"Homecoming" ruined for The Vampire Diaries (again)

     The fall finale of CW's The Vampire Diaries finds the main characters heading to another "Homecoming" dance. But Klaus (Joseph Morgan) has other ideas, flooding out the dance, and moving the party to Tyler's (Michael Trevino) house. This doesn't screw up Damon's (Ian Somerhalder) plan to kill Klaus so much, and he adapts. But Katherine (Nina Dobrev), fearing for Damon's life, gets Stefan (Paul Wesley) to change the plan, and instead of Damon killing Klaus, Klaus kills his father, Mikael (Sebastian Roche, General Hospital, Fringe). The day isn't a total victory for Klaus when, in the chaos, Stefan steals the bodies of Klaus's family.

     There isn't a whole lot of suspense that Klaus might die, despite Damon's elaborate plan, and the expected number of plot twists, because he is only recently made a main character. However, with so many people with varying motivations, which they all keep close to the vest, it's also impossible to predict how everything will shake down. This, "Homecoming" is quite exciting, and makes for a very entertaining episode.

     The real victor of the day is Stefan. Working with Katherine, he frees himself from Klaus's compel. By stealing the coffins, he also gains an upper hand against a very powerful original vampire that he cannot trust. He may not be back to being good, as Damon and Elena (also Dobrev) hope, he but is making his own decisions again, certainly an improvement over his prior situation. He also realizes that he cares about Damon, so his humanity isn't completely gone.

     It's quite interesting that Stefan's love for Damon is what keeps him from going over the brink, rather than his feelings for Elena. Elena is a girl that he likes, but Damon is a blood relation Stefan has known much, much longer. Damon and Stefan were once quite close, and this comes back out, as Stefan stops being judgmental.

     Elena takes a rather healthy attitude about Stefan, telling Damon they need to move on. Because of the relationship mentioned in the preceding paragraph, this should prove much easier for her to do than him. But will the "moving on" lead Elena into Damon's arms? She keeps softening towards him, and even puts her trust in his during the showdown with Klaus. The way she touches him at the end of "Homecoming" bodes well for Damon. Plus, Elena is becoming more in touch with a darker side of herself, such as when she puts down Rebekah (Claire Holt), a vampire who is being nice to her, to serve a greater good. Thus, Elena may be more willing to look past wrongs than she once was.

     There is still trouble in the couple that is Carolina (Candice Accola) and Tyler. With Tyler being sired by Klaus, made into one of the vampire's hybrids, Tyler is always going to have loyalty towards Klaus. This could be behind the decision not to include Caroline in the plot to kill Klaus. Even though she doesn't actively participate, she probably would if she were asked to. She cares for Elena, Damon, and Stefan. As Tyler cannot betray Klaus, this pits Tyler and Caroline even more at odds than just their original vampire vs. werewolf obstacle. Unless something gives, they cannot possibly last long as a couple.

     The Vampire Diaries will return in January on the CW.

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