THE VAMPIRE DIARIES: “Kill Or Be Killed”

Vampires of the world, don't let fruit punch mouth happen to YOU. Sure, it starts out fun, but it ends in ... ewwwww (see bottom left corner). Also, your sheriff mom will be far more willing to accept your new human-killing ways if you don't rub the evidence ALL OVER YOUR FACE AND LEAVE IT THERE. (Really, Caroline?) And yes, I spent an embarrassing amount of time making this collage of vampire fruit punch mouths. Don't act like you're surprised. (Photos of The Master from Screencap Paradise; photo of Katherine from Vampire Diaries Web; and photo of Caroline by Bob Mahoney/ The CW. Fruit punch mouths brought to you by Kool-Aid.)

Read on for my detailed recap & review of The Vampire Diaries 2×05, “Kill Or Be Killed,” aired Thursday, October 7th, 2010:

The morality of The Vampire Diaries has always been decidedly grey, and we see that illustrated in last week’s episode. Aptly titled “Kill or Be Killed,” the title theme is evident throughout the episode.  Mason may not want to be a killer, but he is, and his act of self-defense triggered a curse that changed his life.  This snowballs, as once a werewolf, he faces the same dilemma with Damon and Stefan.  He was willing, briefly, to make peace, but Damon’s actions prove that he must be proactive in his survival.  He must kill the Salvatore brothers, or be killed himself.  The same goes for Damon and Stefan.  Stefan may not like it, but he is willing to make the hard choice if it means his survival.  Liz Forbes also faces this dilemma.  Damon may have been her friend, but she has vowed to keep the town safe from vampires.  She can’t afford sympathy for him.  And Caroline takes actions that follow this philosophy as well.  She killed two more humans in this episode, but it was to save Damon and Stefan’s lives, and to help her best friend Elena.  So, once again, the choice to kill can be understood in context.  Unlike shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, where taking a human life was the height of all evil, The Vampire Diaries allows us to sympathize with the antihero or antiheroine.  So, on to the recap …

We open on a flashback to Emerald Coast, Florida, one year ago.  Mason is leaving a bar, when a crazed drunk guy follows him into the parking lot.  The guy turns out to be Mason’s friend, but he thinks that Mason was sleeping with his girlfriend, Marla, so he’s angry.  Mason doesn’t know what he’s talking about, but the friend attacks him.  As the two fight, Mason slams the guy on the pavement, and blood seeps out of the back of his head.  It is Mason’s first kill—the act that triggered the curse.

We cut to the present, as Mason is telling Tyler the story.  Tyler asks if Mason was really sleeping with Marla.  Mason denies it and explains, “He was drunk and attacked me.  It was self defense.”  Tyler: “And it triggered the curse?”  Yes it did.  Interesting.  So, now we have confirmed that the kill can be in self-defense.  Mason continues: “On every full moon, I lose control.  If I don’t sedate myself and chain myself down, I’ll kill anything in my path.  You have to be careful.  All it takes is an accident, a car wreck.  Any death at your hands, and you’ll have a lifetime of this.  You don’t want it Tyler, trust me.”  Two things of note here.  First, Mason mentions sedating himself.  I’m pretty sure that explains the powder that we saw him put in his water bottle, in “Bad Moon Rising.” Second, he mentions an accident, even a car wreck.  So not only can the curse-triggering kill be in self-defense, but it can be completely accidental.  This is going to completely change the way that Tyler lives.  He will always be waiting for the other shoe to drop.  On the other hand, I’ve lived twenty-eight years without accidentally causing someone’s death, so it’s possible.  Chin up, Tyler.  Cue the title card … but then we cut right back to the same scene.  Annoying.  It seems like they should save the title card for an act break, right?  Anyway, Mason asks where the moonstone is, as he is only giving Tyler this info in exchange for the stone.  Sigh.  It turns out that Uncle Mason is not so great.  Next time someone’s uncle comes to town, I will just assume shenanigans.  Tyler, however, is not an easy mark, and lies to his shady uncle.  He says he’s not sure where it is, but thinks it might be hidden in one of his dad’s secret hidey-holes, in the hidden floorboards.  He doesn’t mention that his dad watched Gilmore Girls, and Lane Kim was his favorite character, but we can assume.  As Tyler opens the same, the stone isn’t there.  Of course, we know that it was there, once upon a time, but Tyler already removed it.  Tyler asks again why his uncle wants the stone, and Mason maintains the lie that he just wants it because of its “sentimental value.”  

Meanwhile, at the Gilbert home, Elena and Jeremy have one of their bathroom conversations, in which we establish that Elena has told Jeremy all about the werewolf stuff.  Jeremy can’t believe that Tyler Lockwood is a werewolf, but Elena cautions: “We’re not sure about that.  The only thing we know for sure is that Mason Lockwood is.”  Jeremy: “It should be easy for us to find out.”  Elena is not pleased by his use of “us,” and explains that despite her new improved communication skills, she doesn’t want him involved in this.  Jeremy reminds her, “By definition of being in this family, I’m involved.”  Good point.  But Elena is not swayed: “This is dangerous, Jeremy, you have to stay out of it.”  He pretends to agree, emphasis on the pretend.  The age difference between Elena and Jeremy can only be a couple years, given that they’re both in high school.  It is a bit of a stretch for her to believe that he’ll listen to her just because she says that it’s dangerous.  I have a brother three years younger, so believe me, I know of what I speak.  He played football, lacrosse, snow-boarded without a helmet, bought a motorcycle, and joined the Marines, all despite worries for his safety.  Boys like to scare their big sisters.  It is a losing battle, Elena.

