frelling_tralk | (no subject)

http://insidetv.ew.com/2011/04/18/vampire-diaries-finale-scoop/

My spec is that the tragic event is Damon turning Elena. After the way they have copped out on character deaths this year I'm not sure I buy that they will kill a regular for good. And anyway who is really big enough to have that kind of huge impact in the finale episodes? There's been hints that even the big three aren't safe, so I feel like killing and turning Elena is the most likely way of them getting a cliffhanger big enough to compete with season 1's finale and the return of Katherine getting everyone talking. Plus it makes more sense to me for that to be the big point of conflict between Damon and Stefan, rather than Damon say suggesting killing someone else to protect Elena and Stefan being horrified at that. I think that Stefan might outwardly protest, but deep down he would agree with Damon about doing anything to keep Elena safe. But killing Elena at 17 and turning her into a vampire would be a huge issue for Stefan, and could also lead into a lot of potential storylines for season 3 such as the triangle heating up with vampire Elena growing closer to Damon perhaps?

People say it's way too soon for vampire Elena, but this is TVD and they do tend to speed through their plots. Also I suspect that Katherine is going to be killed at the end of the year (too much to ask Nina to carry off two roles for another season), and that leaves the way open for Nina to play vampire Elena without worrying about differentiating between Elena and Katherine so much

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Turning Jeremy just doesn't seem big enough for a finale to me though, especially as they already played that shock for all its emotional impact in the premiere (even with a takeback). It would fall a little flat to me if they went there again, and also I kind of hope they wouldn't cause, as I was saying when we were spec'ing about whether Caroline would be the one to turn, I can't really picture Jeremy making for a very interesting vampire LOL. Also it wouldn't really open up that many new storylines for season 3, so I almost feel like whatever major event is going to happen, it has to be about the big three directly in some way. I mean it would give Jeremy a new plot, and a lot of angst for Elena, but overall Idk

Honestly I've talked myself into hoping that vampire Elena happens now, even though I know it's not very popular overall. I actually think it could make for a really kickass season 3 if it can help set up Delena in a more organic way, give us back some of the Stefan and Damon conflict that I've missed since season 1, and have the main arc be more about the characters own internal issues rather than external threats and many episodes of planning for moonstones and the threat of Klaus. Plus having vampire Elena would give season 3 a major new plot arc to compete with season 2 seeing the return of Katherine (even if they didn't ultimately do much with her...)

Elena being turned would also kind of take care of the question of are these kids going to college (they are all seniors this year, right?) Not that TVD even pretends to take that stuff seriously any more :P, but it would be a little odd once school was over for Elena to just hang out with the Salvatore's and not go to college, becoming one of the ~undead would take care of keeping Elena and Caroline in town at least. I mean it makes more sense for her to be so wrapped up in their world while she's still in high school, but they need some kind of device to make sense of her continuing to hang around them and not moving on to the living at some point, there have already been discussions with Stefan about Elena eventually growing old and she can't be with him forever

I actually think it could make for a really kickass season 3 if it can help set up Delena in a more organic way, give us back some of the Stefan and Damon conflict that I've missed since season 1, and have the main arc be more about the characters own internal issues rather than external threats and many episodes of planning for moonstones and the threat of Klaus.

I would actually prefer this, I think. LOL, you've talked me into it! I'm just wavering on whether the writers are brave enough to go there. (And also hoping they don't kill Bonnie or Caroline, lol, which is why I'm expecting Jeremy, Matt, Alaric, and/or Jenna to go. Wishful thinking, I guess?)

It seems like a good arc because they could get a lot more mileage out of it, and really make it about Elena, Stefan, and Damon's relationships with one another. I feel like they could have done so much more with Katherine manipulating the brothers in season 2

Honestly I've been a bit disappointed with the show this year. It's hard to definite how exactly because it's by no means badly done, but after a while I start to find all the plot twists exhausting and lacking in emotional resonance, I just want them to concentrate on character development. I feel like Tyler/Caroline proved so popular because their stories were more character-driven with being about coping with the new supernatural status, as opposed to season 2 otherwise feeling like it's almost always about the main plot arc and preparing for Klaus. This might sound lame, but I kind of miss the high school feel when Elena, Bonnie, and Caroline were shown at school and hanging out more. Everything feels so plot-driven this year. Even when they do character moments like pairing off Bonnie and Jeremy, it's like they can't really be bothered to slow down the plot enough to spend time on the development

The episodes I really loved were the premiere because it felt like it was about something internal to the brothers relationship and past with Katherine, episode 203 dealing with vampire Caroline adjusting, and episode 206 (I think?) when they come up with a successful plan to taken down Katherine at the dance. But lately a lot of the episodes have been bleeding together for me as all being about discussing Klaus and the moonstone and ~preparations in some way or another. Last episode was pretty decent though with the dance and some cute character moments

Yeah, I can understand that. I appreciate how quickly the plot moves on this show, but I've been feeling the lack of character development. So many characters got shoved off to the side for much of this season (Bonnie, Alaric, Jenna, Matt). I'd rather have spent more time with them than all the plot machinations.

And Jeremy too, if I were to sit down and say what his main character arc was in season 2 nothing immediately comes to mind, other than pairing off with Bonnie. Early on it did seem like he was going to bond with Damon, but then that was pretty much dropped after Mason's death

Caroline and Tyler were the only characters the writers seemed to care about outside of the big three. Bonnie did get a little more to do I suppose, but it was generally more about advancing the plot. I mean we didn't even get her reaction on-screen to the guy she was crushing on not being all that he seemed, that was just used to advance the Klaus plot

Edited 2011-04-20 16:49 (UTC)

I agree with you here, on the emphasis being less on characters and more on plot, and I would add shock value/twists to that as well. This season, while solid story wise, paled in comparison to last season when it came to character development and emotional connection. There's a bit too much focus on plot and not enough on people. I feel like certain relationships came out of nowhere and had little build up(Bonnie/Jeremy) or they stagnated (the Damon/Elena/Stefan love triangle, and Stefan/Elena in general - their relationship really is going nowhere). Other characters languished in the background (Alaric, Matt, Jenna)....

I think Tyler and Caroline got strong character stories and that's why I'd rather see Matt go than Tyler. I love Alaric so much more than any of the other male characters excluding Damon, and really want a good story for him. The character and his friendship with Damon is too good to lose.

I wouldn't mind Elena turning. And it would be a good twist for the season finale.

:nods: It's not that I hate the show this year or anything, it's just not doing it for me much when it comes to emotional resonance. I wish they had spend more time on Katherine stirring up trouble (in early season 2 I was really rooting for a Stefan/Katherine hook-up and more conflict for Damon and Stefan). Instead it's all about outside forces which aren't as interesting to me as the dynamics from season 1 with the main three