Once again Mystic Falls is having its annual Miss Mystic Pageant, an event you might remember from season one of The Vampire Diaries. And, just like the first one we attended, one of the contestants needs a last minute replacement escort. Last year, Damon came to the rescue of Elena after Stefan was preoccupied with some blood business. This time around, April Young gets momentarily stood up by Jeremy, who has some blood business of his own, only to have Matt swoop in at the very last second.
While all this drama is unfolding, the hostest with the mostest, Caroline (Candice Accola) is less concerned with missing escorts and more concerned with Elena’s new romantic developments. Now I know that Caroline and Damon had a compulsion-induced fling back in her human days, but she seems a little too invested. Her ‘Team Stefan’ support is great, but doesn’t she have her own relationship issues to worry about?
Besides hosting the event, Caroline is holding up her end of the deal and has agreed to have Klaus (Joseph Morgan) come as her date. Unlike the normal horror of an orginal he usually runs around as, today is he is the perfect gentleman. Even his suit compliments the colors of Caroline’s dress. And, as unusual as it is to say, he was extremely pleasant – the entire time. If this is the Klaus we can expect when he has Caroline’s attention – even if it’s under false pretenses – we may be in for a whole new man, er umm hybrid.
Either way, having Caroline as an ally can’t hurt at this point. With most of the vampires around town hating him, and his hybrid army slowly becoming un-syered thanks to Tyler (Michael Trevino) and Hayley (Phoebe Tonkin), anyone is better than no one. Which brings up some interesting questions about what will happen once all the hybrids don’t feel obliged to follow through with Klaus’s orders. Will he unstake Rebekah (Claire Holt)? Will Elijah (Daniel Gillies) show up to even the odds? Or, will a new alliance save him this time?
Despite popular opinion, I find Klaus refreshing. He may have some severely unorthodox ideas and I’m not condoning most of his actions, but he’s at least interesting. He adds a distinct layer to The Vampire Diaries that gives the show a certain amount of depth. We have watched his character evolve and develop over the last season and a half, and there’s something very hopeful about him anytime he’s around Caroline. I’m definitely on the Team Klaus/Caroline bandwagon. In fact, he may have been the most well-behaved attendee of the pageant this year – not a single moment of inappropriate behavior. Shocker.
Another shocker was the arrival of Professor Shane (David Alpay). He has certainly become a fixture in the affairs – supernatural or otherwise – of Mystic Falls. Considering we’ve never been introduced to him before this season, it seems like an unwelcomed intrusion. Especially now that he appears to be at the helm of a kill-Klaus plan, or at least that’s what the evidence is pointing to after the little revelation toward the end of the episode. It’s one thing if Stefan, Damon, and their crew plot to take down King Klaus, but it’s an entirely different when an outsider butts in.
Well, between this new coalition of outsiders and the Elena/Damon theory that Caroline has worked up, things around town don’t look like they’ll be slowing down at all. Finally when we think Delena may be full-steam ahead – road block. If Elena’s guilt is magnified now that she’s a vampire, imagine how she’ll feel about hurting Stefan when she finds out she may be experiencing an intense power of persuasion that she can’t control. Tricky, tricky writers.
I’m still crossing my fingers for Elena and Damon. Are you?
Until next episode.