SPOILERS AHEAD!
The Vampire Diaries was my third obsession during tweenhood (right after High School Musical and Twilight) and though I’ve outgrown obsessions with the media for the time being, I will still never forget the effect this show had on my hopeless romanticism. Twilight was mere amateur hour in comparison to the realistic, dark, deep nature of a series that had an incredibly stellar cast with a more compelling storyline and meme worthy one-liners.
However, after switching from Stefan to Damon to Stefan to Damon against and switching individuals between different ships after 8 seasons, we have come to an end. Multiple people have died, been brought back to life, moved to another show, but they still haven’t taken away from the heart of the show (no pun intended).
This show was one of those game changers where it would connect people who wouldn’t have been friends otherwise, and remind you to believe in the kind of love that is eternal, mature, selfless and powerful. And in the words of Julie Plec and Kevin Williamson- it’s epic.
I’ve got to admit- to truly prepare myself for this, I watched the special to put off having to actually watch the very last episodes after 171 episodes and though as a Stelena fan, I fell off the obsession a while back, my love for the show, the actors and the characters never died. It touched me, my emotions and changed the way I understood a lot of those deeper, darker, scarier parts of human nature, so to wrap things up- here are the 5 things I learned after watching the one and only series finale (whoa, that was a hard one to type out).
1. Katherine (as evil as she is) is much more entertaining and lively than Elena because despite the confident woman Elena has become, Katherine still has more spunk and ferocity that provides her with the ability to do as she pleases and still slay with wit and charm. She puts a much sexier spin on the need to be loved. And though she meets her ultimate demise in the end, her intricate manipulations and ultimate headfake of all her Elena imitations earned her a spot in the villain hall of fame.
2. The bond between Damon and Stefan will always be the epic love that has tied this show together. The last scene where the brothers found themselves again simply epitomized the true theme of brotherhood being The Vampire Diaries. regardless of whether you’re a Delena or Stelena fan, you will always be a Defan fan and that’s not a doubt. Because when it comes down to it, there’s nothing these brothers wouldn’t sacrifice for each other.
3. Bonnie is still a badass and the moment where she reclaimed her power was absolutely empowering and nostalgic. I love how they decided to give Bonnie a more self-exploring arc outside of her supernatural powers to prove she was more than just the girl you turn to to solve all supernatural problems. However, when they brought back her ability to perform magic- it truly shifted the ballgame in a way that deepened her independence, since it gave er the physical means she needed to fight back and fight for herself.
4. This show will always be more than a love triangle between a girl and two vampires. Even though it’s ultimately the focus for Julie Plec, it’s a story about friendship, redemption, loss and epic loves. Though the series was focused on a young woman unable to decide which brother was her true love, that is the last thing on people’s mind when watching the last scene of the finale.
5. It was always Stefan- it’s always going to be Stefan: they ended it in all the right ways and quoting Elena “it’s Stefan- it’s always been Stefan.” So, I guess we should have seen it coming when he was the one to sacrifice himself. It also served as the perfect form of redemption for the bad brother pretending to be good. Because don’t get me wrong- I love Stefan- but he was still characterized as the noble martyr despite his ripper stages, when really all he was was lost trying to live up to the image of a man who always did the right thing. But the difference with this final gesture is deep down you realize that he isn’t doing it to live up to any sort of image, but because this was his final act of redemption. He needed the sacrifice to save himself from his own self-torture more than the sacrifice needed him.
I’ve stuck with this show since the beginning. I’ve obsessed about it, I’ve reenacted it, I’ve talked endlessly about it and at one point I even lost interest, but no matter what I thought about this show- it always managed to make me feel something.
Final Verdict: That episode tied everything together in the most perfect way and it truly was epic. I can’t believe it’s over now, but I feel like every storyline they had had been drawn out and squeezed of every last drop of blood left in the veins of the story arcs. It truly was time for it all to come to an end and it was done in such an organic way that didn’t require any flashbacks or tribute montages because it simply brought back all the characters missed the most and I felt like it ended a story without making it so much about it being a finale. Some may say that it was rushed, but I think it was perfectly paced, focusing on Stefan’s sacrifice and shutting the gates of hell without it needing to be some sort of traumatic battle scene. It tied loose ends without focusing too much on the afterlife of each character but rather on the intentions and motivations for their entire life in the grand scheme of things.
Side Note: Was it just me or was Nina Dobrev’s wig the most obvious supernatural part of that episode?