the local vampire news: they're living in a farmhouse just outside town. It's a temporary home. Not all of the twenty-five vampires are staying with her, just some of them. She suspects that others have already left Mystic Falls, to make their own way in the world, and still others just haven't shown up yet. Damon wonders how they got out at all - Anna thinks that Grams and Bonnie fucked up. "Oh," Damon says.
Pearl learned from Anna that Damon has infiltrated the council and she wants Damon's intel from within the group. She adds that Damon needs to stop supplying the council with vervain. Yes, that won't blow his cover at all. Long game, Pearl. Long game.
"What exactly are you trying to achieve?"
"Mystic Falls is our home, Damon. They took that from us. Our land, our home. It's time we rebuild."
"What are you, crazy? It was 1864. Wake up, woman, the world has moved on."
"As a reward for your help, I'm willing to give you what you want most."
"I want nothing-"
"Katherine."
"You wouldn't even know where she was. You've been under the ground for the last century and a half."
"Katherine and I were best friends, long before we came to Mystic Falls, Damon. I know how she thinks, I know her patterns, I know where to find her."
"I no longer have any desire to see Katherine ever again. And there's no way in hell I'm going to play the role of your little minion."
We do see Damon consider the idea, consider the notion of seeking Katherine out. But, really, to what purpose? She never came to find him, after she ran from the fire. If he looks her up and finds her, what is he going to get out of it? It will never be anything like what he's spent the last century and a half hoping for. But I love that we see him hear Pearl's offer and reject it. And the other reason that he rejects it - he's not anyone's minion. Damon isn't a follower, by any stretch of the imagination (even with Katherine, he was constantly pushing at the boundaries). But he's actually a damn good leader, especially if he has someone around who can temper his reckless impulsiveness. He makes good plans, makes good use of resources, is not afraid to fall back and regroup in order to improve a plan.
Pearl doesn't care that Damon refused her offer - she's determined that he'll do what she says regardless and she makes her point by gouging out his eyes. Blood spurts. It made me jump the first time I saw it - had not expected it at all. I have to say, she is not showing herself to have a fantastic judge of character - two times in this episode, she thinks that a show of violence is enough to put someone in their place and make them follow her orders and, both times, she's wrong. She makes one last threat and then leaves.
Over at Elena's house, Stefan arrives with flowers. We find out that Stefan has a car that he never drives. Elena wants to cancel on the double-date. Stefan asks why and Elena has a moment where she wonders if they can even do 'normal'. Stefan scoffs at that idea and says that 'normal' things like this are exactly why hestalked her and choreographed a meet cute with her decided to stay in Mystic Falls in the first place. "So I could bring my girlfriend flowers, take her out on a date... try to be normal."
Anna is waiting by the old Doctor's office that Elena's dad had used. Pearl and Anna have come to look at it, hoping to buy it. While Pearl talks to Jenna, Anna is momentarily distracted by the sight of Jeremy walking by.
Damon, wearing sunglasses to cover his newly-healed eyes (ouch!), comes up to the bar at the Grill in order to get himself good and drunk. Kelly is already there, hoping to interview for the bartending position, but suspecting that sleeping with the boss's boyfriend the last time she had the job has made her ineligible. Kelly notices him (because... yeah, who wouldn't?) and starts chatting him up.
Jenna comes into the bar and recognizes Kelly. When Jenna was young, Kelly babysat her, and when she got older, they partied together. Kelly invites Jenna to join her and Damon for drinks. After a moment of hesitation, she does.
It's night, now, and we're over at Miss Gibbons' house. Frederick isn't happy. Harper is getting annoyed with Frederick's whining. When Frederick challenges Harper (using very loaded terminology), Harper pushes him down. Frederick pushes back, and they're very close to a true fight when Pearl intervenes and pushes Frederick away. She tells that that they need to keep a low-profile.
Frederick wishes that he could run into the Salvatore brothers; he blames them for the vampires getting put into the tomb in the first place.
On the double-date, Elena and Matt are catching up while Caroline and Stefan mostly smile and nod. The foursome get distracted by the sight of Damon, Jenna, and Kelly getting drunk together. Damon notices them and tips his glass in their direction before turning back to Jenna and Kelly.
Frederick and Beth-Anne are leaving the house without permission - Harper challenges them but he's not willing to fight Frederick, so off the vampires go for their night on the town (so, Harper and Beth-Anne both have daywalker rings, but it seems like Frederick doesn't - he makes a point in the next episode about how he can go outside because it's raining so hard that there's no sun, I think. Hmm. I'll explore that more in the next episode if it's right).
At Jeremy's house, he opens the door and is surprised to find Anna on the other side. Anna is surprised that Jeremy isn't acting more happy to see her, while Jeremy is busy dealing with his certainty that she's a vampire and how exactly he should act around her now. Jeremy, like Elena, is of a rational and scientific bent. He decided to test and see if Anna is a vampire (see, in a world where supernatural elements actually exist, you can test for them).