As Elena enters her room, she is surprised by Stefan.  Yes, he’s still doing the stalker thing, waiting for her behind a door.  And she is still not bothered by this, so they kiss.  Stefan asks her, “Are you ready for today?”  Elena replies, “No, I hate fighting with you, even if it’s fake.”  It seems that the two have cooked up a faux fight, all for Katherine’s benefit, maintaining their ruse from last week.  They want Caroline to listen, and report the fake drama to Katherine.  Elena is less than thrilled, and reminds Stefan (and herself) that none of it is real.  Stefan tries to make her feel better: “Okay, how ‘bout this?  Today, when we’re fighting, if I say ‘I can’t do this anymore, Elena,’ what I’ll really mean is that I love you.”  Elena: “And when I say, ‘Fine, Stefan, whatever,’ it really means ‘I love you too.’”  They seal the deal with more kissing.

Cut to the Forbes house, where Caroline is surprised to learn that her workaholic mom has the day off.  Liz explains that she’s helping out at the Historical Society Volunteer Picnic.  Caroline had signed her mom up weeks ago, but assumed she’d bail.  Caroline asks, incredulously, “You’re gonna pretend to be a mother?”  Awwww.  So sad.  Liz: “I’ll bring my gun if it gets rough.  C’mon, give me one day.  I’ve been buried in work mode.  I’ve barely seen you.”  Caroline: “Well, be warned: I’m in a mood.”  Liz: “Goody for me.”  Hee.  Liz then asks her daughter why “Elena” was there so late last night.  At least that should silence the fans fixating on how Katherine got into Caroline’s bedroom.  I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again: Liz Forbes spends all her off-screen time befriending vampires and/ or inviting them into her home.  Duh.  Caroline is caught off guard, and denies Elena’s presence at first, but then catches herself.  “Yes, uh … Elena was here.  She just needed to talk.  Her [sic] and Stefan are going through a rough patch.”  Liz can sense something up with her daughter, and asks if everything is okay with her.  Caroline lies, saying she’s fine.  Liz: “It’s just, lately you’ve seemed different.”  Oh, you don’t know the half of it Sheriff.  I really can’t blame Caroline for accusing her mom of not really being a mother, because … obviously.  She has really not been there at all.  (Of course, this is TV, so hovering mamas would get in the way of the plot.)  Caroline denies any changes: “I’m not different.  I’m fine.”  Liz doesn’t drop it: “I know you don’t think I notice these things, but I do.  What’s going on with you?”  Caroline: “You know, there’s pretending to be a mother, and then there’s reality.  Let’s not push our luck, okay.”  Yikes.  She was not lying about that mood.

Cut to the Mystic Falls Historical Society Volunteer Picnic, banner and all.  And the theme of history continues.  NOT complaining.  Love it.  Carol Lockwood is behind a mic, thanking everyone for their hard work.  Case in point: Mason hard at work unloading boxes.  I know the guy is shady now, but I don’t mind watching him lift boxes.  Stefan approaches, interrupting the lifting.  Tsk tsk, Stefan.  Mason: “Stefan, right?  The other Salvatore.”  Stefan: “Nice one.  The one offering an apology.”  Mason is not interested.  Stefan explains, “Look, my brother acted impulsively.”  Mason raises his eyebrows, “You think?”  No kidding.  Stabbing him with a knife in the middle of the street was reckless and stupid.  Tsk tsk, Damon.  Stefan tries to make peace: “If you and Damon keep at each other’s throats, somebody is going to get hurt.  You have family here, so I can’t imagine that you’d want that either.  So what do you say we just quit the whole alpha male fighting thing, just call it a truce.”  Mason finds this amusing: “I made that same offer to your brother.  He turned it down, with a knife.”  Again, bad Damon.  Stefan: “He made a mistake.  And I’m here to make sure that neither one of you make another one.”  Oooh, Stefan is getting dangerously close to using his badass voice here, but noooooot quiiiiiiiite.  It’s probably a good thing though, as we wouldn’t want it to lose its special power.  Since Stefan doesn’t use The Voice, Mason doesn’t understand that Stefan has the advantage, and threatens him: “Tell your brother to watch his back.”  Oh, Mason, you will come to regret this moment.  Guaranteed.  Stefan continues: “Well, I’m guessing that he only has to worry about that during a full moon. Otherwise you’re not as strong.  Am I right?  Otherwise you would have killed Damon by now.  There’s one of you.  There’s two of us.  I think you’re the one who needs to watch his back.”  Again, Stefan’s heart doesn’t seem to quite be in that threat.  Still, I put my money on him.  The man should not be trifled with.  Mason warns, “If he comes at me …”  Stefan cuts him off: “He won’t.”  Ha!  Yeah right.  The two shake hands, on the shortest peace treaty in history (as we shall see).  Mason then walks away with a box casually over his shoulder.  Yes, that is extremely important and worthy of recapping.  He made it look like it was both heavy, and filled with feathers.  *Ahem*  Stefan watches him with a broody glare.

