Emily Watches Too Much Television

This blog's TVD recaps are a testament to how much I love Bonnie Bennett, and it's because of this love that it has been so hard to recap the first chapter and a half of this season-- I mean, it has basically been a clip show of Bonnie getting shit on over and over and over: sacrificing her freedom to send Damon home, being tortured on numerous occasions by Kai, being left there all alone by him with no magic to free herself from the prison world, etc etc etc. This episode was pretty hard to watch for this reason, because Bonnie was so lonely , you guys. So lonely that she was totally willing to end her own life (and, if you remember my Season 5 recaps, I also hate the whole suicidal ideation theme of this show, but that's another discussion entirely), and had it not been because of some quick thinking from the astral-projection form of Jeremy, she'd probably be dead right now, and I'm so glad that she isn't. So yeah, this episode is all about Bonnie, specifi...

At this rate, I'm running out of things to say in these introductions, so let's just skip the formalities and get to talking about "Prayer For The Dying," yeah? Especially since I totally posted this without adding in the previouslies because my brain is pretty much scrambled between the scorching heat, a ridiculous case of PMS, and my brain being flooded with recap discussion ideas. Whoops! Previously, on The Vampire Diaries:  Despite the fact that Elena had her memories of loving Damon erased when she thought he had died for good, she has still managed to relearn the good about him and has decided to take the plunge with him again. Kai then captured Elena before she could have dinner with Damon and decided to practice magic on her, because SURPRISE!-- Kai sucked up the anti-magic Travelers spell throughout Mystic Falls, which is good because now the vampires can return home, but it's also bad, because that gave Kai a shitload of powers. Fortunately, Damon man...

Things are getting super-sad in this TVD recap catch-up extravaganza, since Liz Forbes' days are officially numbered, so the next couple recaps are gonna be a doozy to write. When you add this in with the reveal that vampire blood really doesn't cure cancer and the fact that Kai is still causing all kinds of shenanigans, "Woke Up With a Monster" was a pretty intense episode, which, by the way, was directed by Paul Wesley, aka Stefan Salvatore, and he did a really good job, in my humble opinion! So, I'm just going to get on with it, yeah? Previously, on The Vampire Diaries :  Shady Sarah revealed herself to actually be Shady Monique, a childhood best friend to the real Sarah Salvatore. When Enzo realized that Stefan had a secret regarding Sarah that he didn't want anyone to know, he killed Monique and decided to force Matt into joining his "Let's ruin Stefan's life" -cause after Matt tried and failed to kill him. Liz was diagnosed with a ...

It's Christmas in Mystic Falls as we're chugging along in my mania-fueled scramble to catch up on recaps, but unfortunately for the MFG, things are not going that well-- Kai teams up with Tyler, Liv, and a reluctant Luke to force Jo to take her magic back; Liz has a major secret (the fact that she has brain cancer) that finally gets revealed to Caroline and the others when Liz collapses at Caroline's dorm; and Matt and Jeremy make a dumb plan to take out Enzo for good, plus a bunch of other stuff. However, there was one bright spot-- the Traveler's spell to block non-traditional-magic has been sucked up by Kai, which means the vampires can go back to Mystic Falls! The bad news is, now he has all that power, which is likely not going to bode well for anyone. So, let's talk about "Christmas Through Your Eyes " and all the drama that ensued, shall we? Previously, on The Vampire Diaries :  Last season, the Travelers cast a powerful spell that completely bloc...

Alright kids, we're on the clock until Teen Wolf starts, which means that we're going to do this quick and dirty, 'kay? Don't be surprised if this is more review than recap, because between school and nursing-test taking, I've pretty much put myself in a bind this TV season, so I'm going to try my best to keep this relatively short, comparatively speaking. (I mean, we all know that this blog in general is a testament to the fact that I am incapable of writing less than a thousand words on any topic, but fingers crossed I can restrain myself a little ;]) So, let's talk "I Alone!" Previously, on The Vampire Diaries :  Elena and Damon were totally in love, but then Damon sort-of died, and Elena was so devastated that she had Alaric the formerly-Enhanced-Original-vampire compel away all of her memories of loving him. Of course, then Damon came back, thanks to Bonnie's sacrifice, and now Elena only has bad memories of Damon to go on and cannot f...

Welp, it's time for Thanksgiving in May, because we're revisiting Friendsgiving at Whitmore College this week in my continued scramble to catch up on all of my recaps before Teen Wolf starts up again at the end of June. Can I do it? I have no idea, but with some finagling, I think it may be possible. But, we're here to talk about TVD right now, so lets get to it, shall we? In this episode, we got to learn a LOT about the Gemini Coven, including the fact that Kai and Jo, like Liv and Luke, are twins, which are extra special in their coven because they are the ones who become the leaders once they reach the age of 22. Of course, it's not so easy as simply being named the leader-- the twins have to perform a ritual called the Merge ceremony, in which the twins basically battle each other with magic until the stronger twin absorbs the magic of the weaker twin, killing the latter and doubling the strength of the former. Witch covens in this universe are kind of weird, do...

Welp, as far as TVD episodes go, this one was NOT my favorite, and it's probably going to show in the recap. Sorry about that! I'll try my best to be impartial, but between boring Liam and the Damon/Elena drama heartache, the Tripp storyline, and Bonnie being psychologically and physically tortured by Kai, I was just not very impressed. On a positive note, I did think the dialogue was hilarious, so I will probably be doing a lot of transcription to make up for it. I'm gonna try to do this short-and-dirty style so we can all move onto the much better episodes that follow, but since I don't really have much control over my word vomit, I'm not sure how well that's gonna go. Okay, let's talk about "Do You Remember The First Time?" Previously, on The Vampire Diaries :  Damon and Bonnie died, but not really-- instead of moving on to the still-undefined afterlife following the destruction of the Other Side, they were sent to a mystical prison world tha...

