I Have A Problem

I realized something last night. 

I probably should have realized it a long time ago. Maybe I did and just brushed it off. I mean, I'm sure my friends have told me multiple times. Maybe that's why I never took them seriously -- I always feel like I have to disagree with them when it comes to making fun of me. But in this instance, I think they're right. I get way too invested in the fictional worlds and lives from television shows and books. I'll tell you how I made this discovery.

The mid-season finale aired last night for two of the shows I've talked about in this blog. "Gossip Girl" and "Hart of Dixie." They were fantastic episodes, per usual. Everything that finales should be. That's what sucks about it! The worst part about this time of year (other than cold weather, which, miraculously we have not even been experiencing) is that all of my favorite TV shows end for a month or longer for winter hiatus. It's ridiculous! Why can't they spare my nerves and just play my shows all the way through the Holiday season? Or all year for that matter! I can't handle the suspense and it hasn't even been twenty-four hours yet!

Let's focus on "Gossip Girl" for a moment. Blair can't decide who she wants to be with, despite being pregnant with Louis' baby. Dan decides to tell her how he feels about her, but changes his mind and instead helps Blair and Chuck get together, finally. Chuck tells her that he will love her baby "as much as I love you" and my cynical view of true love disappears for a moment as my heart melts.

Nate helps the reunited couple avoid the paparazzi and escape together into a limo that is leaking some kind of fluid that I'm assuming is very important, seeing as how as the paparazzi follow them on motorcycles, the limo crashes into a wall, sending Blair and Chuck to the hospital in critical condition. WTF show! The two of them were finally about to be happy, but nooo, let's attempt to kill them off. The show ends with Blair awake and responsive and Chuck...not so much. The preview for the next episode shows Blair losing a lot of blood (and I'm assuming the baby) and Chuck doesn't look like he'll make it. But I can't even find out for a month and a half! Truly, my least favorite time of the year. Not to mention, Charlie/Ivy admits to Rufus that she's a fraud, that she sent the blast to Gossip Girl that attracted the paparazzi that chased Blair and Chuck to the hospital, and she finally calls Carol to tell her that she's leaving NY for good. Good riddance, I hate her now more than ever.

Do you see what I mean about getting too attached to these shows? I'm beginning to hate fictional beings. When I saw that Chuck might not make it, I wanted to cry...to scream...to quit watching television forever! Such dramatic reactions for something that isn't real. I feel like that's not a normal person's response to a TV show...Maybe this winter break will be good for me. I can connect with the real world once again...Who am I kidding? That won't happen.

Meanwhile, in "Hart of Dixie", the same old stuff has been going on in Bluebell, Alabama: George and Zoe flirting, despite his engagement; Lavon and Lemon flirting, despite her engagement; and my heart aching for Wade, who finally seems to be admitting to himself the feelings he has for Zoe. Zoe's still trying to fit in with the town folk and seems to be doing at least a little better than before. The part I'm way too invested in is Wade. I know I started off liking George better, but as soon as I saw the scene with Wade and his father on the roof, I changed my mind and there's no going back.

Since Wade confronted George about his flirting with Zoe, George has backed off. Now, Wade thinks he has a shot with her, and seeing that hope is what makes me crazy. I've been there. Am there. It's frustrating in real life and now I'm torturing myself by watching it in a show! I watch shows to distract myself from my own life, not to remind me of it. And now, on top of that, I'm forced to wait over a month to find out what happens with the two of them. It's inhumane to put me through this!

Yes, I'm very invested in television shows. They're guilty pleasures of mine. They are far more interesting than my real life can or will ever be, but that's why they're made, right? To entertain, distract, teach. I'm hooked. I'll continue to watch, no matter what happens or how long I have to wait for another episode to air. I can't even hope that this month goes by quickly, because that would be wishing away my vacation. I'm torn! Too many mixed emotions! So, I'll wait patiently and entertain myself with reading, which can be torture in itself (have you read "Game of Thrones"!?!?!) Wish me luck. And if you're experiencing the same thing? Good luck to you! And Happy Holidays!

Once Upon A Time...

Since I haven't posted in a while, I've had some time to watch a new show. Yes, another one. It's fast becoming one of my favorites. The fact that it's a little corny can be overlooked by the fact that it's about fairy tales. Yup. It's called "Once Upon A Time" and it's putting a twist on all the fairy tales that we know and love.