Damon interrupts his brother’s brooding (and also gets a bit touchy feely, if you must know).  He asks what Stefan is doing.  Stefan, feeling put-upon and superior, as only he can, replies: “Negotiating peace on your behalf.”  Damon whines: “But I don’t want peeeeeace.”  Yeah, I was serious about the whining.  I will repeat: “Peeeeeeeaaaaace.”  Damon, you are more than 160 years old.  Whining does not look attractive on a vampire of your age.  (You’re never too old to just dance though.  Just saying.)  Stefan plays off his brother’s immaturity: “Oh, consider it opposite day.”  Hee.  Petty and immature is always amusing on vampires, now that I think about it.  Carry on.  Damon: “Stefan, please tell me you don’t seriously think a hand shake will solve our problem.”  Stefan: “Actually, I think that the first chance Mason Lockwood gets, he’s gonna drive a stake through your heart, and then through mine. All because you took it upon yourself to try to kill him.  So thank you, because we don’t have enough problems.”  As you all know, I love it when characters are not stupid, so yay, Stefan.  But also, uh oh.  More problems.

Meanwhile, at the Mystic Grill, Amy Bradley (the one crushing on Matt from “Bad Moon Rising”) and a new girl, who we later learn is named Sara, are playing pool.  Sara notices Jeremy: “When did Jeremy Gilbert get so cute?”  Amy warns her friend to stay away because he’s “damaged goods.”  Amy kind of has a point, but she doesn’t even know what she’s talking about.  All she would really know is that his parents died, and his girlfriend Vicki died; and given that Vicki’s death doesn’t stop her from macking on Vicki’s brother, I say “Shush, Amy.”

Instead of catching Sara’s eye, Jeremy goes over to talk to his Tyler.  I must say that while I don’t really have strong feelings about Jeremy or Tyler as individuals, I absolutely love them together.  After all, I’ve been rooting for their beautiful friendship ever since “The Turning Point,” when they fell in love discovered their common love of art at the career fair, and then later Tyler punched Jeremy out under the full moon.  Ah, memories.  Jeremy is eager to rekindle the friendship: “Hey man, how’ve you been?”  Tyler is being … Tyler, and snarks, “Since when?”  Jeremy keeps trying: “I don’t know. I haven’t seen you much since your father’s funeral.  I figured that maybe you’d wanna …”  Sadly, we will never know what Jeremy was about to propose, because Tyler interrupts.  Tyler’s tone is curt and annoyed: “I’m fine, Gilbert.”  Jeremy’s delicate feelings are hurt, so he starts to walk away.  Tyler immediately feels bad: “Wait.  Hold up.  I’m sorry.  Bad day.  Bad month.  Listen, you were cool that day, at the wake.  Thanks for that.  I felt like I’m a freak show.”  Aaaawwww.  They are really all kinds of adorable.  Jeremy asks what Tyler is doing there, and Tyler says, “Distracting myself.”  How you ask?  With girls and alcohol.  He is a teenage boy after all.  Sadly, said girls are Amy and Sara, who walk over to the guys at this point, and the group makes plans to go to Tyler’s house for some unsupervised teenage drinking.  Since this is television, this will not end well.

Cut to Mason and Liz at the picnic.  Mason brings up the secret council, and Liz denies its existence.  Too late for denial, Sheriff.  Mason explains that despite leaving town, he’s a believer: “Look, I know that vampires exist.  And you have two of them living right under your nose.”  Uh oh.  Liz asks, “Really? Who would they be?”  Uh oh.  Mason: “Damon and Stefan Salvatore.”  Liz can’t believe it: “That’s impossible.  I know Damon Salvatore.  Do you know what he’s done for this town?”  Mason: “I know it’s a lot to digest.”  Liz: “No you don’t.  I have watched him kill vampires.  He’s an ally.  He’s part of the council.”  Even running it, if I’m not mistaken.  Hee.  Mason tells her to think about it, asking: “When did the vampire attacks begin?  When Damon and Stefan Salvatore moved to town.”  Good point.  Liz is still in denial: “They walk in the sun.”  Mason: “They’ve evolved.  It’s not 1864.  They’ve figured it out, Liz.”  Actually, Mason they could walk in the sun even back in 1864, so no evolution necessary.  Just a good witch.  The townspeople of Mystic Falls: clueless in every century.  Liz clings to her belief in Damon: “No, Damon Salvatore is my friend.”  Aaawwww.  Mason: “What if I can prove it to you?”  This will not end well.

Nearby, Caroline talks to Elena about her problems with her mom: “So, suddenly she’s running for mother of the year.  Just when I’m trying to avoid her the most.”  Elena tries to feign interest.  Caroline continues: “Well, I was a bitch.  Which is par for the course with us.”  That line is just so Caroline.  Never leave us, Caroline.  I couldn’t take it.  We then move onto the Stefan-Elena drama, as Elena “pretends” to be upset about things with her boyfriend.  Caroline pretends to be supportive and give advice.  Blah blah blah.

