Review of THE VAMPIRE DIARIES – Disturbing Behavior (2011)

The illusion shatters under the weight of impossible expectations

After a long, strenuous summer, the daily grind of trying to hold up the ruse of being what other people expect them to be causes the Salvatore brothers, Stefan (Paul Wesley) and Damon (Ian Somerhalder), to buckle.  Stefan can no longer keep the secret that Elena (Nina Dobrev) did not die, and Damon cannot continue trying to fill Stefan’s shoes.  Their real lives and the illusory lives they have been trying to live shatter all around them.  Stefan’s facade trying to be fake bad-boy and kindred spirit of Klaus (Joseph Morgan) and Rebekah (Claire Holt) crumbles with just one kiss; and Damon in his half-hearted attempt to be the better brother finally snaps under the pressure of having to curb his instincts to kill any threat in his way.

Similarly, Elena is finally cracking in her denial about how she feels about Damon.  She wants to be true to her love for Stefan, but the undeniable attraction to Damon has worn out her resolve as well.  Fortunately, Damon’s out of control antics make it easier for her to fight against it.  She may be attracted to him, but she is repulsed by his violent and remorseless tendencies.

So as our trio of heroes begin to fall apart under the expectations of theirselves and others around them, the little play they have put into motion disintegrates.  Stefan’s sacrifice to be Klaus’ minion was to keep Damon and Elena safe, but in his haste to protect them, he only endangers them further by revealing his revulsion for Klaus and Rebekah and the life they are offering him.  Damon, in turn, just cannot cope with the responsibility of being the one everyone depends on and who is expected to do the right thing.  His instincts tell him, that doing the wrong thing is so much easier and gets better results.  Unfortunately, it alarms and freaks everyone else out.  So Stefan cannot be the true “bad boy” that he needed to be; and Damon could not be the fake “good hero” that he was expected to be.

As their charade shatters, Klaus stands on the sidelines amused and in wonderment of what on earth could have compelled Stefan to attempt such an elaborate con-game.  And Damon, well, he fares somewhat better as Katherine arrives to tempt him into a game of cat-and-mouse with Klaus.  Since Stefan refused to be her partner-in-crime, Damon would have to do.  Fortunately, he had had enough of playing the good brother.

So with everyone shedding their disguises, their true colors are revealed.  Stefan’s heart beats true blue like a good hero; and Damon’s heart is bloody red with lust and anger.  Perhaps Klaus should be more wary of the Salvatore brothers — alone they are manageable, but if they work together, odds are Klaus will end up regretting that he chose to tangle with them again.

Points of Interest

1.  What exactly is going on with Anna (Malese Jow)?  She seems to be on the side of angels in protecting Jeremy (Steven R. McQueen), but is that truly what is going on, or does Anna have another ulterior motive of her own?

2.  Interesting to see Alaric (Matt Davis) developing a back-bone and standing up to Damon about his passive-aggressive pursuit of Elena, and to insisting on a position with the Town Council so that he can represent the non-biased human interest.

What Worked

With all the gamesmanship afoot, it was wickedly delightful to see that Katherine (Nina Dobrev) is still the wild card in the game.  She pops up just when we least expect it and she is a wonderful addition each and every time she does.  Whether it be to rescue Stefan from tedious dress shopping or being tortured with vervain; or to steal the locket from right under Bonnie’s (Katrina Graham) nose; or to show up on Damon’s door step and fool him yet again for a second into thinking she was Elena.  Surely, by now everyone should know that Katherine is never gone for good and they need to keep their guard up.  Fortunately, for us, they don’t and it adds a fantastic layer of surprise each and every time she reappears.  Clever, clever girl.

Plus, Katherine’s exchange with Stefan in Chicago as they tell each other, “Happy to know you still care” (when Stefan worried that Klaus will find Katherine and kill her, and she worried that Rebekah will ruin Stefan), it brought a nice touch of levity to a tense situation.  Later when Katherine rescued Stefan, she lightly reminded him, “Maybe you do need my help after all.”  But while they may have each other’s backs, trust remains an issue.  For as Stefan dangled the carrot in front of Katherine saying, “Don’t you want to know why an original vampire who cannot be killed is afraid of a vampire hunter?”, he then snatched it away by warning her, “If you’re looking for a diabolical partner in crime, I suggest you look elsewhere.”

Fortunately for Katherine, she can take a hint and opted to employ Plan B after Stefan blew her off and after snatching the necklace from Bonnie, she arrived on Damon’s doorstep.  In another moment of fun levity, when Damon opened the door and found her standing there, he flippantly told her that he’ll only accept apologies in writing.  Realizing that he has mistaken her for Elena, Katherine breezily retorted, “Are you two lovebirds fighting already?” Ready to beat his head against the wall at being fooled yet again, Damon wearily asked, “Katherine, what do you want?” To which, she impishly replied, “I’m just a girl looking for a partner in crime.”  It was music to Damon’s ears at that particular moment — a woman who wanted him to be himself, and not his too-good-to-be-true  brother.  Katherine may be an opportunist, but her skill with manipulation is nearly unparalleled.