I wasn't going to start watching the show. Some shows are/seem too cheesy even for me to watch. What made me change my mind, you ask? Ginnifer Goodwin. My guilty pleasure movie is "He's Just Not That Into You" and a huge part of the reason is Miss. Goodwin. She's just a likeable person! I mean, have you seen her in "Ramona and Beezus"? But anyway, she's one of my favorite actresses and aside from "Something Borrowed," I've loved her in everything I've seen her in. I decided to take a chance on "Once Upon a Time." Ginnifer didn't let me down. Check out the trailer:

The show starts off at one of the happy endings we are familiar with and love. Prince Charming, played by a definitely charming Josh Dallas, awakens Snow White (Goodwin) from a deep sleep in her glass coffin with a simple "true love's kiss." Aw. Sigh. Etc. Cut to their wedding where the Evil Queen (Lana Parrilla) makes a comeback and promises them that they will be cursed and no one will have a happy ending. I'd call her a bad name right now, but I'll restrain myself.

A lot of things happen, but basically, Snow and Charming have a baby and in a desperate attempt to save their daughter, Charming puts her in a magical wardrobe...to Narnia! No, just kidding. I wish. But the wardrobe does protect baby Emma until her 28th birthday when she is prophesied  to return and save everyone else from the curse.

Speaking of the curse, it was created by Rumpelstiltskin (Robert Carlyle) and cast by the queen. The gist of it is, it transports all of the fairytale characters to our world, where we all know: fairytale endings don't exist. Sorry, that's my cynical side coming out. Anyway, all of these characters live in Storybrook, Maine where they're trapped, time is frozen, and no one remembers their past or that they are fairytales.

Meanwhile, Emma Swan (Jennifer Morrison), on her 28th birthday (!!) is accosted by a ten year old boy, Henry (Jared Gilmore), who is claiming to be the son she gave up for adoption. He is able to convince her to return with him to Storybrook and attempts to explain to her the situation going on in his town. How does he know this? He has a book of fairytales that tells the whole story and he put two and two together. Good job, kid.

Well, that's the general idea of the goings-on in the show. There is a lot more to the storyline, but it's filled with so many unanswered questions, clues, details, etc. that I don't know where to begin. Here's a quick list of some of the fairytales mentioned and the roles they play in our world:

Snow White - Mary Margaret Blanchard - Henry's school teacher/grandmother, nun-like but not a nun, beautiful, kind, searching for and failing to find true love.
Prince Charming - John Doe - Coma patient in the hospital due to being stabbed in fairytale land when trying to protect his daughter right before the curse was cast.
Evil Queen - Regina/Madam Mayor - mayor of Storybrook, Henry's adopted mother, still evil and conniving. She hates Emma. We hate her.
Jiminy Cricket - Archie Hopper (Raphael Sbarge) - Henry's therapist, "conscience" if you will. Has a dalmatian named Pongo. Ha.

Other notable characters mentioned and their counterparts: the huntsman (I believe he is Sheriff Graham), Little Red Riding Hood (Ruby) and her grandmother, Gepetto, Cinderella and her Prince Charming, and more.

Maybe this sounds corny. Maybe way too unrealistic for you to be interested enough to start watching. But start! My two best friends make fun of me all the time for the shows I watch and the fact that I seem to live in my own fairytale world. Well, they're hooked on this show now too, so if that doesn't say something, I'm not sure what does.

Worth Remembering

Here's the story:
Recently I took a weekend trip to New Jersey to visit a friend, and while we were there we went to a horse race track at Monmouth Park. This was the first time I've ever been to a race track and I fell in love with the atmosphere. I love horses and everything that has to do with horses, and the whole experience reminded me of one of my favorite television shows from a few years back called "Wildfire". It ran from 2005 to 2008 for a total of four seasons and I still think it ended too soon. These thoughts led me to a new idea for a blog post. I decided to post a few shows that are cancelled now, but worth remembering because of how good they were. Now, this is only my opinion. People may disagree or have different opinions, and that's fine, but these are just a few that I would love to see come back.