Damon approaches his good friend Liz and asks if she’s okay, as she seems upset.  Well, she just learned that her best friend, and leader of the secret council dedicated to protecting the town against vampires, is probably a vampire himself.  Not really okay.  Liz lies (but also tells the truth): “It’s Caroline.  We had a moment.”  Damon is concerned, and asks, “Is there anything I can do?”  Wow, Damon really is his best self with Liz.  She tries to make light of the situation: “No, Damon.  Thank you.  It’s just horrible parenting skills paying off in spades.”  Flawed, but willing to acknowledge their flaws—I love the Forbes women.

Elsewhere at the picnic, Elena is painting and Stefan is doing carpentry.  Caroline observes: “Uh oh.  Longing looks are being exchanged.”  Ha!  That was my description of pretty much every Stefan and Elena scene last season.  A frustrated Elena heads towards Stefan, while Damon walks over to Caroline.  “What’s her problem?” he asks.  Caroline: “Don’t worry about it.”  Damon: “Why are you being such a bitch to your mom?”  Ha!  This is one scenario in which I am okay with Damon calling Caroline a bitch.  Caroline: “Don’t worry about it.”  I could not love Caroline more.  Seriously.  (Except that I will totally love her more later.  Spoiler alert!)

Caroline and Damon stop their squabbling, however, to listen in on Elena and Stefan having a fake fight.  Blah blah blah it’s not up for discussion right now.  Blah blah blah Damon.  Blah blah blah leave Damon out of it.  Stefan concludes with the line he and Elena talked about earlier: “I can’t do this anymore, Elena.”  Translation: “I love you.”  Elena: “Fine, Stefan.  Whatever.”  Translation: “I love you too.”

Meanwhile, party at the Lockwood mansion.  Music drinking, and … only four people.  I guess all the other teenagers in Mystic Falls are helping out at the picnic.  It’s such a civic minded community.  Amy tells Tyler, “Thanks for having us over.  I think Sara’s got a thing for Jeremy.”  Tyler seems kind of sick of everyone having a thing for a guy who’s not him (or he is protective of Jeremy).  But it’s only a 2 on the I-am-a-dick-and-prone-to-rage-black-outs Anger Scale, so it’s no biggie.  Amy adds: “I’m really embarrassed about slutting it up with you at the swimming hole.”  He tells her not to worry about it.  Tyler is so much cooler, and less date-rapey than he was in season 1.  (But I still don’t think that I can ever forget that night in the woods in the pilot.  Sorry, Tyler.)  Then Sara, prize that she is, decides to just dig through Jeremy’s bag, and pulls out his sketch book.  Jeremy does attract the creepy stalker type though, so I guess I shouldn’t be surprised.  She asks, “What’s Van Gogh got going on?”  When she opens the sketch book, she’s shocked by the drawings: “Ooookay.  Scary demon wolf thing.”  When Tyler spies the drawings, they hit close to home, and he looks uncomfortable.  He tries to play it off, however, and asks Jeremy what it’s about.  Jeremy: “Just some sketches.  You still draw, Tyler?”  Aw, memories of their first moment of bonding.  Tyler: “A little.  Not very much.  I’ve got some that I’m actually working on. I mean, it’s nothing special.  It’s pretty much amateur hour over here.”  He offers to show Jeremy, and the two walk towards the office.  Jeremy protests: “No, I’ve seen your stuff before.  It’s great.”  This lovefest is interrupted, however, when it turns out that Tyler didn’t actually bring him there to show him pictures, and he attacks, pinning Jeremy to the wall.  “What are those pictures about?” he asks.  Jeremy admits, “Because I know.”  Tyler asks, “Know what?”  Jeremy: “I know what you are.”  Dun dun dun.

Back at the picnic, Damon, feigning politeness, greets Mason, noting, “I heard you talked to Stefan.”  Mason: “Nice guy.”  Damon: “Yeah, a lot nicer than me.”  Mason: “Well, nice is overrated.”  Damon: “That’s what Iiiiiiii think.”  Hee.  Mason maintains his front of graciousness, and says, “You have a good day, Damon,” before walking away.  Stefan then approaches, and tells his brother, “Please tell me that you two were just bonding.”  Damon changes the subject to the conversation he overheard earlier: “So, what’s up with this … um, faux drama in your relationship?”  Hee.  Again, I love it when characters are not stupid.  Stefan tries to keep up the ruse, and asks, “What are you talking about?”  Damon: “Oh, c’mon, Stefan.  You and Elena don’t fight.  Especially not over me.”  Stefan tells him to drop it, and interestingly, Damon agrees.  Hmmmm.  I think that scene is telling in terms of the brothers’ relationship.  Stefan is not overly upset that Damon knows the truth.  There is some trust there.  Also, Damon is willing to back down, since his brother is clearly serious.  He’s not out to destroy Stefan and Elena’s relationship, despite the heartbreak he has suffered.  He even seems to have finally come to terms with the fact that Elena doesn’t have feelings for him.  However, I have to wonder how sincere Damon is being.  You never know with this show, and this character.  At this point, a little girl approaches and asks Damon if he would like some lemonade.  Damon takes the drink, and thanks her.  But he spoke too soon, as when he takes a sip, he immediately spits it out, collapsing.  He gasps, “Vervain!  Vervain!”  Smart move, Mason.  Or stupid move, depending on how you look at it.  Liz, of course, sees this whole scene go down.