Alright kids, since I am so behind that I will literally be drowning in unfinished recaps until the end of my days,  to the point where my descendants will probably end up having to finish for me at this rate, I'm going to have to speed things along a bit. So, this recap is gonna be a sort of fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants deal where it will (hopefully) be shorter and less detailed than usual, and probably a handful at least of the TVD recaps are probably going to be this way. Then again, since I can turn anything into a novel without really trying, who knows what's going to happen? Let's just get to it, yeah? Previously, on The Vampire Diaries :   Damon died in the explosion to sacrifice the rest of the Travelers and was unable to come back from the Other Side in the resurrection spell, so he and Bonnie got sucked into a prison dimension, leaving all of their loved ones behind. Elena was so distraught by their loss (and Damon's especially, since she's never had to ...

So hey, there's tons of progress in this episode, right? I mean, we get a crazy corn maze festival for most of our main characters (and if you have not experienced a corn maze, you need to make it out to the midwestern USA, because it can actually be really fun if it's not super hot or rainy), and learn a little more about Kai. Plus, we got a little scare with Tyler nearly triggering his werewolf curse that resulted in a surprising show of care and loyalty from Liv, which I was NOT expecting. Also, we get some hilarious Caroline/Ivy moments, a brilliant call-out on Alaric's part to Stefan, and best of all, DAMON IS BACK IN THE REAL WORLD, YAYYYY. There were some bad parts, such as what Kai did to Bonnie (and anyone who hurts Bonnie instantly gets put on my shitlist, tbh), Stefan's general attitude toward Ivy and Caroline, and ESPECIALLY the fact that BONNIE IS STILL IN THE PRISON DIMENSION AND NOT IN THE LIVING WORLD WHERE SHE DESERVES TO BE. Even months later, I am s...

Aside from being a 1994 classic by Soundgarden, "Black Hole Sun" was also a very entertaining and interesting episode of The Vampire Diaries , full of flashbacks to the Salvatore brothers in 1994, which finally explains what led to the final estrangement between Stefan and Damon that lasted until we met them for the first time in the pilot in 2009. Also notable in the episode was some interesting backstory regarding our newest bad guy, Malachai, known as Kai. Kai in particular is giving me all kinds of issues, because he's super entertaining and wildly attractive, not to mention the fact that his actor, Chris Wood, is doing EXCELLENT WORK to portray him, but he's clearly a sociopath and is no doubt going to be bad news for our Mystic Falls Gang, so I'm so torn! Also, Bonnie and Damon's relationship continues to be awesome, as well as Stefan and Elena's, as the two have finally gotten over each other for good and moved past their toxic, codependent romanti...

Ugh, real life sucks, doesn't it? My professors at school seem to think that their students only have their class and no others to worry about, so they assign hours upon hours of work, I've been spending 95% of my limited free time studying like a madwoman for the NCLEX (which I'm taking  I took  on the 20th! AND I PASSED! WOOT!) and as a result, I am RIDICULOUSLY behind on recaps, and for that I am so, so sorry! Never fear, I will be continuing to recap as much as I can, but chances are I won't have an opportunity to fully dedicate myself to catching up at least until after the NCLEX, if not when winter break rolls around. So, please keep checking in when you can, because I will be trying to get up new content as quickly as possible given the too-full plate I have going right now. Thank you guys so much for your patience. :) It drives me crazy when I can't meet my own deadlines, but sometimes you just have to be an adult and do what you need to do, you know? (Edite...

Ugh, this episode was such a rollercoaster! On the one hand, I have the Alaric/Elena relationship and the Damon/Elena relationship making me cry my eyes out, and then on the other hand, Damon and Bonnie are, like, the light of my soul. So many conflicting feelings! And then, when you add in the anxiety and stress that comes from Tripp's confession and actions at the end of the episode, I am both excited and ridiculously nervous for what is to come! EEEEE. Also, this is a little off-topic, but it's recently been brought to my attention by a reader that I've never put my Tumblr URL up on this blog? SO, if you're a fan of TV show gifsets, flailing liveblogs during the airing of said TV shows, with a light sprinkling of feminist/SJ stuff scattered around, feel free to follow me at emily--kate . Anyway, I'm already so fucking behind because school and studying for exams has just sucked up literally all of my time, so let's just hop to it, yeah? I have a shitload ...

[Once again, sorry for the lateness, y'all! Midterms were this week and they were super brutal, but I am determined to get back on schedule ASAP so I don't run into the same problem I did last year when I thought I could recap three shows at once on top of school and work. Thanks for your patience!-- Emily] So, Kathleen and I watched TVD together this week, as per our Thursday tradition dating back to at least mid-season 4, and honestly, neither of us were super impressed. Still, I resolved to give it another couple of episodes, at least until we get a better idea of what Damon and Bonnie are up to, etc. Then, I decided to rewatch the episode, which ended up actually changing my own mind about a lot of it. Watching all of our faves in the Mystic Falls Gang being split apart because of everything that happened at the last season was an interesting change of pace. It felt like a pilot in a way, or a reboot, (which is likely why Kath and I weren't huge fans, at least at ...