#1: Wildfire

A show about a girl and a horse. Simple as that, yet it took hold of my heart and wouldn't let go. It still hasn't. I find myself randomly thinking about it at times and feeling the urge to watch it again. The show centered around a girl named Kris Furillo (played by Genevieve Cortese, now known as Genevieve Padalecki since she married Supernatural's Jared Padalecki) who spent time in a juvenile detention center and learned how to ride horses there. She made a special connection with one horse in particular - Wildfire. Go figure. When she was released, she was told she had to work at Raintree Farm, a ranch that breeds race horses. After stealing Wildfire to save him from being auctioned off, she spends some more time in the detention center and is then released back to the ranch where she slowly becomes closer and closer to the Ritter family (the owners of the ranch) and the son of the rivaling ranch next door. The show follows her journey as she becomes a famous jockey and Wildfire becomes a famous race horse. While I have to admit, I was always hooked on the relationship between Kris and Junior Davis from the rival ranch (how could I not be?), it wasn't just the human characters that made me want to watch. It was the horses. I love horses and especially the horses that no one expects will succeed. I mean come on. Secretariat? Seabiscuit? Those stories just make my heart want to explode with happiness. During Wildfire's final comeback race in the series, I got chills.

 

While they don't have the actual race, here's a clip of them preparing Wildfire after his retirement.

It may just be a TV show, but I can't help it. I'm a sucker for the happy endings...and horses. So happy endings with horses? Yeah...

#2: Veronica Mars

Another one of my favorite shows of all time. It aired in 2004 and ended in 2008, quite abruptly I might add and way before I was ready for it to end. It begins with a girl who is a social outcast in her school and town -- Veronica Mars (played by Kristen Bell, also the voice of Gossip Girl). Her father blamed the wrong person for the murder of Veronica's best friend Lily (Amanda Seyfried), and became a social pariah in their fictional town of Neptune, California. The show follows the day-to-day life of Veronica Mars and her side business of being a teenage private detective. I suppose you can consider her "Nancy Drew with attitude".

 

If there's one show any teenage girl should watch, it's this one. Veronica Mars, despite her fall from popularity, is the epitome of a strong woman. She sticks up for herself, she doesn't let others bring her down, and she stays completely true to herself no matter what. I was about 14 when the show first aired and I wanted to be just like her. I mean, for the most part she's a good role model for teenage girls who might be influenced by popularity and the other kids in school. The show is just entertaining. You find yourself hooked from the first episode and craving more. In fact, I might have to go back and watch it again...it's been a while.

Hart Has Captured My Heart

There's a new series on the CW called "Hart of Dixie" that I've already fallen in love with in only three episodes. I feel bad about introducing a new show again, especially with all of the other shows I post about, but seeing as how it's one of the top shows I look forward to each week, I feel like I have to talk about it.

So it's about a girl named Zoe Hart (played by Rachel Bilson) who wants to be a surgeon in NYC. She lacks "bedside manners", but she graduates college at the top of her class. Her whole life is what she does for work. When she graduates college, an elderly man named Dr. Harley Wilkes (played by Nicholas Pryor) asks her to work at his family practice in a small town called Bluebell, Alabama. Obviously, she turns him down in a second on account of wanting to follow in her father's footsteps in New York, but he continues to send many postcards afterwards inviting her to join him. When she gets turned down for a surgeon job, due to the aforementioned lack of bedside manners, she decides to move to BlueBell.

When she gets to Bluebell, she meets George Tucker (played by Scott Porter) and we see that they have immediate chemistry together. She also finds out that Dr. Wilkes has passed away, and had his receptionist continue to send Zoe the postcards even after his death. We later find out the reason for this, which is because he was her biological father. She decides to try staying in Bluebell for a while in order to follow in her real father's footsteps now. However, Dr. Wilkes' partner in the practice, Dr. Breeland is making it very difficult for her to do so. He disagrees with Wilkes' idea to let Zoe take over his half of the company and refuses to be partners with someone so inexperienced to the practice and new to the town.

The whole show revolves around Dr. Zoe Hart's inability to fit in with the small town folk. She's from the city so she's very straightforward and blunt about a lot of things that you might not want to be blunt about. She's clearly falling for the town's golden boy George Tucker, but we find out that he's engaged to be married to Dr. Breeland's daughter, the town's golden girl. Despite Zoe unintentionally misdiagnosing patients and sabotaging town parades, we see her slowly gaining the respect of the town and eventually Dr. Breeland himself and finding some interest in her neighbor Wade Kinsella (Wilson Bethel).