We then cut to Elena, channeling Joey Potter, as she sits by the water, contemplating her love life.  Caroline approaches, and tries to comfort her: “Maybe it’s for the best.”  Elena does not appreciate this particular brand of comfort: “It’s not for the best, Caroline.  None of this is for the best.”  After a beat, she apologizes, remembering her super stealthy plan: “I’m sorry.  I don’t mean to take it out on you.  You’re just being a good friend.”  Caroline clearly feels horrible, and confesses: “No I’m not.  I’m not being a good friend at all.”  But before she can confess more, she is distracted by seeing her mom, leaving the picnic.  She asks, “Is she leaving?  Where is my mom going?”  Off to (try to) kill a couple vampires, I’d bet.

Caroline quickly catches up with her mom, and asks her what’s wrong.  Liz assures her daughter that, “It’s important.”  Caroline sadly replies, “It always is.”  Aw, I just want to hug Caroline.  Liz says, “Sorry,” but leaves anyway.  I love the dynamic we’re seeing between Caroline and her mom.  We can now understand the source of Caroline’s self-esteem problems, but they’re also not making Liz into a villain.  We know that Liz has good intention, and that, as sheriff, she has risked her life for the safety of the town, however bumbling her execution.  So we can see a heartbreakingly realistic portrait of mommy issues, rather than one that is arch or overly melodramatic.  Elena then catches up, and asks what’s going on.  Caroline: “I don’t know.  Something’s up.”

Meanwhile, Stefan and Damon are still reacting to the vervain.  Damon is still weak, but he threatens, “I’m gonna kill him …  He’s dead.”  Stefan actually supports this decision: “I don’t like it.  But he’s making threats, he could expose us.  We need to put him down.”  See what I mean about Stefan?  He is not to be messed with.  He may feel bad about it later, but he will still totally kill you.  They know that Mason is in the woods, on trash duty, so they head off to find him.

Elena and Caroline also head into the woods, trying to catch up with the Sheriff.  Caroline leads Elena to higher ground, and shushes her, explaining, “We need to be able to hear better.”  Hurrah!  For the first time a vampire is putting her hearing powers to good use!  Take note, Damon and Stefan.  It’s not just a power for being a stalkerific eavesdropper.

Meanwhile, Stefan and Damon meet up with Mason for the showdown.  But Mason shoots Stefan and Damon with wooden bullets. [Edit: Thanks to @darkmaxou for pointing out that it was the sheriff and her deputies who shot the brothers.  Not Mason.  He ducks for cover once the shooting starts.  I guess that I am really holding onto some subconscious anger towards Mason here.  IT'S ALL HIS FAULT. ]  Uh oh.  Then Liz approaches with two deputies, and they inject the vamps with vervain.

Back at the Lockwood mansion, Tyler and Jeremy continue their tête-à-tête.  Tyler asks how Jeremy knows about all this.  Jeremy learns from his elders, and lies: “My uncle John left this old diary lying around.  It was written by a crazy Gilbert ancestor who wrote about this curse that ran in your family.”  Tyler: “A curse about what?”  Jeremy: “Werewolves.  It’s crazy, right?  But then Matt was attacked by a wolf under the full moon and your uncle had just gotten back to town.  It was just … it was too weird.  Is it true?”  Tyler asks, “About my uncle?  [Pause.]  Yeah.”  Jeremy asks, “But you?  You’re not?”  Tyler laughs: “A wolf?  I’m sorry, werewolf?  No.  I mean, not yet.  You know, hell, just saying that out loud, I sound insane.”  Jeremy is very understanding: “I don’t think so.  But then again, I always did believe in the crazy stuff.”  Tyler explains: “According to my uncle, you have to trigger the curse.  Somebody has to die at your hands.  Like murder, or an accident.  I basically have to cause death, and boom, next full moon I’m crawling on all fours.”  Well, won’t Jeremy be useful at the Scooby meetings now?  He asks, “Is that why he came back?  To tell you all this?”  Tyler replies, derisively: “Yeah right.  He had to tell me.  I caught him.  He’s not here for me.  He’s here for this.”  And with that, he whips out the moonstone.  Tyler is far smarter than I suspected.  Color me impressed.  Also, now Jeremy will really have something to add to the Scooby meetings.

Back in the woods, Mason leads the Sheriff and company to the freaky basement, and reminds us that it is the old Lockwood slave quarters.  Liz notes, “Wooden bullets and vervain won’t keep them down for long.”  Mason asks, “You are going to kill them, aren’t you?”  That is the plan, but she kicks Mason out, for his own protection.  And all the fans hiss at Mason as he walks away.  But hey, kill or be killed, right?  Stefan and Damon were plotting his destruction.

