To take the cure, or not to take the cure! That’s the question The Vampire Diaries wrestled with during “I’d Leave My Happy Home For You,” as the road to Nina Dobrev‘s exit from the CW hit became clearer.
The Gemini Coven and the alternate worlds have made for a pretty awesome season 6, not counting the strange lack of Enzo/Damon/Alaric interaction. The April 30 episode put an end to that strangeness and also bit the bullet on the whole taking the cure thing. But even with that out of the way, there’s still the big question of how Kai and Lily’s vampire “family” would to get back to the future. Let’s find out together!
Oh Yes It’s Ladies Night
After last week’s episode re-introduced the cure to Elena (Dobrev), this week’s episode didn’t take too long to get to the inevitable: Halfway through the episode, Elena took the cure, and was human again. Apparently, her immediate reaction to Damon’s (Ian Somerhalder) proposal to take the cure with her was to run away from him, literally, until she could figure out what to do. That’s definitely not the best sign of a healthy relationship, but as we all know, when you’re a vampire, everything is “heightened.”
Elena talked it out with Jo (Jodi Lyn O’Keefe) and Bonnie (Kat Graham) — at the “worst bachelorette party ever” — and, like almost everyone else in this episode, they had their thoughts on the matter. Bonnie worried about the possibility of human Elena falling out of love with Damon, while Jo thought it was major, in a vampire marriage proposal sort of way.
The Me In Vampire
Meanwhile, at Alaric’s (Matt Davis) bachelor party — full of people who had no doubt been taught by Alaric at one point in their young lives — everyone took their chance to tell Damon how inherently selfish he can be. That is, everyone but Stefan (Paul Wesley), who Damon spent the majority of the episode avoiding having the talk with. Poor Stefan actually had to learn the news from Enzo (Michael Malarkey), who was seriously spending way too much time sympathizing with Lily and not enough time thinking about his vampire ADHD and how often he jumps from character motivation to character motivation.
The biggest moment of the bachelor party (after Enzo not understanding the concept of Jell-O shots) was Enzo talking to Damon about the cure, making this the first time the supposed BFFs had interacted one-on-one, face-to-face in 14 episodes. Enzo told Damon exactly what Alaric said, what Bonnie said, what Damon has of course said himself, and what the audience really knows, at least deep down — he’s “selfish.” It’s a defining characteristic of Damon Salvatore, and it can be an asset or his downfall, but at the end of the day, that’s it. Alaric says Damon’s “writing checks his ass can’t cash,” but this was the more eloquent version of it. Stefan just called Damon “dickish.”
The Cure
Even with everyone else’s opinions on the matter, the choice to both take the cure was always going to be between Elena and Damon. Keeping the marriage theme going, Damon told Elena “Til death do us part” before she drank the cure (but after he gave her the fantasy of her old house still being there), and once she did, that’s when it hit her: Every good memory of Damon that she had erased came flooding back to her. Really hard and really vividly. Their first date. Their first kiss. Their first dance.
That would have been all well and good if it hadn’t almost gotten her killed by Lily (Annie Wersching) and if it hadn’t reminded her of the time Elena brought up sharing the cure, back in Nova Scotia in season four. Damon’s reaction at the time was pretty blunt and seemed to go with what everyone was saying in this episode: “You know, I used to miss being human. Now I can’t think of anything more miserable on Earth.”
Damon used the it was “a long time ago” excuse, but Elena made it clear that she didn’t want to live in a world where Damon comes to resent her for him becoming human. After all, it’s very telling that everyone in his life — including himself, “a long time ago” or not — tried to talk him out of it.
Varsity Booze
In less earth-shattering, but still pretty depressing news, Matt (Zach Roerig) is being a real Tyler (Michael Trevino) these days and drinking himself to figurative death. He even tried to goad Tyler into triggering his werewolf curse just because of how miserable he was. He even warned Alaric to get out of town with Jo as soon as they get married — i.e.leave while you still can (especially since they are expecting twins that the Gemini coven will want to claim).
It’s a bummer seeing Matt sad, but at this point, it’s unclear what can happen to turn his perpetual frown upside down. It’d be pretty bad if he left town too.
Mommy Dearest
Just when you thought Lily Salvatore couldn’t get any more reprehensible, she spent the entire episode reminding her sons that she thinks they’re worthless, “sad and alone” creatures. That’s all on top of the Ripper spree she kept trying to start in Mystic Falls, as Enzo is apparently the worst sponsor ever, and even Stefan’s firsthand experience as a Ripper won’t get to Lily. The woman’s got a one track mind — well, two track, if you count the insatiable blood lust — and it’s to get her family or friends or whatever she’s calling them these days back.
The fact that she stops herself from feeding on a pregnant (with twins) Jo is almost commendable and possibly proof that there is a chance she could one day care for her sons. However, that was the only moment of humanity and maternal responsibility she showed. She later snapped Damon’s neck, attempted to stake Stefan, and also promised Stefan (and by extension, Damon), that she would make sure he knows what “devastation feels like.” Still, the Salvatore boys remained convinced in her potential rehabilitation and salvation, and ended up locking her in the basement to think about what she’sd done. These characters have killed for much less. Just ask Mason Lockwood.
Welcome Back, Parker
As if there wasn’t enough chaos on the home front, back in the 1903 prison world, Kai (Chris Wood) had neck puncture wounds and a pep in his step. That’s not exactly what we expected or wanted to see after he was left there with Lily’s witchpires, but that Kai really knows how to make friends and influence people. It looks like he may be able to find a way back to the real world soon, and now he’s got these witchpire friends on his side. Jo and Alaric may want to run sooner rather than later.
Tell Us: Was everyone right to call Damon out on not really wanting to take the cure? Is Lily (and possibly Enzo) a lost cause? Doesn’t Matt just break your heart?