The reasons to enjoy this show are simple for me. First of all, I'm in love with the south and always have been. I've always loved the idea of a small town and knowing everyone in it, growing up in a place where you feel a part of something. I love their traditions and the way they are all there for each other. Rhode Island isn't really like that at all. At least, my life isn't like that. And if my friends saw what I'm writing then they'd tell me to get my head out of the clouds -- that television is not real life. Well, true, but it's fun to watch and the soundtrack is awesome (country music!).

The second reason I enjoy the show is because of the characters. Dr. Hart is really funny even when she's not trying to be, George Tucker is nice (despite his evil fiance), and the former-football-star-turned-mayor Lavon Hayes (played by Cress Williams) is really very amusing and not at all what you'd expect of a mayor. You find yourself routing for Dr. Hart to succeed and hating Lemon Breeland (played by Jaime King).

The show airs on Mondays at 9pm and if you think it sounds interesting then you should definitely check it out. 

Oh Dear...

So I'm back with the recap of The Vampire Diaries for the past two weeks and oh. my. goodness. tons of stuff has happened.

In the October 6th episode Stefan continues to act like he's best friends with Klaus and possibly could be in love with Rebekah. The key word here is "act". We all know that he's madly in love with Elena and is just doing all of this to protect her, right? Nothing can break their bond, not even crazy evil original vampires. Well, keep this in mind as you continue to read. Rebekah is adjusting to life after her ninety year nap and Klaus is trying to locate where Elena's necklace is (not that he knows it's Elena's necklace). He gets a witch to help him locate it and she does, but doesn't tell him that Elena has it. Instead, she tries to torture information out of Stefan because she wants the necklace for herself. Luckily, Katherine comes to save the day. I know, unbelievable, no? In Katherine's short visit she also manages to steal the necklace and find out that Jeremy is seeing dead people.

Meanwhile back in Mystic Falls, Damon and Elena are growing closer and closer, a fact that isn't missed by Alaric and Caroline. The two of them both try talking some sense into the budding couple and both fail. Elena is in denial, because, what type of person would that make her if she "switches Salvatores," as Caroline puts it? "Human," is Caroline's response. Which is funny because really, how many normal humans are actually on this show? And Damon simply doesn't want to hear another speech about what he should and shouldn't do.

During a Founder's Day event (yes, another one) the council meets and Mayor Lockwood, Sheriff Forbes, and Damon are all teamed up to announce that nothing out of the ordinary is going on in the town and they've seen the worst from the vampires. Ha. Then, Caroline's dad shows up ready to blow their spot (even though he had been compelled to forget earlier in this episode). Apparently, compulsion doesn't work on him cause he has some tricks up his sleeve. Damon decides to kill him, despite Alaric's protest, which leads to him killing Alaric. Luckily Alaric has the ring on so he's not permanently dead, but he still wakes up completely pissed and decides to join the town council to fight against vampires. Caroline is able to save her dad from Damon and he later tells her she'll never be okay again as long as she's a vampire, then leaves town. What a jerk. I have a feeling that won't be the last time we see him.

Katherine shows up at Damon's door and convinces him to leave town for a spontaneous road trip. He agrees, since he had just had a fight with Elena about how "he's not Stefan blah blah blah" and she can't "tame" him. Which is true, but other than Elena I don't know who actually wants him to be like Stefan...I like his character the way he is.

Finally, Rebekah figures out that Stefan isn't being completely honest with her and Klaus so they knock him out and when he wakes up he's in the back of a truck. When Klaus reveals where they are, my only reaction was, "Oh crap...oh crap...oh crap, oh crap..." They're in Mystic Falls. Which means Klaus is going to find out that Elena is alive...which means that he's going to realize she needs to die in order for him to create hybrids...and although it's a television show in which Elena is the main character, so she technically can't die, I have no idea how they're going to figure out a way out of this. And I can tell that Stefan is thinking the same thing as he looks out onto the town.

