The Vampire Diaries - Episode 3.02 - The Hybrid - Michael's Review

First and foremost I'd like to apologize for putting my name in the title. It seems so self-important. I have never posted a review for an episode which someone else has already reviewed onsite (except now). The only succinct distinction between Tales's review of "The Hybrid" and mine is our names, so I chose mine to distinct both posts. As for why I decided to post a review on the episode even though someone else has, I noticed some people would post reviews for the same episodes I had reviewed after me and as I was rewatching last week's episode gearing up for tomorrow's, I decided to write down my thoughts. I liked reading the different vantage points. And I think that so many people have already read Tales's that I hope I wouldn't be stepping on anyone's toes.

—

"Daddy?" —Caroline

The best thing about The Vampire Diaries is that it never stops. The story is always just progressing forward. That's the number one thing I have always noticed and always will. (Unless they do those dreadful flashback installments, which I like to call the History Lesson episodes.) Previously, we got some Vicki, we got Caroline and Tyler, Damon's girlfriend's death — boom, boom, boom, one after the other without skipping a beat. And in many ways, this episode was exactly the same (and it was just one day in show time): Klaus starts the process to build an army; Tyler tells his mom what he is; Vicki and Anna actually speak! But I'm getting ahead of myself.

We start out the episode with same old gutsy Elena who never learns her lesson. Yeah, okay, let's go hunt down (no pun intended) a pack of werewolves on a night where there will be a full moon. Sure, Elena. That makes total sense. "We'll be back before the full moon," she says. Doesn't she realize that the reason she never calls the shots on anything is because her plans always go awry? But it's useless, Alaric gives in and they're on their way.*

*Okay, what's with this Alaric situation? Elena was 17 when Jenna died, only a couple of months away from not being a minor; so maybe someone can fill me in, was this whole living situation legal? And why is Elena 18 and still in high school? If the show just decided to put the characters in college out of nowhere one episode and act as if they were always that old, no one would care. The audience would probably be glad. Please consider doing that, Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec.

Thankfully, he's also keen enough to call Damon, who for no reason just pushes Elena into a lake because it's completely called for… What was the thought process there? I'm not exactly upset that he pushed her into the water, but if they're going to contrive something like that, at least make it worth our while. Make use of the water, people! (If only this show was on HBO.) But enough of the petty complaints, let's delve into the meat of the episode.

Klaus's failed attempt to create an army of hybrids is chalked up to perhaps Elena's non-death (if Klaus is as astute as he's made out to be). Remember, Bonnie placed a spell on Elena thanks to John Gilbert giving his life for hers. So the thought is this: kill werewolves with a drop of Klaus's blood in their system, they come back to life and need to feed on humans to complete the transition. This is what Klaus made the entire pack of werewolves do and they all died. The problem, I believe, is that hybrids aren't vampires. Perhaps hybrids need to feed on the doppelganger to complete their transition, which is Elena.

Speaking of theories, Jeremy is still seeing his ex-girlfriends and they could perhaps come back from the dead. In fact, Vicki literally says she can come back. Presumably, she just needs his help. But I'm thinking he needs to choose between her, Anna, and whomever else Jeremy has yet to see who's dead. Or maybe, it's Bonnie who could help but that kind of magic could end up killing her, which is why Anna says not to trust her. All I know is that they're taking a long time to answer this one, especially for a show that likes to plow through storyline. Even Jennifer Love Hewitt would have wrapped up this mystery before the credits rolled at the hour's end. But the real problem here is that dead people can come back at all. I always hate when shows that have lived in a world where dead people mostly stay dead (besides Bonnie's ancestors possessing her) decide to introduce ghosts and the like because it diminishes any gravitas. If someone is staked, well they have the potential to return. And eventually, later on, death is just a nonissue.

The same is true for when people are "in" on the secrets. Keeping Jenna and Matt out of the loop (as in knowing about vampires and such) last season helped keep the show grounded because there was a sense of reality. The only people we had left were the ones that didn't know Caroline, Damon, and Stefan were vampires. But now Tyler's mom is "in" — and the worst part is that they have yet to explain how she knows Caroline (who wasn't in this episode enough!) is a vampire. Last I remembered, the vampire council (I forgot their real name) didn't know some vampires can walk in the sun, thanks to their rings. So what is it that threw her off?

There's no time to explain it, though, because now she's being clued in about werewolves and how her son is "a monster!" And then we find out that Caroline's dad is gearing up to kill her! Whoa! See what I mean about such fast-paced episodes?

But of course, the most important part for some people will be the "Delena" moments, which are this: she tells him she worries about him. That's how it should stay for now. I may be in the minority, but I just don't think Damon and Elena have more chemistry than she and Stefan. But damn if Ian Somerhalder can't deliver a line like, "Because when I drag my brother from the edge and deliver him back to you, I want you to remember the things you felt when he was gone." Of course, that's probably pretty low on the list of things he's said that teenage girls will use as proof of his love for her. Number one being "I love you," of course.

Another solid episode, which can be hard to do for a show that had an exceptional sophomore season. Last season, I thought Katherine was the biggest bad they could make and wondered how they could top her. Then Klaus and The Originals showed up. But how will Vampire Diaries best an entire army of hybrids? It's something I'm looking forward to watching.

—

More of my reviews: NoWhiteNoise.com | @MichaelCollado