The Vampire Diaries 2.21 “The Sun Also Rises” Review

Ritual and sacrifice sure did occur this week and boy was that an emotionally draining but fantastic episode of The Vampire Diaries. The ritual that has been discussed for much of the season finally went down, and once again this show stepped it up another notch in this already action packed season.

After there was much discussion as to who would make it through the sacrifice alive we finally got the devastating answer. Jenna was a character who had the unfortunate status of being the one in the dark, this is never a good position to be in as the audience tends to get annoyed with this character for often not seeing what is right in front of them. It also reduces how much can be done with this person so it was with great joy that Jenna finally found out the truth two weeks ago. This joy was short lived as she became the vampire that was needed in the ritual, she was the punishment for all of Damon’s meddling.

It did seem like there was no way out of this for Jenna, despite Elena’s best advice to get Jenna to use her new vamp powers, there was no way really that she would be able to out run or be stronger than Klaus. I appreciate that she didn’t go down without a fight and tried to take Greta out in the process (which got a cheer from me) but the writing was on the wall for Jenna as she took a stake to the heart in front of a helpless and distraught Elena. Losing Jenna just as she has found out the truth is a shame, not only because I like Sara Canning and thought she did a fabulous job tonight but also because I think there was a whole heap of stories that could have come from this. Also Elena is still 17 right? So who is going to be hers and Jeremy’s legal guardian?

Which brings us on to John Gilbert, a character who has been arrogant and dislikeable since he appeared toward the end of last season. Whilst I have always had a soft spot for this character (most likely because of David Anders) he has often been an irritating obstacle in the way of what Elena et al are trying to achieve. John this week got to be the character that made the “unexpected act of courage” as he sacrificed his life so Elena could live without the burden of being a vampire. The letter that he left for Elena was rather touching as it tried to explain his failings as a parent without asking for forgiveness. It certainly left me misty eyed as they went in to the double funeral scene showing how emotionally broken Elena was by the actions of her surrogate and real parents.

The sacrifice scene was a rather tense affair even by The Vampire Diaries standards as we learnt that the order of death would go werewolf, vampire, doppleganger. Whilst I have no affection toward Jules it was still torturous to hear that her insides where trying to break out. Joseph Morgan in these scenes was simply delicious, he really has been superb as Klaus revelling in this ritual that he has waited so long to perform. In that respect I am glad that Elijah broke his word and his honour and didn’t kill his brother as it means that there is still much Original fun to be had.

Bonnie this week also got to finally show what the power of 100 witches can do, and it sure was badass seeing her command the elements in this manner, particularly as Klaus was so surprised to see her alive. Damon taking out Great so swiftly was also pretty smooth and ended what Jenna had attempted to do. I hope that next season utilises Bonnie and her witch power, especially as witches are the overseers of all things supernatural and that Klaus has broken this order by completing the ritual.

Damon and Stefan, despite their differences will always fight for each other, this includes Damon’s wolf bite predicament. The response from Stefan of both shock and determination to do something about it, despite Damon’s lack of hope for this situation was one of the highlights of the episode. What will become of Damon as the area gets progressively more infected? Is there something that Bonnie can do to save him?

Speaking of werewolves, poor Matt can’t quite figure out what the hell is going on now that he is aware of the supernatural world and he would rather only face the harsh and crappy realities of his life, and not complicate it further with vampires and werewolves. Whilst this decision by Matt leaves Caroline upset it did lead to a cracking scene between herself and Tyler, they really do have fantastic chemistry.

Quick thoughts:

-Now that Caroline knows about her mothers plan with Matt will there be a confrontation between the two? Is Caroline’s life in danger?

-Katherine in protecting herself for the last 500 years has really cut herself off from everyone as Damon refuses to say goodbye to her as he tells her to “enjoy your eternity alone”. What is the point in living forever if you have no one to share it with?

-As Klaus is still alive doesn’t this mean that Katherine is still stuck in Alaric’s apartment?

-Damon really wants Elena to forgive him and his actions this week went a step toward that. It was a rather touching move that he lay her down next to Stefan after the ritual.

-Elijah bestowed what seems like the highest compliment from him to Stefan telling him that he very honourable, future bromance?

-Stefan once again showed that he was willing to sacrifice himself for Elena, but Klaus has plans for him- what could these be? It was pretty heartbreaking to see Stefan helpless as he lay staked whilst Klaus drained Elena of her blood.

-The song during the funeral sequence was of Bon Iver’s “Skinny Love” peformed by Birdy which worked very well with the scene but as such a big fan of the original distracted me somewhat.

With one week to go it will be hard to top this fantastic episode but as they search for a cure for Damon I’m sure they might find a way. A

What did you all think? Shocked by the deaths? Any thoughts on how Damon might be saved? Let us know in the comments below.

Next week on The Vampire Diaries: hunt to find a cure and hallucination fun.

Check out the promo here and for photos of the episode here.