Jenna is trying to figure out what has Damon so down.
"What's got you so grumpy? It can't be that bad."
"You'd be surprised. My primary reason for existence has abandoned me and, after today's events, the remains of the shaky ground I walk on are about to go ka-boom."
The depth of his gloom takes Jenna back a bit. Ah, Damon. He is not thrilled with the instructions that Pearl has attempted to give him. He's building something here, with this town and these people, and maybe he doesn't have any clue where he's going with it yet, but he doesn't want to hand it all over to Pearl.
The double-date crew have moved over to the pool table, still distracted by the drunk trio of so-called 'responsible adults'. Matt and Elena talk more about the old days (the first time Elena got drunk) and Stefan notices that Caroline is getting distressed. Aw, I hadn't seen that the first time. Caroline goes to the restroom, tugging Elena along to join her.
Jenna finally notices that her niece is in the Mystic Grill and has been able to see her getting hammered with Damon and Kelly.
While the girls are in the bathroom, Stefan and Matt play pool and chat. "You're that guy - that guy who seems like he has everything, so the people who don't kinda run the other way," Matt helpfully informs Stefan. Ha, he so totally is. This show is hilarious on-point sometimes.
In the bathroom, Caroline informs Elena of the 'point' of the double-date. Oh, sweetie, I love you, but if you don't tell Elena your plans, how can she help you out? Anyway, Matt was supposed to overdose on how perfect Elena and Stefan are together, so that he would finally get over Elena.
On the way out of the bathroom, Frederick grabs Elena by the elbow and calls her 'Katherine', surprised and assessing. He notices that she goes right over to Stefan Salvatore. Oh, and Elena uses a key useful feature of being able to type on your phone - she can let Stefan know that the guy over there called her Katherine without saying it out loud.
The group has driven back to the Salvatore place - Elena is telling Stefan that she didn't recognize the new player at all (and Frederick took off before Stefan could get a good look at him). Stefan is having the same thought that I was - maybe we should stop playing pretend now that something serious is happening - but Elena wants her night of denial and fun, damn it.
"If there's another vampire in town, he'll still be here tomorrow."
Yes, but if your aunt hadn't been wearing vervain perfume tonight, then he would have still been there tomorrow and Jenna would have been dead. Or he might have run into someone not taking vervain and killed them. Ignoring dangerous elements is... dangerous. Stefan goes with Elena's desires in this matter and the double-date continues as Caroline and Matt drive up.
Caroline and Matt are a bit awed at the inside of the boarding house (and Caroline is happy to be away from having to watch Damon drinking with Kelly and Jenna - she also shows the feeling, but not the memory, of being there before, which kinda foreshadows what Jeremy said about how Damon taking away his suffering and the memories that caused them didn't mean that everything had gotten all fixed. There was still an emptiness there for him). Matt gushes over Stefan's model car collection, so Stefan gets an idea.
At the bar, Kelly and Damon are having a cherry-stem tying contest. Jenna recognizes a mating dance when she sees once and makes her exit.
Stefan shows off his genuine classic car off to Matt. When Matt references making out with Elena in the back of a sports car, Caroline has to leave for a while. Elena follows. Matt apologizes to Stefan, who I don't think we ever see showing a single ounce of jealousy or worry with regards to Matt. One of the things that makes it interesting is that the second Damon's interest in Elena crystallizes, Stefan is no longer the most secure man on the block. For Stefan, he doesn't consider Matt (Elena's ex) to be any level of a threat to his relationship with Elena. But Damon is considered one.
Jenna makes her way out of the bar and breaks a heel. Frederick is waiting outside and he comes over and helps her out by breaking off the other heel, so that she's balanced. He'd noticed her with Damon, inside, and asks after him. Frederick might not be able to get a meal out of her (yay for vervain perfume) but he does get the Salvatore boys' location out of her - the boarding house, which is confirmed to be 'by Wickery Bridge' (where the Gilbert car went off). He flirts with her and she likes it but doesn't want to do anything because she's drunk. He attempts to compel her but she just laughs and he realizes that she's protected by vervain. She leaves to go grab a cab.
Elena has gone out to talk to Caroline, who is feeling very insecure because she feels like she's always everyone's second choice. She's the friend that Elena or Bonnie go to because they're upset with each other, Matt wouldn't be with her if Elena was an option, etc.
"You don't get it. Why would you? You're everyone's first choice."
And Elena doesn't know what she can possibly say to make that better. Just then, Stefan and Matt drive Stefan's car out of the garage, and Matt is very pleased with himself for fixing it. Stefan suggests to Matt that he take Caroline off for a drive - I'm betting he was listening to that conversation. He noticed Caroline's distress earlier, when both Elena and Matt were distracting each other with memories. He's trying to look out for her and help her out a bit, I think. Elena is impressed by Stefan's thoughtfulness and they snuggle as the car drives off.