And now onto this week's episode aired on October 13th:

It's senior prank night at the high school in Mystic Falls and all our favorite characters are there in the middle of the night to booby-trap the school. This means that they are all there together in one spot, perfect for Klaus to find them all no problem. He shows up, finds out that Elena is alive and tells Bonnie that she has to find a way to help him create hybrids. As a little incentive  for Bonnie to act quickly, he feeds Tyler his blood and then kills him, meaning that he's going to wake up and die anyway if he's not able to turn into a hybrid. Great. Bonnie and Matt end up reaching Vicki and she tells them that she has a message from the original witch that Elena has to die in order for Klaus to get what he wants.

Meanwhile, Damon and Katherine are on their road trip and Katherine has kidnapped Jeremy since she found out that he can talk to ghosts. Turns out that Katherine's old friend Pearl knew a way to kill Klaus but only told her daughter Anna. Who happens to be one of the two dead girls that Jeremy is able to speak to. Anna, reluctant to share information unless Jeremy is being threatened, gives up that Michael is the only person who can kill Klaus. He's a vampire vampire hunter...yeah. Anna also tells them that they don't want to wake him because he'll kill everyone. Think that will stop them? Yea, me either.

In the mean time, Stefan has been compelled to feed on Elena in the twenty minutes that Klaus has set on the countdown. Stefan explains to Elena that once he starts feeding, he won't be able to stop, because he's a ripper and rippers don't stop. Elena has a hard time buying this and continues to give him a pep talk about how she has faith in him and he can do anything he puts his mind to. The twenty minutes ends and Stefan tries extremely hard to fight the compulsion and his own instincts. He is able to say no to Klaus, but Klaus seriously compels him and makes him turn off the switch. Stefan now has no feelings other than his natural instincts, and rushes at Elena to feed on her.

Klaus overhears Bonnie and Matt talking about the information Vicki told them and Klaus realizes that Elena can't die. You see, the original witch hated Klaus so Klaus knows to do everything the opposite of what she would say. Therefore, he feeds Tyler Elena's blood and Tyler is now officially a hybrid. Elena wakes up in a hospital where they are taking her blood from her to supply Klaus. Damon arrives in time to inform Klaus of the threat that Michael possesses and Klaus flees the town.

Damon takes Elena back to his house and they have another bonding moment where he promises he'll never leave her again. He offers to make her forget but she says she needs to remember. When he gives her her necklace back, she doesn't take it and looks completely disgusted at what it represents. I think she's beginning to hate Stefan. Speaking of Stefan, he shows up at this moment and tells them that he's there to keep an eye on Elena for Klaus to make sure she doesn't go anywhere and stays out of trouble. Dun dun dun...

Seriously, this show is insane. With every week I get more and more into it. What I really want to know is WHY Klaus is creating a hybrid army. I think everyone wants to know the same thing because Rebekah asks him if it's just so he won't be alone forever. He looks like he tears up at this part, but is that really all it's about? Also, I know that Stefan flipping the switch means that Elena is going to be able to be with Damon, but I'm a little worried at how it's going to happen. As much as I want them to be together, how are they going to make it so that Elena doesn't look like a flake who switches from one guy to another? And when Stefan gets his feelings back, what will happen then? Cause, we know that eventually he's going to have to get them back. I really like how when Stefan shows up at the mansion at the end, it's like the Pilot episode all over again except with reversed roles. This time, instead of Damon, it's Stefan who is the wild impulsive vampire there to wreak havoc on the town and on Damon and Elena's relationship. Oh dear. This is going to be an extremely interesting season. Only five episodes in and it's already insane. I hope it keeps up!

So Much Drama, So Little Time

Just like I promised, I'm back to talk about Gossip Girl. The season premiere was Monday, September 26th at 8pm, so I'm a little late. It's getting difficult to stay on track with these shows, I must admit. Well, let's get to the review.

Previously on Gossip Girl: 

Georgina Sparks makes a return to NY to find everyone freaking out because Charlie is off her meds and pretending she's Serena, Blair is being held hostage by Russel Thorpe, Chuck comes to the rescue and the two of them head to Louis' fundraiser, but stop first at a bar mitzvah, which is where things get interesting. Seeing them having fun together like this reminds me of why I like them together. So, in a room near the bar mitzvah, they have a little grown up fun. However, when they return to the fundraiser, and Blair is JUST about to end things with Louis, Chuck steps in and tells them they should go through with the wedding. Damn him. Nate and Chuck take off together to God-knows-where, Dan and Eric go to the Hamptons, Serena heads to Cali where she meets a movie director, oh, and there's a pregnancy test in Serena and Blair's trash that can belong to either of them. Dun, dun, dun. Also, Charlie isn't actually cousin Charlie. She's just a random Floridian con-artist hired by Serena's aunt Carol in order to get real-Charlie's trust fund. And Vanessa has stolen Dan's manuscript and has it published without his consent. With that being said, this sets us up for season five. Excited? I am.

