The Vampire Diaries: why you should be watching this teen vamp drama

I’ll readily admit that The Vampire Diaries isn’t the sort of thing that I’m usually drawn to. I mean, how many respectable adults would proudly declare that they’re a fan of a show that sounds like it should be stuffed full of vampiric broodiness and teen angst? (If you’re actually looking for that, I’d recommend watching Twilight.) However, if you managed to watch beyond episode 6 or 7 of the first season, you’ll know (as I do) that The Vampire Diaries is more than just enjoyable, it’s probably one of the most wholeheartedly fun and crazily exciting shows currently on television.

Probably the main reason that I’d recommend The Vampire Diaries to someone who hasn’t watched before is that the story moves very quickly. It moves at such a relentlessly fast pace that within just a single episode you can expect to witness multiple deaths, a whole lot of mystery, genuinely surprising cliffhangers, some romance and feelings, and probably a little bit of obligatory brooding vampires too. Honestly, I don’t know of any other series that I watch that burns through plots at a speed this fast.

If the fact that the show is midway through its second season is stopping you from jumping in right now, I’d say that it does a great job of making its mythology accessible. By the end of the “previously on The Vampire Diaries” part, you should’ve got enough knowledge to follow the action of any given episode.

Perhaps you’re thinking that The Vampire Diaries sounds a little bit like Twilight? You’d be sorely mistaken if you expect them to be similar. For one, the sheer pace at which it moves means you’ll never really see anybody engaging in any Edward Cullen-style brooding. Also, instead of merely reacting to things that happen, the characters of the show really control situations and even though love-triangles and relationship drama exist within the The Vampire Diaries, they’ve never been the driving force of it. (Put simply, Elena [Nina Dobrev] won’t be turning into a vampire for Stefan [Paul Wesley] anytime soon.)

Within season 2, we’ve seen the reappearance of Elena’s very evil doppelganger Katherine, Caroline (Candice Accola) turn into a vampire, the introduction of the inevitable werewolf element to the show, and the threat of the Originals (including the mysterious Klaus). The addition of werewolves has actually been handled surprisingly well, with the show using a character that has been a member of the cast since the very beginning. The episode previous to this one, ‘By the Light of the Moon,’ displayed Tyler’s (Michael Trevino) first werewolf transformation and in Tuesday's episode, ‘The Descent,’ there was some focus on the changed dynamic between Tyler, Caroline and Matt (Zach Roerig). (Matt remains blissfully unaware of any supernatural activity in Mystic Falls.)

The real concern of this episode (which is the continuation after a mid-season hiatus) though is the ramifications that come from Rose (Lauren Cohan) being bitten by the new werewolf in town, Jules (Michaela McManus). ‘The Descent’ is an impressive offering for The Vampire Diaries and it provided a more than decent amount of excellent Damon Salvatore action. As usual, Ian Somerhalder was on fine form as he portrayed Damon confronting the fact that he misses his humanity and he really brought some unexpected emotion to the scenes that he shared with Rose.

If you’re interested in The Vampire Diaries, I’d say that you could definitely jump in right now. I could happily list a load of reasons why it’s worth tuning in for the series but all that you really need to know is that there are a whole lot of very attractive people, some interesting mythology and tons of exciting action in a show that is quite simply a huge amount of fun.

The Vampire Diaries airs on ITV2 at 9pm on Tuesdays. If you missed it, you can catch the last episode on ITV Player.

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