Jeremy is making some food up for himself and Anna. He takes the opportunity to purposefully cut himself and challenge Anna with his blood, pushing until she pushes back - she vamps out and presses him against the fridge. He offers his hand to her and, after some hesitation, she takes it, biting down. Before they can go further, Jenna gets home. She tells him to lock up and, when he looks back into the kitchen, Anna is gone.
should have kissed you there, should have held your face
Caroline and Matt are in the car, briefly stopped. Matt wants to know if he passed Caroline's double-date test. "Tonight wasn't about me and Elena. I was there because I wanted to be with you. And I don't know what this means or what we are but I do know that you're the only person that I want to be in this car with right now." They kiss, things get a little uncomfortable and Caroline is able to make a sports car crack.
and it's you
Back at the Salvatore place, Damon is showing Kelly around and she's quite impressed. They share a drink and then he starts kissing her. He starts taking her coat off and he's distracted by her bared neck. He doesn't bite, though, and she pulls him back for another kiss. He's the one against the wall now and he's kissing her neck - still not biting. Not sure if he would have done that part, because they're interrupted by the double-date foursome trooping in. Kelly climbs off Damon and makes her way out - Matt follows. Elena volunteers to drive Caroline home. Damon finishes his drink.
Anna gets back to Miss Gibbons' place. We learn that she was over at Jeremy's for three hours or so, when her mom turns on the light and asks where she's been. Pearl worries - of course, she's not taking into consideration the fact that Anna knows this world. Anna is the one in the least danger by choosing to roam around Mystic Falls. She knows the people and the place. But Pearl isn't thinking tactically, she's thinking like a worried mother.
Elena is saying goodnight to Stefan, who wishes that he could take her home, hover around the outside of her house all night - all the typical stalker vampire behavior. Elena reminds him that normal people don't do that and it's their night to be normal. Also, hopefully no one has invited this new vampire into her home (seriously, tell Jenna the truth!). They kiss goodbye and off Elena goes to take Caroline home. We see Frederick watching as Stefan closes the door and goes inside. Hmm, I wonder if it means anything that he doesn't try attacking until the person who looks like Katherine has left. I'll watch for any indications of what he's thinking about that stuff in the next episode.
Stefan and Damon are working up to some kind of conversation, when Frederick bursts in through the window and attacks Stefan, stabbing him with a piece of broken glass. Damon hauls Frederick off Stefan and tosses him across the room. While Damon and Frederick are fighting, Beth-Anne jumps in and attacks Stefan. She starts to get the upper hand, but makes the mistake of throwing Stefan into a chair - the leg breaks off and Stefan has a handy stake that he immediately uses on her. Damon and Frederick fight to roughly a standstill but when Frederick sees that Stefan is standing beside his brother now (and Beth-Anne is dead), Frederick decides that it's time to bail. Stefan remembers them from 1864 and he realizes that this means that the tomb vampires have escaped. Damon realizes that he should probably share his newly-acquired info with his brother.
Matt and Kelly arrive home. He sits down on the couch, while she tries to have a conversation. Matt's upset because he was out having fun with his friends but, everywhere he went, there his mom was, getting drunk. He's tired of being forced into being the responsible one in the family, of being the one who takes care of the house and tries to pay the bills.
We have a brief look into the Gilbert bathroom of lies, where Jeremy and Elena each pretend that nothing horribly exciting or dangerous is happening in anyone's life.
Frederick has arrived back at Pearl's. She asks after Beth-Anne. He lets her know that Beth-Anne is dead. She stabs him in the stomach to attempt to make a point about going against her. Like I said earlier - she's not the best judge of character. She doesn't understand that all she did was piss him off and make him more determined to find a way around her.
Elena calls Stefan to let him know that she's fine. She notices that he sounds serious - in deference to her desire for normality, he tells her that he'll inform her about it tomorrow. After they hang up, Damon asks Stefan to help him with Beth-Anne's body.
In Jeremy's room, he's surprised to find Anna waiting there for him. She's pissed at him for the blood-tease earlier - "I could have killed you." She asks him how he figured out the vampire stuff, and he tells her about 'this girl, Vicki' who was bitten 'by an animal' and then started acting weird and finally disappeared. Anna warns him not to tell anyone.
"Why didn't you... kill me?"
"I don't know. Maybe I'm a sucker for guys like you."
"Like what?"
"Lost."
He tells her that he wants to be turned.
Deaths:
1. Stefan stakes Beth-Anne.
Damon's current kill count: 12
Stefan's current kill count: 4
Alaric's current kill count: 1
Katherine's current kill count: 2
Harper: 1
Isobel: 2
Vamp Bites:
1. Miss Gibbons is the communal blood source for the vampires under Pearl's control.
2. Anna takes Jeremy's offer and bites down on his hand.
Damon's current bite count: 22
Katherine's current bite count: 4
Anna/Pearl: 2
Harper: 1
Frederick: 1
Compelled:
1. Frederick makes a point of compelling Miss Gibbons to stay 'fine'.
Frederick attempts to compel Jenna but fails.
