TVD 3x01-3x06

[semele]

pellamerethiel told me to write a reaction post. Since there is no way I'm gonna force a fic out of my brain tonight, I might as well do as she says.


I have loads of mixed feelings about this season. I don't love it the way I loved early s2 (2x01-2x11 was sheer brilliance, every Friday I was flailing all over lj), but it's not like I don't enjoy it. It's just... it's complicated, ok? ;)

Elena is so awesome I don't even know where to begin. She is painfully naive, but at the same time she manages not to be stupid; she is loyal, and strong, and fierce. Delusional, of course, but I kind of admire her for that, because she makes an honest mistake and is brave enough to stick to it. She doesn't lie to herself, she just acts according to what she knows, and it's not her fault that the viewers know more.

Ripper!Stefan is the ultimate source of mixed feelings. I love it that he is being taken to a dark place, I just wish his dark place was a bit darker. Biting Elena because Klaus compelled him to do so? Not impressed. As a matter of fact, I just refuse to accept that he was compelled. Compulsion can't be a perfect tool that solves every single problem; it has to have its limits. It was designed as feeding strategy, so it's good for simple commands and for removing the feelings human brain tries to deny anyway (if I was bitten by a vampire and then compelled not to be afraid and not to remember, I'm pretty sure my brain would be more than eager to be in denial; compulsion would just push it a bit further). So I'm not buying Klaus compelling Stefan to switch off his humanity; it's just Stefan being too weak to resist. It's Stefan giving up. *head!canon is good*

Damon is, well, Damon. Impulsive, horrible at long-term planning, always a bit ambigious, always the creepy stalker, always the drama queen. He has some sort of a plot twist every other episode, but no surprises when it comes to character development. Which might be a good thing, because there is so much happening around Stefan and Elena. I loved how he spent half of the last episode cleaning up and worrying about OMG PERSIAN RUGS

I'm enjoying Damon/Elena immensely. I love how it's being played as an ultimate temptation; irresistable, yet totally wrong attraction. The only thing spoiling my perfect world is that there is, in fact, TOO MUCH of Damon/Elena. Some scenes are just added as pure eyecandy and have nothing to do with the plot (like the training session in 3x06: seriously, Damon, Elena KNOWS how to stake a vampire; her problem is the lack of physical strenght, not the lack of know-how).

I'm enjoying Stefan/Elena just as much. All Elena's delusions are being broken one by one, and I really hope this is where this show is going. We started with dark!Stefan, and if my suspicions are correct, we're going to end up with dark!Elena. The potential is there, the build-up is there. Writers, please, just don't screw it up!

Katherine is priceless. Stalking Stefan. Trying to seduce Damon. Kidnapping Jeremy. WAVING A MOUSE AT MICHAEL. She is simply magnificent, and I don't get it why people are speculating whether or not she's dead o_O. Since when vampires die from losing some blood?

I loved Caroline/Tyler storyine up to 3x05. In 3x06 there was some sloppy writing (like: Caroline just leaving Tyler alone, when she knows that Rebecca is keeping an eye on him; since when Caroline does things like that?). Also: I'm not buying this whole "siring" thing.

Alaric training Elena wins everything. I'm also glad he didn't forgive Damon so easily.

I'm still a bit bored with the whole Jeremy-Matt-Bonnie-Ghosts storyline. I'm glad it starts to play some role in the main plot, but I'm still not excited about it. Just bring Jenna back already...

The Michael guy made me curious. A vampire who eats vampire blood? It can get really interesting, especially since we already have the Originals who can compel vampires. And suddenly vampires became... vulnerable, I guess? They can be harmed in the very same way they harm humans. I'm not sure if I really expect that the show would do something awesome with that, but at least it is an interesting fanfic opportunity :).

So, as you see, my biggest complaint right now is that the show isn't as brave as I'd like it to be when it comes to exposing Stefan's dark side. I just hope that Elena repeating that this person who came back is not Stefan is Elena being naive, not the writers being naive. There still is a good chance that this is exactly how things work in this season, so I just choose to focus on The Awesome (see: training!Elena, Damon vs his rugs, creepy Stefan, angry Alaric, KATHERINE. WAVING. A. MOUSE) and wait for the next episodes :D.

Comments

[pellamerethiel.livejournal.com]

Yay that you have written this post! :D I was really impressed by this episode and that's something new for me, at least when it comes to TVD.

(like the training session in 3x06: seriously, Damon, Elena KNOWS how to stake a vampire; her problem is the lack of physical strenght, not the lack of know-how).
As far as I loved Damon in this episode, I wholeheartedly hated this scene. Damon molesting Elena? Thanks, but NO. -__- But he called her BUFFY!

Katherine is priceless. Stalking Stefan. Trying to seduce Damon. Kidnapping Jeremy. WAVING A MOUSE AT MICHAEL. She is simply magnificent, and I don't get it why people are speculating whether or not she's dead o_O. Since when vampires die from losing some blood?
LOL, as Katherine would die of something so lame! Please. Katherine Pierce, ♥ so much! And I'm also so interested in The Curious Case of Michael The Vampire Vampire Slayer. ;DDD

So, as you see, my biggest complaint right now is that the show isn't as brave as I'd like it to be when it comes to exposing Stefan's dark side.
And I was surprised that they even got there - maybe because it's not a cable tv show, where everything would be possible, Stefan used to be loved (not sure?) by fans and he and Elena were almost a perfect combination - so yeah, showing that he went from this to the darkness he used to embrace many years before was pretty brave for me (at least as far as it goes for non-cable tv ;))

[upupa-epops.livejournal.com]

*headdesk* I forgot to mention the Buffy reference. How could I?

The training session was just a pure example of Too Much Innuendo :(.

Stefan was loved and Stefan was hated, there is a regular war ;). I'm a bit dissapointed about the show not being brave enough, because 2x22 made it clear enough that s3 Stefan is not going to be sunshine and daisies. So I really had high expectations, and I don't want him to be a victim. I want this show to be brave about Stefan. If you're interested, I have more thoughts about s3 Stefan, Damon and Elena here (http://upupa-epops.livejournal.com/102023.html).