We began The Vampire Diaries season 7 finale with one simple curse to break, but we ended up with a whole new set of supernatural problems.
Let me start off this review by saying that The Vampire Diaries season 7, episode 22, “Gods and Monsters,” was a great episode, but as far as season finales go, this one honestly felt a little bit anticlimactic. Compared to the problems that Salvatore and co. have faced in the past, the Bonnie/vault monster debacle just didn’t seem as menacing.
The body count was a whopping zero, but I don’t think that was the problem. I think the danger of the vault monster wasn’t played up quite enough, and it seemed too easy for Damon to just waltz in there and destroy the everlasting, which actually diminished the impact of his sacrifice, in my opinion.
Really, I think the vault monster was a much bigger threat than Bonnie, as the huntress. Vampires have evaded capture by the huntress for years, so they could have taken a little more time to do their research before jumping into the vault! The only reason that Enzo’s demise was so imminent, was because he was a complete idiot, and invited Bonnie over for tea and crumpets. Also, their plan was based on the word of someone they didn’t know, that thought killing the everlasting would solve the problem, and not result in all of their deaths.
Now, looking past the fact that this season’s finale wasn’t quite on the same level as most of the previous ones, there was also so much that I loved about The Vampire Diaries season 7 finale! I thought it was a great conclusion to most of the character arcs, and it set us up for an interesting story line in The Vampire Diaries season 8, so let’s look at some of what happened in the episode.
Since Bonnie was the source of the initial conflict of the episode, I’ll start with her. She gave us some more insight into how the huntress works as she was chasing down her friends, and it was really cool to see her in this role. The more we learn about the huntress, the more I wish we still had one, but alas, Bonnie has been freed from that burden, and the huntress mythology is probably gone for good.
I love how Bonnie, who has been the victim of her own sacrificial love far too often, had two people love her enough to lay absolutely everything on the line to save her, in this episode. Even though Enzo’s tactics may have been ridiculously ill-advised, his intentions were pure. It was interesting to see how conflicting, yet utterly unavoidable, the curse of the huntress is. Bonnie’s words said, “I love you Enzo,” but her body said, “I’m gonna drive this stake into your heart.” This is one of those classic, “actions speak way louder than words,” scenarios that they’re always talking about.
I was actually really scared that Enzo was going to die, and not just because of what that would mean for Bonnie! The tension in this scene was real and intense, and the relief when Damon finally pulled through was palpable and invigorating. Damon finally made the right, and selfless choice, and earned the forgiveness that he’s been craving from Bonnie. The only problem is, they still didn’t read that damn letter!!! If the first scene of The Vampire Diaries season 8 isn’t Bonnie tearing up over Damon’s handwritten words, I say we riot.
Before Damon put the final nail flame in the coffin, he had some season long issues to work through with his brother. These guys have definitely been on a journey in The Vampire Diaries season 7. It all began with the phoenix stone, where Stefan was forced to let Damon go, again and again. Damon has been making wrong choices at every turn, fighting to figure out who he is without Elena, and Stefan has been struggling to determine What Damon’s presence in his life means for him.
This all came to a head in the season 7 finale, and we finally got the coveted Salvatore brother hug that we’ve been waiting for. They realized that they both have been living their lives ruled by fear, rather than love, as they both thought.
Damon was so terrified of himself, and the thought that he couldn’t be good enough without Elena, that he essentially buried himself for three years. Stefan is so scared of losing Damon, that he can’t let him make his own decisions, and mistakes. He accuses Damon of taking away people’s choices, but he often ends up doing the same thing to Damon, out of his own fear.
I absolutely love what the sacrificial move of going into the vault without Stefan’s help did for Damon’s character. He finally realized that it isn’t only his love for Elena that makes him worthy of her. His love for others, including Stefan and Bonnie, propels him to the same lengths of goodness and sacrifice. I am, however, a little bit torn about what this did for Stefan.
As Caroline said long ago, it’s always Stefan. It’s usually (though not always) him that’s taking the risks, coming out the hero, and paying the price for it. This time, Stefan walked away. He came out safe and sound, and he even got the girl. In doing so, though, he made the non-selfless choice, and put his brother in more danger, which isn’t the Stefan way of doing things. Yes, he respected his brother’s choice, but I’m curious to see what this means for his character going forward, especially since he’ll now be living with a lot of guilt. Please let me know what you think in the comments!
Speaking of getting the girl, Steroline is back on! Just as Bonnie has evolved, Caroline has gone from being nobody’s first choice, in The Vampire Diaries season 1, to being the girl that everyone picks. Stefan chose her, and luckily for Steroline shippers, she acknowledged the thaw that had occurred, and chose Stefan right back. I’m so glad that Alaric bowed out gracefully, and allowed her to make this choice in a guilt free way. She now gets to have her love, and her family too, and she absolutely deserves both.
So it all ended there, and everyone is set off on there happily ever after, awaiting The Vampire Diaries season 8! Nope, not quite. First of all, Matt may actually be gone from Mystic Falls. After Bonnie basically left him for dead, he had a really sweet moment with Penny, in which he finally realized that the supernatural fight was not his own. He drove off, so it may be a while before we see him again.
Just as Damon was headed to get his celebratory bourbon, the vault called him back, using the voice of his beloved Elena. He was blinded by that beautiful, squeal worthy, Delena montage, and he went back in to meet his demise. The vault monster actually has some sort of physical form, but still seems to have possessed him somehow. Not to be left out of the fun, Enzo joins in on the possession party!
We leave our heroes as they jump ahead months into the future. Stefan is now left in the exact same place as Damon in The Vampire Diaries season 2 finale: searching newspaper clippings for clues on Damon and Enzo’s whereabouts. I will acknowledge the tragic irony that Damon is forced back into villain-hood just after he finally ascends to sacrificial heroism, just long enough, before exclaiming: our villainous Damon is back! Bring it on, season 8.
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