Leading up to the moment where Damon is ready to make a bargain with the devil (in this case, Katherine), was the tug-of-war for Elena’s affections.  The kitchen scene where Damon continued to hover protectively over her — taunting her about the necklace she still wore from Stefan as proof of their unbreakable bond — there was a great under-current of unspoken body language.  Damon and Elena may have been too caught up in their dance of attraction, but it was blatantly obvious to Rick, who called Damon on it and to Caroline (Candice Accola) who was as equally outspoken with Elena, when she observed, “So you’re not switching Salvatores, are you?”

Unable to bear her disapproval with who he is, Damon snapped at Elena, “Why is it so important to everyone to keep me in check?”  And she snapped back, “Because I don’t want you to be what people think that you are.”  To which Damon angrily replied, “What? A monster.  Sorry to disappoint you, Elena, but last time I check I was still a vampire.”  With just as much anger and frustration, she said, “But you’re not supposed to act like one!” And Damon reminded her, “I am not Stefan.  How about you stop trying to turn me into him.”  It was a very telling conversation between them and one that needed to be said.  Unspoken attraction is one thing, but demanding that Damon change who he is just to satisfy her is not the way to embark on a loving, mutually respectful relationship.  If Elena does not want to turn Damon to be her obedient pet, then she needs to accept him as he is:  violent, unpredictable, rash and best of all, crazy in love with her.  If she strips away all his facets, she may lose the one thing that really matters: his unwavering love.

So when Caroline prodded, “Just admit it, Elena.  You are attracted to him in all his bad-brother glory.”  Elena could only feebly protest, “No . . .I can’t, Caroline. If I admit it, if I even thought it for just a second, what does that say about me?” And Caroline softly replied, “It says you’re human.”  To err is human.  To love more than one person is human.  It may pain Elena to realize she cares for Damon so deeply, but she needs to face her conflicted emotions and sort out why she loves each brother.  In learning the “why,” then she will perhaps learn about her own heart — and perhaps her true destiny.

Another suddenly complicated love story is that of Jeremy and Bonnie’s with the after-death return of Anna and Vicki (Kayla Ewell).  Vicki may be only a spirit seeking to hurt Jeremy, but Anna even with her good intentions was getting in the way of Jeremy and Bonnie’s blossoming romance.  As beautiful and touching as it is to see that Jeremy still cares for Anna and dreams of her, she is dead.  She is forever separated from him.  So coming back to haunt him, even to warn him, is causing a conflict in Jeremy’s heart.  Does he love more the live woman before him, or the ghost who haunts his dreams?  It was also great to see that Jeremy stepped up and told Bonnie about the visions and ghostly presences in his life.  Bonnie, as a witch, can surely understand his predicament better than anyone.  The case of the curious and the curiouser is bound to be even more interesting with Bonnie in the mix.

Finally, still steaming up the screen with their smoking hot chemistry, televisions everywhere nearly melted when Tyler (Michael Trevino) opened his bedroom door and found Caroline waiting for him.  Even as Caroline told him about her father being downstairs, and Tyler gently asked,  “Do you want me to kick his ass?” there was an electric current between them.  Vampire-werewolf forbidden love be damned, those two together are undeniably hot.  Then as aggravating as Elena’s call was at that particular moment, it was still pretty awesome to see Caroline rush to her father’s rescue and put a smack-down on Damon.  That girl is powerful when she’s motivated.  Just awesome!

Tempering the girl-power, it was kind of heart-breaking when Caroline told her father, “Daddy, I’m going to be okay,” and he softly said, “You’re a vampire, sweetheart. I don’t think you’ll ever be okay again.”  For all the empowerment that being a vampire has brought to Caroline, it has still robbed her of the one thing she’ll never get back:  her humanity.  The right to live a life free of torture and torment.  Every father’s greatest wish is to protect their daughters; and to watch his daughter live her life as a vampire is killing Bill Forbes (Jack Coleman).  Caroline may be in love, and feeling stronger than she has ever felt before, but at what cost?

What Didn’t Work

Surely no one is buying that Bill Forbes is going quietly into the night and won’t be back to wreak further havoc on the lives of every vampire, werewolf and supernatural-sympathizer in Mystic Falls.  He gentle platitudes seemed more like disingenuous reconnaissance.  A threat like that just doesn’t give up.  After all, he trained his mind with pain-staking skill for decades to resist mind-compulsion.  As such, we definitely have not seen the last of him.

Giving Credit Where Credit Is Due

“Disturbing Behavior” was written by Brian Young and directed by Wendey Stanzler. ‘The Vampire Diaries’ stars Paul Wesley, Nina Dobrev, Ian Somerhalder, Joseph Morgan, Steven R. McQueen, Candice Accola, Katerina Graham, Michael Trevino, Zach Roerig, Matt Davis, Malese Jow, Claire Holt, Jack Coleman, Marguerite MacIntyre. ‘The Vampire Diaries’ airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. on the CW.