The Vampire Diaries Season Finale Review: Here We Go Again…

What a weird season it’s been on The Vampire Diaries. First we had the Heretics and Mama Salvatore’s issues. Then of course a magical surrogate vampire pregnancy before a time jump all the while tracking a Huntress. Long story short, this season finale felt like a serious case of deja vu by the very end.

I started the episode thinking I had it all figured out. Bonnie and Damon would die, just as Elena wakes up in her coffin since there were rumors Nina would come back next season. At the very least I wanted Enzo to be dunzo. I was totally wrong on all counts, and I have to say I’m severely disappointed with the setup for season 8.

Stefan and Caroline are all but officially back together, which was the one true highlight of the finale. Ric knew in his heart all along Caroline never loved him like she loves Stefan and he let her go. He said they’ll always be a family with their daughters but Caroline is not the type to co-parent from across the country. She needs control in her life and logistically speaking, Lizzie and Josie living in Dallas with Ric will be a problem once the bigger task at hand to save Damon and Enzo is completed.

Because yes, Damon’s possessed now by the great unseen evil that was locked in the Armory vault. Unfortunately so is Enzo. The tail end of the finale summed up the next few months of Stefan, Caroline, and Bonnie’s search to first unlock the vault again and then locate Damon and Enzo when they were found missing. I don’t know about you, but I was hoping for something much more shocking than another classic twist on a character playing a darker/possessed character in the same body. Great opportunities for the actors involved all these years, especially to switch up their game a bit, but by now it’s annoying. We need real stakes. Life or death stakes where death sticks. Not writing loopholes in when the timing is convenient.

That said, I was so happy to see Matt survive and possibly leave Mystic Falls/the show alive and well. When Bonnie left him after they were run off the road, he was stuck and bleeding out. Even if Bonnie had the cold heart of a Huntress, that shouldn’t detract from being a decent friend to a fellow human being. Instead she said he doesn’t belong in this supernatural game and just walked away. Real cool, Bonnie. If I was Matt I’d pack my stuff up and not even say goodbye to any of these so-called friends. They know where to reach him when they need him but he can’t ask the same in return. Ghost Penny was right, there’s a better world out there for him. Hopefully it’s a normal life in a big city for a change.

For the finale to an otherwise scattered season, the episode really did tie up loose ends nicely. Bonnie and Enzo almost lost each other due to her killer urges which Damon stopped just in time. Damon really fixed things with Stefan and Bonnie finally, but now he’s in trouble all over again. The friends and family he abandoned out of a selfish fear 3 years ago will all be rallying together to redeem him once more. As much as I hate to say this about one of my favorite shows, I sincerely hope next year is the final season. Creatively I think the writers and actors have done it all. If they go into the next year with a solid endpoint in mind, they could deliver a beautiful and appropriately crafted farewell for everyone rather than put a slightly new twist on even more recycled storylines.

What did you of this finale and the entire season?