Love Bites…Literally

By: Angelina Berube
Posted In: Entertainment

Think your love life is complicated? In a vampire’s world, that is an understatement. In “The Vampire Diaries,” love drives the narration and actions of the characters. For Damon Salvatore (Ian Somerhalder), he has to watch his brother, Stefan (Paul Wesley), fall in love with a girl who looks identical to the woman they both used to be in love with. And oh yea, that relationship ended 145 years ago. Talk about history repeating itself.

In “The Vampire Diaries,” the CW’s breakout primetime hit, these two vampire brothers, return to their hometown of Mystic Falls where they meet Elena Gilbert (Nina Dobrev), a high school student, who was recently involved in a tragic car crash that killed her parents. Stefan, the good vampire, struggles with keeping his identity a secret as his relationship with Elena develops while also protecting her and the rest of the town from his evil, manipulative brother Damon and the devastating plans he has in store for the town.

With its narration and character developments, The Vampire Diaries is innovative, breaking generic conventions of a supernatural horror series. It is more of a suspenseful thriller with a whole lot of romance. This is a show about the characters and the town which makes it great. It’s about the relationships and how the characters interact with each other in this particular setting which makes it television to watch.

This is not just another vampire show that is riding off of the success of “Twilight.” In fact, it is completely different. “The Vampire Diaries” reads more like an updated remake of “Dark Shadows,” the 1960s cult classic in which “The Vampire Diaries” feeds from (no pun intended). Like Dark Shadows, the two brothers find themselves falling for a girl who looks like an old lover.

Although there are similarities between the two shows, “The Vampire Diaries” draws its audience in with its naturalistic elements, including the way the two main vampires are presented as normal town folk. For a supernatural show, the show has a naturalistic setting. The town of Mystic Falls looks like it could be any city/town in the United States.

This show breaks the vampire stereotype genre by having a majority of the story take place during the day. Because the town has a history of vampires and the town officials are aware that vampires are behind the latest killings, Damon and Stefan need to blend in with the town folk so their identity is not revealed. Damon and Stefan’s ability to walk in the sun (because of rings given to them) allows the two to keep a low profile in the town.

Through the narration leading up to the latest episode, the series has employed numerous narration techniques to not only develop the plot and back story, but also the characters. All the character’s stories and personalities have evolved, but none more than Damon’s. This development exemplifies why this show is great.

At first glance, Damon appears to be the typical vampire, soul-less and having no remorse for human life. The show has brilliantly developed his character through narration techniques during the season. Through flashbacks and retelling, the audience’s perspective on Damon changes as we learn why he has a trust problem and how this drives his rash and manipulative actions. At the beginning of the season, Damon is ruthless and manipulative, killing without hesitation and trying to manipulate Elena into falling in love with him. As the season has progressed, Damon’s character has evolved. The audience feels for him realizing his twisted love life drives his actions.

In one scene from the latest episode, “Fool Me Once,” Damon’s character development is most apparent. Elena goes to the Salvatore house to tell Damon that she and Stefan want to help Damon get Katherine back. This scene echoes a scene from “Friday Night Bites,” when Damon fails to manipulate Elena. Although this time, Damon shows his vulnerability, how he has come to trust Elena and sets up a confusing love triangle.

The show’s narration is full of twists and turns, carefully executed by teasers and cliffhangers. If the last episode is any indication of what the future holds for the show, these cliffhangers will continue to hold you onto the edge of your seat. In the latest episode, the biggest plot twist of the season has been revealed. Now, the town of Mystic Falls will have to deal with not only a new set of very hungry vampires, but also a brooding vampire who just got his heart ripped out.