Meanwhile, Elena and Caroline continue to track Stefan and Damon.  They reach the clearing where Mason shot the brothers, and Caroline can sense (smell?) that they’ve been there.  Confirming this, she finds blood on the leaves.  At this point, Mason approaches, and asks what they’re doing out there.  Elena asks if he’s seen Stefan, and Mason responds like a total ass: “Yeah, Elena, I’ve seen him.  I’ve seen Damon too.”  Elena asks where they are.  Mason: “You don’t need me for that.”  Gesturing to Caroline he says, “I’ll let your friend here sniff ‘em out.”  Hmmm … so can he sense vampires?  Or did his good friend Katherine tell him about her?  He asks Caroline, “Does your mother know what you are?  I’m happy to tell her.”  Ugh.  You know how protective I am about Caroline, so I wanted to hit Mason upside the head at this point.  Grrrr.  Luckily, Caroline can take care of herself, being all vamp-strong and awesome.  But before Caroline can attack, Mason grabs Elena as protection.  Nice, Mason.  Use a teenage girl for protection.  Ass.  He tells Caroline: “Don’t be stupid.  Necks snap easy around here.”  While that is true, Caroline says she can take him.  “Wanna bet?” Mason taunts.  Caroline: “Yeah, I do.”  In the blink of an eye, she attacks and saves Elena.  Hard core awesome.  “Told you,” she snarks.  Remember when I thought that I couldn’t love Caroline any more than I already do?  Yeah, she just keeps disproving me.  FAVORITE CHARACTER ON THE SHOW NOW.  Honestly, as much as I love Alaaaaric and Katherine (my other two faves—duh), I would save Caroline from a burning building first, at this point.  As a witness to many a Whedon-inflicted death, I hope that I am not jinxing her survival by such comments.

Meanwhile, down in the freaky basement, Sheriff Forbes stands over Damon, and shoots him in the leg.  She then tells him to answer her questions, or he’ll get shot again.  “How many of you were there?”  Bang!  “How did you fool us?”  Bang!  “How do you walk in the sun?”  Bang!  “I will drag this out painfully,” she adds.  Damon says, oh so pitifully, “But you’re my friend.”  Awww, cue the misty eyes.  I’m a sucker for a good friendship story, even when the members of said friendship include a sociopath.  Liz tells him, “Our friendship was a lie.  Answer me, and I’ll kill you fast.”  See, but that is the question.  Was the friendship a lie?  We shall see …

Above ground, Caroline uses her vamp super-hearing to listen in, as her mom tells the deputies: “He’s not gonna tell us anything.  Kill them both.”  Yikes.  Caroline tells Elena, “My mom, she’s killing them.”  Elena is horrified by this, and indicates that they need to save her true-love-forever-and ever, but Caroline hesitates: “Elena, she’s gonna find out about me!”  And given what happens next, we can’t really blame Caroline for this fear.  Elena, however, doesn’t have time for this nonsense, and runs downstairs to save her beloved.  She knocks out one of the deputies with a wooden plank.  Go, Elena!  Then, however, Caroline comes to her aid.  The others hear a noise and can see a quickly moving figure.  Caroline finally comes to a standstill, with two deputies dead, and her mouth covered in blood.  (See the fruit punch mouth collage above.)  She nervously greets her mother: “Hi, mom.”  It’s all in the delivery.  See, this scene illustrates why I love Caroline!  She has realistic fears and jealousies and not-so-proud-moments.  We can actually see her struggling against her selfish nature, and see how hard it is for her to be selfless, but despite the difficulty, she acts anyway.  Yes, this post is a love letter to Caroline.  Yes, she also happened to murder a couple deputies in this scene, and I’m supposedly against killing humans.  But kill or be killed, people.  Sorry.

A weakened and starving Damon feeds on one of the dead deputies.  He tells Stefan to do so too, but Stefan refuses.  Caroline tells her vamp mentor: “Damon’s right.  I mean, if there’s ever a time to break your diet …”  Elena cuts her off sharply: “He said he didn’t want it, okay.”  Damon stands up and narrates the situation, in his Damonesque way: “This is a most unfortunate situation.  Two deputies dead, and you [turning to Liz] … what am I going to do with you?”  Uh oh.  Caroline desperately tries to get through to her mother (with a mouth COVERED IN BLOOD): “You won’t tell anyone, will you?  Mom?  Mom?  Please!  Look, I know that we don’t get along and that you hate me, but I’m your daughter, and you’ll do this for me, right?  Mom, please.  He will kill you.”  Liz won’t even look at her daughter.  Just heartbreaking.  Absolutely heartbreaking.  She tells Damon, “Then kill me.”  Caroline is overwhelmed, and shouts, “No!”  Liz says, “I can’t take this.  Kill me now.”  Damon: “But you were going to drag it out so painfully.”  With this, everyone (alive or undead) in the room protests.  Damon turns: “Relax, guys.  No one’s killing anybody.  [To Liz]  You’re my friend.  [Turns to the group]  We gotta clean this up.”  Wow.  I am so emotional just writing about this scene.  Damon is a real boy after all.