Stefan's current compelling count: 2
Damon's current compelling count: 16
Katherine's current compelling count: 1
Isobel: 1
Pearl: 1
Frederick: 1
Bechdel:
None this episode, which was very male-female relationship-heavy.
Stefan/Elena Relationship:
Together: "Night of the Comet" - "Family Ties" (3 episodes; exact time uncertain, at least a week)
1st Breakup: "Family Ties" - "You're Undead to Me" (2 episodes; 4 days)
1st Reunion: "You're Undead to Me" - "Lost Girls" (2 episodes; 2 days)
2nd Breakup: "Lost Girls" - "The Turning Point" (3 episodes; exact time uncertain, at least 3 days)
2nd Reunion: "The Turning Point" - (at least 7 episodes, at least 8 days)
Timeline:
Another potential time-jump of unknown duration, then the episode itself takes place in a single day and night.
Time covered: 1 day/1 night
Total time; pilot-FNB: 6 days/7 nights
I think that the biggest time jump - roughly 1 1/2 months, rests in between these two.
Total time; FT-Haunted: 9 days/9 nights
Total time; 162C: 2 nights/1 day
Total time; HR-Bloodlines: 4 days/3 nights
Total time; Unpleasantville: 3 days/3 nights
Total time; CotD-FMO: 2 days/2 nights
Time jump here, enough time for a funeral and for Bonnie to go off to stay with her aunt.
Total time; AFGM: 1 day/1 night
Time jump of unknown duration - however long it took for Frederick to get bored of being cooped up.
Total time; TGTN: 1 day/1 night
Shirtless shots:
None.
Bonnie's Visions:
Nada.
This episode, we open at the vampire house being run by Pearl. Ah, Pearl. She's a strong character and a strong mother, but I don't think she was ready to be 'the leader'. Katherine had been the obvious leader in the flashback episodes (we see Pearl giving her advice, but it's clear that Katherine has final say) and Katherine is high-grade crazy-scary that you don't cross. Pearl is a little more laid-back. And what she meant as a warning (at the end of this episode), was taken as a challenge instead.
Anna comes down the stairs and goes through the house, where the vampires are getting introduced to the twenty-first century. They're getting new clothes - Anna has to show a pair of male vampires how to use the remote control. For her, she's been able to adjust to technology as it was introduced, piece by piece, and it's just part of the world as she knows it. For all of them, it's a sudden sharp change.
When Anna comes into the living room, Frederick is feeding on Miss Gibbons' wrist. Anna seems a little disturbed. It's interesting, because we know that Anna has hunted (she taught Ben how to hunt). But it's entirely possible that she's never done the 'compelled blood source on tap' thing, because she does look a little squicked. Miss Gibbons offers Anna a taste and she declines. Anna thinks that it might be good for Miss Gibbons to lie down and get some rest, and Frederick compels her to say that she's fine. Or I wonder if there's history there that we never got to hear. It could be that Anna never really trusted him.
Over at Matt's place, Matt is not having a great morning. Last night, his mom brought a guy home and it was apparently pretty loud. Kelly tells him to stop judging her so much, so Matt drops it and moves on to telling her about a bartending position open at the Grill (right, because Stefan set Ben on fire). She promises to check it out, but thinks that Roberta might still be pissed off at Kelly from the last time she worked there. Matt is a little surprised that she's agreeing to check out the position - he wasn't sure if she was planning on staying. She mentions the back rent; he's well-aware of that and it's not the only bill that they're behind on. This is maybe something that's better in small towns where you know everyone - I expect that Matt, with the absentee mom and the druggie (and now missing) sister, has been getting a break from people on the bills because they know what a rough time he's having.
Caroline knocks at the door. Kelly scoffs and Matt warns her to back off and he invites Caroline in. Caroline says a sweet hello and is mostly ignored by Kelly. How can she be so mean to our lovely Caroline? Caroline is made of sunshine and rainbows and anyone who doesn't see that fails at life. Caroline is awesome.
Stefan and Elena are talking about Damon (at school, the one place Damon rarely goes. Wise!).
"Damon hasn't said a word to me. Every time I try to talk to him, he shuts me down."
"Do you think he's still trying to find Katherine?"
"I don't know. He waited a hundred and forty-five years only to find out that Katherine could not care less. And it's gotta hurt, right?"
"And it couldn't have happened to a nicer guy."
"You've every reason to be upset with him. Have you thought any more about what you're going to do?"
"About what, Isobel? My vampire birth-mother who's related to my vampire ancestor Katherine who screwed over your vampire brother? Nah, haven't thought about it at all."
"I'm sorry I brought it up."
"It would just be nice if we could go through a day without dealing with any of it. No vampire mother, no vampire brother."
"No vampires at all?"
"No vampires but you. I just want to get us back to normal stuff like school and homework. And... here's a thought - fun."
