tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13727952.post6680166340310885761..comments2024-03-18T21:20:17.786-04:00Comments on Doux Reviews: Vampire Diaries: I Was Feeling EpicBillie Douxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17141769005175631213noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13727952.post-66200288019421610092017-04-21T09:17:27.219-04:002017-04-21T09:17:27.219-04:00I finally watched the episode. It was a satisfying...I finally watched the episode. It was a satisfying finale for what's it worth. It wasn't one of those finales that spoil the entire series by existing like say Dexter, True Blood or HIMYM. In fact the finale repaired some of the damage the actual previous dull seasons did and made me excited about watching. Some great sendoffs for most of the cast and hints of to be contnued on the Originals.<br /><br />@Paul: the vieverws hated Bonnie in the beginning because the show is about vampires and she was mostly putting roadblocks for the vampires by not participating in their zany schemes. Bonnie working together with the main cast is a likable Bonnie so at least that was mostly fixed in later seasons.<br /><br />I find it also cool that they confirmed the existance of "heaven" that was hinted in the season 5 finale when not everyone was sucked into Hell when the Other Side was breaking down. Lexi ascended somewhere else and we finally got to see that place in the end of this episode. So can't say the afterlife was not foreshadowed here. That's another plus.<br /><br />To wrap up I'll say taht I loved seasons 1-3, there were actual stakes. Pun intended. We lost many characters then, like Vicky, Isobel, Sark, Aunt Jenna, Alaric, Elena's life. <br /><br />But then season 4 arrived (which I still really liked thanks to the Originals mostly) and they could not make Jeremy's death stick, just to write him out anyways in the later seasons. That was the first nail in the proverbial stakeless coffin. That's not to say shows can be kept fresh only by killing characters, but when You actually kill them, stop bringing them back.<br /><br />Season 5 had to deal with losing Klaus and co and the really bad travelers, Season 6 was envigorated thanks to Kai but Elena left which led to more problems. Seasons 7 and 8 never recovered up until the finale.<br /><br />Thank You Josie for the reviews, especially the "Why VD doesn't Suck" piece that got me watching. Even with all the gripes it was an entertaining series.Patrykhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13662838711958747484noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13727952.post-8202172486216382792017-03-20T22:02:24.262-04:002017-03-20T22:02:24.262-04:00The reason I kept watching this show after seeing ...The reason I kept watching this show after seeing the pilot was this site. As I marathoned through the seasons (since I came to the show late), I read every review. Having seen some spoilers, I wasn't as shocked/disappointed as others over changes in the show - and I actually liked Delena (not surprising as I'm a Spuffy and LoVe shipper as well).<br /><br />I tend to be forgiving of long-lasting shows - so unless a show completely abandons its roots and rewrites its characters, I'm grateful for any additional episodes. Even if seasons as a whole don't live up to previous seasons, for most shows there are always enough good scenes and episodes to make them worth watching.<br /><br />The finale was satisfying. I wish there had been less Katherine and more Elena, but I realize the episode needed to have some plot. I loved that they brought back so many characters. I also loved everyone's endings - not exactly happy for most, but fulfilling, and also open-ended enough to provide for some Originals cameos for almost any cast members.<br /><br />I will miss this show. I'm glad The Originals is still around, so it won't feel completely gone, at least for a bit.Katie Hart - Pinterest Managerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14892763965326103296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13727952.post-63499938630978482272017-03-15T00:52:00.368-04:002017-03-15T00:52:00.368-04:00Another great season was season 5. It had so many...Another great season was season 5. It had so many characters that were doppelgangers of Elena; it was a lot of fun. Poor Stefan was going through another trauma and then season 6 was pretty good, too. Downhill after that, though. <br /><br />Two years from now it will be the 20th anniversary of Farscape. I guess I'll have to have a party of one. I'll make the decorations and bring the cake.Mallenahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11368492098724611717noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13727952.post-48246714077125858902017-03-14T18:37:38.758-04:002017-03-14T18:37:38.758-04:00I loved TVD's first two seasons, but I stopped...I loved TVD's first two seasons, but I stopped watching it after season two. I hated how they killed off aunt Jenna and hated even more when the following episode was emotionally centered on Damon and Elena as opposed to being centered on the fallout of Jenna's death, for crying out loud.<br /><br />My sister kept watching it and told me season three was excellent, but I never came back. Later, when I read that Dalena was sucking the life out of the show, I knew I had made the right decision. And that's not only because TVD went downhill, it's because of how great those first two seasons were and so I got to remember the show only for its ups.<br /><br />I did watch the finale, though, and it was a cute finale. I was a little lost, obviously. I knew that Caroline had daughters, but I didn't know Alaric was the father. Speaking of him, he used to be much cooler, what happened? And Katherine... the sass was there but she just kept getting killed over and over. Not a lot of fun there.<br /><br />I knew Damon was going to make it, there was no way Stefan would be the surviving brother if Dalena was the endgame. But they still managed to pull some good twists to get there. Stefan meeting Elena and his message to Caroline were also nice moments.<br /><br />My favorite part was Bonnie and the fellow witches controlling hellfire. I was rooting for her and I'm glad she survived. Also, Enzo. Wow, what a gorgeous man. If you are going to be hunted by someone that looks like that, you won in life.