Back at the Lockwood mansion, Tyler and Jeremy continue their conversation about the moonstone.  Jeremy asks what it is.  Tyler explains, “It’s a moonstone.  I looked it up online.  It’s a natural rock, but they’re supposed to have all sorts of supernatural legends attached to them.”  Jeremy wonders why he didn’t give it to his uncle.  Tyler: “Because he wants it.  I’m a dick that way.”  Ha!  He adds, “It’s important to him for some reason, but I don’t trust the guy.  So I’m not just going to hand it to him.”  Good call, Tyler.  This little scene is sadly interrupted, however, by the girls coming in, who tell them that they’re missing all the drinking.  Sara: “Oh, I’m sorry, were you two having a moment?”  Yes!  And you’re ruining it, Sara.  Tyler lies, “No, we’re good.”  Then little miss nosy grabs the rock.  Sara: “Looky here.  You snooze, you lose.”  Oh my goodness, is she twelve?  She runs off with the rock, giggling, and makes her way up the stairs.  Tyler: “You’re lucky you’re cute when you’re drunk.”  Not that cute.  Sara pouts, “I want Jeremy to come get it.”  Tyler is not amused: “Give me a break.”  He goes up to meet her on the stairs, and the two struggle.”  Yes, we’ve all watched television before, so we know that she will fall down the stairs.  Aaaaand … she does.  Everyone freaks, but luckily, the girl opens her eyes.  “Fooled you.”  She was not injured, thank goodness.  She accuses Tyler, “You pushed me down the stairs.”  Jeremy is pretty defensive of his friend: “Look, he didn’t mean it, okay.”  Tyler broods about his curse, and his narrow escape.  Yeah, no more fighting with girls on staircases, dude.  Dumb move.

Cut to Caroline arriving at Casa Salvatore, greeted by Elena.  She has a suitcase, filled with her mom’s stuff presumably, and apologizes for taking so long.  Elena tells her: “Damon says it will take three days tops for the vervain to leave her system.  Maybe even sooner.”  Good continuity, show.  We know that the council members ingest vervain daily, so Damon would not be able to compel her until it’s out of her system.  Caroline then greets Stefan: “Hey!  Get some bunny in you?”  Adorable!  I can’t get enough of Stefan and Caroline scenes.

Liz is with Damon, in the basement torture cell.  She calls work, saying that she has a stomach bug, and won’t be able to come in tomorrow, and probably not the next few days either.  She then hands the cell to Damon, who nods approvingly and thanks her for her cooperation.  He notes, “It’s not exactly the Ritz, but it’s secure.  I brought you a good thread count. And once the vervain’s out of your system, I will compel you, you will forget everything, and you will be a free woman.”  Damon’s version of kindness.  And did you notice the comment about the thread count?  It really was friendship!  Liz tells him: “Keep Caroline away from me, please.  I don’t want to see her.”  Damon reminds her, “She’s your daughter, Liz.”  Liz: “Not anymore.  My daughter’s gone.”  Damon: “You have no idea how wrong you are about that.”  Sadness.  And OF COURSE, Caroline is right outside the door for this last part, overhearing, and is absolutely heart-broken.  More sadness.

Elsewhere in the basement, Stefan stares at the fridge of blood.  Uh oh.  Elena catches him, and looks disapproving.  Stefan tells her: “Katherine took a little vervain every day and built up a tolerance for it.  I could do the same with blood.  I could learn to control myself on it.”  Actually, that is a really smart idea.  Elena, however, is not convinced: “But you can’t.  Stefan, you don’t have to.”  Apparently Hulk Smash Stefan freaked her out quite a bit.  She is not ready for a rerun.  Stefan argues, “I almost died tonight, Elena, because I was too weak.”  Elena: “But the last time that you drank human blood…”  Stefan cuts her off: “I told you I’d find a way to stop Katherine, didn’t I?  Well this is it.  This is the only way because she’s stronger than me.  And unless that changes, I can’t protect you.”  True.  She asks, “Can we talk about this later?”  Stefan: “He can hear us wherever we are, because he drinks this.  This is the only thing that can help me.”  Elena: “Are you serious?  Or are you pretending to fight, because I can’t tell if …”  Stefan: “No, this is real.  No more pretend.”  Ouch.  Elena rushes out, very upset.

Elena makes her way upstairs, to see Catherine sitting sadly on the couch.  Elena asks, “Can I take you home?”  Caroline shakes her head.  “I can’t go home.”  Elena asks why not.  Caroline confesses, “Because I’m scared.”  Elena: “Why are you scared?  Caroline, you can talk to me.” Caroline admits: “Katherine is going to be there.  And she’s going to want me to tell her everything that happened today.  She told me that I had to spy on you and report back to her.”  Elena: “I know.  And I’ve been so mad at you.  But then, I tried to put myself in your position, so that I could understand why you would do this to me, and to Stefan, because he’s been such a friend to you.  Who did she threaten?”  Caroline sobs: “Matt.  She threatened Matt.  And I am so scared of her, Elena.  I am so scared of her.”  Elena: “And you should be.  Caroline, we all should be.”  Caroline: “Why is she doing this?  What does she want?”  Elena: “That’s the million dollar question.”  A dollar for every time that question has been asked?  Sigh.  But really, I am very happy that Caroline finally admitted the truth, and that Elena was able to see it from Caroline’s perspective.  We can totally understand Caroline’s actions in this context.  Not Matt!!!  Not his beautiful blue eyes!!!

