The Vampire Diaries Season 1 Review

Opening Thoughts

How I got to watch TVD

Back in Middle School around 2011, my cousin introduced me to my very first TV Show. He was older than me by 4 years so He was always the one to introduce me to a lot of things and this time around he described me this epic fantasy of vampire and werewolves so I was totally into it.

Back then I watched Season 1 in French as I barely understood english (nor did I understand much french but it was better as we learn French before English for some reason in our Education system) but then I rewatched the show couple of times in English later down the years when I learned the language and the voices totally freaked me out :sob:

The living in the shadow mystery

This trope completely hooked me and with later shows that I will review this stays as my absolute favorite one to watch, having the double identity and trying to juggle between and balance them was always a really cool one and here comes Stephen Salvatore, a recent transfered high schooler to Mystic Falls with everything looking normal at first for us to later discover he is a vampire.

The Evil Brother

The show was already very interesting from the get go, but it went from great to amazing after the introduction of Damon Salvatore. He was simply a showstopper, the savagery and the overall badass attitude was top notch. Al though for season 1 Damon was portrayed way more vilanous than I even remember him to be, He was kinda wild tbh especially what he did to Caroline and that whole B plotline.

The love Triangle

I wasn't as big of a fan of the love stories when I first started, I was much more looking into supernatural vampires going wild, my mind changes as the seasons evolve but still not my main interest when I started TVD.

The Plot of Season 1

First half

Season 1 was basically about Stephen vs Damon and them chasing after Katherine a mysterious figure from their past that resembled Elena. We start with Elena Gilbert who had her parents pass away last year in a trajic car accident and where Elena magically survived. We also meet various prominent characters that I will talk about later.

The season progressed where Elena slowly unveil the lies around her and discover what's happening. I think one of my favorite moments early on is when Stephan offered vervain(?) neckless to Elena that would stop Damon's manipulation and that resulted in him getting slapped for asking for a kiss.

Another plotline that ran alongside the main one was the Gilbert watch with the sheriff and the maire(?) of the town and that would have the crescendo of this season.

Second half

Things ramp up in the second half of the season when Vicki died after Stephen turned her into a vampire and her unable to control herself which also led Jeremy to a depression arc that I wasn't a fan of ... Later on we finally discover what Damon has been trying to do when he returned to Mystic Falls and it's not to mess with Stephen and Elena but instead it was to free Katherine, the original love for the brothers.

And here comes the fun, 25 vampires are on the loose and the big twist is that Katherine was never there to begin with and it's revealed that their whole relationship is a lie really.

First Katherine aside, the most interesting plot during this stretch for me atleast is Jeremy's relationship with Anna. I don't care what anyone says but Jer and Anna were the perfect couple back then and it's really shame she died and goes without a saying I wanted him to turn into a Vampire would've been really cool.

Finale : Werewolf reveal

I was waiting for it the whole season anyway, where are the werewolfs my cousin promised. It's supposed to be Vampires vs Werewolves and here we are it's the Lockwood family.

During the finale the device that disrubted supernatural figures (but not witches i think ?) was kinda interesting and delievered on it's promise and hype while the season ends with the reveal it also ends with Jeremy trying to turn into a Vampire which I also wanted really bad.

Character Notes

Pretty much these are my thoughts of the main characters during Season 1 :

• Stephan Salvatore : All things considered Stephan was the star of the show and my favorite thing of Season 1 from his hidden mysteries to his dark past and the whole plot of his uncontrollable state when he drinks blood was really entertaining and kept a variant of surprise.

• Elena Gilbert : She was okay, I never been an Elena enjoyer. She had numerous great scenes with Damon being the freak of nature that he represented this season.

• Damon Salvatore : Absolute freak, with later season knowledge I even forgot how wild Damon was in early seasons and for sure my second favorite character of the season.

• Jeremy Gilbert : Really Entertaining, even tho I said I'm not interested in romantic relationships and just wanted supernatural chaos but his with Vicki then with Anna were really good this season and overall a solid character.

• Bonnie Bennett : Spoiler alert, my overall favorite character of the show but She was sidelined in the first season as the show hasn't explored the Witch side of supernaturals.

• Caroline Forbes : Lol, just felt bad for her for most of the season but nothing else.

• Alaric Saltzman : Great story, sympathatic and all. He was a great addition in the second half and went on to be one of the best characters in the franchise.

Rating

The mix of romance, supernatural action, and drama works well, creating an addictive season 1. The characters were really amazing overall but the plot kinda stalled and tbh that stalling is kind of the charm of early seasons.

Rating : 14/20