The Good, Bad, and Bloody Moments of The Vampire Diaries

Man, Katherine is winning on The Vampire Diaries this week, and I don't mean that in the Charlie Sheen way. Elena doesn't come out once this week to claim her body and life — and I know that that was the point of last week's ritual, but you know the real Elena has to come out sometime, traveler spell or not. Anyway, Katherine and Caroline are celebrating Valentine's Day at a singles' dance, which becomes dangerous when an off-the-rails Damon crashes it with murder on his mind. This week also sees the return of Dr. Maxfield, and I have to say, I didn't miss him. But enough setup — let's go over the good, the bad, and the bloody below.

The CW

The Good

  • My favorite part of this episode are the teeny tiny hints that Caroline might have feelings for Stefan (even Katherine wonders at one point). While Katherine/Elena (Kathlena?) is getting advice from Matt for how to be Elena (and also how to get Stefan back), she lures Stefan to the Lonely Hearts dance at school. When Caroline cuts in on their dance, she claims she's just concerned that Elena is bored and lonely, but I think she's jealous. Caroline and Stefan get a chance to dance, and it all seems friendly, but then we get a glimpse of Caroline when she sees Stefan and Kathlena having a heart-to-heart. With that look on her face, you can't tell me that this is not a thing.
  • A heartbroken Damon — as usual — is a bad Damon, and things are worse when he has a friend egging him on. Stefan, spotting dead Aaron in the trunk, tries to get rid of bad influence Enzo, to no avail. I love that Stefan is being so brotherly, but it's lost on Damon, who's doing things like killing mothers for not giving him the answers he wants. When he and Enzo set their sights on the resurfaced Dr. Maxfield, Damon is so far-gone that he's ready to threaten and kill Jeremy.
  • Aw, Bonnie and Jeremy are so cute being happy — for a split second. Damon kidnaps him and threatens to kill him unless Bonnie finds a witch who can perform a locator spell to find Dr. Maxfield. Magic-free Bonnie had helpfully noticed a newbie witch twirling a pencil earlier that day, so she and Caroline coerce her into helping. A slightly entertaining development is when Kathlena has to figure out if she can just let Jeremy die and has to pretend like she actually cares.
  • Once they're all done with the witches and Jeremy, Stefan gallantly steps in and releases Jeremy and tells Damon not to bother coming back. Damon and Enzo then get exactly what they deserve when they stumble on a creepy traveler invasion that's actually Maxfield's method of protection. And like that, Enzo and Damon are back in Maxfield's clutches. Oh, and Maxfield's plan to make vampires drink the blood of other vampires? Totally working on Damon.
  • Katherine is annoying me with her fawning over Stefan, but I liked the scene of them together after the dance. She gets him to confess that he's been waiting for Damon to screw up with Elena, but then he realized that Damon had been becoming a better person because of her, and Stefan doesn't want to lose him. Suddenly getting why Katherine wants Stefan back so badly.

The Bad

  • I can't stand Dr. Maxfield, the Augustine vampire stuff, or this new random, Sloane, who breezes in talking about analyzing blood. Can't we just get back to who's mackin' on who next?
  • Another character who needs to go: Nadia. Her scenes with Matt and Tyler are just filler for me and a reminder that Katherine is still around being annoying in Elena's body.

The Bloody

  • This isn't a bloody moment, but it is a gross one: when Damon cracks the neck of the woman who's the head of campus security, the sound it makes is sick-en-ing.

What did you think of this week's episode?