Last night’s episode of The Vampire Diaries taught us that sometimes the games you play, often end up playing you. Unless of course you’re Damon who was in a league all of his own. So lets dig in!
The episode starts with Alaric getting a brain scan to find out if what’s been going on with him is actually medical. The results end up being normal, leaving everyone to confirm what they already knew: the effects are from the ring. This forces Elena to call Bonnie to see if she can reverse the spell since the ring’s origins stem from a Bennett witch. Unfortunately, Bonnie has her own stuff to deal with. Her mom Abby is in transition, won’t feed, and Jamie is afraid of her. Caroline lectures Jamie and he finally goes into see Abby who embraces him, but is so thirsty she ends up biting him. Luckily Bonnie comes to his rescue, having just had a really sweet moment with him seconds before. It’s a good thing they’re not related, right? In the end, Abby doesn’t think she’ll be able to handle it. Caroline being the ballsy chick she is asks what she can’t handle? Being a vampire or a parent? She pleads with Abby to stay but in the end it’s not enough and Abby leaves Bonnie, yet again. Even though Bonnie flat out said it would hurt her if she did.
While all this is going on Bonnie was at Elena’s rekindling their friendship, and putting a spell on Alaric to try and help while he’s knocked out. Why is he knocked out? Well, earlier in the day Bonnie told Elena to get something of Alaric’s that he wore before he wore the ring. He chooses his wedding band. So, Elena sets off to his loft to find it and Meredith (Dr. Fell) stays with him. At the loft Elena bumps into Stefan for the second time that day. Their first encounter was not that friendly or helpful, but this one proves to be quite the opposite. Stefan tells her he’s not trying to hurt her, he just can’t be the person he wants her to be because he’s not in control. Sigh. Elena tells Stefan that because the ring belonged to her ancestor, this is all her fault. Stefan tells her she needs to stop trying to fix everyone, and Elena asks if he’s talking about himself or Alaric? Because she wasn’t planning on giving up either.
He helps her open a drawer she’s been struggling with holds the ring, but what they find is a whole lot more. Pictures of all Alaric’s victims, his wedding band, and a pamphlet addressed to Jeremy telling him how to carry on Alaric’s mission. A mission that involves killing off all the council members. Stefan also tells Ellena that while Samantha Gilbert was in the mental hospital she still murdered. Elena knows she was insane so that means nothing to her until Stefan says she was on suicide watch a.k.a she was killing even without the ring on.
Cue Alaric waking up back at Elena’s and Dr. Fell making him coffee. He asks Meredith if she ever feels remorse. Confused, she turns around to see him placing his hand on a knife. You see, she’s part of the council that’s supposed to be hunting vampires, not using their blood to heal. He stabs her but she’s able to throw hot coffee on him and escape upstairs and lock herself in the bathroom where its clear the cut got her bad. But she got one in too injuring his hand. Atta girl.
You see, Alaric started out as a vampire hunter. He joined the council all in an effort to get rid of them. But seeing as they’re all friends now, he’s ended up on the other side. Each time the ring brought him back to life it chipped away at his psyche. This gave way for the dark side, you know the psychopathic killing one, to take over. The one that wants to force the council members to take some accountability. Even if it means ending their life. Or as we’ve seen, his own. Of course, this is all according to Bonnie. But it makes sense, no?
When Elena returns home, Alaric is coming down the stairs and she can tell something is off. He asks her if Stefan ever found her and says no. Smart girl. As she says this Alaric and Elena both spot the knife and as he goes to grab it Stefan appears and makes him pass out. With Alaric on the floor Stefan is immediately drawn upstairs. He tells Elena she needs to come because he’s gonna need her help. With what? The pool of blood Meredith is sitting in. Elena runs in and as Stefan enters you see his body change with hunger, right as you think he’s going to bite her, his face relaxes and he bites himself giving Meredith some of his blood. As soon as she’s had enough he leaves but not before he showed us all one thing: he does have control! The day’s events leave Elena calling someone we haven’t heard from in way too long: Jeremy! Who said he hasn’t heard from Alaric. But if Alaric was doing things and not knowing, could Jeremy have spoken to him and not known? Looks like were going to find out.
Also going down in Mystic Falls is the restoration of Wicker Bridge. Due to all the madness going on Damon learns that Alaric never brought them the sign, but it’s no matter because they don’t need it right away. Also among the crowd, Rebekeh still looking for information, and Sage, Damon’s ‘hottest’ teacher. We learn that Sage was in love with Finn, Rebekeh’s suicidal brother, and that she can’t stand Rebekeh. Well, join the club. Damon tells her he knows Rebekeh is up to something, so she suggests getting the information out of her the old fashioned way: seduction. Luckily, Rebekeh bites (sorry) at the invitation and shows up at the Salvatore house where it proves two is company, and three is a party.
Here we got the return of Damon’s amazing dance moves as he twirled Sage around. Rebekeh clearly bored and hating being ignored begins feeding, prompting Damon to make his way over. As he goes to kiss Rebekeh she asks about Sage and Damon says he doesn’t care, he just wants her. I guess Vampires want to hear that too. After a little fun in the sack, Sage enters the room where we find Rebekeh asleep and Damon with just enough sheet on him to make you drool. Sage sits on the bed, runs her fingers across Rebekeh’s hair, and then motions for Damon to meet her in that infamous shower. Thanks to some telepathic kisses, Damon knows what Rebekeh is looking for: lumber billing records of another white oak. Damon finds the record book and finds what we’ve all been searching for: a way to kill The Originals. Turns out that white Oak Tree Rebekeh has been looking for was used to make the Wickery Bridge that is now being restored. Just when you think the plan is going all good, Sage throws us a curve ball. She obviously doesn’t want Finn dead so Damon promises to let the two of them walk off in the sunset and just kill Rebekeh.
Unfortunately, when Damon is ready to head to the bridge, Sage is already gone and when he arrives at the bridge Rebekeh has set it on fire. Sage tells him he lied to her because just like she could read Rebekeh’s mind she read his. Finding out that if you kill one Oringinal, you kill them all. Damon dishes it back telling her Finn doesn’t love her, and the proof is that he was so willing to die. But thanks to her betrayal, Finn is as good as dead.
When he returns to the house he finds Stefan drinking, well, toasting really, to control. Weren’t we all? Stefan can’t figure out how he is in such good spirits all things considered, when Damon unveils the Wicker Bridge sign, made of beautiful white oak. That The Originals think is now burned. Game on Originals, game on.