"Ooo, that sounds good to me. When do we start?"
Ha. It's like everything that's most frustrating about the Stefan/Elena relationship that doesn't involve stalking or Stefan lying to her. They are denial-enablers for each other. They enable each other's denial of the world that they live in. This is incredibly dangerous. Having fun is great and fantastic - but you can't shut out the world that you live in while you're having fun.
I think this is something that people who like Stefan/Elena enjoy about the relationship? I'm guessing, but I think I've read that people like that it's 'normal', so I think scenes like this read completely differently to people who interact with the show in that way. To me, these scenes feel like a game of playing pretend, rather than a real, honest relationship. I mean, it's cute, but shallow.
Caroline gets a little snarky with Matt about his mom and he steps in to defend her. And then Matt is distracted from the potential fight by the goodbye kiss that Elena is laying on Stefan. And when Caroline goes for her own goodbye kiss with Matt, he ducks her. You know, I'd forgotten about these moments somehow. The groundwork kinda is laid for how Matt doesn't really try hard enough to understand Caroline's point of view after her S2 near-death experience and why it's relatively easy for her to get him to break up with her.
Pearl teaches Harper about Anna's cell phone, not quite getting what texting is (it's not about avoiding talking, Mama Pearl!) but doing pretty well for someone who was in a hole for a hundred and forty-five years. They accidentally hit a button that brings up a voicemail from Jeremy and Anna races into the room to retrieve her phone. Anna says that the message was from Jeremy Gilbert (and her face when she says Jeremy's name is ten kinds of precious) and Harper asks "is that your boyfriend?" Aw. Pearl is immediately dismissive of the idea, though. She asks Anna how she looks and she's not displeased to be out of the century that requires corsets. Anna and Pearl head out, armed with car keys and an ATM card (which Anna will explain on the way).
Frederick stops them on the way out the door and it's clear that, in his eyes, Pearl doesn't have the right to be The Leader now that Katherine isn't around. Harper backs Pearl up and I bet there's some backstory there, too (that we will never know).
Caroline is over with Elena and Stefan at the lockers, trying to arrange a double-date. Elena isn't sure about the idea, but Stefan thinks that it sounds like a lot of fun and he 'subtly' reminds Elena of the desires that she had expressed only a few minutes ago, so she agrees.
At the Salvatore place, Damon realizes that there's someone else around and he wanders around until he finds Pearl and Anna.
D: "Ever hear of knocking?"
P: "An invitation wasn't necessary. I'm surprised that no living person resides here. Is it just you and your brother?"
A: "Yeah, how do you keep out unwelcome vampires?"
D: "Kill them."
Damon tries to choke Pearl, but she's gotten her strength back since the last time they saw each other and bests him easily, being older and thus stronger.
(oh, ha! The cushions on the Salvatore couch are embroidered! One of them reads: "If you can't say anything good about someone, sit right here by me - Alice Roosevelt". How perfect is that?)
It's uncomfortable seeing Damon so easily beat up. Up until this point in the show, Damon has been the resident Big Gun (Lexi's BF got the better of him, but it took a bit more work, as it did when Stefan managed to lock him up). From here on out, it's not so easy for him to get the upper hand, though he's damn determined, wily, and has an increasing number of people that he can count on for back-up.
Jeremy is chatting online, trying to figure out how to become a vampire. Oh, Jeremy. Man, I'm glad that Damon shocks you out of this annoying death/vampire wish of yours. Okay, maybe the broken neck was extreme, but it's not like anything else was working. He's so much better in S2, that's all I'm saying.
Pearl is catching Damon up on the local vampire news: they're living in a farmhouse just outside town. It's a temporary home. Not all of the twenty-five vampires are staying with her, just some of them. She suspects that others have already left Mystic Falls, to make their own way in the world, and still others just haven't shown up yet. Damon wonders how they got out at all - Anna thinks that Grams and Bonnie fucked up. "Oh," Damon says.
Pearl learned from Anna that Damon has infiltrated the council and she wants Damon's intel from within the group. She adds that Damon needs to stop supplying the council with vervain. Yes, that won't blow his cover at all. Long game, Pearl. Long game.
"What exactly are you trying to achieve?"
"Mystic Falls is our home, Damon. They took that from us. Our land, our home. It's time we rebuild."
"What are you, crazy? It was 1864. Wake up, woman, the world has moved on."
"As a reward for your help, I'm willing to give you what you want most."
"I want nothing-"
"Katherine."
"You wouldn't even know where she was. You've been under the ground for the last century and a half."
"Katherine and I were best friends, long before we came to Mystic Falls, Damon. I know how she thinks, I know her patterns, I know where to find her."
"I no longer have any desire to see Katherine ever again. And there's no way in hell I'm going to play the role of your little minion."