<br /><br />The reason I called this a "cute" finale is because they chose the "in the end, everybody is happy" route, which is a valid one, but also one that favours closing the story with a good feel instead of a powerful one. I mean, if you sacrifice Stefan and show him happy right afterwards, there is no death there and so the sacrifice loses some of its punch. But I can't deny it was pleasing to see most of the dead cast returning briefly. In the end, they priorized family over romance, I'm shocked. And pleased.<br /><br />What a fun coincidence that <i>Buffy</i> and <i>The Vampire Diaries</i> will have matching anniverseries (premiere and finale, respectively). There is a cartain dramatic irony that's attached to all this. A synchronicity that borders on predestination, one might say.Lamounierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00225447169375363236noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13727952.post-89895039950040380712017-03-13T03:33:08.121-04:002017-03-13T03:33:08.121-04:00TVD lost it's story after s4e15. Wish KWilliam...TVD lost it's story after s4e15. Wish KWilliamson had been around to stop JPlec from "shocking" the viewers into a comatose state. Typical CW, shame.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13727952.post-29281948058957904962017-03-12T12:22:33.350-04:002017-03-12T12:22:33.350-04:00Let me just echo the thanks to Josie for all the t...Let me just echo the thanks to Josie for all the time she put into these reviews. You made the good shows better and the bad ones bearable.<br /><br />Well, they managed to knock off LOST one last time with the "afterlife" ending (right down to the opening door and white light at the end) but honestly there are worse things to rip off than LOST and BTVS. For a show that was always carrying the baggage of being based on a not-great YA series, it was pretty good overall. I think we can forgive the odd poor episode (and season). I for one am satisfied.TheShadowKnowshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11073693648569864707noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13727952.post-356440800675628532017-03-11T19:02:21.688-05:002017-03-11T19:02:21.688-05:00Since I never was a fan of Delena, their happy end...Since I never was a fan of Delena, their happy ending really didn't do much for me. I'm a fan of the characters separately, but I didn't really care who was paired with whom. I'm sad that Stefan went to the Great Beyond, but I did like his scenes with his brother. I was a little miffed that Stefan seemed to forget about Caroline the second he saw that other dead girl, I forget her name. Oh, well. The ending was nice, but not really epic. Mallenahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11368492098724611717noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13727952.post-85950437320885888922017-03-11T18:37:45.305-05:002017-03-11T18:37:45.305-05:00I haven't watched this show in a few years, bu...I haven't watched this show in a few years, but this review makes me want to catch the finale. Thanks for 8 years of awesome reviews Josie! :)Juliettehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00203399623895589924noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13727952.post-59661280692762608932017-03-11T17:31:22.784-05:002017-03-11T17:31:22.784-05:00I was pretty determined not to enjoy this. When I ...I was pretty determined not to enjoy this. When I saw Katherine getting offed over and over, all I could think of was: they brought Nina back for this? Really? But then all the emotional malarkey kicked in, with virtually everyone in the history of the show turning up, and finally I started to enjoy it. <br /><br />I was however slightly miffed that--as you point out--it felt like an episodes from the old days. So why did they pull out a classic style romp for the last episode, yet make us endure probably three seasons of yawnage leading up to it? It was like: yeah, this is what the show is actually still capable of... we just couldn’t be arsed to do it.<br /><br />I'm glad not everyone survived. I'm not a fan of Delena--in fact, I think Damon is an utter knob--but I don't begrudge them their happiness. And who would have guessed that Bonnie would end up being such a damn cool character? I haven't rewatched the early series in a while, but was she really so bad, or was everyone just apathetic towards witches back then?<br /><br />In retrospect, I kind of wish they'd made Bonnie awesome sooner, and ended the show when Nina left. After Dobrev left the show Plec came out with some waffle about the show actually being about Damon and Stefan, and although I can buy that it was partly about them, to me Elena was the planet around which all the characters revolved. Her leaving left a big hole that they never really managed to plug.<br /><br />Thanks for reviewing the show, Josie. For a long while it was actually pretty awesome wasn't it?Paul Kellyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01979646022056755322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13727952.post-54817523445949908132017-03-11T07:12:59.896-05:002017-03-11T07:12:59.896-05:00I totally agree that it was a terrific finale. I a...I totally agree that it was a terrific finale. I actually cried, and I didn't expect that I'd be so emotionally involved after being so dissatisfied with this last season. Stefan has never been my favorite character, but his sacrifice totally got to me. Bonnie's power in stopping the Bellfire :) did remind me of Willow in the <i>Buffy</i> finale, but I also loved that we saw all of the Bennett witches behind her at the Armory, and that Bonnie got to go live her life with the ghost of Enzo cheering her on. And it was so appropriate that so much of the episode took place in the high school where it all started (again, like the <i>Buffy</i> finale). And all the ghosts -- especially Jo and Lexi -- lovely.<br /><br />And actually, I do think they've set up Caroline moving to <i>The Originals</i>, with the writing out of a specific character and what they've been doing with Klaus, and I shouldn't say more because I don't want to spoil anyone.<br /><br />Thank you for eight seasons (!) of clever, on point reviews, Josie. You're the reason I retried this show and got so into it. I wonder if I would have continued to ignore it for eight seasons, or if I would have eventually tried it again?Billie Douxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17141769005175631213noreply@blogger.com