Season 5: 
Episode 1
The season starts off with Serena still working for the nice boy she met in the season four finale. Turns out, he's not so nice. Serena takes over his job and in turn gets sabotaged by him. She quits, admits defeat, but yet gets offered an even better job because of it. Oh, Serena. Do you always get what you want in the end?

Meanwhile, Chuck is racing motorcycles, dating around, doing crazy stunts -- in short, he's a danger junkie. Picture the movie "Yes Man" and insert Chuck where Jim Carey should be. He tries convincing Nate and Serena to take up his "say yes" philosophy, which they attempt, leading Nate into the bedroom of Elizabeth Hurley's character, who he doesn't know the name of.

Dan gets wind of a reprint of one of his chapters of his secret manuscript and begs Prince Louis to get it killed, since it concerns his secret kiss with Blair. Not that he tells him this.

Blair is in super-diva-princess mode, complaining about wedding plans and clashing heads with her soon-to-be mother-in-law. Louis doesn't seem to be backing her up as much as she'd like and fails to turn up for an event he promised to take her to, leading Blair to freak out and run into the arms of Dan, who plans to whisk her away to the Hamptons -- fully knowing why Louis ditched her. Louis shows up, explains, Blair is pissed, and Dan gets a check from Vanessa for $10K for the book that he thought he stopped from being published.

Serena decides to stay in CA and meets Ivy/Charlie in a restaurant where she works. Ivy/Charlie reverts back to being Charlie from Florida the instant she sees Serena. I don't think she was just "acting" crazy last season.

AND: Blair and Dorota are both pregnant. Chew on that for a moment while we move on to...

Episode 2

Chuck's been paying tough guys to beat up his already very beaten up body (due to a motorcycle accident), because he's gone crazy. Actually, he's suffering from some psychological problem where he can't feel pain or any kind of feelings anymore. Dan and Nate take it upon themselves to help their friend. Cute.

Louis' sister Beatrice is in town and wants some bonding time with Blair, who is suffering from serious morning sickness. So naturally, Beatrice concludes that Blair is bulimic and determines to prove it to Louis. Somehow, Blair ends up spilling her guts in a bathroom (figuratively and physically) and tells Dan that she's pregnant. Which, of course, Beatrice overhears and "graciously" keeps her secret. We know that's going to backfire.

Nate meets with his mystery woman and actually finds out her name and she offers him a job. Doing what? I have no idea. I don't think he knows either.

Back in Cali, Ivy and Serena are spending tons of time together, completely uprooting Ivy's life there. In the end, Serena gives her her trust fund (which isn't actually hers if you remember) and the two of them go back to New York, leaving Ivy's boyfriend in the dust. This girl is tapped.


It ends with Blair and Dan bonding, with Dan telling her that even if her whole life falls apart around her, she'll still have him. AW! 

Now that we're all caught up, let me just say...wow. There's too much that goes on in this show to even keep up with it. Which, I suppose is the reason why I love it.

I like Blair and Chuck together. I always have. They're clearly made for each other in a way that no one else can compare. Or so I thought... This whole Dan/Blair situation has me all confused! Why am I suddenly looking forward to the scenes that they have together? Why did I want Dan to whisk Blair away from Louis and New York? Why do I get so invested in these shows? Okay, ignore that last question. I'm completely going against my whole belief in true love -- mainly, Blair and Chuck have to be together. But Dan... Darn it. I don't even know what to think.

Anyway. Charlie, Ivy, whoever she is, is all sorts of crazy and I'm curious to know what's going to happen there. Obviously she can't hold up the act for long. Maybe the real Charlie will pay a visit to NY? Or maybe Max, Ivy's boyfriend from Cali will make an appearance? Who knows, but I'll laugh at her misfortune.