We do see Damon consider the idea, consider the notion of seeking Katherine out. But, really, to what purpose? She never came to find him, after she ran from the fire. If he looks her up and finds her, what is he going to get out of it? It will never be anything like what he's spent the last century and a half hoping for. But I love that we see him hear Pearl's offer and reject it. And the other reason that he rejects it - he's not anyone's minion. Damon isn't a follower, by any stretch of the imagination (even with Katherine, he was constantly pushing at the boundaries). But he's actually a damn good leader, especially if he has someone around who can temper his reckless impulsiveness. He makes good plans, makes good use of resources, is not afraid to fall back and regroup in order to improve a plan.
Pearl doesn't care that Damon refused her offer - she's determined that he'll do what she says regardless and she makes her point by gouging out his eyes. Blood spurts. It made me jump the first time I saw it - had not expected it at all. I have to say, she is not showing herself to have a fantastic judge of character - two times in this episode, she thinks that a show of violence is enough to put someone in their place and make them follow her orders and, both times, she's wrong. She makes one last threat and then leaves.
Over at Elena's house, Stefan arrives with flowers. We find out that Stefan has a car that he never drives. Elena wants to cancel on the double-date. Stefan asks why and Elena has a moment where she wonders if they can even do 'normal'. Stefan scoffs at that idea and says that 'normal' things like this are exactly why he
Anna is waiting by the old Doctor's office that Elena's dad had used. Pearl and Anna have come to look at it, hoping to buy it. While Pearl talks to Jenna, Anna is momentarily distracted by the sight of Jeremy walking by.
Damon, wearing sunglasses to cover his newly-healed eyes (ouch!), comes up to the bar at the Grill in order to get himself good and drunk. Kelly is already there, hoping to interview for the bartending position, but suspecting that sleeping with the boss's boyfriend the last time she had the job has made her ineligible. Kelly notices him (because... yeah, who wouldn't?) and starts chatting him up.
Jenna comes into the bar and recognizes Kelly. When Jenna was young, Kelly babysat her, and when she got older, they partied together. Kelly invites Jenna to join her and Damon for drinks. After a moment of hesitation, she does.
It's night, now, and we're over at Miss Gibbons' house. Frederick isn't happy. Harper is getting annoyed with Frederick's whining. When Frederick challenges Harper (using very loaded terminology), Harper pushes him down. Frederick pushes back, and they're very close to a true fight when Pearl intervenes and pushes Frederick away. She tells that that they need to keep a low-profile.
Frederick wishes that he could run into the Salvatore brothers; he blames them for the vampires getting put into the tomb in the first place.
On the double-date, Elena and Matt are catching up while Caroline and Stefan mostly smile and nod. The foursome get distracted by the sight of Damon, Jenna, and Kelly getting drunk together. Damon notices them and tips his glass in their direction before turning back to Jenna and Kelly.
Frederick and Beth-Anne are leaving the house without permission - Harper challenges them but he's not willing to fight Frederick, so off the vampires go for their night on the town (so, Harper and Beth-Anne both have daywalker rings, but it seems like Frederick doesn't - he makes a point in the next episode about how he can go outside because it's raining so hard that there's no sun, I think. Hmm. I'll explore that more in the next episode if it's right).
At Jeremy's house, he opens the door and is surprised to find Anna on the other side. Anna is surprised that Jeremy isn't acting more happy to see her, while Jeremy is busy dealing with his certainty that she's a vampire and how exactly he should act around her now. Jeremy, like Elena, is of a rational and scientific bent. He decided to test and see if Anna is a vampire (see, in a world where supernatural elements actually exist, you can test for them).
Jenna is trying to figure out what has Damon so down.
"What's got you so grumpy? It can't be that bad."
"You'd be surprised. My primary reason for existence has abandoned me and, after today's events, the remains of the shaky ground I walk on are about to go ka-boom."
The depth of his gloom takes Jenna back a bit. Ah, Damon. He is not thrilled with the instructions that Pearl has attempted to give him. He's building something here, with this town and these people, and maybe he doesn't have any clue where he's going with it yet, but he doesn't want to hand it all over to Pearl.
The double-date crew have moved over to the pool table, still distracted by the drunk trio of so-called 'responsible adults'. Matt and Elena talk more about the old days (the first time Elena got drunk) and Stefan notices that Caroline is getting distressed. Aw, I hadn't seen that the first time. Caroline goes to the restroom, tugging Elena along to join her.
Jenna finally notices that her niece is in the Mystic Grill and has been able to see her getting hammered with Damon and Kelly.
While the girls are in the bathroom, Stefan and Matt play pool and chat. "You're that guy - that guy who seems like he has everything, so the people who don't kinda run the other way," Matt helpfully informs Stefan. Ha, he so totally is. This show is hilarious on-point sometimes.
In the bathroom, Caroline informs Elena of the 'point' of the double-date. Oh, sweetie, I love you, but if you don't tell Elena your plans, how can she help you out? Anyway, Matt was supposed to overdose on how perfect Elena and Stefan are together, so that he would finally get over Elena.