Meanwhile, Mason calls Liz, leaving a message.  He is just checking in to see if everything went okay.  Hopefully, Damon will think to erase Liz’s voicemails.  He will right?  I need this compelling to end well, because I don’t want the Sheriff to die.  Then Tyler approaches, and tells his uncle, “I almost killed a girl today.”  Well, hello to you too.  Mason is all like, “What?”  Tyler explains: “It was an accident.  I was being stupid.  [Why yes, yes you were.]  She’s okay though.  But there I was, you know, just for a moment, for a split second, I hoped she’d die.  Look, whatever this is inside me, I don’t want any part of it.  I don’t ever want to feel that way again.  I won’t.  I can’t.”  Interesting.  So this curse also implants some seeds of darkness into each Lockwood?  Some blood lust?  Is that how you read that little speech?  Mason says that he knows, and Tyler hands over the moonstone.  I guess that he doesn’t want to deal with the responsibility of that stone anymore.  He wants to try to ignore that side of him.  Good luck with that!  Mason thanks him.  So, what will he do with his new toy?

Back at Casa Salvatore, Elena covers a sleeping Caroline with a blanket.  She then heads towards the door, but runs into Damon.  She tells him that Caroline’s sleeping on the couch.  Damon: “I heard.  And you?”  Elena: “I’m going home.”  But before she exits, she adds, “What you did for Caroline’s mom—that’s the Damon who was my friend.”  Damon softens, and has a sincere moment of his own: “Hey, Stefan didn’t drink the people blood, if you’re curious.  But he needs to.  And deep down you know that.”

Cut to a brooding Stefan, sitting in his room.  “You can come in,” he tells Elena.  Looks like someone changed her mind.  She asks, “Do you really think that you can control it?”  Stefan: “I don’t know, but if I don’t try…”  Elena: “So a little bit every day?”  Stefan: “Yeah, just a few drops in my system.  I think it’s worth a try.”  Elena agrees: “So do I.  But I don’t want you to do it alone.”  She picks up a knife.  Stefan asks what she’s doing, and in response, she cuts a slice into her hand.  Ouch.  “It’s you and me, Stefan.  Always.”  With that, he drinks from her proffered hand. And it’s more than a “few drops,” I might add.  They kiss, to mark this as a romantic moment.  I have mixed feelings about this.  I do think that this indicates deep trust between the two, and I feel like Elena’s trust in Stefan is warranted.  He has proved himself.  Also, this was an important part of the book mythology.  Still, I just find it yucky.  Any time that you are also your boyfriend’s food, it is worrisome.  It is one thing when Elena was saving Stefan’s life in “Let the Right One In.”  That, I actually found romantic.  A one-time sacrifice, for love.  However, that act had some serious consequences, which were far from pleasant.  And in this case, there is easily accessible human blood down in the freezer, which wouldn’t harm anyone (a choice that didn’t exist in the books), so this seems like unnecessary pain on Elena’s part.  Why should she have to harm herself to strengthen her boyfriend, EVERY DAY?  And it’s not like there aren’t other ways to demonstrate their intimacy.  Honestly, I don’t care for it, but I understand why others do.  I’ll go with it.

But the episode doesn’t end there.  Oh no no no.  We get quite a twist, when Mason and his shoulders go to the woods, and get into a waiting car.  And who is waiting for him?  Katherine!!!  We cut back to Emerald Coast, Florida, continuing the flashback from a year ago.  Katherine shows up at the parking lot, and asks what happened.  Mason explains that Jimmy attacked him.  She asks why, as if she didn’t already know.  Jimmy’s behavior suddenly starts to make a lot of sense.  Mason:  “He said that I hit on Marla.”  Katherine plays innocent: “Why would he think that?”  Oh, maybe because you compelled him to!  Mason is none the wiser, however, and the two embrace.  Yes, Katherine has all the cute boys wrapped around her finger.  Mason is upset: “He’s dead.  I killed him!”  Katherine comforts him: “Everything is going to be okay.”  Oh, Katherine continues to be delightfully evil.  No one is safe.

We then cut back to the two in the car.  She asks, “What was that stunt today that you pulled with Damon and Stefan Salvatore?”  Mason: “I thought you’d be happy about that?”  Wow, he is pretty clueless.  I guess that he’s the only person in Mystic Falls to whom Katherine has not declared her undying devotion to Stefan.  She says, “I told you to stay away from them.”  Mason is a little jealous: “Why do you even care?”  Katherine: “I don’t want you to get distracted.  I need you to find the moonstone.  [Pause.]  You got it!”  Mason smiles.  “I got it.”  The two make-out to celebrate the occasion. Dun dun dun.  The end.

Wow.  So, Mason and Katherine are working together … and playing together.  This show.  And Liz found out about the Salvatores, and her vamp daughter.  Heartbreaking, pulse-pounding … this show has it all.  Thoughts?  Reactions?  Comment below.

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