Well that was an uneven hour.
The strengths and weaknesses of The Vampire Diaries were never more apparent than in Qetsiyah’s introduction. First off, the flashbacks were atrocious; I’ve seriously never cringed this much while watching TVD hop through time. Each and every one of Silas and Qetsiya’s scenes felt remarkably cheap, as if they existed purely for exposition purposes. I get what the writers were trying to do, but the scenes were nowhere near as nuanced as the flashbacks we used to get with Kathrine back in the show’s opening years. It also doesn’t help that I absolutely detest Janina Gavankar. This woman has ruined a ton of my favorite shows (Arrow and True Blood most recently), and she was just as terrible here (the painful dialogue didn’t help). I shudder at the thought of Qetsiya making further appearances for the rest of the season. God help us.
On the bright side, Original Sin supplied the show’s overarching mythology with some fascinating tidbits, and did a wonderful job of integrating the love triangle into the proceedings. As Quetsiyah so eloquently stated, Elena and Stefan (and their various doppelgangers) have been “finding each other” for centuries, and the universe is working “against” Damon’s dreams of being with the one he loves. Honestly this development just makes me root for Damon and Elena even more, so I’m definitely intrigued to see where the love triangle ends up (and that’s a statement I could have never said last year).
Also working in the episode’s favor were a ton of meta-moments where the show amusingly referenced itself. I particularly loved Qetsiyah comparing the trials of Damon, Stefan and Elena to watching a soap opera (because really, who hasn’t felt like that while watching TVD), and calling Damon “merely the conflict that makes it interesting.” It’s good to know that even the writers are self-aware when it comes to this whacky show.
Unfortunately, the episode took a nosedive again in the show’s final moments; Stefan now apparently has amnesia. Really? Haven’t we suffered through this trope enough? Shouldn’t writers be banned from using such an unnecessary and downright irritating plot device? I’ll try not to judge before I see if they can cook up something fresh with this development, but honestly I’m far from hopeful.
Bits & Bites
– Take a second and think about Elena, Katherine, Damon and Stefan. Two brothers, two twins, and they’ve all slept together. Can we have a collective “ew”?
– Loved Elena saving Katherine and fighting off Nadia. The traveler is still in desperate need of a personality transplant though.
– No Bonnie this week. Hallelujah.
– Nifty little scene with Qetsiya frying Silas’ brain through Stefan, and saving Nadia in the process.
– Katherine’s blood is the cure. It’s such an obvious twist, I’m surprised I didn’t think of it sooner.
Vampy Zingers
Katherine: Enough with the games Silas. What do you want with me?
Silas: You know, it’s funny – the love of my life looked exactly like you and yet the mere thought of your face makes me want to vomit.
Damon: Qetsi-whatever?
Qetsiyah: It’s Qetsiyah. Do you see why I want to change it?
Conclusion
Compelling in theory but clumsily executed, Original Sin is a highly uneven hour of The Vampire Diaries.
Nad Rating
C+