On the way out of the bathroom, Frederick grabs Elena by the elbow and calls her 'Katherine', surprised and assessing. He notices that she goes right over to Stefan Salvatore. Oh, and Elena uses a key useful feature of being able to type on your phone - she can let Stefan know that the guy over there called her Katherine without saying it out loud.
The group has driven back to the Salvatore place - Elena is telling Stefan that she didn't recognize the new player at all (and Frederick took off before Stefan could get a good look at him). Stefan is having the same thought that I was - maybe we should stop playing pretend now that something serious is happening - but Elena wants her night of denial and fun, damn it.
"If there's another vampire in town, he'll still be here tomorrow."
Yes, but if your aunt hadn't been wearing vervain perfume tonight, then he would have still been there tomorrow and Jenna would have been dead. Or he might have run into someone not taking vervain and killed them. Ignoring dangerous elements is... dangerous. Stefan goes with Elena's desires in this matter and the double-date continues as Caroline and Matt drive up.
Caroline and Matt are a bit awed at the inside of the boarding house (and Caroline is happy to be away from having to watch Damon drinking with Kelly and Jenna - she also shows the feeling, but not the memory, of being there before, which kinda foreshadows what Jeremy said about how Damon taking away his suffering and the memories that caused them didn't mean that everything had gotten all fixed. There was still an emptiness there for him). Matt gushes over Stefan's model car collection, so Stefan gets an idea.
At the bar, Kelly and Damon are having a cherry-stem tying contest. Jenna recognizes a mating dance when she sees once and makes her exit.
Stefan shows off his genuine classic car off to Matt. When Matt references making out with Elena in the back of a sports car, Caroline has to leave for a while. Elena follows. Matt apologizes to Stefan, who I don't think we ever see showing a single ounce of jealousy or worry with regards to Matt. One of the things that makes it interesting is that the second Damon's interest in Elena crystallizes, Stefan is no longer the most secure man on the block. For Stefan, he doesn't consider Matt (Elena's ex) to be any level of a threat to his relationship with Elena. But Damon is considered one.
Jenna makes her way out of the bar and breaks a heel. Frederick is waiting outside and he comes over and helps her out by breaking off the other heel, so that she's balanced. He'd noticed her with Damon, inside, and asks after him. Frederick might not be able to get a meal out of her (yay for vervain perfume) but he does get the Salvatore boys' location out of her - the boarding house, which is confirmed to be 'by Wickery Bridge' (where the Gilbert car went off). He flirts with her and she likes it but doesn't want to do anything because she's drunk. He attempts to compel her but she just laughs and he realizes that she's protected by vervain. She leaves to go grab a cab.
Elena has gone out to talk to Caroline, who is feeling very insecure because she feels like she's always everyone's second choice. She's the friend that Elena or Bonnie go to because they're upset with each other, Matt wouldn't be with her if Elena was an option, etc.
"You don't get it. Why would you? You're everyone's first choice."
And Elena doesn't know what she can possibly say to make that better. Just then, Stefan and Matt drive Stefan's car out of the garage, and Matt is very pleased with himself for fixing it. Stefan suggests to Matt that he take Caroline off for a drive - I'm betting he was listening to that conversation. He noticed Caroline's distress earlier, when both Elena and Matt were distracting each other with memories. He's trying to look out for her and help her out a bit, I think. Elena is impressed by Stefan's thoughtfulness and they snuggle as the car drives off.
Jeremy is making some food up for himself and Anna. He takes the opportunity to purposefully cut himself and challenge Anna with his blood, pushing until she pushes back - she vamps out and presses him against the fridge. He offers his hand to her and, after some hesitation, she takes it, biting down. Before they can go further, Jenna gets home. She tells him to lock up and, when he looks back into the kitchen, Anna is gone.
should have kissed you there, should have held your face
Caroline and Matt are in the car, briefly stopped. Matt wants to know if he passed Caroline's double-date test. "Tonight wasn't about me and Elena. I was there because I wanted to be with you. And I don't know what this means or what we are but I do know that you're the only person that I want to be in this car with right now." They kiss, things get a little uncomfortable and Caroline is able to make a sports car crack.
and it's you
Back at the Salvatore place, Damon is showing Kelly around and she's quite impressed. They share a drink and then he starts kissing her. He starts taking her coat off and he's distracted by her bared neck. He doesn't bite, though, and she pulls him back for another kiss. He's the one against the wall now and he's kissing her neck - still not biting. Not sure if he would have done that part, because they're interrupted by the double-date foursome trooping in. Kelly climbs off Damon and makes her way out - Matt follows. Elena volunteers to drive Caroline home. Damon finishes his drink.
Anna gets back to Miss Gibbons' place. We learn that she was over at Jeremy's for three hours or so, when her mom turns on the light and asks where she's been. Pearl worries - of course, she's not taking into consideration the fact that Anna knows this world. Anna is the one in the least danger by choosing to roam around Mystic Falls. She knows the people and the place. But Pearl isn't thinking tactically, she's thinking like a worried mother.
