The Vampire Diaries’ tenth episode (The Turning Point) aired on November 19, 2009. The next episode (S01E11) will be airing after 8 weeks, or on January 14, 2010.
So, expect that for the whole of December, there will be no new Vampire Diaries episodes. There will be, however a nightly back-to-back marathon of Vampire Diaries episodes from December 14 to 18.
Co-executive producer and writer Julie Plec says, “Every now and then, Elena will get the tiniest little glimpse of what we’ll call ‘the softer side of Damon’ but there’s not going to by any true love blossoming anytime soon.” Hmm. She didn’t say at all, she said soon.
This is the hottest new show on vampires. The Vampire Diaries, starring Ian Somerhalder. (Last I remember he was playing the straight dude who fell in love with his male roomate who was actually a girl pretending to be a guy so she could play soccer. Or something like that. It was on a show called Young Americans, which I watched only because it was a spin-off of Dawson’s Creek.)
If nothing else, Ian Somerhalder should compel you to watch this show. The man is cruelly handsome, and drips with charm. He’s hot. Very hot. And fun! And god, that devilish smile. Remember Tom Cruise from Interview with the Vampire? Yeah, I think I know where Ian got his inspiration from. (But I think he pulls off the devil-may-care charm even better.)
Ian plays the vampire Damon, who returns to Mystic Falls in pursuit of his brother, Stefan, to torture him relentlessly, because he promised Stefan an eternity of hell. He brings trouble to Mystic Falls, ruthlessly feeding off and killing humans, and leaving Stefan to deal with the consequences. All because of Katherine, a woman they both loved and lost, centuries ago.
It also stars Nina Dobrev (who plays Elena, the vulnerable girl who recently lost her parents in a tragic accident, and who falls in love with the vampire Stefan) and Paul Wesley (who plays Stefan Salvatore, the mysterious, brooding vampire who has sworn off feeding on humans, come to Mystic Falls to try to lead a normal human life, and is drawn to Elena because of her strong resemblance to Katherine).
Damon, of course, sees Elena, and in his quest to torture Stefan, tries to use his powers of compulsion to win her over. Stefan protects Elena by giving her vervain, an herb that prevents her from being compelled. Damon and Stefan battle each other to win Elena’s affections. Stefan knows it is because Damon’s sole purpose is to hurt Stefan, but in secret, Damon is emotionally affected by Elena as well.
If they had Facebook pages, their statuses would all be “It’s complicated.” (Isn’t it always?)
The show is based on the trilogy called The Vampire Diaries, written by LJ Smith. I read all three novels last night, because the show got me really curious. Unfortunately, the books aren’t as good as the show. Elena is a lot shallower in the book. She does everything in her power to get Stefan (steal from her rival Caroline is more like it), even though he does not want her, because she is the “queen” of the school; she knows that she is popular and uses her power to intimidate and boss around her peers; and she oftentimes falls prey to Damon’s compulsion, and struggles with desire for both men. She is very unlike TV Elena, who knows her own mind, is strong-willed and stands up for herself, and though she is aware of her social status, does not treat it as her birthright. Obviously I like TV Elena a whole lot better.
Anyway, the point is, this is a great show, and I understand why it’s put the CW network back in the ratings game. It’s edgy, and angsty, and full of impossible relationships that we can all relate to. So, watch the Vampire Diaries. You won’t regret it. :-)
Here’s a teaser, if my gushing post wasn’t enough to compel you to watch, maybe Damon himself can. :-)
By the way, I myself download the Vampire Diaries from torrents I find online. But you can also watch Vampire Diaries online via the CW website (but I recommend the torrents so you can watch Ian Somerhalder over, and over, and over again).
P.S. I only started to watch the Vampire Diaries out of boredom. But the first episode definitely got me interested. And it just got better with every succeeding episode. It reminded me a lot of Dawson’s Creek, all that drama, the angst, the forbidden desire that makes it all the more desirable — even before I found out it was a CW show. And no wonder, it’s directed by none other than the master director of teenage TV shows, Kevin Williamson! The original Dawson still has that magic spark, after all.