Speaking of crazy. Chuck is going off the deep end. I feel for him, but he's being a tad dramatic. After all, he's the one who chose to let Blair go off with too-good-to-be-true Prince Charming/Louis.

I have to say, I like where Dan's storyline is heading this year. It's keeping my interest and it's much newer than his pining for Serena like most of the other seasons. I can't say the same about Nate, however. I really like Nate's character -- how can I not? -- but he's just so pointless to the story most of the time! I mean, other than being there for his friends when they're having meltdowns, which admittedly happens a lot, he doesn't do much in the way of fueling the storyline. But, Dan got interesting, maybe Nate will too...

What I'm most interested in is Blair's pregnancy. What's going to happen to her perfect future? Because you know it's Chuck's baby. That's the kind of drama that this show thrives on. And I'm sure there's tons to come.

The third episode aired tonight. Good thing I recorded it. I'm going to watch it tonight, take some notes, and post later during the week. Until then!

TVD, You've Done it Again

 The Vampire Diaries' sesaon premiere aired on Thursday, September 15th, with much anticipation on my part, let me tell you. Honestly, I was never really that interested in TVD when it first started. Whenever I would see previews it would just remind me of Twilight, and who really wants to see another show about vampires and werewolves? Though, I have to admit, I was a huge fan of Twilight before it got popular. I won't even tell you how many times I read the first book. But, when the movies started coming out I realized that it was an obsession for a lot of people, and the movies were horrible! What was the hold over these people? The storyline was so simple and predictable and the acting?! (If acting is what you want to call it) Don't even get me started...That's a rant for another day. Needless to say, these are the opinions I would associate with The Vampire Diaries and I wasted two years not watching this great show because of my prejudice against anything vampire-related.

I started watching Vampire Diaries shortly after the second season finished airing. I'm not sure why I started watching. Maybe because it was summer hiatus for all my usual shows and I needed something to occupy my spare time? Whatever the reason, I was hooked. This wasn't some sappy love story with some romanticized version of vampires (sparkling in the sun? what? come on.). This is a show that stays (mostly) true to vampire lore. They aren't cuddly bunnies that won't harm humans. They're vicious, manipulative, undead creatures, who of course, are alluring to humans simply to feed on them. Alright, alright, as it's a show for teens and adults alike (mostly teenage girls) there is going to be romance and all vampires can't be bad. There has to be some exceptions to the rule.

But back to my point: Every chance I had I would watch episodes online, and when I wasn't watching, I was thinking about when I could watch again. I watched both seasons (all 44 episodes) in under a month and wasn't sure what to do with myself afterwards. So of course, I watched them again (I'm not obsessed, I swear!). Despite Supernatural being my favorite show on TV, I think The Vampire Diaries has quickly rocketed to the top of my list to tie with Supernatural. It's not just all of the beautiful people they chose to play these characters, though, yes, they are beautiful (and can even act!), but it's the fact that they can come up with different and unique storylines that leave you wanting more, and can sometimes even surprise you. Awesome, no?

SO, with the background story of how I started watching TVD explained (as if you guys care, right?), I'll get into a quick review of the past three episodes of season three, since that is what I originally intended to write about. At least, I'll try to make it quick...

This is where I warn you about spoilers, so... *Spoiler alert*

Previously on The Vampire Diaries:
Elena was sacrificed by Klaus to complete his transformation into vampire-werewolf hybrid status. But thanks to her dad, who gave up his life to bring her back, she's no longer dead. Damon, who almost died from a werewolf bite (fatal to vamps) and shared a "goodbye" kiss with Elena (I'd say it was more than that, wouldn't you?), was saved with a cure found by Stefan who gave up his freedom and humanity to Klaus and has gone all good-vamp-gone-bad, leaving Mystic Falls (and therefore Elena) never to return again. Jenna, Elena's aunt, was also sacrificed to Klaus, but she actually is really dead. The episode was clearly all about sacrifice, right? Jeremy was brought back to life by Bonnie and is now seeing the ghosts-of-girlfriends-past (and no, I don't mean the geeky Emma Stone type). Oh and it ends with Caroline and Tyler getting cuddly on the couch. There, all caught up?