Elena is saying goodnight to Stefan, who wishes that he could take her home, hover around the outside of her house all night - all the typical stalker vampire behavior. Elena reminds him that normal people don't do that and it's their night to be normal. Also, hopefully no one has invited this new vampire into her home (seriously, tell Jenna the truth!). They kiss goodbye and off Elena goes to take Caroline home. We see Frederick watching as Stefan closes the door and goes inside. Hmm, I wonder if it means anything that he doesn't try attacking until the person who looks like Katherine has left. I'll watch for any indications of what he's thinking about that stuff in the next episode.
Stefan and Damon are working up to some kind of conversation, when Frederick bursts in through the window and attacks Stefan, stabbing him with a piece of broken glass. Damon hauls Frederick off Stefan and tosses him across the room. While Damon and Frederick are fighting, Beth-Anne jumps in and attacks Stefan. She starts to get the upper hand, but makes the mistake of throwing Stefan into a chair - the leg breaks off and Stefan has a handy stake that he immediately uses on her. Damon and Frederick fight to roughly a standstill but when Frederick sees that Stefan is standing beside his brother now (and Beth-Anne is dead), Frederick decides that it's time to bail. Stefan remembers them from 1864 and he realizes that this means that the tomb vampires have escaped. Damon realizes that he should probably share his newly-acquired info with his brother.
Matt and Kelly arrive home. He sits down on the couch, while she tries to have a conversation. Matt's upset because he was out having fun with his friends but, everywhere he went, there his mom was, getting drunk. He's tired of being forced into being the responsible one in the family, of being the one who takes care of the house and tries to pay the bills.
We have a brief look into the Gilbert bathroom of lies, where Jeremy and Elena each pretend that nothing horribly exciting or dangerous is happening in anyone's life.
Frederick has arrived back at Pearl's. She asks after Beth-Anne. He lets her know that Beth-Anne is dead. She stabs him in the stomach to attempt to make a point about going against her. Like I said earlier - she's not the best judge of character. She doesn't understand that all she did was piss him off and make him more determined to find a way around her.
Elena calls Stefan to let him know that she's fine. She notices that he sounds serious - in deference to her desire for normality, he tells her that he'll inform her about it tomorrow. After they hang up, Damon asks Stefan to help him with Beth-Anne's body.
In Jeremy's room, he's surprised to find Anna waiting there for him. She's pissed at him for the blood-tease earlier - "I could have killed you." She asks him how he figured out the vampire stuff, and he tells her about 'this girl, Vicki' who was bitten 'by an animal' and then started acting weird and finally disappeared. Anna warns him not to tell anyone.
"Why didn't you... kill me?"
"I don't know. Maybe I'm a sucker for guys like you."
"Like what?"
"Lost."
He tells her that he wants to be turned.
1. Stefan stakes Beth-Anne.
Damon's current kill count: 12
Stefan's current kill count: 4
Alaric's current kill count: 1
Katherine's current kill count: 2
Harper: 1
Isobel: 2
1. Miss Gibbons is the communal blood source for the vampires under Pearl's control.
2. Anna takes Jeremy's offer and bites down on his hand.
Damon's current bite count: 22
Katherine's current bite count: 4
Anna/Pearl: 2
Harper: 1
Frederick: 1
1. Frederick makes a point of compelling Miss Gibbons to stay 'fine'.
Frederick attempts to compel Jenna but fails.
Stefan's current compelling count: 2
Damon's current compelling count: 16
Katherine's current compelling count: 1
Isobel: 1
Pearl: 1
Frederick: 1
None this episode, which was very male-female relationship-heavy.
Together: "Night of the Comet" - "Family Ties" (3 episodes; exact time uncertain, at least a week)
1st Breakup: "Family Ties" - "You're Undead to Me" (2 episodes; 4 days)
1st Reunion: "You're Undead to Me" - "Lost Girls" (2 episodes; 2 days)
2nd Breakup: "Lost Girls" - "The Turning Point" (3 episodes; exact time uncertain, at least 3 days)
2nd Reunion: "The Turning Point" - (at least 7 episodes, at least 8 days)
Another potential time-jump of unknown duration, then the episode itself takes place in a single day and night.
Time covered: 1 day/1 night
Total time; pilot-FNB: 6 days/7 nights
I think that the biggest time jump - roughly 1 1/2 months, rests in between these two.
Total time; FT-Haunted: 9 days/9 nights
Total time; 162C: 2 nights/1 day
Total time; HR-Bloodlines: 4 days/3 nights
Total time; Unpleasantville: 3 days/3 nights
Total time; CotD-FMO: 2 days/2 nights
Time jump here, enough time for a funeral and for Bonnie to go off to stay with her aunt.
Total time; AFGM: 1 day/1 night
Time jump of unknown duration - however long it took for Frederick to get bored of being cooped up.
Total time; TGTN: 1 day/1 night
None.
Nada.