Presently on The Vampire Diaries: 

The season starts a few months after season two ended, aka Elena's eighteenth birthday. A lot of stuff happens in these three episodes so I'll try to sum it up quickly for you.

First episode: Elena has been hunting for Stefan, with no luck. She brings any leads she finds to Damon, who acts like he doesn't care, but we know that he has a closet full of leads (literally). Alaric joins Damon in Stefan-hunting and they find out that Stefan and Klaus are leaving a trail of blood behind them as they search for werewolves. When Damon confronts Stefan, Stefan kills Andie (Damon's compelled fake girlfriend) as a warning to back off and show that he's serious about being bad. When Elena confronts Damon about his closet of clues, Damon tells her that Stefan has flipped the switch and is gone for good. Meanwhile, Jeremy is talking to Matt about his ghost-seeing abilities, Caroline and Tyler have a thing going on, and oh yea, Tyler's mom knows Caroline is a vamp, kidnapped her, and hand-delivered her to her own vampire-hunting daddy. Peachy.
Second episode: We find out that Klaus (and inevitably Stefan) is searching for werewolves in order to create a werewolf-vampire hybrid army, but is unable to turn them due to the fact that his doppelganger (Elena) isn't actually dead. Thankfully, he doesn't know this. Elena, meanwhile, convinces Alaric to go to the mountains with her to follow a lead in search for Stefan. Alaric calls Damon mid-trip to tattle on Elena and the two of them attempt to change her mind about the rescue mission. They fail - obviously. Damon ends up in a fight with a werewolf/vamp and almost gets hurt, leading Elena to abort the mission out of worry for him. Aw. Also, Jeremy and Matt continue trying to figure out what's up with the ghost thing,  Tyler shows his mom what he is, and she is surprisingly supportive of both him and Caroline because of it. Aaand, last but not least, Damon changes his mind after a confrontation with Stefan (in which Stefan saves his life) and tells Elena that Stefan isn't gone for good and they can try to save him. But only after he forces her to admit that she worries about him (Damon) so that she can always remember what she felt for him while Stefan was gone.

Third episode (sick of reading yet? I apologize. Almost done!): ::Takes a deep breath:: Klaus and Stefan arrive in Chicago where they take a trip down memory lane. Apparently way back in the twenties, when Stefan was an evil vamp (by his own free will), he had hung out in a local lounge in Chicago where he met a (vampire) woman named Rebecca, and her brother Nick (Klaus). Rebecca and Stefan fell in love, while Stefan and Nick were the best of friends. When the lounge was attacked one night, Nick/Klaus made Rebecca choose if she wanted to flee with him or stay with Stefan. She chose Stefan. As a result, she was killed by Nick/Klaus. Nick/Klaus then went to Stefan and compelled him to forget the two of them ever existed until he tells him otherwise. Well, that's a twist. So while they're in Chicago, Klaus speaks to a witch about how to find out what's going wrong with his little vampire-werewolf project. She tells him that he needs something Rebecca has, which happens to be her necklace, which happens to be the same necklace Stefan picked up in the 20s and eighty-some-odd years later proceeds to give it to - you guessed it - Elena.  So, Klaus brings his dead sister back and tells her to find him when she wakes up, which she does, which is the precise moment when Stefan gets his memories back. Does this mean he gets back all his old feelings for her? I have a feeling Elena won't like this turn of events. Meanwhile, Elena and Damon track Stefan and try to talk him out of staying with Klaus. Stefan explains that Klaus can't find out that Elena is alive or it'll ruin everything. Duh. So he tells Elena, harshly I might add, that he's never coming back so she should get over him. Ouch. Meanwhile, back in Mystic Falls, Caroline's dad is attempting to torture the vampirey-ness out of her so he won't have to kill her. Luckily, Tyler goes to Sherrif Forbes (Caroline's mom) for help and the two of them are able to save her.

Well, that's it for the catching up part of this post. I'm happy to say that the season started off strong and I'm looking forward to finding out what happens next. There are so many turns that the story could take! For example, will Stefan fall in love with Rebecca now that his memories are back, leaving Elena in Mystic Falls for good? Will Klaus find out that Elena is alive? What's up with Jeremy's visions and why is Ana telling him not to trust Vicky? Is Caroline's dad gone for good? Somehow I doubt it. Needless to say, I can't wait for next week!